DOCSLIB.ORG

GIPZ™ Lentiviral Shrna

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
GIPZ™ Lentiviral Shrna TECHNICAL MANUAL GIPZ™ Lentiviral shRNA Product description Design information The Dharmacon™ GIPZ™ Lentiviral shRNA Library was developed in collabora- Unique microRNA-30 based hairpin design tion with Dr. Greg Hannon of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory [CSHL] and Dr. Short hairpin RNA (shRNA) constructs are expressed as human microRNA-30 Steve Elledge of Harvard Medical School. This library combines the design (miR-30) primary transcripts. This design adds a Drosha processing site to the advantages of microRNA-adapted shRNA with the pGIPZ lentiviral vector to hairpin construct and has been shown to greatly increase gene silencing create a powerful RNA tool capable of producing RNA interference (RNAi) in efficiency (Boden 2004). The hairpin stem consists of 22 nucleotides (nt) of most cell types including primary and non-dividing cells. dsRNA and a 19 nucleotides (nt) loop from human miR-30. Adding the miR-30 loop and 125 nucleotides (nt) of miR-30 flanking sequence on either side of the GIPZ shRNA is available in glycerol stock or viral particle hairpin results in greater than 10-fold increase in Drosha and Dicer processing format. If viral particle format is purchased, begin work with of the expressed hairpins when compared with conventional shRNA designs Protocol IX – Determining Relative Transduction Efficiency. (Silva 2005). Increased Drosha and Dicer processing translates into greater shRNA production and greater potency for expressed hairpins. Important safety note Use of the miR-30 design also allowed the use of ‘rules-based’ designs for target Please follow the safety guidelines for use and production of vector-based sequence selection. One such rule is the destabilizing of the 5' end of the lentivirus as set by your institution’s biosafety committee. antisense strand, which results in strand specific incorporation of microRNA/ siRNAs into RISC. The proprietary design algorithm targets sequences in coding • For glycerol stocks of E. coli containing lentiviral plasmids, BSL1 guidelines regions and the 3' UTR with the additional requirement that they contain great- should be followed er than 3 mismatches to any other sequence in the human or mouse genomes. • For handling and use of lentiviral products to produce lentiviral particles, BSL2 or BSL2+ guidelines should be followed Each shRNA construct has been bioinformatically verified to match NCBI • For handling and use of lentiviral particle products, BSL2 or BSL2+ guide- sequence data. To assure the highest possibility of modulating the gene lines should be followed expression level, each gene is represented by multiple shRNA constructs, each covering a unique region of the target gene. Additional information on the safety features incorporated in the pGIPZ lentiviral vector and the Horizon Trans-Lentiviral Packaging System can be found on page 3. Vector information Versatile vector design Dharmacon™ GIPZ™ shRNA vectors are not compatible with Features of the pGIPZ lentiviral vector (Figures 1 and 2) that make it a versatile third generation packaging systems, due to the requirement tool for RNAi studies include: of the expression of tat, which third generation systems do not contain. We recommend the Trans-Lentiviral Packaging • Ability to perform transfections or transductions using the replication System for use with our vectors. incompetent lentivirus (Shimada 1995) • TurboGFP™ (Evrogen, Moscow, Russia) and shRNA are part of a bicistronic transcript allowing the visual marking of shRNA expressing cells. • Amenable to in vitro and in vivo applications. • Puromycin drug resistance marker for selecting stable cell lines. • Molecular barcodes enable multiplexed screening in pools horizondiscovery.com Revised versions From PowerPoint (R&D) Antibiotic resistance hCMV hCMV pGIPZ contains three antibiotic resistance markers (Table 2). R WPRE RRE tGFP IRES PuroR