MARION -A group of Ohio State University Marion faculty researchers were recently awarded a $156,000 federal grant from the National Institutes of Healths National Cancer Institute for research in the role of chromatin remodeling factors in DNA double strand break repair.

Assistant Professor of Molecular GeneticsDr. Ruben Petreaca, Associate Professor of Chemistry and BiochemistryDr Ryan Yoder, and Assistant Professor of Chemistry and BiochemistryDr. Renee Bouley are collaborating toward the goal of identifying molecular mechanisms that drive cancer, which if successful would make significant impact in the field of cancer research. The funds from the grant cover primarily undergraduate research salaries and materials between May 1, 2021, and April 30, 2023.

When considering the groups research, Petreaca shared that one challenge to understanding the genetic change in cancer cells is the complexity of the different processes that participate in DNA damage repair.

Errors in some of these repair processes cause accumulation of various forms of DNA damage that eventually leads to cellular transformation and cancer, said Petreaca.

Here we propose novel protein modeling and genetic analysis to understand the interactions between various repair complexes and determine the roles they play in promoting accurate repair, he added.

As a scientist and researcher, Petreaca boiled it down to two basic conceptsthe importance of grants to the discovery process and involving students in research.

It means we can keep doing science, said Petreaca. More importantly, this grant will be used exclusively to fund undergraduate research at Marion.

Yoder echoed Petreacas sentiment about the funding directly benefitting undergraduate research and added his thoughts on the unique aspect of collaboration between different departments and majors working toward a unified goal.

I think its important to stress the interdisciplinary nature of this work, said Yoder.We have faculty with three very different backgrounds (molecular genetics, biochemistry, molecular modeling) who are all bringing our own strengths to this effort.

That means our students who work on this project will be exposed to many different research methods and techniques, he added, which can only benefit them as they move forward in their educational journey.

Having the resources and backing of a tier 1 research university, while having the advantages of a small campus setting to enhance such a collaborative project is at the core of what Ohio State Marion is all about, Yoder shared.

The intimate setting of Ohio State Marion, along with (the resources available at) our Science & Engineering Building, Yoder said, allows for such interdisciplinary research to thrive and provide our students such opportunities to participate in cancer research.

According to Bouley, even before she officially began her tenure on campus, she began working on a project with Dr. Petreaca and got advice on purchasing start-up equipment.

I love how collaborative the science faculty are at Ohio State Marion, said Bouley.

It has been so helpful to team up with other faculty in different fields of expertise to tackle challenging problems such as understanding what causes cancer to develop, she said.

Much like Petreaca and Yoder, for Bouley the grant is about supplying their research materials and hiring bright and energetic young minds who will greatly benefit their future education and career by being involved in research on the undergraduate level.

This grant is currently supporting several undergraduate students and most importantly for my lab, Bouley said, research supplies to be able to conduct biochemistry experiments.

The recent Pelotonia fellow Lauren Frank is currently working on purifying proteins and modeling protein-protein interactions as part of this grant, she explained.

Lauren Frank is the campuss third Pelotonia Undergraduate Fellowship recipient in the past four years, demonstrating the campuss strong science programs and the level of faculty engagement with students in interdisciplinary research.

Excerpt from:
Marion scientists awarded grant to identify molecular mechanisms that drive cancer - Marion Star

University Relations

TheFulbright College of Arts and Sciencesat the U of A has named the 2021 winners of its annual teaching and research faculty awards. The recipients were each selected for their demonstrated excellence in these areas.

"Honoring our phenomenal and inspiring faculty members is so important, and each year selecting the honorees becomes more and more difficult as so many of our folks are doing such stellar and vital work to help our students succeed and to advance research in their respective fields," said Todd Shields, dean of Fulbright College.

"We could not be prouder to introduce our 2021 awardees, many of whom have been going above and beyond in their service and research for years," Shields added. "These folks consistently demonstrate the highest levels of dedication, professionalism and passion, which betters our college and the world beyond."

The college honors up to three outstanding teachers annually, and selection is based on a letter of nomination, teaching evaluations and documentation about the nominee's teaching activities.

The 2021 recipients include:

Douglas Adams, associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology, whom his colleague and nominator Mindy S. Bradley describes as "a kind and devoted teacher" who "brings creativity and enthusiasm to the classroom." Adams regularly teaches the department's General Sociology course, helping hundreds of students each semester to stay "in the flow or zone, the cognitive area of focus where students are actively learning and engaged." Bradley said Adams is "always revising and trying new things" such as teaching strategies rooted in social psychology, and that he is often the first faculty member the department's students meet since he's so involved in recruitment, too. Department chair Shauna Morimoto added that Adams' "energy is infectious, while his compassion is enduring. His classroom presence, combined with his innovative teaching techniques and the application of his research to his teaching underscore his pedagogical excellence and enhance Fulbright College as an institution, as well as the lives of the many students he teaches."

