The passive flight of large numbers of mitospores ensures propagation and survival of many fungal species. Moreover, many fungi have a surplus DNA context which allows for easier manipulation and tampering, especially...The passive flight of large numbers of mitospores ensures propagation and survival of many fungal species. Moreover, many fungi have a surplus DNA context which allows for easier manipulation and tampering, especially when inserting eukaryotic genes and translation systems. These facts taken together suggest a high prominence of the sporogonic airborne fungi in biosecurity/biodefence priority lists, but due to the low virulence and mortality of the fungal pathogens, they do not figure high, or, sometimes, not at all. The disruptive effect of biosecurity fungal threats is important per se and genetic manipulations are to further it. Novel, long range and high-persistence sampling methods, using robotics and unmanned systems already fielded in other applications may extend surveillance and responsive sampling. Effects-based, proteomic approaches may provide a solution for deliberate incidents, while polyphasic taxonomy may resolve spontaneous incidents and assist medical diagnosis, but in the biosecurity context, where mass collection and processing of samples and speed in producing robust results are vital, complex approaches might be proved more of a hindrance than an asset.展开更多
文摘The passive flight of large numbers of mitospores ensures propagation and survival of many fungal species. Moreover, many fungi have a surplus DNA context which allows for easier manipulation and tampering, especially when inserting eukaryotic genes and translation systems. These facts taken together suggest a high prominence of the sporogonic airborne fungi in biosecurity/biodefence priority lists, but due to the low virulence and mortality of the fungal pathogens, they do not figure high, or, sometimes, not at all. The disruptive effect of biosecurity fungal threats is important per se and genetic manipulations are to further it. Novel, long range and high-persistence sampling methods, using robotics and unmanned systems already fielded in other applications may extend surveillance and responsive sampling. Effects-based, proteomic approaches may provide a solution for deliberate incidents, while polyphasic taxonomy may resolve spontaneous incidents and assist medical diagnosis, but in the biosecurity context, where mass collection and processing of samples and speed in producing robust results are vital, complex approaches might be proved more of a hindrance than an asset.