WPRE RRE tGFP IRES Puro Table 2. Antibiotic resistances conveyed by pGIPZ. Ψ Ψ shRNA 3 3' SIN LT Antibiotic Concentration Utility shRNA ʹ Ampicillin (carbenicillin) 100 μg/mL Bacterial selection marker SIN R R pGIPZ (outside LTRs)pGIPZ LT LT R ʹ LT 5' 5' ™ 5 Zeocin 25 μg/mL Bacterial selection marker R (inside LTRs) R Amp pUC ori SV40 ori Puromycin Variable AmMammalianpR pU selectionCori markerSV40 ori Figure 1. pGIPZ lentiviral vector. Quality control Table 1. Features of the pGIPZ vector. The GIPZ Lentiviral shRNA Library has TRpassedE through internal QC processesUBC to TRE UBC ensure high quality and low recombination (Figures 3 and 4). Vector element Utility RRE tRFP rtTA3 IRES PuroR WPRE RRE tRFP rtTA3 IRES PuroR WPRE hCMV Human cytomegalovirus promoter drives strong transgene expression Ψ 3 Ψ shRNA shRNA 3' SIN LT ʹ tGFP TurboGFP reporter for visual tracking of transduction and SIN expression pTRIPZ R pTRIPZ R LT R LT Puro Puromycin resistance permits antibiotic-selective pressure ʹ R 5 R LT 5' 5' and propagation of stable integrants IRES Internal ribosomal entry site allows expression of TurboGFP R R Ampand puromycin pUC resistance ori genesSV40 in aor singlei transcript Amp pUCori SV40 ori shRNA microRNA-adapted shRNA (based on miR-30) for Figure 3. Representative GIPZ Lentiviral shRNA clones grown for 16 hours at 30 °C. gene knockdown Plasmid was isolated and normalized to a standard concentration. Clones were then 5' LTR 5' long terminal repeat digested with SacII and run on an agarose gel with uncut plasmid. The expected band sizes are 1259 bp, 2502 bp, and 7927 bp. No recombinant products are visible. 10 kb 3' SIN LTR 3' self-inactivating long terminal repeat for increased hCMV hCMV molecular weight ladder (10 kb, 7 kb, 5 kb, 4 kb, 3 kb, 2.5 kb, 2 kb, 1.5 kb, 1 kb). lentivirus safety R R RRE cPPT/CTS tGFP IRES Puro shRNA WPRE Ψ RRE Psi packagingtGFP sequenceIRES allowsPu viralro genomeshRNA packagingWPRE using lentiviral packaging systems Ψ Ψ RRE Rev response element enhances titer by increasing 3' SIN LT 3 ʹ packaging efficiency of full-length viral genomes SIN pSMART 2.0 R pSMART 2.0 WPRER Woodchuck hepatitis posttranscriptional regulatory LT LT R element enhances transgene expression in the target cells ʹ LT 5' 5 R Amp R pUC ori SV40 ori AmpR pUCori SV40 ori Vector map U6 hPGK U6 hPGK Figure 4. Gel image of a restriction digest of clones from the GIPZ shRNA library R R RRE shRNA Puro cultured for 10 successive RRgenerationsE in an attemptshRN toA determine the tendency of the Puro pGIPZ vector to recombine. Each generation was thawed, replicated and incubated Ψ 3 Ψ 3' SIN LT overnight for 16 hours at 30 °C then frozen, thawed and replicated. This process was ʹ SIN repeated for 10 growthR cycles. After the 10th growth cycle, plasmid was isolated and R LT pLKO.1 LT normalized to a standardʹ concentration. Clones were digested with SacII and run on R pLKO.1 R an agarose gel. The pGIPZ/5 vector appears stable without showing any recombination. Expected band sizes: 1259 bp, 2502 bp, and 7927 bp. 10 kb molecular weight ladder LT RSV/5' RSV pGIPZ R (10 kb, 7 kb, 5 kb, 4 kb, 3 kb, 2.5 kb, 2 kb, 1.5 kb, 1 kb). pUC ori Amp R 11.8 kb pUCori Amp Additional safety information hCMV Historically, the greatest safety risk associated with ahCMV lentiviral delivery RRE tGFP IRES PuroR microRNA WPRE platform stems from theRR potentialE generation of recombinanttGFP IRE virusesS Pu thatro R microRNA WPRE are capable of autonomous replication. The pGIPZ Lentiviral shRNA platform minimizes these hazardsΨ to the greatest degree by combining a disabled viral Ψ 3' SIN LT genome with the proprietary Trans-Lentiviral packaging process. Starting with 3 ʹ pSMART 2.0 the HXB2 clone of HIV-1 (GenBank,pSMA AccessionRT 2. #K03455),0 the lentiviral backbone SIN R R R LT has been modified to eliminate all but the most essential genetic elements LT ʹ LT 5' 5 necessary for packaging and integration (such as 5' LTR, Psi sequences, polypu- R rine tracts, Rev responsive elements