Biotechnology Commons^™

Flowability And Handling Characteristics Of Bulk Solids And Powders—A Review With Implications For Ddgs, V. Ganesan, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Kasiviswanathan Muthukumarappan

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Much research regarding handling and storage characteristics of bulk solids has been conducted over the years. Physical properties of granular solids play a significant role in their resulting storage and flow behaviour, and are therefore essential to design appropriate, efficient, and economic bulk solids handling and storage equipment and structures. Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS) is a bulk material that has been widely used as a protein source for ruminants and non-ruminants for more than two decades. Distillers grains are energy and nutrient dense, and are often used as a replacement for corn in animal diets. With the exponential …

A Cell Biology Laboratory Exercise To Study Sub-Cellular Organelles In Drosophila, Meghana Tare, Amit Singh

Biology Faculty Publications

The fast-changing scenario of undergraduate education puts emphasis on introducing students to hands-on techniques as part of their laboratory courses. In order to cater to large numbers of students and the time constraints involved with undergraduate level laboratory courses, there is a need for development of experiments that are cost effective and can be completed in a defined time frame. We have devised a laboratory exercise for teaching cell biology using the Drosophila melanogaster model. Drosophila can be reared in a short period of time in a cost effective manner. We used Drosophila tissue to study the sub-cellular organization of …

Comparison Of Electrically Mediated And Liposome-Complexed Plasmid Dna Delivery To The Skin, Loree C. Heller, Mark J. Jaroszeski, Domenico Coppola, Richard Heller

Bioelectrics Publications

BACKGROUND: Electroporation is an established technique for enhancing plasmid delivery to many tissues in vivo, including the skin. We have previously demonstrated efficient delivery of plasmid DNA to the skin utilizing a custom-built four-plate electrode. The experiments described here further evaluate cutaneous plasmid delivery using in vivo electroporation. Plasmid expression levels are compared to those after liposome mediated delivery.

METHODS: Enhanced electrically-mediated delivery, and less extensively, liposome complexed delivery, of a plasmid encoding the reporter luciferase was tested in rodent skin. Expression kinetics and tissue damage were explored as well as testing in a second rodent model.

RESULTS: Experiments …

Molecular Characterisation Of A Bovine-Like Rotavirus Detected From A Giraffe, Emily Mulherin, Jill Bryan, Marijke Beltman, Luke O'Grady, Eugene Pidgeon, Lucie Garon, Andrew Lloyd, John Bainbridge, Helen O'Shea, Paul Whyte, Séamus Fanning

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

Background

Rotavirus (RV), is a member of the Reoviridae family and an important etiological agent of acute viral gastroenteritis in the young. Rotaviruses have a wide host range infecting a broad range of animal species, however little is known about rotavirus infection in exotic animals. In this paper we report the first characterisation of a RV strain from a giraffe calf.

Results

This report describes the identification and detailed molecular characterisation of a rotavirus strain detected from a 14-day-old Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis), presenting with acute diarrhea. The RV strain detected from the giraffe was characterized molecularly as G10P[11]. …

The Future Of Generic Biologics: Should The United States “Follow-On” The European Pathway?, Ingrid Kaldre

Duke Law & Technology Review

The United States is embarking on a biotechnology drug revolution. In the last few decades, biotech drugs have saved millions of lives, and the market for these miracle cures continues to grow at an astronomical rate. Unfortunately, as the market for biotech drugs is skyrocketing, drug prices are following suit. As Congress strives to make these new drugs more affordable, it must not ignore significant safety concerns unique to these revolutionary therapies. Congress should follow the lead of the European Union to create an accessible pathway for generic forms of biotech drugs that includes strict regulatory measures to ensure drug …

Impact Of An External Energy On Staphylococcus Epidermis [Atcc –13518] In Relation To Antibiotic Susceptibility And Biochemical Reactions – An Experimental Study, Mahendra Kumar Trivedi

Mahendra Kumar Trivedi

Purpose:

While spiritual and mental energies are known to man, their impact has never been scientifically measurable in the material world and they remain outside the domain of science. The present experiment on Staphylococcus epidermis [ATCC –13518], validate the effects of such energy transmitted through a person, Mahendra Trivedi, which has produced an impact measurable in scientifically rigorous manner.

