The present disclosure is directed to a method of increasing growth of coral by growing the coral on a bioceramic hydroxyapatite material. An increased growth rate in the coral species is observed with respect to perimeter, surface area and volume as compared with the growth rate on a control material. In some embodiments, the bioceramic hydroxyapatite material contains a carbonatable calcium component with a Ca/P ratio greater than about 1.67.

A system is provided comprising a plurality of C. elegans cultures, where each culture comprises a transgenic C. elegans strain that models a mammalian disease or condition. Methods of using a system, e.g., for characterizing microbial strains of a mammalian microbiome and determining whether such microbial strains affect a mammalian disease or disorder.

The present invention is directed to recombinantly-modified adeno-associated virus (AAV) helper vectors that are capable of increasing the packaging efficiency of recombinantly-modified adeno-associated virus (rAAV) and their use to improve the packaging efficiency of such rAAV. The present invention is particularly directed to recombinantly-modified adeno-associated virus (AAV) helper vectors that have been further modified to replace (or augment) the P5 and/or P40 promoter sequences that are natively associated with the Rep proteins encoded by such rAAV with AAV P5 and/or P40 promoters that are associated with the Rep proteins of an rAAV of different serotype. The use of such substitute or additional promoter sequences causes increased production of recombinantly-modified adeno-associated virus.

By establishing effective methods for shrimp 3D cell culture and passage, the present invention provides a technology of continuous shrimp cell culture intended for the establishment of immortalized shrimp cell lines. The present invention provides a preparation method of matrigel for 3D cell culture of shrimp by optimizing an additive proportion of matrigel. The present invention further provides a technology of separation and 3D cell culture of shrimp haemolymph cells, where shrimp haemolymph cells adhere to and grow on the surface of the matrigel in the form of a single round cell and a cell pellet/cellular spheroid, with survival and growth abilities being superior to 2D culture effects. The above technology is achieved by optimizing a formula of complete medium for shrimp cells, selecting the medium as an anticoagulant and a diluent for shrimp haemolymph cells, selecting a 3D culture method for surface-adhered growth in the matrigel.

Methods of purifying a virus from a virus-infected cell lysate using three-phase partitioning (TPP) are disclosed. The methods comprise a first round of TPP, including mixing a cell lysate comprising a virus with ammonium sulfate and t-butanol, and separating the mixture, thereby forming a first aqueous phase, a first organic phase, and a first interphase. The first aqueous phase can comprise the virus, which can be subjected to a second round of TPP, resulting in a second aqueous phase, a second organic phase, and a second interphase. The second interphase can comprise highly purified virus. The methods can comprise subjecting a first aqueous phase to further purification by column chromatography or density gradient centrifugation. Purification of AAV, including AAV2, AAV5 and AAV6, from lysates of infected insect cell cultures is demonstrated. TPP-purified AAV particles infect at least as well as those prepared by standard methods.

The invention refers to a process for the production of a continuous cell line of simile embryo stem cells, such as Amblyomma sculptum (Acari: Ixodidae), known as line IBU/ASE-16 (access number with CNCM: 1-5000) and its uses. More specifically, the invention refers to a process for the production of the line IBU/ASE-16 and their use for obtaining extracts for the production of vaccines and candidate recombinant proteins for biopharmaceuticals and acaricides, production of diagnostic kits for the detection of antigens and/or antibodies for animal and human use, obtaining clones for use in genotyping and use as a substrate for the isolation and culture of pathogens.

The present invention provides a method for the cultivation of glial cells from Aurelia aurita Medusa primary cultures. There are no present methods providing instructions on the cultivation of glial cells from any invertebrates. Through the creation of this new method, the growth of glial cells from Aurelia aurita is now possible and the production of new medicines for the treatment of myelination disorders will be faster and easier leading to these medicines becoming more readily available to the consumers who need them.

The present disclosure relates to a method of obtaining a cell where fucosylation pathways are modified, leading to production of partially fucosylated and non-fucosylated protein products, specifically antibodies from the cell. The present disclosure employs the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) technology. The method of the present disclosure targets the Fut8 gene and GMD gene in a cell. Such products are used in developing therapeutics and biomarkers, and in diagnosis and prognosis of diseases.

The present invention relates to the field of veterinary vaccines, in particular to porcine vaccines against PCV2 and associated diseases. Specifically the invention relates to the finding that a mutation is required in PCV2b ORF2 protein, to prevent its nuclear accumulation upon expression in insect cells; the mutation introduces a Proline at amino acid position 131. This allows efficient expression in insect cells, easy harvesting, and generates large amounts of virus-like particles. The VLPs are highly effective in vaccines for porcines for reduction of infection by PCV2 or of associated signs of disease.

The present disclosure provides nucleic acids, expression vectors, host cells for producing recombinant viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) polypeptides of viruses such as Ebola virus. The present disclosure also provides methods and substrates for assaying activity of a RdRp polypeptide or a RdRp complex. Also provided herein are inhibitors of RdRp polypeptides of viruses such as Ebola virus for use in treating or preventing viral infection.