Preparation and evaluation of chitosan- and hyaluronic acid-grafted pullulan succinate films for skin wound healing.

A novel wound dressing that possesses antibacterial properties and accelerates skin wound repair was developed by physically blending hyaluronic acid-grafted pullulan succinate (HA-st-Pu) with chitosan (CS). The HA-st-Pu polymer was synthesized and characterized, and then CS/HA-st-Pu film dressings were prepared by a freeze-drying method. The novel film wound dressings exhibited a three-dimensional cavity structure under scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and a better swelling ratio than CS, HA and Pu alone, absorbing a large amount of liquid and effectively maintaining the moist environment of the wound. CS/HA-st-Pu materials had no cytotoxicity and increased cell proliferation when coincubated with L929 cells. Moreover, CS/HA-st-Pu wound dressings exhibited a certain antibacterial capability against E. coli and S. aureus. In rat skin wound healing, CS/HA-st-Pu film dressings outperformed both the control and market band-aid groups with respect to the reduction of inflammation and acceleration of wound closure.

Adaptor Template Oligo-Mediated Sequencing (ATOM-Seq) is a new ultra-sensitive UMI-based NGS library preparation technology for use with cfDNA and cfRNA.

Liquid biopsy testing utilising Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) is rapidly moving towards clinical adoption for personalised oncology. However, before NGS can fulfil its potential any novel testing approach must identify ways of reducing errors, allowing separation of true low-frequency mutations from procedural artefacts, and be designed to improve upon current technologies. Popular NGS technologies typically utilise two DNA capture approaches; PCR and ligation, which have known limitations and seem to have reached a development plateau with only small, stepwise improvements being made. To maximise the ultimate utility of liquid biopsy testing we have developed a highly versatile approach to NGS: Adaptor Template Oligo Mediated Sequencing (ATOM-Seq). ATOM-Seq's strengths and versatility avoid the major limitations of both PCR- and ligation-based approaches. This technology is ligation free, simple, efficient, flexible, and streamlined, and it offers novel advantages that make it perfectly suited for use on highly challenging clinical material. Using reference and clinical materials, we demonstrate detection of known SNVs down to allele frequencies of 0.1% using as little as 20-25 ng of cfDNA, as well as the ability to detect fusions from RNA. We illustrate ATOM-Seq's suitability for clinical testing by showing high concordance rates between paired cfDNA and FFPE clinical samples.

Single-tube, dual channel pentaplexing for the identification of Candida strains associated with human infection.

Invasive candidiasis is one of the most common nosocomial fungal infections worldwide. Delayed implementation of effective antifungal treatment caused by inefficient Candida diagnosis contributes to its notoriously high mortality rates. The availability of better Candida diagnostic tools would positively impact patient outcomes. Here, we report on the development of a single-tube, dual channel pentaplex molecular diagnostic assay based on Multiplex Probe Amplification (MPA) technology. It allows simultaneous identification of C. auris, C. glabrata and C. krusei, at species-level as well as of six additional albicans and non-albicans pathogenic Candida at genus level. The assay overcomes the one-channel one-biomarker limitation of qPCR-based assays. Assay specificities are conferred by unique biomarker probe pairs with characteristic melting temperatures; post-amplification melting curve analysis allows simple identification of the infectious agent. Alerting for the presence of C. auris, the well-characterised multi-drug resistant outbreak strain, will facilitate informed therapy decisions and aid antifungal stewardship. The MPA-Candida assay can also be coupled to a pan-Fungal assay when differentiation between fungal and bacterial infections might be desirable. Its multiplexing capacity, detection range, specificity and sensitivity suggest the potential use of this novel MPA-Candida assay in clinical diagnosis and in the control and management of hospital outbreaks.

Principles and analytical performance of Papilloplex® HR-HPV, a new commercial CE-IVD molecular diagnostic test for the detection of high-risk HPV genotypes.