Methods:

Staphylococcus epidermis strains in revived and lyophilized state were subjected to spiritual energy transmitted through thought intervention and/or physical touch of Mahendra Trivedi to the sealed tubes containing strain, the process taking about 3 minutes and were analyzed within 10 …

Determination Of Machining Parameters Of Corn Byproduct Filled Plastics, Kurt A. Rosentrater

Kurt A. Rosentrater

In a collaborative project between the USDA and Northern Illinois University, the use of ethanol corn processing by-products as bio-filler materials in the compression molding of phenolic plastics has been studied. This paper reports on the results of a machinability study in the milling of various grades of this material. Three types of samples were studied: 100%, 75% and 50% phenolic samples. The milling operation was carried out with a fixed depth of cut of 2.0 mm using a 12.5 mm diameter two-fluted end-mill. The cutting speed was varied between 120 and 160 m/min at feeds between 200 and 300 …

Flow Properties Of Ddgs With Varying Soluble And Moisture Contents Using Jenike Shear Testing, V. Ganesan, Kasiviswanathan Muthukumarappan, Kurt A. Rosentrater

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) are an excellent source of energy, minerals, and bypass protein for ruminants and are used in monogastric rations as well. With the remarkable growth of the US fuel ethanol industry in the past decade, large quantities of distillers grains are now being produced. Flow of DDGS is often restricted by caking and bridging during its storage and transportation. In our previous works, the Carr powder tester was used to measure various flow properties of DDGS. The objective of this study was to measure the flow properties (cohesion, effective angle of friction, internal angle of …

In Vitro Clonal Propagation Of Bael (Aegle Marmelos Corr.) Cv. Cishb1 Through Enhanced Axillary Branching, Rajesh Pati

Rajesh Pati

Rapid clonal micropropagation protocol of Aegle marmelos (L.) Corr. cv. CISH-B1 was achieved by nodal stem segment of mature bearing tree. Three centimeter long shoots having one axillary bud excised from 10-15th nodal region of shoots during September gave quick in vitro bud burst (5.33 days) when cultured on MS medium supplemented with BAP, 8.84 μM + IAA 5.7 μM. The maximum number of proliferated shoots (9.0/explant) were obtained on same medium supplemented with BAP 8.84 μM + IAA 5.7 μM. The micro shoots were rooted (100 %) on ½ strength MS medium supplemented with IBA 49.0 + IAA 5.7 …

In Vitro Regeneration And Genetic Fidelity Testing Of Aegle Marmelos (Corr.) Plants, Rajesh Pati

Rajesh Pati

No abstract provided.

In Vitro Plant Regeneration From Mature Explant Of Aegle Marmelos Corr. Cv. Cish-B2, Rajesh Pati

Rajesh Pati

No abstract provided.

A Transcendental To Changing Metal Powder Characteristics, Mahendra Kumar Trivedi

Mahendra Kumar Trivedi

It’s not often that Metal Powder Report departs from the path of hard facts into the somewhat ‘mushier’ area of metaphysics, but opportunities crop up. While recognising that science has its fair share of charlatans, one such opportunity was presented by a paper submitted by an Indian researcher in which he details work aimed at probing the effects on powder samples where changes were apparently generated by thought. Some will laugh, others will cry, but perhaps among our readers there are those who might be able to help elucidate further the phenomena described…

Mckithen V. Brown: Due Process And Post-Conviction Dna Testing, Elizabeth A. Laughton

Duke Law & Technology Review

When the Second Circuit decided McKithen v. Brown, it joined an ever-growing list of courts faced with a difficult and pressing issue of both constitutional and criminal law: is there a federal constitutional right of post-conviction access to evidence for DNA testing? This issue, which sits at the intersection of new forensic technologies and fundamental principles of constitutional due process, has divided the courts. The Second Circuit, wary of reaching a hasty conclusion, remanded McKithen’s case to the district court for consideration. The district court for the Eastern District of New York was asked to decide whether a constitutional right …

