Good design practices for an integrated containment and production system for advanced therapies

Advances in molecular biology and the possibility of differentiating stem cells have opened up new scenarios in therapies that use progenitor or variously differentiated cells. Regardless of the choice of the system, designing a plant for producing advanced therapies requires a clear understanding of the final objective (the product), taking into account all the regulatory, environment, process, risk assessment, asepsis, and validation aspects involved until its implementation. Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliant procedures are a prerequisite for cell production in clinical application, and clean rooms are zones for producing cell therapies. Clean rooms for clinical application require high running and maintenance costs and need trained operators and strict procedures to prepare the rooms and the people involved in the processes. While today production mainly occurs in open systems (clean rooms), there is evidence of processes in closed systems (isolators). The isolator is a Grade A aseptic closed system that requires a controlled environment and at least a Grade D environment in the case of sterile productions (A in D closed system). The use of isolators can ensure a very high level of protection against the risk of product contamination and, at the same time, provide the operators with a very safe working environment. Furthermore, working with closed systems can optimize and facilitate the production of Advanced Therapy Medical Products in GMP environments, by providing an easily reproducible working tool even for large-scale production, with generally lower costs compared to a classical clean room approach. In conclusion, the isolator workstation as a possible alternative to the classic clean room, due to its small size and the simplification of the working and maintenance operational procedures, may represent an interesting solution in the perspective of the increasingly more stringent requests for cost reductions of GMP in clinical application.     

Indirect and direct controls of macroinvertebrates and small fish by abiotic factors and trophic interactions in the Florida Everglades

1. The roles of nutrients, disturbance and predation in regulating consumer densities have long been of interest, but their indirect effects have rarely been quantified in wetland ecosystems. The Florida Everglades contains gradients of hydrological disturbance (marsh drying) and nutrient enrichment (phosphorus), often correlated with densities of macroinvertebrate infauna (macroinvertebrates inhabiting periphyton), small fish and larger invertebrates, such as snails, grass shrimp, insects and crayfish. However, most causal relationships have yet to be quantified. 2. We sampled periphyton (content and community structure) and consumer (small omnivores, carnivores and herbivores, and infaunal macroinvertebrates inhabiting periphyton) density at 28 sites spanning a range of hydrological and nutrient conditions and compared our data to seven a priori structural equation models. 3. The best model included bottom‐up and top‐down effects among trophic groups and supported top‐down control of infauna by omnivores and predators that cascaded to periphyton biomass. The next best model included bottom‐up paths only and allowed direct effects of periphyton on omnivore density. Both models suggested a positive relationship between small herbivores and small omnivores, indicating that predation was unable to limit herbivore numbers. Total effects of time following flooding were negative for all three consumer groups even when both preferred models suggested positive direct effects for some groups. Total effects of nutrient levels (phosphorus) were positive for consumers and generally larger than those of hydrological disturbance and were mediated by changes in periphyton content. 4. Our findings provide quantitative support for indirect effects of nutrient enrichment on consumers, and the importance of both algal community structure and periphyton biomass to Everglades food webs. Evidence for top‐down control of infauna by omnivores was noted, though without substantially greater support than a competing bottom‐up‐only model.     

优化噬热栖热菌的遗传转化体系

[目的]优化噬热栖热菌Thermus thermophilus的转化体系。[方法]将质粒DNA的形态、浓度及转化时间作为变量设计噬热栖热菌T.thermophilus的转化体系,以通过直接双交换同源重组法获取Δpyr E突变体的概率为依据判定转化效率。[结果]在转化时间为2 h,使用3.0μg/m L线性质粒DNA,获取表观Δpyr E的概率为3.44×10^-5;而使用同样浓度的超螺旋质粒DNA,该概率可达1.03×10^-3;说明超螺旋质粒的转化效率高于线状质粒。质粒DNA的使用浓度及转化反应时间对转化效率亦有影响,但并非完全成正相关。使用浓度为15μg/m L超螺旋质粒DNA,在转化时间为3 h时,获取表观Δpyr E的概率达到最大值(1.36×10^-2);超过该阈值,转化效率降低。[结论]在T.thermophilus中,通过优化转化体系将基因无痕敲除突变体获取概率提高到10^-2。     

Near‐Infrared Light‐Induced Photocurrent from a (NaYF4:Yb‐Tm)/(Cu2O) Composite Thin Film