The accurate detection and genotyping of high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) are critical for cervical cancer screening and epidemiological investigations. GeneFirst Papilloplex® HR-HPV is a new CE-IVD-marked real-time PCR test based on patented multiplex probe amplification technology. Papilloplex® HR-HPV provides the simultaneous detection and differentiation of 14 HR-HPV genotypes (16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, and 68a/b) in a single closed-tube reaction ensuring rapid, cost-effective, and contamination-free results. In this study, the analytical performance characteristics in terms of the assay's sensitivity, specificity, range, reproducibility, and cross-reactivity were evaluated. Papilloplex® HR-HPV provided sensitive detection and differentiation of 14 HR-HPV types with highly reproducible results. The differential HR-HPV specificity and sensitivity were further confirmed through the participation in the WHO HPV Laboratory Network Proficiency Study (2014). Overall, GeneFirst Papilloplex® HR-HPV assay demonstrated a robust analytical performance with reproducible and reliable results in the detection of HR-HPV genotypes.

Fire safety enhancement of a highly efficient flame retardant poly(phenylphosphoryl phenylenediamine) in biodegradable poly(lactic acid).

Flame-retarded poly(lactic acid) (PLA) biodegradable materials are viewed as promising as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based commodity polymers. A new highly efficient flame retardant, poly(phenylphosphoryl phenylenediamine) (PPDA), was synthesized by the condensation of phenylphosphoryl dichloride with p-phenylenediamine and its structure was confirmed by 1H nulear magnetic resonance and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. When 3 wt% PPDA was incorporated into PLA, the limited oxygen index increased from 20.0% of neat PLA to 25.5% and its UL-94 vertical burning testing achieved V-0 rating. Moreover, the total heat release and peak heat release rate values of PLA/3 wt% PPDA material were decreased from 109.1 MJ/m2 and 643.7 kW/m2 of PLA to 98.3 MJ/m2 and 570.0 kW/m2, respectively, and the fire performance index increased from 0.081 of PLA to 0.132 m2 s/kW. The high fire safety of PPDA in PLA is mainly attributed to the combined effects of the phosphorous-containing radical inhibition and inert gases and the barrier action of the formed char layer. The addition of less than 3 wt% PPDA has little influence on the tensile and impact properties of PLA. The flame retardant PLA blends have great application potential in electrical casing, automobile interiors and three-dimensional printing materials.

Genetic elimination of field-cage populations of Mediterranean fruit flies.

The Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly, Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann) is a pest of over 300 fruits, vegetables and nuts. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a control measure used to reduce the reproductive potential of populations through the mass release of sterilized male insects that mate with wild females. However, SIT flies can display poor field performance, due to the effects of mass-rearing and of the irradiation process used for sterilization. The development of female-lethal RIDL (release of insects carrying a dominant lethal) strains for medfly can overcome many of the problems of SIT associated with irradiation. Here, we present life-history characterizations for two medfly RIDL strains, OX3864A and OX3647Q. Our results show (i) full functionality of RIDL, (ii) equivalency of RIDL and wild-type strains for life-history characteristics, and (iii) a high level of sexual competitiveness against both wild-type and wild-derived males. We also present the first proof-of-principle experiment on the use of RIDL to eliminate medfly populations. Weekly releases of OX3864A males into stable populations of wild-type medfly caused a successive decline in numbers, leading to eradication. The results show that genetic control can provide an effective alternative to SIT for the control of pest insects.

Cloning, expression and molecular characterization of a 14-3-3 gene from a parasitic ciliate, Cryptocaryon irritans.

Cryptocaryon irritans is a parasitic ciliate and responsible for cryptocaryosis of ocean teleostean. In this paper, one gene homologous to 14-3-3 was isolated from cDNA library of C. irritans trophont/protomont stage and designated as Ci14-3-3. The full-length cDNA of the gene was 892bp with an open reading frame of 744bp, which encoded a polypeptide of 247 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 28.4kDa. After modification of the non-universal genetic codes, the open reading frame of Ci14-3-3 was inserted into plasmid pGEX-4T-1, transformed into Escherichia coli DH5α strain and then expressed as a glutathione S transferase fusion protein (rCi14-3-3). The result of western blot analysis showed that the rCi14-3-3 had antigenicity and the Ci14-3-3 gene in C. irritans was expressed at all stages of life cycle. The endogenous Ci14-3-3 not only distributed in cytoplasm, but also presented on the plasma membrane and the front end of cytostome in newly hatched theronts. However, when theronts were dying the protein appeared as dot-like aggregates around the nucleuses. The murine anti-rCi14-3-3 sera were capable of causing agglutination/immobilization of theronts, suggesting its potential for vaccine development.