and 3' LTR). The resultant self-inactivating Drawing was createdAmp using R GeneiouspUC (http://www.geneious.com). ori SV40 ori (SIN) vector greatly reduces the probabilityAm ofp RproducingpU recombinantCori particlesSV40 ori Figure 2. Detailed vector map of pGIPZ lentiviral vector. and limits cellular toxicity often associated with expression of HIV genes. hCMV hCMV R horizondiscovery.com R ORF IRES tGFP -2a- Blast WPRE ORF IRES tGFPnuc -2a- Blast WPRE RRE nuc Multi Tag Ψ Multi Tag Ψ Cloning Site Cloning Site 3 3' SIN LT ʹ SIN pLOC R pLOC R LT LT R ʹ LT 5' 5 R Amp R pUC ori SV40 ori AmpR pUCori SV40 ori hCMV mCMV hCMV mCMV hEF1 α e s ic er hEF1α mEF1 α SMARTchoice shRNA ho Tc mEF1α omot promoters CAG AR e SMARTchoic G pr CA PGK SM PGK UBC UBC 5' LTR Ψ RRE tGFP IRES PuroR WPRE 3' SIN LTR 5ʹ LTR Ψ RRE tGFP IRES PuroR WPRE 3ʹ SIN LTR or or tRFP SMARTvector universal scaold tRFP SMARTvector2.0 universal scaold SMARTchoiceshRNA Additional safety features can be incorporated by the packaging process Table 3. Materials for plate replication. itself. Generation of pGIPZ Lentiviral shRNA particles requires a packaging Item Vendor Cat # step during which the expression construct containing the silencing sequence 2x LB Broth (low salt) Fisher Scientific BP1427500 is enclosed in a viral capsid. Gene functions that facilitate this process (such as those encoded by the structural genes gag, pol, env, etc.) are distributed Peptone, granulated, 2 kg – Difco Fisher Scientific BP9725-2 amongst multiple helper plasmids which do not contain significant regions Yeast Extract, 500 g, granulated Fisher Scientific BP1422-500 of homology. This tactic further minimizes the probability of recombination NaCl Fisher Scientific BP3581 events that might otherwise generate viruses capable of autonomous Glycerol Fisher Scientific BP2291 replication. Among commercially available lentiviral vector systems, the Carbenicillin Fisher Scientific BP2648-250 Trans-Lentiviral Packaging System offers a superior safety profile as the Zeocin Invitrogen ant-zn-5p packaging components are separated onto five plasmids.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Sars-Cov-2 Infection in Healthcare Workers and Their Household Contacts at the University of North Carolina Medical Center
    VECTOR OR VICTIM: SARS-COV-2 INFECTION IN HEALTHCARE WORKERS AND THEIR HOUSEHOLD CONTACTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA MEDICAL CENTER Team Co-PIs: Ross Boyce, MD (SOM) and Allison Aiello, PhD (SPH) Coinvestigators: David Richardson, PhD (SPH), David Weber, MD (SOM), Emily Sickbert-Bennett, PhD, MS (SOM), Erica Pettigrew Md, JD, MPH (SOM), Raquel Reyes, MD (Hospital Medicine), Naseem Alavian, MD (Hospital Medicine), Jon Juliano, MD, MPH (SOM) Emily Ciccone MD,MHS (SOM), Billy Fischer, MD (SOM) and Subha Sellers, MD,MSc (SOM) The COVID-19 pandemic now accounts for more than 1.1 million confirmed infections and nearly than 70,000 deaths in the United States (US), along with unprecedented disruption to social networks and economic systems. The causative agent, the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, is primarily spread from person-to-person through the inhalation or direct contact with aerosolized droplets. Frontline healthcare workers (HCW) are at increased risk of infection due to frequent exposure to and close contact with infected patients and contaminated surfaces. Shortages of critical personal protective equipment (PPE) may further exacerbate this risk. A review of the epidemiological data from the site of the initial COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, China showed that 63% of HCWs were infected with SARS- CoV-2, many of who developed severe disease. While data from US facilities is still emerging, an analysis of case reports submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found nearly 10,000 cases of COVID-19 among HCWs. Infected HCWs can also contribute to disease transmission, both in the hospital setting and in the community.
