Summary
Protocol
Fecal Microbiota Transplantation via Colonoscopy for Recurrent C. difficile Infection
Jessica R. Allegretti, Joshua R. Korzenik, Matthew J. Hamilton
Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endoscopy, Brigham and Women‘s Hospital
Fecal Microbiota Transplantation via colonoscopy is a safe and effective treatment for recurrent and refractory C.difficile infection. A systematic approach to patient and donor screening, preparation of stool, and delivery of the stool during the colonoscopy will maximize therapeutic success.
Conducting Miller-Urey Experiments
Eric T. Parker1, James H. Cleaves2,3, Aaron S. Burton4, Daniel P. Glavin5, Jason P. Dworkin5, Manshui Zhou1, Jeffrey L. Bada6, Facundo M. Fernández1
1School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 3Institute for Advanced Study, 4Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Directorate, NASA Johnson Space Center, 5Goddard Center for Astrobiology, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 6Geosciences Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego
The Miller-Urey experiment was a pioneering study regarding the abiotic synthesis of organic compounds with possible relevance to the origins of life. Simple gases were introduced into a glass apparatus and subjected to an electric discharge, simulating the effects of lightning in the primordial Earth’s atmosphere-ocean system. The experiment was conducted for one week, after which, the samples collected from it were analyzed for the chemical building blocks of life.
Methods for Studying the Mechanisms of Action of Antipsychotic Drugs in Caenorhabditis elegans
Limin Hao1,2, Edgar A. Buttner1,2
1Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, 2Mailman Research Center, McLean Hospital
Approaches for testing the effects of antipsychotic drugs (APDs) in Caenorhabditis elegans are demonstrated. Assays are described for testing drug effects on development and viability and on pharyngeal pumping rate. These methods are also applicable for pharmacogenetic experiments with drug classes other than APDs.
Utility of Dissociated Intrinsic Hand Muscle Atrophy in the Diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Parvathi Menon1,2, Steve Vucic1,2
1Department of Neurology, Westmead Hospital, 2Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia
Dissociated atrophy of intrinsic hand muscles, termed the split hand, appears to be a specific feature of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Consequently, a novel neurodiagnostic test, termed the split hand index, was developed to quantify the clinical phenomenon of the split hand, which differentiated ALS from mimic disorders.
Transient Gene Expression in Tobacco using Gibson Assembly and the Gene Gun
Matthew D. Mattozzi1,2, Mathias J. Voges1,2,3, Pamela A. Silver1,2, Jeffrey C. Way1,2
1Synthetic Biology Platform, Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, 2Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, 3Department of Biotechnology, Delft University of Technology
This work describes a novel method for selectively targeting subcellular organelles in plants, assayed using the BioRad Gene Gun.
Coordinate Mapping of Hyolaryngeal Mechanics in Swallowing
Thomas Z. Thompson1, Farres Obeidin1, Alisa A. Davidoff2, Cody L. Hightower1, Christohper Z. Johnson1, Sonya L. Rice1, Rebecca-Lyn Sokolove1, Brandon K. Taylor1, John M. Tuck1, William G. Pearson, Jr.3,4
1Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University, 2Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders, New York University, 3Department of Cellular Biology & Anatomy, Georgia Regents University, 4Department of Otolaryngology, Georgia Regents University
Coordinate mapping is a method of documenting salient features of hyolaryngeal biomechanics in the pharyngeal phase of swallowing. This methodology uses image analysis software to record coordinates of anatomical landmarks. These coordinates are imported into an excel macro and translated into kinematic variables of interest useful in dysphagia research.
Laboratory Drop Towers for the Experimental Simulation of Dust-aggregate Collisions in the Early Solar System
Jürgen Blum, Eike Beitz, Mohtashim Bukhari, Bastian Gundlach, Jan-Hendrik Hagemann, Daniel Heißelmann, Stefan Kothe, Rainer Schräpler, Ingo von Borstel, René Weidling
Institut für Geophysik und extraterrestrische Physik, Technische Universität Braunschweig
We present a technique to achieve low-velocity to intermediate-velocity collisions between fragile dust aggregates in the laboratory. For this purpose, two vacuum drop-tower setups have been developed that allow collision velocities between <0.01 and ~10 m/sec. The collision events are recorded by high-speed imaging.
Behavioral Assessment of the Aging Mouse Vestibular System
Victoria W. K. Tung1, Thomas J. Burton2, Edward Dababneh1, Stephanie L. Quail1, Aaron J. Camp1
1Discipline of Biomedical Science, University of Sydney, 2The Bosch Institute Animal Behavioural Facility, University of Sydney
Motor control and balance performance are known to deteriorate with age. This paper presents a number of standard noninvasive behavioral tests with the addition of a simple rotary stimulus to challenge the vestibular system and show changes in balance performance in a murine model of aging.
In vivo Clonal Tracking of Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells Marked by Five Fluorescent Proteins using Confocal and Multiphoton Microscopy
Daniela Malide1, Jean-Yves Métais2, Cynthia E. Dunbar2
1Light Microscopy Core Facility, NHLBI/NIH, 2Hematology Branch, NHLBI/NIH
Combinatorial 5 fluorescent proteins marking of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells allows in vivo clonal tracking via confocal and two-photon microscopy, providing insights into bone marrow hematopoietic architecture during regeneration. This method allows non-invasive fate mapping of spectrally-coded HSPCs-derived cells in intact tissues for extensive periods of time following transplantation.
Combination of Microstereolithography and Electrospinning to Produce Membranes Equipped with Niches for Corneal Regeneration
Ílida Ortega1, Farshid Sefat1, Pallavi Deshpande1, Thomas Paterson1, Charanya Ramachandran3, Anthony J. Ryan2, Sheila MacNeil1, Frederik Claeyssens1
1Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, 2Department of Chemistry, University of Sheffield, 3L. V. Prasad Eye Institute
We report a technique for the fabrication of micropockets within electrospun membranes in which to study cell behavior. Specifically, we describe a combination of microstereolithography and electrospinning for the production of PLGA (Poly(lactide-co-glycolide)) corneal biomaterial devices equipped with microfeatures.
Averaging of Viral Envelope Glycoprotein Spikes from Electron Cryotomography Reconstructions using Jsubtomo
Juha T. Huiskonen, Marie-Laure Parsy, Sai Li, David Bitto, Max Renner, Thomas A. Bowden
Oxford Particle Imaging Centre, Division of Structural Biology, Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford
An approach is presented for determining structures of viral membrane glycoprotein complexes using a combination of electron cryo-tomography and sub-tomogram averaging with the computational package Jsubtomo.
Reduced-gravity Environment Hardware Demonstrations of a Prototype Miniaturized Flow Cytometer and Companion Microfluidic Mixing Technology
William S. Phipps*1, Zhizhong Yin*1, Candice Bae1, Julia Z. Sharpe1, Andrew M. Bishara2, Emily S. Nelson3, Aaron S. Weaver3, Daniel Brown4, Terri L. McKay3, DeVon Griffin3, Eugene Y. Chan1
1DNA Medicine Institute, 2Harvard Medical School, 3NASA Glenn Research Center, 4ZIN Technologies
Spaceflight blood diagnostics need innovation. Few demonstrations have been published illustrating in-flight, reduced-gravity health diagnostic technology. Here we present a method for construction and operation of a parabolic flight test rig for a prototype point-of-care flow-cytometry design, with components and preparation strategies adaptable to other setups.
Disclosures
No conflicts of interest declared.