Engineered female-specific lethality for control of pest Lepidoptera.

The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a pest control strategy involving the mass release of radiation-sterilized insects, which reduce the target population through nonviable matings. In Lepidoptera, SIT could be more broadly applicable if the deleterious effects of sterilization by irradiation could be avoided. Moreover, male-only release can improve the efficacy of SIT. Adequate methods of male-only production in Lepidoptera are currently lacking, in contrast to some Diptera. We describe a synthetic genetic system that allows male-only moth production for SIT and also replaces radiation sterilization with inherited female-specific lethality. We sequenced and characterized the doublesex (dsx) gene from the pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella). Sex-alternate splicing from dsx was used to develop a conditional lethal genetic sexing system in two pest moths: the diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and pink bollworm. This system shows promise for enhancing existing pink bollworm SIT, as well as broadening SIT-type control to diamondback moth and other Lepidoptera.

Transgene-based, female-specific lethality system for genetic sexing of the silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Transgene-based genetic sexing methods are being developed for insects of agricultural and public health importance. Male-only rearing has long been sought in sericulture because males show superior economic characteristics, such as better fitness, lower food consumption, and higher silk yield. Here we report the establishment of a transgene-based genetic sexing system for the silkworm, Bombyx mori. We developed a construct in which a positive feedback loop regulated by sex-specific alternative splicing leads to high-level expression of the tetracycline-repressible transactivator in females only. Transgenic animals show female-specific lethality during embryonic and early larval stages, leading to male-only cocoons. This transgene-based female-specific lethal system not only has wide application in sericulture, but also has great potential in lepidopteran pest control.

Development of a population suppression strain of the human malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles stephensi.

BACKGROUND: Transgenic mosquito strains are being developed to contribute to the control of dengue and malaria transmission. One approach uses genetic manipulation to confer conditional, female-specific dominant lethality phenotypes. Engineering of a female-specific flightless phenotype provides a sexing mechanism essential for male-only mosquito, release approaches that result in population suppression of target vector species. METHODS: An approach that uses a female-specific gene promoter and antibiotic-repressible lethal factor to produce a sex-specific flightless phenotype was adapted to the human malaria vector, Anopheles stephensi. Transposon- and site-specific recombination-mediated technologies were used to generate a number of transgenic An. stephensi lines that when combined through mating produced the phenotype of flight-inhibited females and flight-capable males. RESULTS: The data shown here demonstrate the successful engineering of a female-specific flightless phenotype in a malaria vector. The flightless phenotype was repressible by the addition of tetracycline to the larval diet. This conditional phenotype allows the rearing of the strains under routine laboratory conditions. The minimal level of tetracycline that rescues the flightless phenotype is higher than that found as an environmental contaminant in circumstances where there is intensive use of antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: These studies support the further development of flightless female technology for applications in malaria control programmes that target the vectors.

Polymerase chain displacement reaction.

Quantitative PCR assays are now the standard method for viral diagnostics. These assays must be specific, as well as sensitive, to detect the potentially low starting copy number of viral genomic material. We describe a new technique, polymerase chain displacement reaction (PCDR), which uses multiple nested primers in a rapid, capped, one-tube reaction that increases the sensitivity of normal quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays. Sensitivity was increased by approximately 10-fold in a proof-of-principle test on dengue virus sequence. In PCDR, when extension occurs from the outer primer, it displaces the extension strand produced from the inner primer by utilizing a polymerase that has strand displacement activity. This allows a greater than 2-fold increase of amplification product for each amplification cycle and therefore increased sensitivity and speed over conventional PCR. Increased sensitivity in PCDR would be useful in nucleic acid detection for viral diagnostics.

Engineered repressible lethality for controlling the pink bollworm, a lepidopteran pest of cotton.