    [Show full text]
  • Climate Change and Vector-Borne/Zoonotic Diseases
    Climate Change and Vector-Borne/Zoonotic Diseases Kenneth L. Gage Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne and Enteric Diseases Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Vector Disease agents Threshold for Effects of Climatic Factors Biological Activity on Hosts and Vectors* Anopheles Plasmodium sp. 8-10o C mosquitoes • Growth, development and reproduction Triatomine Trypanosoma 20o C – Q10 effects (approximate doubling of bugs cruzi (2-6o C for survival) metabolic rates in poikliothermic organisms with 10oC rise in temperatures) Aedes Dengue virus 6-10o C – Rate of reproduction/Number of mosquitoes generations per season – Example: Anopheles gambiae gonotrophic Ixodes ticks Borrelia 5-8o C cycles significantly shorter in open treeless burdgdorferi, sites (warmer) than forested sites (cooler) Anaplasma • Activity patterns phagocytophilum, – Feeding Babesia microti – Host seeking o – Mate seeking etc. Bulinus and Schistosoma sp. 5 C o • Availability of breeding sites other snails (25+2 C optimal) • Survival – Severe weather events Source: Patz and Olson 2006 – Tolerance limits for vectors and hosts – Food or water availability – Freezing or heat stress Effect of Temperature on Oxygen Consumption * See Gubler et al. 2001 for citations and additional examples Climate Effects on Hosts and Vectors - Distribution and Abundance - • “Weather school” (Andrewartha and Birch 1954) – Changing conditions make areas more or less suitable for survival and reproduction, which affects abundance of different species – Changing conditions often related to climatic variables (temperature, precipitation, humidity, etc.) – Most extreme effects seen for insects and other arthropods • Host or vector populations can increase during favorable conditions and later crash as conditions deteriorate • Many examples with epidemiologic significance – Mosquito vectors • Rift valley fever (arbovirus)(Linthicum et al.
    [Show full text]
  • A National Public Health Framework for the Prevention and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans
    A National Public Health Framework for the Prevention and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans WWW.CDC.GOV/VECTOR 1 Amblyomma maculatum Publication and Copyright Information Centers for Disease Control and Prevention A National Public Health Framework for the Prevention and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans Atlanta, Georgia: September 2020 www.cdc.gov/vector Media inquiries: 404-639-3286 (9:00 am–6:00 pm ET); [email protected] Acknowledgement: Layout and graphics provided by CDC’s Creative Services. Cover Clockwise from top right: • Blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis), James Gathany photographer • Aedes aegypti mosquito, James Gathany photographer • Illustration of the United States • Oriental rat flea Xenopsylla( cheopsis), James Gathany photographer Accessible Version: www.cdc.gov/ncezid/dvbd/framework.html 2 A NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH FRAMEWORK FOR THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF VECTOR-BORNE DISEASES IN HUMANS Introduction and Scope Our nation’s ability to defend against the present the U.S. population from these diseases, five federal and future threat of vector-borne diseases relies on a departments and the Environmental Protection Agency comprehensive national system that is able to detect, contributed to developing a national framework for vector- prevent, and respond to these threats. A concerted borne disease prevention and control. These federal and sustained effort is needed to address significant partners represent the primary federal departments and challenges and reverse the upward trends in illness, agencies engaged
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 2 Disease and Disease Transmission
    DISEASE AND DISEASE TRANSMISSION Chapter 2 Disease and disease transmission An enormous variety of organisms exist, including some which can survive and even develop in the body of people or animals. If the organism can cause infection, it is an infectious agent. In this manual infectious agents which cause infection and illness are called pathogens. Diseases caused by pathogens, or the toxins they produce, are communicable or infectious diseases (45). In this manual these will be called disease and infection. This chapter presents the transmission cycle of disease with its different elements, and categorises the different infections related to WES. 2.1 Introduction to the transmission cycle of disease To be able to persist or live on, pathogens must be able to leave an infected host, survive transmission in the environment, enter a susceptible person or animal, and develop and/or multiply in the newly infected host. The transmission of pathogens from current to future host follows a repeating cycle. This cycle can be simple, with a direct transmission from current to future host, or complex, where transmission occurs through (multiple) intermediate hosts or vectors. This cycle is called the transmission cycle of disease, or transmission cycle. The transmission cycle has different elements: The pathogen: the organism causing the infection The host: the infected person or animal ‘carrying’ the pathogen The exit: the method the pathogen uses to leave the body of the host Transmission: how the pathogen is transferred from host to susceptible person or animal, which can include developmental stages in the environment, in intermediate hosts, or in vectors 7 CONTROLLING AND PREVENTING DISEASE The environment: the environment in which transmission of the pathogen takes place.