Metabolic Engineering Of A Thermophilic Bacterium To Produce Ethanol At High Yield, A. Joe Shaw, Kara K. Podkaminer, Sunil G. Desai, John S. Bardsley, Stephen R. Rogers, Philip G. Thorne, David A. Hogsett, Lee R. Lynd

Dartmouth Scholarship

We report engineering Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum, a thermophilic anaerobic bacterium that ferments xylan and biomass-derived sugars, to produce ethanol at high yield. Knockout of genes involved in organic acid formation (acetate kinase, phosphate acetyltransferase, and L-lactate dehydrogenase) resulted in a strain able to produce ethanol as the only detectable organic product and substantial changes in electron flow relative to the wild type. Ethanol formation in the engineered strain (ALK2) utilizes pyruvate:ferredoxin oxidoreductase with electrons transferred from ferredoxin to NAD(P), a pathway different from that in previously described microbes with a homoethanol fermentation. The homoethanologenic phenotype was stable for >150 generations …

Not Just Informative, But Necessary: Infusing Green And Sustainable Topics Into Engineering And Technology Curricula, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Elif Kongar

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Generally accepted duties of engineers and technologists encompass designing and implementing solutions to problems. When so doing, it is their responsibility to be cognizant of the impacts of their designs on, and thus their accountability to, not only society in general, but also subsequent effects upon the environment. They need to be able to concurrently satisfy these competing needs, as well as constraints specific to the design challenges at hand. Responding to these requirements are the growing fields of green engineering and sustainable engineering. Both of these areas encompass many concepts, ideas, and tools, all of which are essential information …

The Biomass Bandwagon: Three Ideas For Engineering And Technology Programs To Get Onboard, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Jerry Visser

Kurt A. Rosentrater

As society demands more energy and material goods, engineers and technologists will be relied upon to design and implement systems to produce and deliver these. There is growing interest in using renewable resources to produce fuels, chemicals, and finished products to meet these increasing needs. Additionally, popularity is gaining, both in research as well as industry, in developing and commercializing biobased products. Within this arena, there are tremendous opportunities for teaching innovations as well. To date, very limited discussions at ASEE regarding these potentials have occurred. The goal of this paper is to discuss possibilities for augmenting engineering and technology …

Identification Of Guanylate Cyclases And Related Signaling Proteins In Sperm Tail From Sea Stars By Mass Spectrometry, Mia Nakachi, Midori Matsumoto, Philip M. Terry, Ronald L. Cerny, Hideaki Moriyama

Hideaki Moriyama Publications

Marine invertebrates employ external fertilization to take the advantages of sexual reproduction as one of excellent survival strategies. To prevent mismatching, successful fertilization can be made only after going though strictly defined steps in the fertilization. In sea stars, the fertilization process starts with the chemotaxis of sperm followed by hyperactivation of sperm upon arriving onto the egg coat, and then sperm penetrate to the egg coat before achieving the fusion. To investigate whether the initiation of chemotaxis and the following signaling has species specificity, we conducted comparative studies in the protein level among sea stars, Asterias amurensis, A. forbesi …

Treg Depletion Inhibits Efficacy Of Cancer Immunotherapy: Implications For Clinical Trials., James Curtin, Marianela Candolfi, Tamer Fakhouri, Chunyan Liu, Anderson Alden, Matthew Edwards, Pedro Lowenstein, Maria Castro

Articles

BACKGROUND: Regulatory T lymphocytes (Treg) infiltrate human glioblastoma (GBM); are involved in tumor progression and correlate with tumor grade. Transient elimination of Tregs using CD25 depleting antibodies (PC61) has been found to mediate GBM regression in preclinical models of brain tumors. Clinical trials that combine Treg depletion with tumor vaccination are underway to determine whether transient Treg depletion can enhance anti-tumor immune responses and improve long term survival in cancer patients. FINDINGS: Using a syngeneic intracrabial glioblastoma (GBM) mouse model we show that systemic depletion of Tregs 15 days after tumor implantation using PC61 resulted in a decrease in Tregs …

Modeling The Effects Of Value-Added Processing And Logistics Using Arena, Kurt A. Rosentrater, Elif Kongar