Lorraine Brewer, instructor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, whom her colleague and nominator Francis Millet describes as unmatched in innovation and dedication to her students. For the past 44 years, Brewer has taught University Chemistry and multiple other courses. However, as Millet said, "University Chemistry is the most demanding and important course in our department since it provides the critical foundation of chemistry required for all our other courses. [It] is also the most difficult course to teach in our department because it has the largest number of students and the greatest variation in student backgrounds. [Brewer] usually teaches over 1,000 students a semester in different sections of over 200 each and has often taught in difficult environments including Barnhill Arena." Despite the challenges this might present in connecting with individual students, Brewer is known for doing exactly that, forming "a close relationship with each of her students" and excelling as an "outstanding mentor" to students and younger faculty alike.

Rhodora Vennarucci, assistant professor of classics in the Department of World Languages, Literatures and Cultures, whom her colleague and nominator Daniel Levine describes as spellbinding and impressive, adding that "her students' love of her teaching make me envious; her energy in encouraging student learning and research amaze me." Vennarucci teaches in a wide variety of areas, including classics, history, art history, archeology and Latin, as well as helps students succeed through mentoring, advising, study abroad opportunities and program building. Levine noted that Vennarucci's ability to "reach out to all of her students and encourage them to continue their studies with renewed vigor" ultimately "empowers her students," and "it is no exaggeration to say that she actually makes them stronger." Steven Bell, the department's chair, added that "even in a department blessed with many outstanding and award-winning teachers such as ours, professor Vennarucci stands out as a truly stellar figure in the art of teaching the comprehensive scope of [her] talents and activities documented is truly astonishing."

The honor is awarded to up to three outstanding researchers. Awardees are chosen based on a nomination letter, the nominee's research accomplishments documented in a one-page summary of his or her research outlining its importance, a list of 10 publications, supporting evidence of exceptional performance in research, his or her curriculum vitae and an evaluation by the departmental chairperson.

The 2021 recipients include:

Kevin Fitzpatrick, University Professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology, whom his nominating colleagues describe as "an outstanding scholar" with a research record to match. As a researcher of community health, Fitzpatrick's scholarship is both "wide-ranging and intellectually rigorous." He has published three monographs, three edited volumes and over 50 peer-reviewed refereed articles and book chapters. Department chair Shauna Morimoto added that Fitzpatrick also secured $4 million in research funding and an additional $900,000 grant to build the Community Family Institute, which he directs. Morimoto said Fitzpatrick has "made prodigious contributions to the field of sociology, with extraordinary impact on scholarship and community. He is an exemplary researcher in the most classic sense, with an insatiable mission to understand the causes and correlates of contemporary social problems, with the knowledge that doing so is the only way to begin to address these issues. [He] is able to make a significant contribution to scholarly literature while simultaneously changing the day-to-day lives of the most vulnerable people in local communities - in terms of their access to food, housing, healthcare and social services."

Douglas Rhoads, University Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, whom his department chair and nominator David S. McNabb describes as "an accomplished academic researcher with a global reputation" who in 2020 alone published a co-edited book on genomics research in poultry science, published six refereed journal articles with an additional manuscript submitted, was awarded nearly $160,000 in new funding on top of the $500,000 of his existing funding as the PI and the $10 million in funds as a co-PI, and presented internationally. McNabb said Rhoads has been exhibiting this stellar level of research activity since joining the U of A in 1990 to bring molecular genetics research to the university. Rhoads also helped establish and directs the Cell and Molecular Biology Program and is "at the forefront of developing industry partnerships in research," McNabb said. Rhoads has also served as mentor to dozens of students at all collegiate levels as well as postdoctoral or visiting scientists, demonstrating "his commitment to training the next generation of scientists." These high-volume and high-profile research and training activities speak directly to the "distinguished quality of Dr. Rhoads' research," McNabb added.

Sean Teuton, professor in the Department of English, whom his nominating colleagues describe as someone they "are exceedingly fortunate to have on our faculty." Teuton is a foremost scholar in Native American studies and has published extensively in the field of Native American literature and Indigenous studies. "His three groundbreaking books and numerous articles have reshaped these fields among other tributes, renowned Kiowa author N. Scott Momaday deems Dr. Teuton's Native American Literature 'a compendium of the human condition,'" said his colleague, Susan Marren. Teuton is the author of Native American Literature: A Very Short Introduction; Reasoning Together: The Native Critics Collective (co-authored with the Native Critics Collective); and Red Land, Red Power: Grounding Knowledge in the American Indian Novel. William A. Quinn, chair of the Department of English, said Teuton's work "will influence how readers think about Native American literature, as well as how they think about Native American history, experiences and contributions to American society in general." With another manuscript under final revision and work on another book well underway, Quinn said Teuton "promises to continue to be exceptionally productive as an internationally recognized scholar."

This award recognizes a faculty member's exceptional contributions to the departmental or college advising program. Awardees are chosen based on a letter of recommendation from someone who is acquainted with the candidate's work as an advisor along with letters of support from colleagues and former students.

