A short review on cell-based biosensing:challenges and breakthroughs in biomedical analysis

Current cell-based biosensors have progressed substantially from mere alternatives to molecular bioreceptors into enabling tools for interfacing molecular machineries and gene circuits with microelectronics and for developing groundbreaking sensing and theragnostic platforms.The recent literature concerning whole-cell biosensors is reviewed with an emphasis on mammalian cells,and the challenges and breakthroughs brought along in biomedical analyses through novel biosensing concepts and the synthetic biology toolbox.These recent innovations allow development of cell-based biosensing platforms having tailored performances and capable to reach the levels of sensitivity,dynamic range,and stability suitable for high analytic/medical relevance.They also pave the way for the construction of flexible biosensing platforms with utility across biological research and clinical applications.The work is intended to stimulate interest in generation of cell-based biosensors and improve their acceptance and exploitation.

Physiological significance of Rag1 in retinal ganglion cell death

Although the transcription factor, nudear factor-κB （NF-κB） is known to regulate cell death and survival, its precise role in cell death within the central nervous system （CNS） remains unknown. We previously reported that mice with a homozygous deficiency for NF-κBp50 spon- taneously developed optic neuropathy. We examined the expression and activation of pro-apoptotic factor（s） that mediate optic neuropathy in p50-/- mice. Recombination activating gene 1 （Ragl） is known to regulate the recombination of immunoglobulin V（D）J.

Evaluation of somatic embryo production during embryogenic tissue proliferation stage using morphology,maternal genotype,proliferation rate and tissue age of Pinus thunbergii Parl

To determine the optimal embryogenic capacity(somatic embryo production)of the selected elite nematode-resistant genotypes of Pinus thunbergii,variables such as embryogenic tissue(ET)morphology,maternal genotype,proliferation rate and tissue age were analyzed.ET morphology and histological evaluation of the proliferation stage showed a decrease in filamentous clump and protuberant surfaces and a decline in the acetocarmine-staining area,which indicates a decrease in somatic embryo production(SEP).Variations in cell physiology during the prolifera-tion stage showed that SEP was positively correlated with soluble sugars and proteins,but negatively correlated with starch,peroxidase,and superoxidase.In addition,SEP was significantly(p<0.001)affected by maternal genotype,tis-sue age and proliferation rate.Moreover,SEP was positively correlated with proliferation rate(r=0.98,p<0.001),but negatively correlated with tissue age(r=−0.95,p<0.001).In general,the results suggest that SEP could be assessed in ET proliferation stages by the apparent cell morphology,histology,proliferation rate and tissue age,which provides novel insights for evaluating the ET maturation capacity(number of somatic embryos)during the proliferation stage of P.thunbergii somatic embryogenesis.

A novel real-time cell electronic analysis technology for the authentication and quality control of natural medicines

The study was designed to explore the potential applications of the real-time cell electronic analysis technology in the quality evaluation of natural medicines. The natural medicinal Flos Carthami was discussed as a methodological example and the specific time/dose-dependent cell response profiles （TCRPs） were produced by the real-time cell electronic analysis technology. The similarity and bioactivity were obtained by analyzing all TCRPs. Meanwhile, an HPLC method according to the Chinese Pharmacopeia （edition 2010） was used to evaluate the quality of Flos Carthami. The correlation was obtained by comparing the results produced by the two different approaches. By analyzing the data, five different samples ofFlos Carthami can produce remarkably similar TCRPs. The quality ofFlos Carthami was evaluated by both the HPLC and the TCRPs analysis-based approaches and similar results were obtained. The results suggest that the same natural medicine from different locations could produce similar TCRPs. By analyzing the TCRPs, the bioactivity and quality evaluation of natural medicines can be obtained. This technology is a physiologically relevant approach for the quality evaluation of natural medicines. The ultimate aim of our study is to establish a new standard for quality evaluation.