Differential temporal expression of milk miRNA during the lactation cycle of the marsupial tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii)

Lactation is a key aspect of mammalian evolution for adaptation of various reproductive strategies along different mammalian lineages. Marsupials, such as tammar wallaby, adopted a short gestation and a relatively long lactation cycle, the newborn is immature at birth and significant development occurs postnatally during lactation. Continuous changes of tammar milk composition may contribute to development and immune protection of pouch young. Here, in order to address the putative contribution of newly identified secretory milk miRNA in these processes, high throughput sequencing of miRNAs collected from tammar milk at different time points of lactation was conducted. A comparative analysis was performed to find distribution of miRNA in milk and blood serum of lactating wallaby

Role of marsupial tammar wallaby milk in lung maturation of pouch young

Background: Marsupials such as the tammar wallaby (M.Eugenii) have a short gestation (29.3 days) and at birth the altricial young resembles a fetus, and the major development occurs postnatally while the young remains in the mother\u27s pouch. The essential functional factors for the maturation of the neonate are provided by the milk which changes in composition progressively throughout lactation (300 days). Morphologically the lungs of tammar pouch young are immature at birth and the majority of their development occurs during the first 100 days of lactation. Results: In this study mouse embryonic lungs (E-12) were cultured in media with tammar skim milk collected at key time points of lactation to identify factors involved in regulating postnatal lung maturation. Remarkably the embryonic lungs showed increased branching morphogenesis and this effect was restricted to milk collected at specific time points between approximately day 40 to 100 lactation. Further analysis to assess lung development showed a significant increase in the expression of marker genes Sp-C, Sp-B, Wnt-7b, BMP4 and Id2 in lung cultures incubated with milk collected at day 60. Similarly, day 60 milk specifically stimulated proliferation and elongation of lung mesenchymal cells that invaded matrigel. In addition, this milk stimulated proliferation of lung epithelium cells on matrigel, and the cells formed 3-dimensional acini with an extended lumen. Conclusions: This study has clearly demonstrated that tammar wallaby milk collected at specific times in early lactation contains bioactives that may have a significant role in lung maturation of pouch young

Novel Delivery Systems For Iron Replenishment

Iron is an integral part of hemoglobin and essential for the production of red blood cells. Iron deficiency and the resulting anemia are major nutritional deficiency disorders. The majority of patient populations suffering from iron deficiency anemia (IDA) are women of child bearing age and children of all ages. Iron deficiency is a complication of various other chronic conditions. Oral iron salts or colloidal parenteral iron formulations are treatment options for iron replenishment since several decades, but they are associated with severe side effects along with other patient noncompliance issues. Transdermal delivery of iron could be a potential alternative to treat iron deficiency due to safety and offers more acceptability. Since conventional iron formulations are not suitable for transdermal delivery, quest for an ideal iron compound resulted in identification of soluble Ferric Pyrophosphate (FPP), which was demonstrated to be very stable and safe for parenteral administration. Passive delivery of FPP was not successful due to its high molecular weight (745 Da) and low lipid solubility. Transdermal delivery of FPP using chemical permeation enhancers, iontophoresis, microneedle pretreatment and combination of these techniques were evaluated and proved to be successful in delivering iron across the skin. When iontophoresis was combined with microneedle pretreatment, adequate iron could be delivered in anemic rat models to reverse the iron deficiency. Further, a safe and patient friendly iron delivery system was developed by incorporating FPP in soluble microneedles. In vitro and in vivo studies were carried out to evaluate the FPP release and dermal kinetic profile of the iron from the soluble microneedles. Safety and toxicity of FPP in human skin cell lines was also investigated. The feasibility of transdermal delivery of Iron-dextran was also evaluated. Passive delivery of iron dextran is impossible due to its high molecular weight. Microneedle assisted delivery of iron dextran was investigated and soluble microneedle system with iron dextran was developed. Overall, the results of the project suggest that transdermal delivery of iron could be a potential alternate to treat IDA. Iron replenishment via transdermal route is likely to be more effective and safer than the conventional routes of administration