Kurt A. Rosentrater

Scarcity and cost of nonrenewable fossil fuels have been a growing focus of many energy-dependent nations, including the U.S., for the past couple of decades. There are mainly two ways to approach these problems: (1) reducing the energy dependency and/or (2) developing alternative means of energy production. Utilizing biofuels, which are renewable sources of energy, is a promising way to produce energy. But, as this industry grows, so too does the quantity of byproducts, which are known as DDGS. This paper discusses a model that has been developed to analyze the economic viability of DDGS processing, and includes both deterministic …

Turning The Gene Tap Off; Implications Of Regulating Gene Expression For Cancer Therapeutics, James Curtin, Marianela Candolfi, Weidong Xiong, Pedro Lowenstein, Maria Castro

Articles

Cancer poses a tremendous therapeutic challenge worldwide, highlighting the critical need for developing novel therapeutics. A promising cancer treatment modality is gene therapy, which is a form of molecular medicine designed to introduce into target cells genetic material with therapeutic intent. Anticancer gene therapy strategies currently used in preclinical models, and in some cases in the clinic, include proapoptotic genes, oncolytic/replicative vectors, conditional cytotoxic approaches, inhibition of angiogenesis, inhibition of growth factor signaling, inactivation of oncogenes, inhibition of tumor invasion and stimulation of the immune system. The translation of these novel therapeutic modalities from the preclinical setting to the clinic …

Regulating Nanotechnology: A Private–Public Insurance Solution, Maksim Rakhlin

Duke Law & Technology Review

Nanotechnology promises to revolutionize innovation in nearly every industry. However, nanomaterials’ novel properties pose potentially significant health and environmental risks. Views in the current debate over nanotechnology regulation range from halting all research and development to allowing virtually unregulated innovation. One viable regulatory solution balancing commercialization and risk is the adoption of a mandatory private-public insurance program.

Emergent Decision-Making In Biological Signal Transduction Networks, Tomáš Helikar, John Konvalina, Jack Heidel, Jim A. Rogers

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The complexity of biochemical intracellular signal transduction networks has led to speculation that the high degree of interconnectivity that exists in these networks transforms them into an information processing network. To test this hypothesis directly, a large scale model was created with the logical mechanism of each node described completely to allow simulation and dynamical analysis. Exposing the network to tens of thousands of random combinations of inputs and analyzing the combined dynamics of multiple outputs revealed a robust system capable of clustering widely varying input combinations into equivalence classes of biologically relevant cellular responses. This capability was nontrivial in …

Biomedical Research And The Law:--Embryonic Stem Cells, Clones And Genes: Science, Law, Politics, And Values, Michael J. Malinowski

Michael J. Malinowski

This article directly addresses the stem cell controversy, but also the broader history and norms regarding the roles of federal and state government in U.S. science research funding.

Assessment Of Risk Of Insect-Resistant Transgenic Crops To Nontarget Arthropods, Jörg Romeis, Detlef Bartsch, Franz Bigler, Marco P. Candolfi

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

An international initiative is developing a scientifically rigorous approach to evaluate the potential risks to nontarget arthropods (NTAs) posed by insect-resistant, genetically modified (IRGM) crops. It adapts the tiered approach to risk assessment that is used internationally within regulatory toxicology and environmental sciences. The approach focuses on the formulation and testing of clearly stated risk hypotheses, making maximum use of available data and using formal decision guidelines to progress between testing stages (or tiers). It is intended to provide guidance to regulatory agencies that are currently developing their own NTA risk assessment guidelines for IRGM crops and to help harmonize …

The Highly Similar Arabidopsis Homologs Of Trithorax Atx1 And Atx2 Encode Proteins With Divergent Biochemical Functions, Abdelaty Saleh, Raul Alvarez-Venegas, Mehtap Yilmaz, Oahn-Le, Guichuan Hou, Monther Sadder, Ayed Al-Abdallat, Yuannan Xia, Guoqinq Lu, Istvan Ladunga, Zoya Avramova