    [Show full text]
  • Data–Model Fusion to Better Understand Emerging Pathogens and Improve Infectious Disease Forecasting
    July 2011 DATA ASSIMILATION FOR ECOLOGICAL FORECASTING Ecological Applications, 21(5), 2011, pp. 1443–1460 Ó 2011 by the Ecological Society of America Data–model fusion to better understand emerging pathogens and improve infectious disease forecasting 1,5 2 3 4 1 SHANNON L. LADEAU, GREGORY E. GLASS, N. THOMPSON HOBBS, ANDREW LATIMER, AND RICHARD S. OSTFELD 1Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, New York 12545 USA 2Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Baltimore, Maryland 21205 USA 3Colorado State University, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Fort Collins, Colorado 80524 USA 4University of California, Department of Plant Sciences, Davis, California 95616 USA Abstract. Ecologists worldwide are challenged to contribute solutions to urgent and pressing environmental problems by forecasting how populations, communities, and ecosystems will respond to global change. Rising to this challenge requires organizing ecological information derived from diverse sources and formally assimilating data with models of ecological processes. The study of infectious disease has depended on strategies for integrating patterns of observed disease incidence with mechanistic process models since John Snow first mapped cholera cases around a London water pump in 1854. Still, zoonotic and vector-borne diseases increasingly affect human populations, and methods used to successfully characterize directly transmitted diseases are often insufficient. We use four case studies to demonstrate that advances in disease forecasting require better understanding of zoonotic host and vector populations, as well of the dynamics that facilitate pathogen amplification and disease spillover into humans. In each case study, this goal is complicated by limited data, spatiotemporal variability in pathogen transmission and impact, and often, insufficient biological understanding.
    [Show full text]
  • Adenoviral Vector COVID-19 Vaccines: Process and Cost Analysis
    processes Article Adenoviral Vector COVID-19 Vaccines: Process and Cost Analysis Rafael G. Ferreira 1,* , Neal F. Gordon 2, Rick Stock 2 and Demetri Petrides 3 1 Intelligen Brasil, Sao Paulo 01227-200, Brazil 2 BDO USA, LLP, Boston, MA 02110, USA; [email protected] (N.F.G.); [email protected] (R.S.) 3 Intelligen, Inc., Scotch Plains, NJ 07076, USA; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has motivated the rapid development of numerous vaccines that have proven effective against SARS-CoV-2. Several of these successful vaccines are based on the adenoviral vector platform. The mass manufacturing of these vaccines poses great challenges, especially in the context of a pandemic where extremely large quantities must be produced quickly at an affordable cost. In this work, two baseline processes for the production of a COVID-19 adenoviral vector vaccine, B1 and P1, were designed, simulated and economically evaluated with the aid of the software SuperPro Designer. B1 used a batch cell culture viral production step, with a viral titer of 5 × 1010 viral particles (VP)/mL in both stainless-steel and disposable equipment. P1 used a perfusion cell culture viral production step, with a viral titer of 1 × 1012 VP/mL in exclusively disposable equipment. Both processes were sized to produce 400 M/yr vaccine doses. P1 led to a smaller cost per dose than B1 ($0.15 vs. $0.23) and required a much smaller capital investment ($126 M vs. $299 M). The media and facility-dependent expenses were found to be the main contributors to the operating cost.
    [Show full text]
  • STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease) Or STI (Sexually Transmitted Infection): Should We Choose? Janet Byron Anderson, Phd
    STD (sexually transmitted disease) or STI (sexually transmitted infection): Should we choose? Janet Byron Anderson, PhD 1. Clinical foundation of the problem Another surprise: Documented incidence had shown Each of the terms—“sexual(ly)”, “transmitted”, “disease”, that the two routes of sexual transmission were male-to- and “infection”—is problematic independently, as this female and male-to-male. However, on 15 July 2016 the study will show. Moreover, co-occurring variants, used CDC reported the first case of suspected female-to-male as synonyms in English medical articles worldwide, ag- sexual transmission in New York City [4]. Since 2008, gravate the problem. The purpose of this study is to pro- then, the Zika virus has shown that it is now sexually pose a single term that can stimulate discussion about transmissible. “Transmissible” denotes a potential, and is whether the co-occurring variants are clinically and lin- distinct from “transmitted”, which denotes a reality. guistically justifiable—especially now, when STDs/STIs To say that Zika has proved to be transmissible through have become a global health problem, and public health sexual contact means that it can be transmitted through agencies in every country are scrambling to educate their sex but that it need not be (Zika remains a chiefly vec- citizens. [Until the presentation advances to the point tor-borne disease). However, cases reported since 2008 where the question posed in the title can be definitively document the reality of transmittedness through sexual answered, I’ll use the expression “STD/STI” or the terms contact. “illness(es)” and “condition(s)”.] The predisposing epidemiologic context will first be clar- This carefully differentiated language is used by the ified, for it sheds light on two of the problematic terms: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control chiefly “transmitted” but also “sexual(ly)”.