The 2021 recipient is:

Ron Warren, associate professor in the Department of Communication, whom his department chair and nominator Stephanie Schulte describes as "the most talented and dedicated adviser I have ever seen" who is "exceptional in his dedication, compassion, responsiveness, sensitivity to individual needs and mental flexibility" as well as "generous with his time and attention, and always ready to share his extensive institutional knowledge with students and colleagues." Schulte said Warren has served the department in numerous leadership and advising capacities. Some of these many roles include being faculty adviser for Lambda Pi Eta and Honors Program Advisor. He was also the department's first undergraduate director and helped revise the B.A. program. Warren has directed dozens of undergraduate honors theses, independent study research projects and Honors College Research grants, as well as directing or serving on more than 100 M.A. graduate thesis, dissertation, and comprehensive exam committees. He also helped the communication graduate program refocus on civic engagement, which received national acclaim. His students have found academic and media industry success, and frequently note how Warren helped them achieve these accomplishments through being so invested in "building up students and faculty, in helping them achieve their dreams."

This award is given to a Fulbright College graduate assistant in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the teaching mission of the college and university. Awardees are chosen based on a letter of nomination, a recommendation by the departmental chairperson, assessments of classroom visitations and other types of departmental review, his or her curriculum vitae, letters of support from faculty and peers as well as current and former students, a list of courses taught at the university and a summary of student evaluations for each course.

The 2021 recipient is:

Den Wamsley, in the Department of Psychological Science, who was nominated by her doctoral adviser, professor Denise R. Beike. Wamsley has served as Beike's support teaching assistant and lab manager, as well as supervised an undergraduate honors thesis under Beike's direction. "She has demonstrated excellence in every type of teaching: in the classroom, remotely, in the laboratory, of facts, of research, of writing. Her experience, drive and heart make her the best graduate student teacher in Fulbright College," Beike said. "Den works passionately to make material accessible and lively to students. She also structures her courses and assessments in a way that maximizes student learning. She is there for students, patiently and selflessly offering time to help them succeed. I can't imagine a graduate student teacher more worthy of this prestigious award."

Originally posted here:
Fulbright College Announces 2021 Annual Faculty Teaching and Research Awards - University of Arkansas Newswire

Children and adolescents who had mild to asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 were found to have robust antibody responses up to four months after infection, according to a study of 69 children tested at Duke Health.

The study, appearing in the journal JCI Insight, found that the children and adolescents who previously had COVID-19 developed antibody responses that were capable of neutralizing the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Further, these responses were comparable or superior to those observed in adults.

These findings are encouraging, especially because we cannot yet vaccinate children under the age of 12 against the virus, said co-lead author Jillian Hurst, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine. The study shows that children whove had mild infections or even those who did not have any symptoms, develop an immune response that will likely provide some protection against future infections.

The researchers -- including senior authors Genevieve Fouda, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Duke University School of Medicine and Matthew Kelly, M.D., assistant professor in Pediatrics, and co-first author Carolina Garrido, Ph.D., of the Duke Human Vaccine Institute -- evaluated the SARS-CoV-2-specific immune responses in 69 children and adolescents, with ages ranging from 2 months old to 21 years-old. The median age of participants was 11.5 years, and 51% were female.

The researchers measured antibody responses among children and adolescents with asymptomatic and mild symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection and found that the antibody response did not differ based on the presence of symptoms, and SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies remained detectable in the majority of participants up to four months after infection.

The researchers also compared the childrens immune responses to those of adults. They found that all children, regardless of age group, had equivalent or slightly higher levels of antibodies than adults at two months and four months after acute infection.

Most studies of the immune responses of children to SARS-CoV-2 have focused on patients hospitalized for severe COVID-19 or multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), or have assessed immunity only during acute infection, Fouda said. Our study provides important information that SARS-CoV-2-specific immune responses, regardless of disease severity, may decline over time more slowly in children and adolescents.

Study authors said the findings suggest vaccinating young children against COVID-19 could also elicit a similar or greater degree of protection than that of adults.

Reference:Garrido C, Hurst JH, Lorang CG, et al. Asymptomatic or mild symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection elicits durable neutralizing antibody responses in children and adolescents. JCI Insight. 2021. doi:10.1172/jci.insight.150909

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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Children With Mild COVID-19 Have Robust Antibody Responses Months Later - Technology Networks

Jordan initiated the development of the Stem Cell Research Ethics Law and consequent regulations as a result of Dr Rana Dajanis genome-wide association studies on diabetes and cancer on stem cells on ethnic populations. However, the Jordanian-Palestinian-Syrian authority on the genetics of the Circassian and Chechen populations in the Hashemite Kingdom has also been making another kind of difference at the countrys Hashemite University. The go-getting scientist, who has been working as a full-time tenured professor there since 2019, is undoubtedly a leading light for her female students hoping to make it big in the medical field.