Nebraska Center for Biotechnology: Faculty and Staff Publications

Gene duplication followed by functional specialization is a potent force in the evolution of biological diversity. A comparative study of two highly conserved duplicated genes, ARABIDOPSIS TRITHORAX-LIKE PROTEIN1 (ATX1) and ATX2, revealed features of both partial redundancy and of functional divergence. Although structurally similar, their regulatory sequences have diverged, resulting in distinct temporal and spatial patterns of expression of the ATX1 and ATX2 genes. We found that ATX2 methylates only a limited fraction of nucleosomes and that ATX1 and ATX2 influence the expression of largely nonoverlapping gene sets. Even when coregulating shared targets, ATX1 and ATX2 may employ different …

Functional Domains Of The Fatty Acid Transport Proteins: Studies Using Protein Chimeras, Concetta C. Dirusso, Dina Darwis, Thomas Obermeyer, Paul N. Black

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Fatty acid transport proteins (FATP) function in fatty acid trafficking pathways, several of which have been shown to participate in the transport of exogenous fatty acids into the cell. Members of this protein family also function as acyl CoA synthetases with specificity towards very long chain fatty acids or bile acids. These proteins have two identifying sequence motifs: The ATP/AMP motif, an approximately 100 amino acid segment required for ATP binding and common to members of the adenylate-forming super family of proteins, and the FATP/VLACS motif that consists of approximately 50 amino acid residues and is restricted to members of …

Function And Redox State Of Mitochondrial Localized Cysteine-Rich Proteins Important In The Assembly Of Cytochrome C Oxidase, Oleh Khalimonchuk, Dennis R. Winge

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The cytochrome c oxidase (CcO) complex of the mitochondrial respiratory chain exists within the mitochondrial inner membrane (IM). The biogenesis of the complex is a multi-faceted process requiring multiple assembly factors that function on both faces of the IM. Formation of the two copper centers of CcO occurs within the intermembrane space (IMS) and is dependent on assembly factors with critical cysteinyl thiolates. Two classes of assembly factors exist, one group being soluble IMS proteins and the second class being proteins tethered to the IM. A common motif in the soluble assembly factors is a duplicated Cx₉C sequence …

Coa2 Is An Assembly Factor For Yeast Cytochrome C Oxidase Biogenesis That Facilitates The Maturation Of Cox1, Fabien Pierrel, Oleh Khalimonchuk, Paul A. Cobine, Megan Bestwick, Dennis R. Winge

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The assembly of cytochrome c oxidase (CcO) in yeast mitochondria is dependent on a new assembly factor designated Coa2. Coa2 was identified from its ability to suppress the respiratory deficiency of coa1 Δ and shy1 Δ cells. Coa1 and Shy1 function at an early step in maturation of the Cox1 subunit of CcO. Coa2 functions downstream of the Mss51-Coa1 step in Cox1 maturation and likely concurrent with the Shy1-related heme a₃ insertion into Cox1. Coa2 interacts with Shy1. Cells lacking Coa2 show a rapid degradation of newly synthesized Cox1. Rapid Cox1 proteolysis also occurs in shy1 Δ cells, suggesting …

Drought And Salinity Tolerance In Common Agrostis Species., Carol Auer, Collin Ahrens

Plant Science Presentations and Proceedings

Our research examines plant gene flow and the impacts from environmental release of genetically-modified plants. Plant gene flow is a natural process that occurs when pollen from one plant lands on the flower of another plant and produces a hybrid offspring. Gene flow can produce hybrid offspring with new traits that could change the ability of the plant to survive and spread. If hybrid offspring have some advantage in the environment, they could become invasive and/or affect other components of our ecosystems. In the near future, the federal government may approve the use of a genetically engineered herbicide-resistant (HR) Agrostis …

If Hybrids Go Wrong: Assessing Potential Environmental Risk From Release Of Herbicide-Resistant Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis)., Carol Auer, Collin Ahens

Plant Science Presentations and Proceedings

Genetically-modified (GM) plants need to be assessed for their benefits and risks before they are released into the environment. At present, GM grasses are being developed to improve sports turf and biofuels crops (e.g. switchgrass). How will genetic engineering of perennial grasses alter the distribution of these grasses in natural areas and managed landscapes? Can we use research data to predict future gene flow, weediness, or invasion? These are some of the important questions in ecological risk assessment of GM perennial grasses. We have initiated five research projects to characterize gene flow and potential ecological risk from herbicide-resistant (HR) creeping …