New research sets trap for potentially deadly sandfly
2024-03-11
(Press-News.org)
Scientists have discovered the specific enzyme that a species of sandfly uses to produce a pheromone attractant, which could lead to the creation of targeted traps to control them and reduce the spread of the potentially fatal disease, Leishmaniasis.
The team from the University of Nottingham’s School of Chemistry analysed the genome of the Lutzomyia longipalpis, a species of sandfly native to Brazil and South America that can spread a disease called Leishmaniasis.
The study identified the enzyme, called a Terpene Synthase that is responsible for making the terpene pheromone sobralene, that the insect uses to attract others for mating, a discovery that could lead to the development of commercial traps for targeting and controlling this type of sandfly. The research has been published today in PNAS. (link to be added)
Over 90 sandfly species are known to transmit Leishmania parasites that are spread to humans through being bitten, but Lutzomyia longipalpis is the major carrier of the disease in South America. The most common symptoms of the disease are skin ulcers and lesions which can leave life-long scars, in more serious cases people can become very unwell with fever, weight loss, enlargement of the spleen and liver, and anaemia. The most serious form of the disease, known as visceral leishmaniasis, is invariably fatal within 2-years if untreated. Most cases of visceral leishmaniasis occur in Brazil, but the disease can be found in large parts of the tropics and subtropics.
Terpenes are widely used in nature for chemical communication, but understanding how these structurally diverse natural products are produced by insects is only now beginning to emerge. Males of the sandfly, Lutzomyia longipalpis, use terpene pheromones to lure females and other males to mating sites.
Terpene synthases are responsible for the biosynthesis of many chemicals used by plants and microorganisms for defense and communication. This research identifies the first insect terpene synthase (TPS) from the insect Lutzomyia. It offers the potential for sustainable production of this compound through biocatalysis.
Professor Neil Oldham from the University of Nottingham’s School of Chemistry led the study, he said: “Finding this enzyme has been very difficult and we have been hunting for it for over 2 years., The Lutzomyia genome contains an unusually high number of candidate terpene synthase genes, but thanks to the persistence of Dr Charlie Ducker, a talented researcher on the team, we were able to find the one that makes the pheromone.”
“The beauty of the pheromone approach is that it is very specific for this insect and so the next stage of the project will be to engineer microorganisms to make the enzyme in a way that would produce the pheromone. If we can then find a way to scale this up for commercial use this would be a way to control the populations of these insects and hopefully reduce the spread of Leishmaniasis.”
END
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2024-03-11
CAMBRIDGE, MA -- MIT chemists have designed a sensor that detects tiny quantities of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — chemicals found in food packaging, nonstick cookware, and many other consumer products.
These compounds, also known as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down naturally, have been linked to a variety of harmful health effects, including cancer, reproductive problems, and disruption of the immune and endocrine systems.
Using the new sensor technology, the researchers showed that they could detect PFAS levels as low as 200 parts per trillion in a water sample. The device they designed could offer a way ...
2024-03-11
The perception of softness can be taken for granted, but it plays a crucial role in many actions and interactions – from judging the ripeness of an avocado to conducting a medical exam, or holding the hand of a loved one. But understanding and reproducing softness perception is challenging, because it involves so many sensory and cognitive processes.
Robotics researchers have tried to address this challenge with haptic devices, but previous attempts have not distinguished between two primary elements of softness perception: cutaneous cues (sensory feedback ...
2024-03-11
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the bacteria that causes a tuberculosis infection, is present in exhaled breath of 90% of those presenting with suspected tuberculosis. This includes those who were negative on conventional sputum testing and not diagnosed with TB. This raises the possibility that those who have tested negative may be unknowingly transmitting the infection. Researchers from the University of Cape Town and Amsterdam UMC analysed results from over 100 patients who presented themselves to clinics in South Africa. These findings are published today in PNAS.
“If ...
2024-03-11
In a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers from the University of Minnesota Medical School investigated brain development to understand how different areas of the brain become specialized in handling information such as vision, sound, touch and planning.
The study found that different areas of the brain start with a similar organization rather than already being specialized in early development. This suggests that the brain might use a single shared blueprint to guide early development.
“Throughout life, the brain continually builds on the foundations set ...
2024-03-11
Researchers have discovered a game changer for the potato industry.
According to a new study published in a leading international society journal published by the American Society of Plant Biologists, a small genetic element is the cause of a major production problem in potatoes.
“Our manuscript reveals the mystery of “cold-induced sweetening” (CIS), the most troublesome and expensive problem for the potato processing industry,” explained Jiming Jiang, Corresponding Author of “Molecular dissection of an intronic enhancer governing cold-induced expression ...
2024-03-11
Developed by VHIO, a novel AI-based and non-invasive diagnostic tool enables accurate brain tumor diagnosis, outperforming current classification methods
Developed by VHIO’s Radiomics Group in close collaboration with researchers of the Neuroradiology Unit at the Bellvitge University Hospital (HUB), DISCERN is a deep learning tool that leverages information of magnetic resonance imaging and facilitates brain tumor classification to aid clinical decision making.
Currently, a definitive diagnosis often requires neurosurgical interventions that compromise the quality of life of patients.
Trained to differentiate between the three most ...
2024-03-11
With the help of 16 grants from the National Science Foundation, researchers have painstakingly taken computed topography (CT) scans of more than 13,000 individual specimens to create 3D images of more than half of all the world's animal groups, including mammals, fishes, amphibians and reptiles.
The research team, made of members from The University of Texas at Arlington and 25 other institutions, are now a quarter of the way through inputting nearly 30,000 media files to the open-source repository MorphoSource. This will allow researchers ...
2024-03-11
WASHINGTON – U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) researchers deliver novel contribution in fiber optics computing, Fiber Optic Computing Using Distributed Feedback paper recently published in Communications Physics journal, brings the Navy one step closer to faster, more efficient computing technologies.
Optical computing uses the properties of light, such as its speed and ability to carry large amounts of data, to process information more efficiently than traditional electronic computers.
In collaboration with Sandia National Laboratories and the University of Central Florida, NRL is aiming ...
2024-03-11
A new study led by UC San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography postdoctoral scholar Jennifer Bowen finds that canals used to drain soggy peatlands in Southeast Asia are likely hotspots for greenhouse gas emissions.
The results, published March 8 in Nature Geoscience and supported by the Scripps Institutional Postdoctoral Program and Stanford University’s Precourt Institute for Energy, identify a previously unaccounted for source of emissions from these threatened, carbon-rich landscapes. Findings from the study suggest that the degradation of tropical peatlands in Southeast Asia has released even more planet-warming ...
2024-03-11
The nutritional value of meat must be considered when comparing carbon footprints – that is the key message from a recent study undertaken by Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC), Bangor University, Queen’s University, and the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI).
The scientific paper, published in the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems using data from the Welsh Lamb Meat Quality project, focuses on different lamb production systems, specifically the ‘finishing’ period – at the end of which lambs have reached the required weight, meat and fat cover for ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] New research sets trap for potentially deadly sandfly
