Vibrio vulnificus is a ubiquitous marine bacterium that may cause rapid and deadly infection, threatening lives of people living around natural bodies of water, especially in coastal regions. However, traditional culture-based methods are time-consuming and unable to detect Viable But Non-Culturable (VBNC) V. vulnificus cells. In this work, we isolated a batch of detection aptamers specifically binding to V. vulnificus in all culture status. With traditional whole bacteria-SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment), flow cytometer analysis and imaging, we identify 18 candidates and validated two of them (V8 and V13) as applicable aptamers. Their truncated sequences also showed comparable performance. The dissociation constant (KD) value of V8 is shown to be as low as 11.22 ± 1.32 nM. Optimal aptamers V8 and V13 are also validated to be effective to detect different Vibrio vulnificus strains under different binding environments using flow cytometry. As for detection parameters, the LOD of the V8 from cytometry is 29.96 CFU mL-1, and the linear range is 102-5 × 105 CFU mL-1. This is the first case demonstrating that aptamers can detect the existence of VBNC bacteria as well as live bacteria.

Contamination of freshwater with nodularin-R (NOD-R) represents a significant global environmental and public health concern. However, ethical problems and technical difficulties surrounding the current detection methods for NOD-R necessitate further studies to devise appropriate alternatives within a regulatory monitoring regime. In this work, we employed an aptamer as a specific recognition element and developed a biolayer interferometry (BLI) biosensor platform for NOD-R detection. The aptasensor we propose displayed a broad detection range from 40 to 600 nM NOD-R (and a linear response range from 40 to 200 nM), and achieved a detection limit as low as 167 pM. In addition, the aptamer-based biosensor was shown to possess high selectivity, as well as good reproducibility and stability. We believe that this novel aptamer-based biosensor provides a potential alternative for the sensitive and rapid detection of NOD-R.

Vibrio vulnificus is a gram negative pathogen with high salt-tolerance.Distributed all over the world,such pathogen can spread through contaminated food or wound-contact,which threatening coastal people health.With the characteristics of high mortality,high disability and high proliferative rate in the seawater,Vibrio vulnificus may be easy to be developed asbiological weapons.Therefore,detailed plans for the prevention,diagnosis and treatments of such pathogen may be the crucial guarantee for life safety and combat effectiveness of our army.In this study,we have reviewed the routine methods of diagnosis and treatments for Vibrio vulnificus and the prevention managements in battlefield.

膜联蛋白A2(AXⅡ)在自身免疫性疾病中往往高表达,并可作为自身抗体——抗AXⅡ抗体的靶点而起作用.在抗磷脂抗体综合症中,内皮细胞上的β2糖蛋白-l结合AXⅡ,利用Toll样受体-4作为共受体,通过特异性结合抗磷脂抗体/抗β2糖蛋白-1抗体触发细胞内信号通路,从而诱导炎性反应或血栓形成.狼疮性肾炎的抗ds-DNA抗体依赖AXⅡ结合肾小球系膜细胞后,进入细胞质和细胞核,激活p38 MAPK、JNK、AKT通路,诱导IL-6分泌和AXⅡ合成,形成恶性循环而不断加剧肾炎进展.类风湿关节炎患者滑膜组织中的AXⅡ高表达,aAXⅡ呈高水平.可见,AXⅡ通过不同的途径参与了自身免疫性疾病的多个致病环节:1)与自身抗体的抗原相互结合,并且促进炎性细胞因子表达及病理变化;2)直接与自身抗体结合,介导信号通路的激活,从而诱导炎症因子的分泌.