Dajani, an expert in molecular genetics, metabolic syndrome and induced pluripotent stem cells, worked as an Associate Professor at the Zarqa-based university for six years before her current position. A Biology graduate from the University of Jordan, Dajani has used problem-based learning and service learning as well as drama and art while teaching Biology, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics to her undergraduate and graduate students. The trailblazer, who went on to earn a Ph.D. in Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Iowa, has also worked as an Assistant Professor and Director for Centre of Studies at the Hashemite University, where she has held an impressive number of different duties too. Dajani, an advocate for the biological evolution theory in relation to the religion of Islam, has also been associated with Ammans Amman Academy and Philadelphia University.

From 2017-2018 the Fulbright scholar alumna, who was among seven to receive the inaugural IIE Global Changemaker Award, was a Rita E. Hauser Fellow, Visiting Professor at Harvard Universitys Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. The following three years, she was the 2019-21 Zuzana Simoniova Cmelikova Visiting Scholar at the University of Richmonds Jepson School of Leadership Studies. Armed with an Eisenhower Fellowship too, Dajani additionally has visiting professor at Yale Universitys Yale Stem Cell Center and visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge and Jordans Stem Cell Therapy Center on her CV.

As well as being a higher education reform expert and scientist, Dajani is a mother of four and feminist. The genetics authority strongly believes in the education and empowerment of women. In addition to being the President of the Jordan Chapter for the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World, which provides research training and networking opportunities for women scientists, she is an advisor for the UN Women Jordan Advisory Council. Dajani, a seasoned public speaker, is also the founder of the Three Circles of Alemat Mentoring programme for female scientists in the Arab world, which was formed in response to the low representation of women in academia and the challenges they face. The toolkit, which earned her the 2014 PEER Award, inspires women to create social networks to advance their professional life and boost their personal well-being, according to the website.

Dajani is also author of Five Scarves: Doing the ImpossibleIf We Can Reverse Cell Fate, Why Cant We Redefine Success? The book looks into how the hurdles women face in academia differ across varies across cultures, religions and disciplines. It also highlights how women have faced the challenges in various ways. Additionally, Dajani has written in Nature about education and females in the Arab world. The expert, who has also written for Science, also organised the first gender summit for the Arab world in 2017.

The barrier breaker, who wears many scarves and is president of the Society for Advancement of Science and Technology in the Arab World, can add social entrepreneur to her super impressive feats as well. She is the founder and director of We Love Reading, which was created to foster a love of reading in young children around in the region. The non-governmental organisation is based on holding read aloud sessions on a routine basis in a public space and has established multiple libraries across Jordan. The project that encourages refugee and Jordanian children to read for pleasure with their parents has earned Dajani many awards, including the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award Middle East, the Stars Award for Impact 2015, a WISE Award for Innovation in Education and the 2009 Arab World Social Innovator Award by Synergos.

Dajanis astounding career has earned her a plethora of other accolades too. In her homeland, she has received the Order of Al Hussein for Distinguished Contributions of the Second Class, granted to "those who have made distinguished contributions to society." She also earned the King Hussein Cancer Institute for Cancer and Biotechnology Award 2009, a place in the American embassys Women in Science Hall of Fame 2015 and the Jordan Star of Science in the Biology category. As well as all the the nods, whether local, regional and international, the super scientist has been mentioned on various female power lists, whether its in Arabian Business, CEO Middle East or Muslim Science.

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Dr. Rana Dajani: One Of The World's Leading Muslim Female Scientists - About Her

MILAN, July 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --Panaks Partners, the leading Italian venture capital firm in the Life Sciences sector, announces the first closing of its 150 million ($180 million) Purple Fund, the firm's second fund.

Panaks' Purple Fund is currently the largest venture capital fund actively investing in Italian companies and the most significant fund dedicated wholly to the Life Sciences sector in Italy. The fund will invest in companies at the forefront of innovation, with a focus on Europe, and Italy in particular, which remains underserved in terms of Venture Capital funding.

The Purple Fund is the second venture capital fund dedicated to life sciences launched by Panaks Partners. Panaks' first fund, raised in 2016, supported companies in the medtech sector. To-date it has invested in 12 portfolio companies, which have collectively received almost 200 million in funding. Thanks to this financial support, these companies have already brought five innovative medical products to the market and have a further ten products in active clinical trials.

The Purple Fund has been backed by investors from the first fund as well as new investors. The Fund's two anchor investors are EIF and the Fund of Funds FoF VenturItaly managed by CDP Venture Capital SGR. The EIF investment is backed under both the InnovFin Equity initiative from the European Commission under Horizon 2020, the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, as well as the pan-European Guarantee Fund (EGF).

These anchor investors have been joined by several Italian banking foundations and pension funds, as well as numerous Italian companies and family offices in the Life Sciences sector. These include Menarini, the Cogliati family (Elemaster Group), the Colombo family (SAPIO Group), the Rovati family (Rottapharm Biotech), the Petrone family (Petrone Group), the Re family (Digitec Group), the Bassani family (Movi Group) and others.

The Purple Fund will invest mainly in Series A funding rounds, as well as later stage opportunities. The majority of investments will be in companies developing innovative therapeutics and products in the fields of biotechnology, diagnostics, and medical devices.

