Correlations between Endothelial Functions and ROS Detection in Diabetic Microvascular Wall: Early and Late Ascorbic Acid Supplementation.

The correlation between endothelial function and reactive oxygen species detecting from diabetic microvascular wall and the antioxidant effect of ascorbic acid (AA) during early and late phases of diabetic induction were determined. Male Spraque-Dawley rats were divided into four groups: control, diabetes rats (DM, using iv.injection of 55 mg/kg BW streptozotocin, (STZ)), and two groups of DM rats treated with AA (1 g/L, (STZ)) starting on day 2 (DM + AAday2) and week 6th (DM + AA6wk). On 12th week after STZ injection, the findings showed that in DM group, Ach (10(-5) M)-induced vasodilatation was decreased, while the number of leukocyte adhesion was increased significantly (P < 0.01). Interestingly, these abnormalities induced by DM could be protected or improved in both AA-treated groups, DM + AAday2 and DM + AA6wk. By using dihydrorhodamine 123, our findings also indicated that the existing of ROS productions on diabetic arteriolar and venular walls were different significantly (ROS(arteriole) = 165.89 ± 24.59 and ROS(venule) = 172.26 ± 34.70) (P < 0.05). Moreover by using BH4 inhibitor to induce increase in arteriolar ROS, the results also confirmed that AA could improve endothelial function with closed correlation to its potential to reduce vascular ROS content.

Penaeus monodon nucleopolyhedrovirus detection using an immunochromatographic strip test.

An immunochromatographic strip test is described for detection of the polyhedrin protein of Penaeus monodon nucleopolyhedrovirus (PemoNPV). The test employs one monoclonal antibody (MAb MBV5) conjugated to colloidal gold to bind to polyhedrin protein and a 1:1:1 mixture of 3 other MAbs (MBV8, 14 and 21) to capture colloidal-gold MAb-protein complexes at a test (T) line on the nitrocellulose strip. A downstream control (C) line of goat anti-mouse immunoglobulin G (GAM) antibody is used to capture excess free colloidal-gold conjugated MBV5 to validate test performance. Heating of homogenates of PemoNPV-infected P. monodon postlarvae prepared in PBS for 30min was necessary to maximize T line color intensity, and homogenates of infected postlarvae could still be scored as PemoNPV-positive when diluted 1:64. A strip test result was obtained within 15min of sample application, and although about 200-fold lower than a one-step PCR test for PemoNPV, its detection sensitivity was comparable to a dot blot. Due to its simplicity not reliant on sophisticated equipment or specialized skills, the strip test could be adopted to screen easily for PemoNPV infections at shrimp hatcheries and farms.

Differentiation among the Vibrio cholerae serotypes O1, O139, O141 and non-O1, non-O139, non-O141 using specific monoclonal antibodies with dot blotting.

Seven different monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific to only Vibrio cholerae were produced using a combination of five representative serotypes of V. cholerae for immunization. The first three MAbs (VC-93, VC-82 and VC-223) were specific to the V. cholerae serogroup O1 with different avidity for the serotypes O1 Inaba and O1 Ogawa. The fourth and the fifth MAbs were specific to V. cholerae O139 (VC-812) or O141 (VC-191) serogroups, respectively. The sixth MAb (VC-26) bound to all three serogroups of V. cholerae. The seventh MAb (VC-63) bound to all twenty five isolates of V. cholerae used in this study. None of the seven MAbs showed cross-reactivity with other Vibrio spp. or closely-related V. cholerae species, V. mimicus or other gram-negative bacteria. The eighth MAbs (VC-201) specific to almost all Vibrio spp. was also obtained. In dot blotting, these MAbs can be used to detect a diluted pure culture of V. cholerae in solution with a sensitivity range of from 10(5) to 10(7) CFU ml(-1). However, the detection capability could be improved equivalent to that of PCR technique after preincubation of samples in alkaline peptone water (APW). Thus, these MAbs constitute convenient immunological tools that can be used for simple, rapid and simultaneous direct detection and differentiation of the individual serotypes of V. cholerae in complex samples, such as food and infected animals, without the requirement for bacterial isolation or biochemical characterization.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Vibrio vulnificus by loop-mediated isothermal amplification combined with lateral flow dipstick targeted to rpoS gene.

A novel loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) combined with amplicon detection by chromatographic lateral flow dipstick (LFD) assay was developed and evaluated for the detection of Vibrio vulnificus. Biotinylated LAMP amplicons were produced by a set of six designed primers that recognized the V. vulnificus RNA polymerase subunit sigma factor S (rpoS) gene followed by hybridization with an FITC-labeled probe and LFD detection. The optimized time and temperature conditions for the LAMP assay were 90 min at 65 °C. The LAMP-LFD method accurately identified 14 isolates of V. vulnificus but did not detect 25 non-vulnificus Vibrio isolates and 37 non-Vibrio isolates. The sensitivity of LAMP-LFD for V. vulnificus detection in pure culture was 1.5 × 10(3) CFU ml(-1) or equivalent to 2.8 CFU per reaction. In the case of spiked oyster samples without enrichment, the detection limit for V. vulnificus was 1.2 × 10(4) CFU g(-1) or equivalent to 11 CFU per reaction. The results show that this method appears to be accurate, precise and valuable tool for identification of V. vulnificus and can be used efficiently for detection of V. vulnificus in contaminated food sample.

Simultaneous and rapid detection of white spot syndrome virus and yellow head virus infection in shrimp with a dual immunochromatographic strip test.

