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Chitosan-Based Nanogels for Biomedical Applications
Published in Vladimir Torchilin, Handbook of Materials for Nanomedicine, 2020
Leyre Pérez-Álvarez, Leire Ruiz-Rubio, José Luis Vilas-Vilela
Gene therapy is a promising field for medicine which has attracted a lot of attention in the recent years for the development of new therapies to treat cancer, autoimmune diseases, viral and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, and genetic rare diseases, among others. The main goal of gene therapy is to introduce new genetic material (genes, pDNA, oligonucleotides, and small interfering RNA) into targeted cells in order to control and modulate the genomic expression leading to the direct production of proteins in the targeted cells [175]. Effective gene therapy requires the protection of genes from degradation in the extracellular medium, the specific targeting into desired cells, and an enough cellular uptake of genetic material to produce a therapeutic effect [176]. Therefore, the development of suitable vehicles for the efficient gene delivery has been intensively investigated in the last decades. These vehicles can be differentiated as viral and nonviral vectors. Since viral vectors can lead to mutational effects [177], although nonviral vectors usually show low transfection efficiency; as they are safer, cheap and easy to produce, they have become promising candidates for gene delivery [178]. Ideal nonviral gene delivery vectors should present nanometric size to enable an adequate cellular uptake and properly protect the DNA until it reaches the target cell.
Pharmacogenomics: Ethical, Social, and Public Policy Issues
Published in Shaker A. Mousa, Raj Bawa, Gerald F. Audette, The Road from Nanomedicine to Precision Medicine, 2020
Privacy protection is an ethical and legal issue often associated with genomic research. It is a particularly important issue for pharmacogenomics as there will be not only genomic information included in a participants’ research file but also medical information and other types of personal data (e.g., lifestyle, familial health data). On the one hand, some industry researchers have argued that pharmacogenomic information is not particularly sensitive health information [88]. Scholars, on the other hand, counter that pharmacogenomic research, like other types of genetic research, can produce incidental findings (some of those related to susceptibility to disease, paternity, etc.) and that databases used in pharmacogenomics are vulnerable to third-party misuse (i.e., potential misuse by governmental law enforcement agencies, insurers, employers, and drug companies) [27, 72]. In pharmacogenomics, the privacy concerns are complex because private pharmaceutical companies often control sample collections. This raises concerns regarding the long-term governance of the samples. For example, what will happen to the samples if a private company becomes bankrupt or is sold [33, 100]? Another scenario to consider is the case where law enforcement officials, in the context of a criminal investigation, request access to the database.
Pharmacogenomics: Ethical, Social, and Public Policy Issues
Published in Shaker A. Mousa, Raj Bawa, Gerald F. Audette, The Road from Nanomedicine to Precision Medicine, 2019
Privacy protection is an ethical and legal issue often associated with genomic research. It is a particularly important issue for pharmacogenomics as there will be not only genomic information included in a participants’ research file but also medical information and other types of personal data (e.g., lifestyle, familial health data). On the one hand, some industry researchers have argued that pharmacogenomic information is not particularly sensitive health information [88]. Scholars, on the other hand, counter that pharmacogenomic research, like other types of genetic research, can produce incidental findings (some of those related to susceptibility to disease, paternity, etc.) and that databases used in pharmacogenomics are vulnerable to third-party misuse (i.e., potential misuse by governmental law enforcement agencies, insurers, employers, and drug companies) [27, 72]. In pharmacogenomics, the privacy concerns are complex because private pharmaceutical companies often control sample collections. This raises concerns regarding the long-term governance of the samples. For example, what will happen to the samples if a private company becomes bankrupt or is sold [33, 100]? Another scenario to consider is the case where law enforcement officials, in the context of a criminal investigation, request access to the database.
Progressing the health agenda: responsibly innovating in health technology*
Published in Journal of Responsible Innovation, 2018
Some may ask the question: Have there been initiatives that have been successful or unsuccessful because of their consideration – or lack of consideration – of ethical, legal, and social concerns? Several would contend that the Human Genome Project has led to substantial gains in understanding genetics and genomics (National Human Genome Research institute 2015). Ethical, legal, and social considerations were examined at the outset and continued throughout the program (Collins 1999; Collins, Morgan, and Patrinos 2003). Today, there are consumer tests that provide ancestry information based on a saliva swab in addition to a newly federally funded Precision Medicine Initiative to advance the Human Genome Project (Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program 2016). Is the public more comfortable with genetic testing having explored ethical, legal, and social implications early on in the initiative? Probably. Genetically modified foods (GMOs) are one example where the scientific community has been less effective at addressing these concerns. In many countries, GMOs are shied away from because of the belief that they are unnatural or will cause other problems (Gaskell et al. 2000). This is despite the fact that GMOs have potential to help minimize global hunger (see, for example, Pinstrup-Andersen and Schiøler 2003).
Recombinant production of active Streptococcus pneumoniae CysE in E. coli facilitated by codon optimized BL21(DE3)-RIL and detergent
Published in Preparative Biochemistry and Biotechnology, 2019
Deepali Verma, Monika Antil, Vibha Gupta
PCR amplification of Spn cysE was carried out from genomic DNA of S. pneumoniae with Taq: Pfu polymerase (4:1) and gene-specific forward (5′-GATTTAGCTAGCCATCACCATCACCATCACGGGTGGTGGCGCGAAACCATTG-3′) and reverse (5′-GATTTAAAGCTTCTACAAACCAGACGATCTGTG-3′) primers. The PCR-amplified Spn cysE gene was cloned into the pET21c vector (Novagen) between NheI and HindIII sites (restriction sites underlined in the primer sequence) with the N-terminal His6 tag and named pET21c/SP05891. The cloning of Spn cysE was achieved using standard molecular biology protocols.[23] DNA sequencing of the cloned gene was outsourced to Eurofins Genomics India Pvt. Ltd.
A responsibility to commercialize? Tracing academic researchers’ evolving engagement with the commercialization of biomedical research
Published in Journal of Responsible Innovation, 2019
Kelly Holloway, Matthew Herder
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirty biomedical researchers at different career stages between March and July 2014. Five were graduate students, seven were postdoctoral researchers or Research associates, seven were assistant or associate professors, and 11 were full professors. They came from a variety of departments: Pathology, Hematopathology, Pediatrics, Neurosurgery, Pharmachology, Biochemistry, Molecular biology, Bioinformatics, Genomics, Biomedical Engineering, Epidemiology, Microbiology, Geriatric Medicine, Immunology, Neuroscience, Dentistry, Psychology, Cancer Immunotherapy.