The fund aims to support the growth of entrepreneurial companies who will reshape healthcare globally by addressing real medical needs, saving lives and providing a better quality of life for patients. By achieving these goals, the fund aims to generate value for both investors and for society as a whole.

"We are delighted with the successful first close of our new Purple Fund, and we would like to thank the high-quality investors who have trusted us. Over 500 innovative life science companies have already submitted funding requests to us in the first six months of 2021," said Fabrizio Landi, President of Panaks and a founding partner of the firm alongside Diana Saraceni and Alessio Beverina. "The fund will remain open for additional subscribers until the end of the year, with a new target of 180 million. By expanding into the biotech sector, we hope to contribute to the growth of companies active in the development of new therapies and vaccines," concluded Landi.

"Panaks has established a strong track record and solid international credibility since it was created a few years ago, also with the support of the CDP Group," commented Enrico Resmini, Chief Executive Officer of CDP Venture Capital SGR. "We are delighted to invest in Panaks' second fund, as it extends its activity into biotechnology, a sector where long-term planning and the availability of capital is essential to finance the R&D that is expected to lead to the innovative new therapies of tomorrow."

Alain Godard, Chief Executive of the European Investment Fund (EIF/FEI), added: "We are happy to once again support Panaks after our previous investment in its first fund. Panaks has managed to build a strong brand in Italy and beyond thanks to its expertise in identifying and investing in novel medtech opportunities. With the extension of its investment strategy into biotech and the resulting growth of the team, Panaks will be able to further support European Life Sciences companies, and particularly those in Italy, which have exceptional R&D but are strongly underserved in terms of Venture Capital funding. We are glad to be able to use both the InnovFin mandate from the European Commission and the direct backing of EU Member States under the European Guarantee Fund to further support this exciting market segment."

To support its expansion into the biotech sector, Panaks intends to recruit three new professionals with significant experience in drug discovery and development in the pharmaceutical industry to its existing team, which is currently made up of 11 professionals. Recently, Barbara Castellano has been promoted to the role of Partner, while the management team of the SGR has been strengthened with the arrival of a new CFO, Lorenzo Giordano, and a Financial Assistant, in the person of Andrea Steffanini.

Panaks Advisory Board has also been expanded and strengthened with the appointment of Biotech and Digital Health industry experts Fabio Pammolli, Professor of Economics, Finance, and Management Science at Politecnico di Milano, and Sergio Abrignani M.D. Ph.D. Full Professor at the National Institute of Molecular Genetics (INGM) in Milan.

About Panaks

Panaks Partners is a Milan-based venture capital firm that aims to improve the lives of people around the world by providing the most promising companies and teams with the financial and corporate support needed to build the next generation of companies bringing revolutionary technologies and products to the field of life sciences. Panaks was founded in 2015 by Fabrizio Landi, Alessio Beverina and Diana Saraceni.

http://www.Panaks.it

About CDP Venture Capital SGR Fondo Nazionale Innovazione

CDP Venture Capital is an asset management company (70% owned by CDP Equity and 30% owned by Invitalia) with over 1 billion euro of assets under management. It aims to make Venture Capital a strategic pillar to Italy's economic development and innovation, creating the conditions for a comprehensive and sustainable growth of the Venture Capital ecosystem. It operates through a series of funds that aim to support startups in all their life cycle stages, making both direct and indirect investments.

About EIF

TheEuropean Investment Fund(EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support Europe's micro, small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments which specifically target this market segment. In this role, EIF fosters EU objectives in support of innovation, research and development, entrepreneurship, growth, and employment. The EIF investment is supported by InnovFin Equity, with the financial backing of the European Union under Horizon 2020, the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014-2020). Through or alongside selected Venture Capital (VC), Business Angels (BA), Technology Transfer funds and funds-of-funds, the EU provides risk capital financing to enterprises, research organisations, universities in their proof-of-concept, pre-seed, seed, start-up and other early-stage phases allowing them to set up or reach their next stage of development.The EIF participation is also backed under the European Guarantee Fund (EGF), which was set up by the EIB Group with contributions from Italy and other EU Member States to shield companies suffering from the COVID-19 crisis. Using nearly EUR 25 billion in guarantees, the EGF allows the EIB and the EIF to quickly make loans, guarantees, asset-backed securities, equity and other financial instruments available to mostly small and medium-sized enterprises. The EGF is part of the European Union's recovery package aiming to provide a total of EUR 540 billion boost those parts of the EU economy that have been hit the worst.

Media Contacts:

Panaks Partners

news@panakes.it

MEDiSTRAVA Consulting

Sylvie Berrebi, David Dible

panakes@medistrava.com

Tel: +44 (0)20 7638 9571

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/panakes-partners-announces-the-first-closing-of-its-new-purple-global-biotech-medtech-fund-at-150-million-180-million-301337128.html

SOURCE Panaks Partners

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Panaks Partners Announces the First Closing Of Its New 'Purple' Global Biotech/ Medtech Fund at 150 Million ($180 Million) - WFMZ Allentown

Health & Welfare

Monday, 19 July 2021 Silvia Garca-Ballesteros, Ph.D. Beatriz Villanueva, Ph.D. Jess Fernndez, Ph.D. Juan Pablo Gutirrez, DVM Isabel Cervantes, DVM

Most selective breeding programs for shrimp focus on improving growth traits only, but as growth rate increases and production intensifies, other traits related to the quality and uniformity of the final product gain importance for both consumers and producers, including size uniformity.

