Applications and advances of CRISPR/Cas9 in animal cancer model

Genetic engineering to enhance microalgal-based produced water treatment with emphasis on CRISPR/Cas9: A review

In recent years, the increased demand for and regional variability of available water resources, along with sustainable water supply planning, have driven interest in the reuse of produced water. Reusing produced water can provide important economic, social, and environmental benefits, particularly in water-scarce regions. Therefore, efficient wastewater treatment is a crucial step prior to reuse to meet the requirements for use within the oil and gas industry or by external users. Bioremediation using microalgae has received increased interest as a method for produced water treatment for removing not only major contaminants such as nitrogen and phosphorus, but also heavy metals and hydrocarbons. Some research publications reported nearly 100% removal of total hydrocarbons, total nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, and iron when using microalgae to treat produced water. Enhancing microalgal removal efficiency as well as growth rate, in the presence of such relevant contaminants is of great interest to many industries to further optimize the process. One novel approach to further enhancing algal capabilities and phytoremediation of wastewater is genetic modification. A comprehensive description of using genetically engineered microalgae for wastewater bioremediation is discussed in this review. This article also reviews random and targeted mutations as a method to alter microalgal traits to produce strains capable of tolerating various stressors related to wastewater. Other methods of genetic engineering are discussed, with sympathy for CRISPR/Cas9 technology. This is accompanied by the opportunities, as well as the challenges of using genetically engineered microalgae for this purpose.

Probing Vasoreactivity and Hypoxic Phenotype in Different Tumor Grafts Grown on the Chorioallantoic Membrane of the Chicken Embryo In Ovo Using MRI

Simple Summary

Fertilized chicken eggs can be used to study tumors. During their development, chicken eggshells are fenestrated, and the chicken embryo that is enwrapped by a highly vascularized membrane becomes accessible. Tumor cells are then planted onto this membrane, which supports tumor growth and, after one week, the tumor graft is studied using magnetic resonance imaging. To characterize the tumor in living chicken embryos, a gas tube can be fixed into the eggshell window and the chicken embryo and hence, the tumor graft is exposed to air, carbon dioxide-enriched air, or oxygen enriched with carbon dioxide. Different tumor types react differently to such gas challenges, which can be quantitatively measured and related to the tumor grafts’ vascular functioning and oxygenation.

Abstract

Tumor grafts grown on the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of chicken embryos represent a transition between cell culture and mammalian in vivo models. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) started to harness this potential. Functional gas challenge is feasible on the CAM. Using quantitative T1 and T2* mapping, we characterized the response of MC-38 colon, A549, and H460 adeno-carcinoma cell grafts to hypercapnic (HC) and hypercapnic-hyperoxic (HCHO) gas challenges, pertaining to the grafts’ vascular and oxygenation phenotypes. MR imaging revealed that larger T1 and T2* were located in the center of H460 and MC-38 tumors. Quantitative analysis showed a significant reduction in T1 and a significant increase in T2* in response to HCHO for A549 grafts, while H460 and MC-38 tumors did not respond to either gas challenge. Different tumor grafts respond differentially to HC and HCHO conditions. A549 tumor grafts, with higher vessel density and smaller tumor diameter compared with H460 and MC-38 grafts, had a significant response in T1 for HCHO and T2* increased slightly during HC and significantly under HCHO, consistent with a normoxic phenotype and functional vasoreactivity. Therefore, gas challenges enable differential characterization of tumor grafts with respect to their vascular and oxygenation status.

Current Applications and Future Perspectives of CRISPR-Cas9 for the Treatment of Lung Cancer

Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats and CRISPR-associated proteins are referred to as CRISPR-Cas9. Bacteria and archaea have an adaptive (acquired) immune system. As a result, developing the best single regulated RNA and Cas9 endonuclease proteins and implementing the method in clinical practice would aid in the treatment of diseases of various origins, including lung cancers. This seminar aims to provide an overview of CRISPR-Cas9 technology, as well as current and potential applications and perspectives for the method, as well as its mechanism of action in lung cancer therapy. This technology can be used to treat lung cancer in two different ways. The first approach involves creating single directed RNA and Cas9 proteins and then distributing them to cancer cells using suitable methods. Single directed RNA looks directly at the lung's mutated epidermal growth factor receptor and makes a complementary match, which is then cleaved with Cas9 protein, slowing cancer progression. The second method is to manipulate the expression of ligand-receptors on immune lymphocytic cells. For example, if the CRISPR-Cas9 system disables the expression of cancer receptors on lymphocytes, it decreases the contact between the tumor cell and its ligand-receptor, thus slowing cancer progression.

Potential applications of CRISPR/Cas for next-generation biomonitoring of harmful algae blooms: A review

Research on harmful algal and cyanobacterial blooms (HABs and CHABs) has risen dramatically due to their increasing global distribution, frequency, and intensity. These blooms jeopardize public health, ecosystem function, sustainability and can have negative economic impacts. Numerous monitoring programs have been established using light microscopy, liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS), ELISA, and spectrophotometry to monitor HABs/CHABs outbreaks. Recently, DNA/RNA-based molecular methods have been integrated into these programs to replace or complement traditional methods through analyzing environmental DNA and RNA (eDNA/eRNA) with techniques such as quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), sandwich hybridization assay (SHA), isothermal amplification methods, and microarrays. These have enabled the detection of rare or cryptic species, enhanced sample throughput, and reduced costs and the need for visual taxonomic expertise. However, these methods have limitations, such as the need for high capital investment in equipment or detection uncertainties, including determining whether organisms are viable. In this review, we discuss the potential of newly developed molecular diagnosis technology based on Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/Cas proteins (CRISPR/Cas), which utilizes the prokaryotic adaptative immune systems of bacteria and archaea. Cas12 and Cas13-based platforms can detect both DNA and RNA with attomolar sensitivity within an hour. CRISPR/Cas diagnostic is a rapid, inexpensive, specific, and ultrasensitive technology that, with some further development, will provide many new platforms that can be used for HABs/CHABs biomonitoring and research.