[{"id":441,"title":"FearOmone: A cat pheromone based Bio-synthetic deterrent to minimize post-harvest losses caused by rat manifestation.","sha":"615314a52dd60711df2f8a2b212206e7","user_id":null,"state":"published","body":"In India, post-harvest losses amount to 16 million metric tons of food grains each year (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5296677/). Improper storage and transport is the main problem to be addressed since it contributes to more than 30% of the total post-harvest losses. Traditional storage modes are vulnerable to a range of rodent attacks, especially those of mice and rats. Conventional solutions including rodenticides have adverse effects on the environment and other harmless animals. There also exists ethical issues with killing animals.\r\n\r\nWe aim to address this issue by creating genetically engineered yeast producing cat pheromone-based biosynthetic deterrent to minimize post-harvest losses. Research has shown that cat urine contains pheromone precursors and major urinary proteins which mice brains are biologically programmed to perceive as a threat (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17052611). Emulating the cat pheromone pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a three-step process requiring three enzymes to mediate each transition in its cytosol. The initial step involves the production of 3-Methylbutanol-glutathione from glutathione and isopentenyl pyrophosphate. As Saccharomyces cerevisiae lacks the necessary enzymes, we will be transforming it with plasmids containing synthetic gene circuits.\r\n","created_at":"2018-02-26T20:16:04.164Z","updated_at":"2018-02-27T06:01:03.211Z","zenodo_id":1184694,"doi":"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1184694","subject":null,"tags":["synthetic biology","deterrent","pheromone","major urinary proteins","post-harvest losses"],"vote_count":0,"view_count":1,"score":0.1,"deleted":false,"muted":false,"tweeted":true,"attachment_file_name":"AKJMS.md","attachment_content_type":"application/octet-stream","attachment_file_size":1340,"attachment_updated_at":"2018-02-26T20:16:03.835Z"},{"id":450,"title":"A combinatorial approach towards treating cancer through Cisplatin","sha":"f1f40bd0249316dd9110fd9efcd4b83f","user_id":null,"state":"published","body":"Cisplatin is an effective chemotherapeutic drug against a vast variety of cancers. It is a cytotoxic drug that kills cancer cells by forming DNA adducts, thereby damaging the DNA leading to apoptosis. However, the clinical use of cisplatin is limited by severe side effects in healthy tissues with nephrotoxicity being the major issue (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3756417/). The side effects are mainly due to the accumulation of cisplatin in kidney, especially when the drug is transported through organic cation transporter II expressed in the basolateral membrane of proximal tubule cells. This induces p53 which activate PUMAα (pro-apoptotic protein) in renal tubular cells which leads to renal failure due to apoptosis (https://www.hindawi.com/journals/scientifica/2012/473829/).\r\n\r\nHowever, this can be prevented by pre-treatment with QiShenYiQi pills (QSYQ), a compound in Chinese medicine which significantly decreases histological damage and cisplatin-induced increase in plasma urea levels and creatinine levels (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321989615_QiShenYiQi_Pills_a_Compound_Chinese_Medicine_Prevented_Cisplatin_Induced_Acute_Kidney_Injury_via_Regulating_Mitochondrial_Function). Thereby we propose, a combinatorial treatment approach towards cancer through cisplatin and QSYQ, where the later can decrease the cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity and enhance the clinical use of cisplatin chemotherapy without any side effects.\r\n","created_at":"2018-04-01T12:52:18.156Z","updated_at":"2018-04-05T06:00:49.706Z","zenodo_id":1212226,"doi":"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1212226","subject":null,"tags":["cancer research","side-effects","cisplatin","combinatorial approach"],"vote_count":0,"view_count":1,"score":0.1,"deleted":false,"muted":false,"tweeted":true,"attachment_file_name":"AKJAS.md","attachment_content_type":"application/octet-stream","attachment_file_size":1478,"attachment_updated_at":"2018-04-01T13:02:29.198Z"},{"id":633,"title":"Dermatoglyphics to predict genetic disorders","sha":"b4ed72f1220f9d126a3b96f13b862820","user_id":null,"state":"published","body":"In recent times, genetic disorders have risen to be one of the significant causes of mortality. As we improve our understanding of the human genome, we see that nearly all diseases have a genetic component linked to them. Early diagnosis of these genetic diseases is crucial for successful treatment.\r\n\r\nThe dermatoglyphics or the fingerprints of a human individual are among the very few features that can uniquely identify an individual and are determined by various phenomena, including genetic and chromosomal factors. Thus the analysis of fingerprint patterns might reveal insights into the genetic makeup of an individual. Fingerprints are proven to act as reliable biological markers for several medical conditions such as hypertension and other coronary diseases (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ihj.2018.07.007). Fingerprint patterns can be exploited using artificial intelligence and cutting-edge machine learning algorithms, which can be trained to detect markers that correspond to several genetic disorders. \r\n","created_at":"2019-12-26T19:17:31.082Z","updated_at":"2020-02-09T06:00:38.357Z","zenodo_id":3660060,"doi":"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3660060","subject":null,"tags":["fingerprints","genetic disorders","machine learning","artificial intelligence"],"vote_count":0,"view_count":1,"score":0.1,"deleted":false,"muted":false,"tweeted":false,"attachment_file_name":null,"attachment_content_type":null,"attachment_file_size":null,"attachment_updated_at":null}]