Looking ahead: ethical and social challenges of somatic gene therapy for sickle cell disease in Africa.

Somatic gene therapy will be one of the most exciting practices of genetic medicine in Africa and is primed to offer a new life for persons living with sickle cell disease (SCD). Recently, successful gene therapy trials for SCD in the USA have sparked a ray of hope within the SCD community in Africa. However, the high cost, estimated to exceed 1.5 million USD, continues to be a major concern for many stakeholders. While affordability is a key global health equity consideration, it is equally important to reflect on other ethical, legal and social issues (ELSIs) that may impact the responsible implementation of gene therapy for SCD in Africa. These include informed consent comprehension, risk of therapeutic misestimation and optimistic bias; priorities for SCD therapy trials; dearth of ethical and regulatory oversight for gene therapy in many African countries; identifying a favourable risk-benefit ratio; criteria for the selection of trial participants; decisional conflict in consent; standards of care; bounded justice; and genetic tourism. Given these ELSIs, we suggest that researchers, pharma, funders, global health agencies, ethics committees, science councils and SCD patient support/advocacy groups should work together to co-develop: (1) patient-centric governance for gene therapy in Africa, (2) public engagement and education materials, and (3) decision making toolkits for trial participants. It is also critical to establish harmonised ethical and regulatory frameworks for gene therapy in Africa, and for global health agencies to accelerate access to basic care for SCD in Africa, while simultaneously strengthening capacity for gene therapy

Continuous Monitoring of Soil Nitrate Using a Miniature Sensor with Poly(3-octyl-thiophene) and Molybdenum Disulfide Nanocomposite

There is an unmet need for improved fertilizer management in agriculture. Continuous monitoring of soil nitrate would address this need. This paper reports an all-solid-state miniature potentiometric soil sensor that works in direct contact with soils to monitor nitrate-nitrogen (NO3--N) in soil solution with parts-per-million (ppm) resolution. A working electrode is formed from a novel nanocomposite of poly(3-octyl-thiophene) and molybdenum disulfide (POT–MoS2) coated on a patterned Au electrode and covered with a nitrate-selective membrane using a robotic dispenser. The POT–MoS2 layer acts as an ion-to-electron transducing layer with high hydrophobicity and redox properties. The modification of the POT chain with MoS2 increases both conductivity and anion exchange, while minimizing the formation of a thin water layer at the interface between the Au electrode and the ion-selective membrane, which is notorious for solid-state potentiometric ion sensors. Therefore, the use of POT–MoS2 results in an improved sensitivity and selectivity of the working electrode. The reference electrode comprises a screen-printed silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) electrode covered by a protonated Nafion layer to prevent chloride (Cl-) leaching in long-term measurements. This sensor was calibrated using both standard and extracted soil solutions, exhibiting a dynamic range that includes all concentrations relevant for agricultural applications (1–1500 ppm NO3--N). With the POT–MoS2 nanocomposite, the sensor offers a sensitivity of 64 mV/decade for nitrate detection, compared to 48 and 38 mV/decade for POT and MoS2 alone, respectively. The sensor was embedded into soil slurries where it accurately monitored nitrate for a duration of 27 days.This is a manuscript of an article publsihed as Ali, Md Azahar, Xinran Wang, Yuncong Chen, Yueyi Jiao, Navreet K. Mahal, Satyanarayana Moru, Michael J. Castellano, James C. Schnable, Patrick Schnable, and Liang Dong. "Continuous Monitoring of Soil Nitrate Using a Miniature Sensor with Poly (3-octyl-thiophene) and Molybdenum Disulfide Nanocomposite." ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces (2019). doi: 10.1021/acsami.9b07120. Posted with permission.</p