Shrimp are graded and classified according to standards that are defined in high-quality marketing evaluations and are mainly determined by their physical characteristics and uniformity of size. In particular, shrimp are graded according to their size and count per unit of weight. Prices between size categories vary widely and a larger number of smaller shrimp per unit weight reduces their price, so increasing the consistency of size within a specific count range can improve profitability.

In addition, large variation in body size can cause competition among shrimp (dominance hierarchies), which negatively affects growth rate, mortality and feed efficiency, and increases the need for management practices such as size grading. Another indirect benefit of improving uniformity is the potential to improve resilience, which is defined as the ability of an animal to maintain performance in spite of environmental perturbations. For all these reasons, and given that weight is genetically highly correlated with size, uniformity of weight is a clear candidate trait to be included in shrimp breeding programs.

Weight uniformity depends on the sensitivity of an individual to macro- and micro-environmental factors. Macroenvironmental factors are measurable factors such as temperature, seasonality, diet and management, whereas microenvironmental factors are non-measurable animal-specific factors within a given macroenvironment. A necessary condition to increase weight uniformity is the existence of genetic variance for response to such microenvironmental factors, such that individuals with genotypes [complete set of genetic material] that make them less sensitive to environmental disturbances will have more homogeneous offspring and show less environmental within-family variance.

In aquaculture selective breeding programs, the breeding nucleus (in which selection is performed) is usually kept separate from the commercial population that is composed of individuals destined for sale in the market. In aquaculture, the macroenvironmental rearing conditions can differ greatly between the nucleus and the commercial population. Thus, if genotype-by-environment interactions exist, genetic improvement achieved in the nucleus may not be fully translated to the commercial population.

This article summarized and adapted from the original publication [Garca-Ballesteros, S. et al. 2021. Genetic parameters for uniformity of harvest weight in Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei). Genet Sel Evol 53, 26 (2021)] reports on a research study to estimate the genetic variance of body weight uniformity in a farmed population of Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), and to investigate whether selecting for increased weight uniformity in the breeding nucleus leads to improvement of uniformity in the commercial population.

Influence of stressors on shrimp susceptibility to White Spot Disease, Part 1

The data used in this study were obtained from CAMANICA S.A., a Nicaragua-based company, carrying out a breeding program in shrimp with discrete generations and selection for shrimp body weight. Once animals reach the appropriate size, random samples of individuals are tagged, with half of them being individually tagged with eye-rings and assigned to the nucleus (N) population and the other half being tagged at the family level with elastomers and assigned to the commercial (C) population.

Within the nucleus, all families are reared in the same tank. However, in the commercial population, three to four ponds that are located in different geographical zones are used per generation, with each family equally represented in each pond. Environmental conditions differ greatly between the nucleus and the commercial populations. Thus, weight in the selection nucleus and weight in the commercial population are considered as two different traits.

The data used here are from three consecutive generations and 425 families. The total number of individuals with phenotypic records for body weight at harvest was 89,643, of which 51,346 belonged to the nucleus and 38,297 belonged to the commercial population. Harvest time was established by estimating the days required to reach an average weight of 15 grams in the nucleus. This time was set for both commercial (all ponds) and for the nucleus environments. However, for management reasons, recording the phenotypes of all shrimp can take a few days. Sex, year and pond were also recorded.

The resulting database had records for body weight on 51,346 shrimp from the selection nucleus and 38,297 shrimp from the commercial population. We used a double hierarchical generalized linear model [used in genetics studies to model quantitative traits (a measurable phenotype the observable characteristics or traits of an organism from genetic and environmental factors spread in magnitude in a population rather than none or all) with respect to molecular marker effects (molecules containing genetic information from a sample) to analyze weight uniformity in the two environments. Fixed effects included sex and year for the nucleus data and sex and year-pond combination for the commercial data. Environmental and additive genetic effects were included as random effects.

For detailed information on the study data, parameters evaluated, and analyses, refer to the original publication.

Although weight uniformity is a very relevant trait with the potential of being included in shrimp breeding programs, there is very little information on the existence of genetic variation for this trait. To our knowledge, ours is the first study that uses a double hierarchical generalized linear model to estimate genetic variance for body weight uniformity in shrimp and constitutes a first step to investigate the possibility of including this trait in the breeding goal. This is important since the weight uniformity evaluated here was individual sensitivity to microenvironmental disturbances.

Estimates of the additive genetic variance, heritability and genetic coefficient of residual variation for weight uniformity that were obtained for this L. vannamei population in the nucleus, in which selection takes place, were all different from 0, which indicates that genetic improvement for this trait is possible. In addition, the genetic correlation of weight uniformity between the nucleus and the commercial population was relatively high, which indicates that improvement obtained in the nucleus would be partially transmitted to the commercial population, with the economic benefits that this would entail.