The sterile insect technique (SIT) is an environmentally friendly method of pest control in which insects are mass-produced, irradiated and released to mate with wild counterparts. SIT has been used to control major pest insects including the pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella Saunders), a global pest of cotton. Transgenic technology has the potential to overcome disadvantages associated with the SIT, such as the damaging effects of radiation on released insects. A method called RIDL (Release of Insects carrying a Dominant Lethal) is designed to circumvent the need to irradiate insects before release. Premature death of insects' progeny can be engineered to provide an equivalent to sterilisation. Moreover, this trait can be suppressed by the provision of a dietary antidote. In the pink bollworm, we generated transformed strains using different DNA constructs, which showed moderate-to-100% engineered mortality. In permissive conditions, this effect was largely suppressed. Survival data on cotton in field cages indicated that field conditions increase the lethal effect. One strain, called OX3402C, showed highly penetrant and highly repressible lethality, and was tested on host plants where its larvae caused minimal damage before death. These results highlight a potentially valuable insecticide-free tool against pink bollworm, and indicate its potential for development in other lepidopteran pests.

Multiplex detection and SNP genotyping in a single fluorescence channel.

Probe-based PCR is widely used for SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) genotyping and pathogen nucleic acid detection due to its simplicity, sensitivity and cost-effectiveness. However, the multiplex capability of hydrolysis probe-based PCR is normally limited to one target (pathogen or allele) per fluorescence channel. Current fluorescence PCR machines typically have 4-6 channels. We present a strategy permitting the multiplex detection of multiple targets in a single detection channel. The technique is named Multiplex Probe Amplification (MPA). Polymorphisms of the CYP2C9 gene (cytochrome P450, family 2, subfamily C, polypeptide 9, CYP2C9*2) and human papillomavirus sequences HPV16, 18, 31, 52 and 59 were chosen as model targets for testing MPA. The allele status of the CYP2C9*2 determined by MPA was entirely concordant with the reference TaqMan® SNP Genotyping Assays. The four HPV strain sequences could be independently detected in a single fluorescence detection channel. The results validate the multiplex capacity, the simplicity and accuracy of MPA for SNP genotyping and multiplex detection using different probes labeled with the same fluorophore. The technique offers a new way to multiplex in a single detection channel of a closed-tube PCR.

Field performance of a genetically engineered strain of pink bollworm.

Pest insects harm crops, livestock and human health, either directly or by acting as vectors of disease. The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT)--mass-release of sterile insects to mate with, and thereby control, their wild counterparts--has been used successfully for decades to control several pest species, including pink bollworm, a lepidopteran pest of cotton. Although it has been suggested that genetic engineering of pest insects provides potential improvements, there is uncertainty regarding its impact on their field performance. Discrimination between released and wild moths caught in monitoring traps is essential for estimating wild population levels. To address concerns about the reliability of current marking methods, we developed a genetically engineered strain of pink bollworm with a heritable fluorescent marker, to improve discrimination of sterile from wild moths. Here, we report the results of field trials showing that this engineered strain performed well under field conditions. Our data show that attributes critical to SIT in the field--ability to find a mate and to initiate copulation, as well as dispersal and persistence in the release area--were comparable between the genetically engineered strain and a standard strain. To our knowledge, these represent the first open-field experiments with a genetically engineered insect. The results described here provide encouragement for the genetic control of insect pests.

Use of a regulatory mechanism of sex determination in pest insect control.

The sexual development of an insect is defined through a hierarchical control of several sex determining genes. Of these genes, transformer (tra) and doublesex (dsx) are well characterized and functionally conserved, especially dsx. Both genes are regulated at the transcriptional level through sex-specific alternative splicing. Incorporation of a genetically engineered sexspecific splicing module derived from these genes in transgenic systems, such as RIDL (release of insects carrying a dominant lethal), would allow the production of male-only insects for control programmes without any physical intervention.

Female-specific flightless phenotype for mosquito control.

Dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever are increasing public health problems with an estimated 50-100 million new infections each year. Aedes aegypti is the major vector of dengue viruses in its range and control of this mosquito would reduce significantly human morbidity and mortality. Present mosquito control methods are not sufficiently effective and new approaches are needed urgently. A "sterile-male-release" strategy based on the release of mosquitoes carrying a conditional dominant lethal gene is an attractive new control methodology. Transgenic strains of Aedes aegypti were engineered to have a repressible female-specific flightless phenotype using either two separate transgenes or a single transgene, based on the use of a female-specific indirect flight muscle promoter from the Aedes aegypti Actin-4 gene. These strains eliminate the need for sterilization by irradiation, permit male-only release ("genetic sexing"), and enable the release of eggs instead of adults. Furthermore, these strains are expected to facilitate area-wide control or elimination of dengue if adopted as part of an integrated pest management strategy.

Genetic sexing through the use of Y-linked transgenes.

Sterile insect technique (SIT)-based pest control programs rely on the mass release of sterile insects to reduce the wild target population. In many cases, it is desirable to release only males. Sterile females may cause damage, e.g., disease transmission by mosquitoes or crop damage via oviposition by the Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly). Also, sterile females may decrease the effectiveness of released males by distracting them from seeking out wild females. To eliminate females from the release population, a suitable sexual dimorphism is required. For several pest species, genetic sexing strains have been constructed in which such a dimorphism has been induced by genetics. Classical strains were based on the translocation to the Y chromosome of a selectable marker, which is therefore expressed only in males. Recently, several prototype strains have been constructed using sex-specific expression of markers or conditional lethal genes from autosomal insertions of transgenes. Here, we describe a novel genetic sexing strategy based on the use of Y-linked transgenes expressing fluorescent proteins. We demonstrate the feasibility of this strategy in a major pest species, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), and discuss the advantages and disadvantages relative to other genetic sexing methods and potential applicability to other species.

Late-acting dominant lethal genetic systems and mosquito control.

BACKGROUND: Reduction or elimination of vector populations will tend to reduce or eliminate transmission of vector-borne diseases. One potential method for environmentally-friendly, species-specific population control is the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT). SIT has not been widely used against insect disease vectors such as mosquitoes, in part because of various practical difficulties in rearing, sterilization and distribution. Additionally, vector populations with strong density-dependent effects will tend to be resistant to SIT-based control as the population-reducing effect of induced sterility will tend to be offset by reduced density-dependent mortality. RESULTS: We investigated by mathematical modeling the effect of manipulating the stage of development at which death occurs (lethal phase) in an SIT program against a density-dependence-limited insect population. We found late-acting lethality to be considerably more effective than early-acting lethality. No such strains of a vector insect have been described, so as a proof-of-principle we constructed a strain of the principal vector of the dengue and yellow fever viruses, Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti, with the necessary properties of dominant, repressible, highly penetrant, late-acting lethality. CONCLUSION: Conventional SIT induces early-acting (embryonic) lethality, but genetic methods potentially allow the lethal phase to be tailored to the program. For insects with strong density-dependence, we show that lethality after the density-dependent phase would be a considerable improvement over conventional methods. For density-dependent parameters estimated from field data for Aedes aegypti, the critical release ratio for population elimination is modeled to be 27% to 540% greater for early-acting rather than late-acting lethality. Our success in developing a mosquito strain with the key features that the modeling indicated were desirable demonstrates the feasibility of this approach for improved SIT for disease control.

Female-specific insect lethality engineered using alternative splicing.

The Sterile Insect Technique is a species-specific and environmentally friendly method of pest control involving mass release of sterilized insects that reduce the wild population through infertile matings. Insects carrying a female-specific autocidal genetic system offer an attractive alternative to conventional sterilization methods while also eliminating females from the release population. We exploited sex-specific alternative splicing in insects to engineer female-specific autocidal genetic systems in the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata. These rely on the insertion of cassette exons from the C. capitata transformer gene into a heterologous tetracycline-repressible transactivator such that the transactivator transcript is disrupted in male splice variants but not in the female-specific one. As the key components of these systems function across a broad phylogenetic range, this strategy addresses the paucity of sex-specific expression systems (e.g., early-acting, female-specific promoters) in insects other than Drosophila melanogaster. The approach may have wide applicability for regulating gene expression in other organisms, particularly for combinatorial control with appropriate promoters.