Utilization of photons of sub‐bandgap energy, mostly near‐infrared (NIR) photo­ns, is highly desirable for photovoltaic devices. We show that (NaYF₄:Yb‐Tm)/(Cu₂O) composite films formed by electrodeposition exhibit robust photoactive current generation under NIR light excitation. The composite films consist of homogeneous crystalline particles of the fluoride and Cu₂O in sub‐micrometer size. From spectroscopic characterization, it is found that the NaYF₄:Yb‐Tm layer in the composite film converts NIR radiation by up‐conversion into visible emission, which is efficiently absorbed by the covering semiconducting Cu₂O film, producing photoelectrons. Accordingly, the composite films exhibit highly photoactive current generation by means of a photoelectrochemical process driven by NIR irradiation. The methodology demonstrated here may have certain implications for the utilization of NIR radiation in solar cells, photocatalysts, and infrared photodetectors.     

Oncolytic measles viruses produced at different scales under serum‐free conditions

Measles virus (MV) with attenuated pathogenicity has potential as oncolytic agent. However, the clinical translation of this therapy concept has one major hurdle: the production of sufficient amounts of infectious oncolytic MV particles. The current study describes oncolytic MV production in Vero cells grown on microcarrier using serum‐free medium. The impact of the number of harvests, cell concentration at infection (CCI), multiplicity of infection (MOI), and temperature on MV production was determined in different production scales/systems (static T‐flasks, dynamic spinner, and bioreactor system) and modes (batch, repeated‐batch, and perfusion). Cell growth, metabolic, and production kinetics were analyzed. It was found that the number of harvests had the strongest positive impact on MV yield in each production scale, and that high temperatures affected MV yield adversely. Moderate MV titers were produced in T‐ and spinner flasks at 37°C (～10⁷ TCID₅₀ mL^?1, where TCID₅₀ is tissue culture infective doses 50%), but stirred tank reactor (STR) MV production at 37°C yielded up to 10 000‐fold lower MV titers. In contrast, at lower temperatures (32°C, 27°C), 1.4 × 10⁷ TCID₅₀ mL^?1 were achieved in the STR. Variations in MOI and CCI had almost no influence on MV production yield. The current study improves oncolytic MV production process understanding and identifies process bottlenecks for large‐scale production.     

Type I and II positive allosteric modulators differentially modulate agonist-induced up-regulation of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

Long‐term treatment with nicotine or selective α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) agonists increases the number of α7 nAChRs and this up‐regulation may be involved in the mechanism underlying the sustained procognitive effect of these compounds. Here, we investigate the influence of type I and II α7 nAChR positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) on agonist‐induced α7 nAChR up‐regulation. We show that the type II PAMs, PNU‐120596 (10 μM) or TQS (1 and 10 μM), inhibit up‐regulation, as measured by protein levels, induced by the α7 nAChR agonist A‐582941 (10 nM or 10 μM), in SH‐EP1 cells stably expressing human α7 nAChR, whereas the type I PAMs AVL‐3288 or NS1738 do not. Contrarily, neither type I nor II PAMs affect 10 μM nicotine‐induced receptor up‐regulation, suggesting that nicotine and A‐582941 induce up‐regulation through different mechanisms. We further show in vivo that 3 mg/kg PNU‐120596 inhibits up‐regulation of the α7 nAChR induced by 10 mg/kg A‐582941, as measured by [¹²⁵I]‐bungarotoxin autoradiography, whereas 1 mg/kg AVL‐3288 does not. Given that type II PAMs decrease desensitization of the receptor, whereas type I PAMs do not, these results suggest that receptor desensitization is involved in A‐582941‐induced up‐regulation. Our results are the first to show an in vivo difference between type I and II α7 nAChR PAMs, and demonstrate an agonist‐dependent effect of type II PAMs occurring on a much longer time scale than previously appreciated. Furthermore, our data suggest that nicotine and A‐582941 induce up‐regulation through different mechanisms, and that this confers differential sensitivity to the effects of α7 nAChR PAMs. These results may have implications for the clinical development of α7 nAChR PAMs.     

