Zinc Finger RNA-Binding Protein Zn72D Regulates ADAR-Mediated RNA Editing in Neurons.

Adenosine-to-inosine RNA editing, catalyzed by adenosine deaminase acting on RNA (ADAR) enzymes, alters RNA sequences from those encoded by DNA. These editing events are dynamically regulated, but few trans regulators of ADARs are known in vivo. Here, we screen RNA-binding proteins for roles in editing regulation with knockdown experiments in the Drosophila brain.

Evaluation of the feasibility of short-term electrodialysis for separating naturally occurring fluoride from instant brick tea infusion.

Background: Removing excessive naturally occurring fluoride from tea and/or infusions is difficult because the process has low efficiency and causes secondary pollution. In this study, a novel electrodialysis (ED) technology was developed. We examined the effect of crucial parameters (electrolyte concentration, operation voltage, ED duration and initial concentration of the tea infusion) on defluoridation performance using a highly efficient ion-exchange membrane with five-compartment cells.

Incidence and Outcomes of C5 Palsy and Axial Pain After Open-Door Laminoplasty or Laminectomy and Fusion: A Meta-Analysis.

Objective: C5 palsy and axial pain are significant factors affecting the quality of life after posterior cervical surgery; however, there has been no clear and supportive conclusion on which method is more suitable in a certain case. As a result, we compare the clinical outcomes, complication rates, and anatomical changes between open-door laminoplasty (ODL) and laminectomy and fusion (LF) for cervical spondylotic myelopathy. This is a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.

Perspectives on gene expression regulation techniques in Drosophila.

Gene expression regulation, including loss-of-function and gain-of-function assays, is a powerful method to study developmental and disease mechanisms. Drosophila melanogaster is an ideal model system particularly well-equipped with many genetic tools. In this review, we describe and discuss the gene expression regulation techniques recently developed and their applications, including the CRISPR/Cas9-triggered heritable mutation system, CRISPR/dCas9-based transcriptional activation (CRISPRa) system, and CRISPR/dCas9-based transcriptional repression (CRISPRi) system, as well as the next-generation transgenic RNAi system.

pNP Transgenic RNAi System Manual in .

Much of our knowledge about the mechanisms underlying biological processes relies on genetic approaches, whereby gene activity is reduced and the phenotypic consequences of perturbation are analyzed in detail. For functional genomic studies, a specific, systematic, and cost-effective manner is critical. Transgenic RNAi system is the top priority choice to study gene functions due to its simple and practical characteristics in .

An efficient and multiple target transgenic RNAi technique with low toxicity in Drosophila.

Being relatively simple and practical, Drosophila transgenic RNAi is the technique of top priority choice to quickly study genes with pleiotropic functions. However, drawbacks have emerged over time, such as high level of false positive and negative results. To overcome these shortcomings and increase efficiency, specificity and versatility, we develop a next generation transgenic RNAi system.

Next-generation CRISPR/Cas9 transcriptional activation in using flySAM.

CRISPR/Cas9-based transcriptional activation (CRISPRa) has recently emerged as a powerful and scalable technique for systematic overexpression genetic analysis in We present flySAM, a potent tool for in vivo CRISPRa, which offers major improvements over existing strategies in terms of effectiveness, scalability, and ease of use. flySAM outperforms existing in vivo CRISPRa strategies and approximates phenotypes obtained using traditional Gal4-UAS overexpression. Moreover, because flySAM typically requires only a single sgRNA, it dramatically improves scalability.

Histone H1 defect in escort cells triggers germline tumor in Drosophila ovary.

Drosophila ovary is recognized as one of the best model systems to study stem cell biology in vivo. We had previously identified an autonomous role of the histone H1 in germline stem cell (GSC) maintenance. Here, we found that histone H1 depletion in escort cells (ECs) resulted in an increase of spectrosome-containing cells (SCCs), an ovary tumor-like phenotype.

Histone H1-mediated epigenetic regulation controls germline stem cell self-renewal by modulating H4K16 acetylation.

Epigenetics plays critical roles in controlling stem cell self-renewal and differentiation. Histone H1 is one of the most critical chromatin regulators, but its role in adult stem cell regulation remains unclear. Here we report that H1 is intrinsically required in the regulation of germline stem cells (GSCs) in the Drosophila ovary.

The Transgenic RNAi Project at Harvard Medical School: Resources and Validation.

To facilitate large-scale functional studies in Drosophila, the Drosophila Transgenic RNAi Project (TRiP) at Harvard Medical School (HMS) was established along with several goals: developing efficient vectors for RNAi that work in all tissues, generating a genome-scale collection of RNAi stocks with input from the community, distributing the lines as they are generated through existing stock centers, validating as many lines as possible using RT-qPCR and phenotypic analyses, and developing tools and web resources for identifying RNAi lines and retrieving existing information on their quality. With these goals in mind, here we describe in detail the various tools we developed and the status of the collection, which is currently composed of 11,491 lines and covering 71% of Drosophila genes. Data on the characterization of the lines either by RT-qPCR or phenotype is available on a dedicated website, the RNAi Stock Validation and Phenotypes Project (RSVP, http://www.

A Toolkit of CRISPR-Based Genome Editing Systems in Drosophila.

The last couple of years have witnessed an explosion in development of CRISPR-based genome editing technologies in cell lines as well as in model organisms. In this review, we focus on the applications of this popular system in Drosophila. We discuss the effectiveness of the CRISPR/Cas9 systems in terms of delivery, mutagenesis detection, parameters affecting efficiency, and off-target issues, with an emphasis on how to apply this powerful tool to characterize gene functions.

Enhanced specificity and efficiency of the CRISPR/Cas9 system with optimized sgRNA parameters in Drosophila.

The CRISPR/Cas9 system has recently emerged as a powerful tool for functional genomic studies in Drosophila melanogaster. However, single-guide RNA (sgRNA) parameters affecting the specificity and efficiency of the system in flies are still not clear. Here, we found that off-target effects did not occur in regions of genomic DNA with three or more nucleotide mismatches to sgRNAs.

Performance of the Cas9 nickase system in Drosophila melanogaster.

Recent studies of the Cas9/sgRNA system in Drosophila melanogaster genome editing have opened new opportunities to generate site-specific mutant collections in a high-throughput manner. However, off-target effects of the system are still a major concern when analyzing mutant phenotypes. Mutations converting Cas9 to a DNA nickase have great potential for reducing off-target effects in vitro.