Gate-Tunable Magnetotransport in Ferromagnetic ZnO Nanowire FET Devices

Department of Materials Science EngineeringElectrical manipulation of magnetization has grown as an essential ingredient in rapidly evolving spintronic research. Switching of nano-scale magnetization can be induced by a spin-polarized current via spin-transfer torque, domain wall motion, and/or spin-orbit torque, which are being increasingly utilized for magnetic memory devices under development. Apart from current dissipation, the electric field itself can also be used to control the magnetism in various materials, especially in dilute magnetic semiconductors (DMSs). A gate-voltage-induced accumulation of charge could alter magnetic exchange interactions and eventually lead to changes in magnetic moment, coercivity, anisotropy, and transition temperature. Semiconductor spintronics has garnered increasing attention due to the concept behind the spin field-effect transistor (spin-FET), where the spin precession is governed by the gate-controllable Rashba field. Tuning the magnetization of the source and drain in the spin-FET architecture offers additional state variables in future state-of-the-art electronic applications. This dissertation addresses the study of dramatic gate-induced change of ferromagnetism in ZnO nanowire (NW) field-effect transistors (FETs). The ZnO NWs used in this study were grown by using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique. The crystal structure and composition of ZnO NWs were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Ferromagnetism in our ZnO NWs arose from oxygen vacancies, which constitute deep levels hosting unpaired electron spins. The magnetic transition temperature of the studied ZnO NWs was estimated to be well above room temperature. The in situ UV confocal photoluminescence (PL) study confirmed oxygen vacancy mediated ferromagnetism in the studied ZnO NW FET devices. Both the estimated carrier concentration and temperature dependent conductivity reveal the studied ZnO NWs are at the crossover of the metal-insulator transition. In particular, gate-induced modulation of the carrier concentration in the ZnO NW FET significantly alters carrier-mediated exchange interactions, which causes even inversion of magnetoresistance (MR) from negative to positive values. Upon sweeping the gate bias from −40 V to +50 V, the MRs estimated at 2 T and 2 K were changed from −11.3% to +4.1%. Detailed analysis on the gate dependent MR behavior clearly showed enhanced spin splitting energy with increasing carrier concentration. Gate voltage dependent PL spectra of an individual NW device confirmed the localization of oxygen vacancy-induced spins, indicating that gate-tunable indirect exchange coupling between localized magnetic moments played an important role in the remarkable change of the MR.ope

Neural Circuits: Avoiding UV light

Living deep within our oceans, lakes, and ponds are small animals known as zooplankton which typically rise to the surface of the water at night and sink towards the bottom during the day. This synchronised movement helps zooplankton avoid harmful ultraviolet (UV) light and escape diurnal predators that hunt during the day (Malloy et al., 1997)

Empowering the EV Community: A Comprehensive Solution for Electric Vehicle Charging

The rapid transition from conventional vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs) has created a significant demand for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The availability of adequate EV charging infrastructure is crucial to meet this demand and support the widespread adoption of EVs. However, EV users often face challenges in accessing information about EV charging infrastructure providers, limiting their ability to plan longer journeys effectively. In response to this issue, this research paper presents a proposed web application that aims to connect EV users and enable them to assume dual roles as both service providers and service users. The web application offers interactive maps for tracking travel and destinations, facilitates user matching based on specific requirements, and provides information on payment methods and charging rates for available chargers according to their locations. By bridging the information gap and promoting communication within the EV community, this research seeks to empower EV users and foster the growth of the electric vehicle ecosystem. The comprehensive platform provided by the proposed web application is intended to facilitate information exchange, enhance user experiences, and further encourage the widespread adoption of electric vehicles

Regulation of cytoplasmic RNA stability: lessons from drosophila

The process of RNA degradation is a critical level of regulation contributing to the control of gene expression. In the last two decades a number of studies have shown the specific and targeted nature of RNA decay and its importance in maintaining homeostasis. The key players within the pathways of RNA decay are well conserved with their mutation or disruption resulting in distinct phenotypes as well as human disease. Model organisms including Drosophila melanogaster have played a substantial role in elucidating the mechanisms conferring control over RNA stability. A particular advantage of this model organism is that the functions of ribonucleases can be assessed in the context of natural cells within tissues in addition to individual immortalised cells in culture. Drosophila RNA stability research has demonstrated how the cytoplasmic decay machines, such as the exosome, Dis3L2 and Xrn1, are responsible for regulating specific processes including apoptosis, proliferation, wound healing and fertility. The work discussed here has begun to identify specific mRNA transcripts that appear sensitive to specific decay pathways representing mechanisms through which the ribonucleases control mRNA stability. Drosophila research has also contributed to our knowledge of how specific RNAs are targeted to the ribonucleases including AU rich elements, miRNA targeting and 3’ tailing. Increased understanding of these mechanisms is critical to elucidating the control elicited by the cytoplasmic ribonucleases which is relevant to human disease

Unravelling the developmental and functional significance of an ancient Argonaute duplication

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) base-pair to messenger RNA targets and guide Argonaute proteins to mediate their silencing. This target regulation is considered crucial for animal physiology and development. However, this notion is based exclusively on studies in bilaterians, which comprise almost all lab model animals. To fill this phylogenetic gap, we characterize the functions of two Argonaute paralogs in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis of the phylum Cnidaria, which is separated from bilaterians by ~600 million years. Using genetic manipulations, Argonaute-immunoprecipitations and high-throughput sequencing, we provide experimental evidence for the developmental importance of miRNAs in a non-bilaterian animal. Additionally, we uncover unexpected differential distribution of distinct miRNAs between the two Argonautes and the ability of one of them to load additional types of small RNAs. This enables us to postulate a novel model for evolution of miRNA precursors in sea anemones and their relatives, revealing alternative trajectories for metazoan miRNA evolution