    [Show full text]
  • Top Tips How to Avoid Vector Borne Diseases (Eng)
    Tr a a v r e i ljl s k in a g r e to a Vectors such as mosquitoes, sandflies and HOW tO AvOid ticks can transmit serious infectious diseases both in vEctOR-BORnE the WHO European Region disEAsEs – tOp tips and globally. Many of these vectors are blood sucking and transfer diseases to Take simple measures to protect yourself and your family. human beings through their bites. 1. Before you travel, be vaccinated against diseases prevalent at your destination. vaccines exist for yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis and tick- Avoid being bitten by a borne encephalitis. mosquito, sandfly or tick. 2. consult your doctor, 4–6 weeks before departure if possible, to discuss how you can protect yourself (for example, what antimalarial medicines you Be prepared. should take if malaria is endemic at your destination). 3. Wear light-coloured, long-sleeved shirts and long trousers, tucked into socks or boots, and use insect repellent on exposed skin and clothing to protect yourself from being bitten by mosquitoes, sandflies or ticks. temperature, humidity and the time of day affect the likelihood of being bitten, so know when you need extra protective clothing and insect repellent. 4. Use window screens, if available, to keep mosquitoes outside the place where you are staying. 5. sleep under an insecticide-treated bed net, requesting one if necessary, if you are staying in an area with malaria risk. 6. check your body regularly for ticks. if you find one, remove it with tweezers and apply a skin disinfectant. in tick-infested areas, examine your clothing, luggage and other belongings thoroughly before entering the place where you are staying.
    [Show full text]
  • WHO Factsheet Vector-Borne Diseases
    WHO Factsheet Vector-borne diseases Factsheet # 387 March 2014 KEY FACTS Vector-borne diseases account for more than 17% of all infectious diseases, causing more than 1 million deaths annually. More than 2.5 billion people in over 100 countries are at risk of contracting dengue alone. Malaria causes more than 600 000 deaths every year globally, most of them children under 5 years of age. Other diseases such as Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis affect hundreds of millions of people worldwide. Many of these diseases are preventable through informed protective measures . Vectors Vectors are living organisms that can transmit infectious diseases between humans or from animals to humans. Many of these vectors are bloodsucking insects, which ingest disease-producing microorganisms during a blood meal from an infected host (human or animal) and later inject it into a new host during their subsequent blood meal. Mosquitoes are the best known disease vector. Others include ticks, flies, sandflies, fleas, triatomine bugs and some freshwater aquatic snails.1 Some main vectors and diseases they transmit VECTORS MAIN DISEASES Mosquitoes Aedes Dengue fever Rift Valley fever Yellow fever Chikungunya Malaria Anopheles Japanese encephalitis Culex Lymphatic filariasis West Nile fever 1 See table Sandflies Leishmaniasis Sandfly fever (phelebotomus fever) Ticks Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever Lyme disease Relapsing fever (borreliosis) Rickettsial diseases (spotted fever and Q fever) Tick-borne encephalitis Tularaemia Triatomine bugs Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis) Tsetse flies Sleeping sickness (African trypanosomiasis) Fleas Plague (transmitted by fleas from rats to humans) Rickettsiosis Black flies Onchocerciasis (river blindness) Aquatic snails Schistosomiasis (bilharziasis) Vector-borne diseases Vector-borne diseases are illnesses caused by pathogens and parasites in human populations.