Results showed that our estimates of the global heritability for body weight at harvest in N and C were within the range of those found in the literature for shrimp. More important is the fact that estimates of the additive genetic variance for uniformity of weight and for the residual heritability were also in the range of those described for shrimp, other aquaculture species and various terrestrial species. This indicates the existence of genetic variation in microenvironmental sensitivity among full-sib families [common parents], which implies that the phenotypes of offspring of different families will be differentially affected by the environment. Thus, our results show that the potential of genetic selection to improve weight uniformity in L. vannamei is similar to that for other species.

To evaluate the potential economic benefit of including weight uniformity in the breeding goal, correlations with other traits that are currently in the breeding goal, such as body weight, must be estimated. The ideal scenario would be the existence of a negative genetic correlation between weight and its variability because it would facilitate selection for higher weight and more uniformity. In aquaculture, estimates of the genetic correlation between weight and its variability vary largely in the literature. Our estimate was not significantly different from 0, which indicates that it may not be difficult to improve weight and weight uniformity simultaneously through a selection index. This would require the economic value for uniformity to be determined, which is unknown at this point.

It is very important that genetic improvements made in the nucleus are transferred to the commercial population that is composed of individuals for sale in the market. Thus, a high genetic correlation between the nucleus and commercial environments for traits that are selected for in the nucleus is desirable. This is not always the case because, although conditions are intended to be similar in the two environments, this is not usually feasible. Particularly in aquaculture species, some environmental factors are more important than others in affecting the re-ranking of individuals based on their estimated breeding values.

In our study, estimates of the genetic correlation between environments N and C were for weight and for weight uniformity were within the range reported for weight in other aquaculture species. Our estimate of the genetic correlation of weight between environments was lower than what has been reported for shrimp by some researchers, but within the range reported by others. Our study provides, for the first time, an estimate of the genetic correlation of weight uniformity between different environments for shrimp, and it is similar to what has been reported for trout.

Many studies have shown that the proportion of phenotypic variance [variability in phenotypes in a population, including height, weight, body shape and others] due to common environmental effects, although significantly different from 0 in shrimp and other aquaculture species, is of low magnitude. Some studies have suggested that common environmental effects are difficult to separate from family genetic effects. The few studies that have included common environmental effects for weight uniformity did not achieve significant estimates.

Our results show that genetic variability for the environmental variance of weight at harvest exists in shrimp, both in the selection nucleus and in the commercial population. The genetic variation for these traits (uniformity measured in the nucleus and in the commercial population) was large enough to conclude that response to selection could be obtained if these traits were included in the breeding program.

Including weight uniformity should not decrease weight since the genetic correlation between the two traits was not significantly different from zero. Further investigation is necessary to determine what is the best combination of these traits to reach the greatest economic benefit. Based on the genetic correlation of weight uniformity between the two environments estimated here, selection in the nucleus will be transmitted to the commercial population.

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Estimating the genetic variance of body weight uniformity in a farmed population of Pacific white shrimp Global Aquaculture Advocate -...

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The figure above summarizes the findings of the team in terms of genetic, epigenetic and stochastic differences among the EGFR-mutant lung cancer cells studied.

Leonard Harris, assistant professor of biomedical engineering, led a team of researchers from Vanderbilt Universitythat has shown how an in vitro model of tumor heterogeneity, or diversity, resolves three different sources of cell state variability in cancer cells.

The paper has been published in PLOS Biology, part of the Public Library of Science.

A heterogeneous tumor is a tumor that is made up of many different types of cancer cells. Often, the cells have different types of genetic mutations and co-exist within a tumor. The diversity of the tumor is what makes cancer difficult to treat.

"It's like the success of a diverse team," Harris explains. "A team made up of people from different backgrounds, ages, stages of their career, etc., are often better at tackling problems because the team members provide different perspectives."

In a tumor, different cells respond to drug treatments differently. Some cells are able to survive and regrow the tumor and spread, which is why Harris and his team continue to research the ways surviving cancer cells differ from the other tumor cells.

But genetic mutations are not the only way cancer cells can differ from each other. Cells that have the exact same DNA can exist in very different states. For example, your skin cells and your liver cells have exactly the same DNA but they function very differently; that is an example of epigenetic heterogeneity. Moreover, when a skin cell divides, it produces two skin cells. The cells do not inherit the skin cell state from the DNA; it has to come through some other means. It is this non-genetic form of inheritance that makes the process epigenetic.

Cancer cells also differ due to random fluctuations in molecule numbers inside each cell: molecules randomly interact with each other, degrade, are synthesized by the cell, secrete into and out of the cell, etc. This type of non-genetic heterogeneity is called stochastic variability and is not heritable, unlike epigenetic processes. It might not seem like a big deal, but researchers have shown that stochastic variability can have major effects.

