Establishment of an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line (INNDSUi004-A) from a patient with Congenital Nemaline Myopathy.

We used a non-integrated reprogramming approach to establish a human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line (INNDSUi004-A) from the skin fibroblasts of a 13-year-old female individual with Congenital Nemaline Myopath. The cells obtained have typical characteristics of embryonic stem cells, show expression of specific pluripotency markers, and can differentiate into three germ layers in vitro. This iPSC cell line has the genetic information of the patient and is a good model for studying disease mechanisms and developing novel therapies.

Levels, Distribution and Ecological Risk Assessment of PBDEs in Soils and Plants Around the Engineering Plastics Factory.

This study systematically investigated the pollution levels and migration trends of PBDEs in soils and plants around engineering plastics factory, and identified the ecological risks of PBDEs in the environment around typical pollution sources.The results showed that 13 kinds of PBDEs were widely detected in the surrounding areas, and the concentration level was higher than the general environmental pollution level. The total PBDE concentrations (∑13PBDEs) in soils ranged from 14.6 to 278.4 ng/g dry weight (dw), and in plants ranged from 11.5 to 176 ng/g dw. Both soil and plant samples showed that BDE-209 was the most important congener, the pollution level in soil and plant was similar, and the composition of PBDEs congener was similar. In the soil column (50 cm), the radial migration of PBDEs was mainly concentrated in the 0-30 cm section. Except for BDE-66, which was mainly located in the 20-30 cm soil layer, the concentration of PBDEs was the highest in the 0-10 cm region. Furthermore, the environmental risks of PBDEs in soil and plants were evaluated by hazard quotient method, and the HQ values were all < 1, which did not exhibit any ecological risk. The evaluation results also showed that the ecological risk of PBDEs in soil was higher than that of plants, especially penta-BDE, which should be paid more attention.

Establishment of an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line (INNDSUi005-A) from a healthy female Chinese Han.

We obtained skin fibroblasts from a 34-year-old healthy woman and established a human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line (INDSUi005-A) using a non-integrated reprogramming approach. The obtained cells have typical characteristics of embryonic stem cells, can express specific pluripotency markers and have the ability to differentiate into three germ layers in vitro. This iPSC cell line can be used as an in vitro model for studying disease mechanisms and developing novel therapies.

TriPleX™ waveguide-based fluorescence biosensor for multichannel environmental contaminants detection.

In order to realize the multi-analyte assays for environmental contaminants, an optical biosensor utilizing laser-induced fluorescence-based detection via the binding of biomolecules to the surface of an integrated TriPleX™ waveguide chip on a glass substrate (fused silica, FS) is described. As far as we know, this is the first demonstration of using the TriPleX™ technology to fabricate the waveguide chip on a FS substrate. The sensor consists of 32 individually addressable sensor patches, which were formed on the chip surface by exploiting 3 Y-junction splitters, creating four equal rows of eight evanescently excited windows in parallel. The basic low-loss SiO2/Si3N4 TriPleX™ waveguide configuration in combination with on-chip spotsize convertors allows for both high fiber-to-chip coupling efficiency and enables at the same time individually optimized high chip surface intensity and low patch-to-patch deviation. Moreover, the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor compatible fabrication of waveguide chip allows for its mass production at low cost. By taking MC-LR, 2,4-D, atrazine and BPA as the model analytes, the as-proposed waveguide based biosensor was proven sensitive with the detection limits of 0.22 µg/L for MC-LR, 1.18 µg/L for 2, 4-D, 0.2 µg/L for atrazine and 0.06 µg/L for BPA. Recoveries of the biosensor towards simultaneous detection of MC-LR, 2, 4-D, atrazine and BPA in spiked real water samples varied from 84% to 120%, indicating the satisfactory accuracy of the established technology.

Facile screening of potential xenoestrogens by an estrogen receptor-based reusable optical biosensor.

The apparent increase in hormone-induced cancers and disorders of the reproductive tract has led to a growing demand for new technologies capable of screening xenoestrogens. We reported an estrogen receptor (ER)-based reusable fiber biosensor for facile screening estrogenic compounds in environment. The bioassay is based on the competition of xenoestrogens with 17ß-estradiol (E2) for binding to the recombinant receptor of human estrogen receptor α (hERα) protein, leaving E2 free to bind to fluorophore-labeled anti-E2 monoclonal antibody. Unbound anti-E2 antibody then binds to the immobilized E2-protein conjugate on the fiber surface, and is detected by fluorescence emission induced by evanescent field. As expected, the stronger estrogenic activity of xenoestrogen would result in the weaker fluorescent signal. Three estrogen-agonist compounds, diethylstilbestrol (DES), 4-n-nonylphenol (NP) and 4-n-octylphenol (OP), were chosen as a paradigm for validation of this assay. The rank order of estrogenic potency determined by this biosensor was DES>OP>NP, which were consistent with the published results in numerous studies. Moreover, the E2-protein conjugate modified optical fiber was robust enough for over 300 sensing cycles with the signal recoveries ranging from 90% to 100%. In conclusion, the biosensor is reusable, reliable, portable and amenable to on-line operation, providing a facile, efficient and economical alternative to screen potential xenoestrogens in environment.