A mechanistic understanding of ageing revealed by studying the young

A main focus within biomedical research is to understand how adverse environmental conditions experienced during early development affects lifelong health (Barker 1992). Within this context, extensive research in rodent models and humans has shown that intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) caused by nutrient restriction during early development is often followed by post-natal 'catch-up' growth when access to food resources improves. However, this accelerated growth rate seems to come at a cost, as metabolic and endocrine processes that are programmed during this time cause later-life onset of diseases such as obesity, insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease (reviewed in Crespi & Denver 2005). In this issue Molecular Ecology, Geiger et al. (2012) asked what are the costs of catch-up growth in nutrient-restricted king penguin chicks (Fig. 1) by measuring lengths of telomeres, the protective DNA sequences at the end of chromosomes, before and after catch-up growth, as the amount and rate of telomere sequence loss over time has been associated with reduced lifespan in both model and nonmodel organisms (see reviews of Costantini et al. 2010; Haussmann & Marchetto 2010). Geiger et al. (2011) found that chicks entering the post-winter growth season at a smaller size exhibited increased growth rates (i.e. catch-up growth) at the cost of increased oxidative stress and reduced telomere lengths compared with the chicks entering the growth period at a larger size. Furthermore, chicks that did not survive had drastically shorter telomere lengths and reduced antioxidant capacities at the beginning of the growth period than all other chicks, thereby directly associating telomere length to mortality. These results suggest that while catch-up growth allows smaller chicks to head off into the world on equal footing with chicks that hatched at a larger size, it likely comes at the cost of a shortened lifespan. Thus, this study provides a mechanism that supports the antagonistic pleiotropy theory of senescence (Promislow 2004).     

五唇兰精细胞的分离

五唇兰(Doritis pulcherrima)具二胞花粉,授粉后1 d即有花粉开始萌发,授粉后5 d开始有生殖细胞完成有丝分裂形成一对精细胞。通过人工授粉使花粉管在子房内发育,再利用花粉管直接爆破,成功分离出五唇兰的精细胞。成对的2个精细胞在直径大小、荧光强弱上均显示出较大差异,预示2个精细胞具有不同的前途。     

The consequences of lifetime and evolutionary exposure to toxic prey: changes in avoidance behaviour through ontogeny

Responses to novel threats (e.g. invasive species) can involve genetic changes or plastic shifts in phenotype. There is controversy over the relative importance of these processes for species survival of such perturbations, but we are realizing they are not mutually exclusive. Native eastern fence lizards (Sceloporus undulatus) have adapted to top-down predation pressure imposed by the invasive red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) via changes in adult (but not juvenile) lizard antipredator behaviour. Here, we examine the largely ignored, but potentially equally important, bottom-up effect of fire ants as toxic prey for lizards. We test how fire ant consumption (or avoidance) is affected by lifetime (via plasticity) and evolutionary (via natural selection) exposure to fire ants by comparing field-caught and laboratory-reared lizards, respectively, from fire ant-invaded and uninvaded populations. More naive juveniles from invaded populations ate fire ants than did adults, reflecting a natural ontogenetic dietary shift away from ants. Laboratory-reared lizards from the invaded site were less likely to eat fire ants than were those from the uninvaded site, suggesting a potential evolutionary shift in feeding behaviour. Lifetime and evolutionary exposure interacted across ontogeny, however, and field-caught lizards from the invaded site exhibited opposite ontogenetic trends; adults were more likely to eat fire ants than were juveniles. Our results suggest that plastic and evolutionary processes may both play important roles in permitting species survival of novel threats. We further reveal how complex interactions can shape adaptive responses to multimodal impacts imposed by invaders: in our system, fire ants impose stronger bottom-up selection than top-down selection, with each selection regime changing differently across lizard ontogeny.     

Biohydrogen production in granular up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors with mixed cultures under hyper-thermophilic temperature (70 degrees C)

Hyper-thermophilic hydrogen production without methane was demonstrated for the first time in granular up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) system fed with glucose using mixed cultures. The maximum hydrogen yield in this study was 2.47 +/- 0.15 mol H2/mol glucose. This high yield has never been previously reported in mixed culture systems and it was likely due to more favorable thermodynamic conditions at hyper-thermophilic temperatures. Different start-up strategies (bromoethanosulfonate (BES) addition and flow recycle) were evaluated. BES addition during start-up prevented the establishment of methanogenic cultures in granules. Flow recycle was important to achieve higher hydrogen yield through enriching better hydrogen-producing organisms and reduced the start-up period as well. This study indicated UASB system was a promising system for hydrogen production.