A strip test for the dual detection of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) and yellow head virus (YHV) was developed using monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific to the WSSV major envelope protein VP28 (W1 and W30) and the YHV nucleocapsid protein p20 (Y19 and Y21). The MAbs W30 and Y19 were conjugated with colloidal gold and sprayed onto a glass fiber pad that was placed adjacent to a sample chamber. The MAbs W1 and Y21 and the goat anti-mouse immunoglobulin G (GAM) antibody were sprayed onto a nitrocellulose membrane in strips at positions designated W, Y and C, respectively. These test strips were placed in plastic cases and stored desiccated in a plastic bag. The test strips were assessed for their ability to detect WSSV and YHV simultaneously using pleopods sampled from shrimp. A pleopod homogenate in application buffer 100µl was applied to the sample chamber to flow through the nitrocellulose membrane strip, and antibody-protein complexes could be observed within 15min. In sample from shrimp infected with WSSV and/or YHV, viral protein bound to the colloidal gold-conjugated MAbs. These complexes were captured by the MAbs at the W and/or Y test lines, resulting in the appearance of reddish-purple coloured bands. Any unbound colloidal gold-conjugated MAbs migrated pass the W and Y lines would be captured by the GAM antibody, forming a band at position C. When samples not containing WSSV and YHV proteins or containing viral proteins at below the detection limit of the test, only the band at position C was observed. The sensitivity of the test was comparable to dot blot tests using single MAbs, and ∼500-fold less sensitive than a 1-step PCR test for WSSV and 1000-fold less sensitive than an RT-PCR test for YHV. Despite this lower sensitivity, the dual strip test has advantages in speed and simplicity in not requiring sophisticated equipment or specialized skills. The ability to co-detect WSSV and YHV provides simultaneously cost savings.

Improved sensitivity of Taura syndrome virus immunodetection with a monoclonal antibody against the recombinant VP2 capsid protein.

Taura syndrome virus (TSV) is one of the major pathogens causing mortality in the whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. In this study, the gene sequence encoding the VP2 capsid protein (40 kDa) of TSV was cloned into pMAL-C2 expression vector. Five monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were produced against the VP2 capsid protein, which was expressed heterologously in the form of a fusion protein with maltose binding protein and called MBP-VP2. All MAbs belonged to the IgG1 subclass and could bind MBP-VP2 at 400-800 pg/spot in immuno-dot blot assays. The MAbs could detect VP2 both in extracts from shrimp infected naturally in western blotting and dot blotting and in shrimp tissues in immunohistochemistry. Additionally, these MAbs did not exhibit cross-reactivity to extracts from uninfected shrimp or shrimp infected with several other common viruses. However, the dot blot assay sensitivity for TSV was approximately 10,000 times lower than that of one step RT-PCR. The MAb TSV2-88 specific to VP2 obtained in this study demonstrated an approximately twofold higher sensitivity than that of the MAb specific to VP3 from a previous study. In immunohistochemistry, the MAb TSV2-88 specific to VP2 demonstrated stronger immunoreactivity than the MAb TSV3-601 specific to VP3. A combination of the VP2 and VP3 MAbs could be used to more easily detect TSV infections in field samples of L. vannamei with better sensitivity and fidelity than using a single MAb.

Simple immunoblot and immunohistochemical detection of Penaeus stylirostris densovirus using monoclonal antibodies to viral capsid protein expressed heterologously.

Penaeus stylirostris densovirus (PstDNV), called formerly infectious hypodermal and hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHHNV), is an important shrimp pathogen which can cause mortality in the blue shrimp Penaeus (Litopenaeus) stylirostris and stunting in the whiteleg shrimp Penaeus (Litopenaeus) vannamei. Five monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were produced against the 37kDa capsid protein 3 (CP3) of PstDNV expressed heterologously in the form of a fusion protein with glutathione-S-transferase called GST-CP3. All MAbs belonged to the IgG2b subclass and could bind to GST-CP3 at 300 pg/spot in immunodot-blot tests. They could detect CP3 in naturally infected shrimp extracts by Western blotting and dot blotting and in shrimp tissues by immunohistochemistry without cross-reactivity to extracts from uninfected shrimps or shrimps infected with several other viruses. Although dot blot assay sensitivity was approximately 1000 times lower than that of one step PCR for PstDNV, it easily detected PstDNV infections in field samples of Penaeus monodon and Penaeus vannamei.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Penaeus monodon nucleopolyhedrovirus by loop-mediated isothermal amplification.

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a novel, sensitive and rapid method for amplification of nucleic acids under isothermal conditions. In this report, a LAMP method was developed for detection of Penaeus monodon nucleopolyhedrovirus (PemoNPV), known previously as monodon baculovirus (MBV), using a set of six primers designed to specifically recognize the PemoNPV polyhedrin gene. The optimized time and temperature conditions for the LAMP assay were 60 min at 63 degrees C. The sensitivity of LAMP for PemoNPV detection was approximately 50 viral copies ng(-1) genomic DNA (equivalent to 150 viral copies per reaction). Using a DNA template extracted from PemoNPV-infected shrimp by a viral nucleic acid kit, the detection limit of LAMP was 0.7 fg while that of nested PCR was 70 fg; therefore, the LAMP assay was 100 times more sensitive than nested PCR. The LAMP method did not amplify a product using nucleic acid extracted from shrimp infected with other viruses including yellow head virus (YHV), Taura syndrome virus (TSV), white spot syndrome virus (WSSV), Penaeus stylirostris densovirus (PstDNV) known previously as infectious hypodermal and hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHHNV), and Penaeus monodon densovirus (PmDNV) known previously as hepatopancreatic parvovirus (HPV).