University of Tampere 5 articles published in JoVE Medicine Rapid Evaluation of Toxicity of Chemical Compounds Using Zebrafish Embryos Ashok Aspatwar1, Milka Marjut Hammaren1, Mataleena Parikka1,2, Seppo Parkkila1,3 1Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, 2Oral and Maxillofacial Unit, Tampere University Hospital, 3Fimlab Ltd, Tampere University Hospital Zebrafish embryos are used for evaluating the toxicity of chemical compounds. They develop externally and are sensitive to chemicals, allowing detection of subtle phenotypic changes. The experiment only requires a small amount of compound, which is directly added to the plate containing embryos, making the testing system efficient and cost-effective. Immunology and Infection Immunization of Adult Zebrafish for the Preclinical Screening of DNA-based Vaccines Henna Myllymäki*1, Mirja Niskanen*1, Kaisa Oksanen1,2, Mika Rämet1,3,4,5 1BioMediTech Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, 2MedEngine Oy, 3Department of Pediatrics, Tampere University Hospital, 4Department of Children and Adolescents, Oulu University Hospital, 5PEDEGO Research Unit, Medical Research Center, University of Oulu Here we describe a protocol for the immunization of the adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) with a DNA-based vaccine and demonstrate the validation of a successful vaccination event. This method is suitable for the preclinical screening of vaccine candidates in various infection models. Developmental Biology Efficient and Scalable Directed Differentiation of Clinically Compatible Corneal Limbal Epithelial Stem Cells from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Heidi Hongisto*1, Meri Vattulainen*1, Tanja Ilmarinen1, Alexandra Mikhailova2, Heli Skottman1 1BioMediTech Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, 2Department of Ophthalmology, SILK, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere This protocol introduces a simple two-step method for differentiating corneal limbal epithelial stem cells from human pluripotent stem cells under xeno- and feeder cell-free culture conditions. The cell culture methods presented here enable cost-efficient, large-scale production of clinical quality cells applicable to corneal cell therapy use. Immunology and Infection Modeling Tuberculosis in Mycobacterium marinum Infected Adult Zebrafish Hanna Luukinen1, Milka Marjut Hammarén1, Leena-Maija Vanha-aho1, Mataleena Parikka1,2 1Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, 2Oral and Maxillofacial Unit, Tampere University Hospital Here, we present a protocol to model human tuberculosis in an adult zebrafish using its natural pathogen Mycobacterium marinum. Extracted DNA and RNA from the internal organs of infected zebrafish can be used to reveal the total mycobacterial loads in the fish and the host's immune responses with qPCR. Immunology and Infection Expression of Exogenous Antigens in the Mycobacterium bovis BCG Vaccine via Non-genetic Surface Decoration with the Avidin-biotin System Ting-Yu Angela Liao1, Alice Lau1, Joseph Sunil1, Vesa Hytönen2, Zakaria Hmama1 1Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine and Vancouver Costal Health Research Institute, University of British Columbia, 2Institute of Biomedical Technology, University of Tampere A novel technique for rapid antigen display on a bacterial surface is presented, which involves surface biotinylation followed by exposure to proteins of interest in fusion with monomeric avidin. Loading BCG with selected antigens successfully improves its immunogenicity, suggesting that surface decoration can replace traditional genetic approaches.