The experimental and computational work reported in the paper was performed at Vanderbilt University in collaboration with Corey E. Hayford, Darren R. Tyson, C. Jack Robbins III, Peter L. Frick and Vito Quaranta and has motivated many additional research projects. It is now the foundation for Harris' U of A laboratory.

"Cancer is commonly referred to as a 'genetic disease', meaning it is caused by mutations in critical parts of the DNA that cause cells to grow out of control," Harris said. "This has led to decades of research on the genetics of cancer, which has resulted in significant advances, including the development of numerous therapeutic drugs that target so-called 'driver oncogenes.' While exceptionally effective in the short term, these targeted drugs fail almost universally, with patient tumors recurring within a few months to a few years. This has led many researchers to begin considering the role of non-genetic processes in the response of tumors to drugs."

Modeling and experimental techniques were used to distinguish the three different sources of variability among lung cancer cells: genetic, epigenetic and stochastic. As stated above, epigenetic and stochastic variabilities are different types of non-genetic variability. Epigenetically distinct cells look different, like the skin and liver cells from the example above, whereas stochastically distinct cells appear nearly identical but may act completely different.

"Distinguishing genetic from non-genetic, and epigenetic from stochastic, factors in drug response is crucial for developing new therapies that can kill tumor cells before they have a chance to acquire genetic resistance mutations," Harris said. "They all contribute to tumor drug response in different ways."

A framework for distinguishing genetic and non-genetic sources of heterogeneity in tumors has been proposed previously but is not yet widely accepted within the cancer research community because of a lack of strong experimental evidence. The team's paper provides strong support for this framework.

The analysis presented in the paper was applied specifically to EGFR-mutant non-small cell lung cancer. Harris' lab is currently applying these ideas to other cancer types as well, including small cell lung cancer, melanoma and bone-metastatic breast cancer.

"In my laboratory, we are working on building computational models of the molecular networks within cancer cells that give rise to the different epigenetic states, across which cells can transition to survive drug treatments," Harris said. "The long-term goal of my lab's research is to expand these models until they are of sufficient detail to act as virtual platforms for testing the effects of various drugs and identifying novel drug targets."

By constructing these so-called "digital twins," the hope is to one day use them to perform virtual drug screens on models built from samples of real patient tumors and then design personalized treatment options for those patients. This will require forming collaborations with bioinformaticians, experimentalists and clinicians here at U of A, the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciencesin Little Rock, and elsewhere. "Hopefully, the publication of this paper will help spark some of those collaborations," Harris said.

About the Public Library of Science: The Public Library of Science states on its website, "PLOS Biology empowers authors to publish the full arc of their research without compromising quality. Researchers can more fully and accurately represent their science and get credit for all their work."

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Research Shows Non-Genetic Tumor Diverseness Contributes to Treatment Failure in Cancer Patients - University of Arkansas Newswire

PITTSBURGH, July 16, 2021 - For the first time ever, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine discovered that phages--tiny viruses that attack bacteria--are key to initiating rapid bacterial evolution leading to the emergence of treatment-resistant "superbugs." The findings were published today in Science Advances.

The researchers showed that, contrary to a dominant theory in the field of evolutionary microbiology, the process of adaptation and diversification in bacterial colonies doesn't start from a homogenous clonal population. They were shocked to discover that the cause of much of the early adaptation wasn't random point mutations. Instead, they found that phages, which we normally think of as bacterial parasites, are what gave the winning strains the evolutionary advantage early on.

"Essentially, a parasite became a weapon," said senior author Vaughn Cooper, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at Pitt. "Phages endowed the victors with the means of winning. What killed off more sensitive bugs gave the advantage to others."

When it comes to bacteria, a careful observer can track evolution in the span of a few days. Because of how quickly bacteria grow, it only takes days for bacterial strains to acquire new traits or develop resistance to antimicrobial drugs.

The researchers liken the way bacterial infections present in the clinic to a movie played from the middle. Just as late-arriving moviegoers struggle to mentally reconstruct events that led to a scene unfolding in front of their eyes, physicians are forced to make treatment decisions based on a static snapshot of when a patient presents at a hospital. And just like at a movie theater, there is no way to rewind the film and check if their guess about the plot or the origin of the infection was right or wrong.

The new study shows that bacterial and phage evolution often go hand in hand, especially in the early stages of bacterial infection. This is a multilayered process in which phages and bacteria are joined in a chaotic dance, constantly interacting and co-evolving.

When the scientists tracked changes in genetic sequences of six bacterial strains in a skin wound infection in pigs, they found that jumping of phages from one bacterial host to another was rampant--even clones that didn't gain an evolutionary advantage had phages incorporated in their genomes. Most clones had more than one phage integrated in their genetic material--often there were two, three or even four phages in one bug.

"It showed us just how much phages interact with one another and with new hosts," said Cooper. "Characterizing diversity in early bacterial infections can allow us to reconstruct history and retrace complex paths of evolution to a clinical advantage. And, with growing interest in using phages to treat highly resistant infections, we are learning how to harness their potency for good."

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Researchers surprised to find bacterial parasites behind rise of 'super bugs' - Science Codex