    [Show full text]
  • Vector Control
    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Theresa Spinner Director, Media and Public Relations Direct: 202.783.5551 [email protected] Report from the Field: The Impact of COVID-19 on Local Vector Control Activities —As mosquito and tick season approaches, local health departments across the country are limiting vector control activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic — Washington, DC, May 5, 2020 – Today the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), representing the country’s nearly 3,000 local health departments, released new data documenting the impact of the COVID-19 response on important vector control programs that protect individuals from mosquito- and tick-borne diseases in communities across the country. The COVID- 19 response has taken time, attention, and personnel away from all other unrelated health priorities, as already-underfunded and understaffed local health departments respond to the pandemic. In doing so, existing services are strained or paused, with health impacts that will ripple through communities. Vector programs are no exception, with program impacts related to staff being pulled to the COVID-19 response, reduced services to comply with social distancing requirements, and curtailed surveillance testing due to laboratory resource constraints. Vector programs in local health departments have been experiencing varying levels of impact from COVID-19 to their routine operations, ranging from minimal impact to entire vector programs being shut down, or large portions of staff being realigned for COVID-19 response activities. Even areas that have experienced outbreaks in vector-borne disease in the past year have had their local vector 2 programs deemed “nonessential” during the COVID-19 pandemic, halting surveillance and control activities that can detect or prevent vector-borne disease threats before they affect the community.
    [Show full text]
  • Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections and Prevention of HIV
    Control of sexually transmitted infections and prevention of HIV transmission: mending a fractured paradigm Richard Steen,a Teodora Elvira Wi,b Anatoli Kamali c & Francis Ndowa d Abstract Control of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is feasible, leads to improved sexual and reproductive health and contributes to preventing HIV transmission. The most advanced HIV epidemics have developed under conditions of poor STI control, particularly where ulcerative STIs were prevalent. Several countries that have successfully controlled STIs have documented stabilization or reversal of their HIV epidemics. STI control is a public health outcome measured by reduced incidence and prevalence. The means to achieve this include: (i) targeting and outreach to populations at greatest risk; (ii) promoting and providing condoms and other means of prevention; (iii) effective clinical interventions; (iv) an enabling environment; and (v) reliable data. Clinical services include STI case management, screening and management of STIs in sex partners. Syndromic case management is effective for most symptomatic curable STIs and screening strategies exist to detect some asymptomatic infections. Presumptive epidemiologic treatment of sex partners and sex workers complement efforts to interrupt transmission and reduce prevalence. Clinical services alone are insufficient for control since many people with STIs do not attend clinics. Outreach and peer education have been effectively used to reach such populations. STI control requires effective interventions with core populations whose rates of partner change are high enough to sustain transmission. Effective, appropriate targeting is thus necessary and often sufficient to reduce prevalence in the general population. Such efforts are most effective when combined with structural interventions to ensure an enabling environment for prevention.
    [Show full text]
  • Climate Change and Infectious Diseases
    Humans have known that climatic Figure 6.1: Four main types of transmission cycle for infectious diseases (reference 5) conditions affect epidemic diseases Anthroponoses from long before the role of Direct transmission Indirect transmission 6 infectious agents was discovered, late in the nineteenth century. HUMANS HUMANS VECTOR/VEHICLE Roman aristocrats retreated to hill VECTOR/VEHICLE Climate resorts each summer to avoid HUMANS HUMANS malaria. South Asians learnt early Zoonoses Change And that, in high summer, strongly curried foods were less likely to ANIMALS ANIMALS VECTOR/VEHICLE cause diarrhoea. VECTOR/VEHICLE Infectious ANIMALS ANIMALS Infectious agents vary greatly in HUMANS HUMANS Diseases size, type and mode of transmission. There are viruses, bacteria, protozoa and multicellular optimal climatic conditions: variability and infectious disease Today, worldwide, there is an parasites. Those microbes that temperature and precipitation are occurrence. The second looks at apparent increase in many cause “anthroponoses” have the most important, while sea level early indicators of already-emerging infectious diseases, including adapted, via evolution, to the elevation, wind, and daylight infectious disease impacts of long- human species as their primary, duration are also important. term climate change. The third uses some newly-circulating ones usually exclusive, host. In contrast, the above evidence to create (HIV/AIDS, hantavirus, non-human species are the natural Human exposure to waterborne predictive models to estimate the hepatitis C, SARS, etc.). reservoir for those infectious agents infections occurs by contact with future burden of infectious disease that cause “zoonoses” (Fig 6.1). contaminated drinking water, under projected climate change This reflects the combined There are directly transmitted recreational water, or food.
    [Show full text]