Animals as a source of organs and tissues for xenotransplantation could become a backup solution for the growing shortage of human donors. The presence of human xenoreactive anti- bodies directed against Galα1,3Gal antigens on the cell surface of a pig donor triggers the activa- tion of the complement leading to a hyperacute reaction. The development of genetic engineer- ing techniques has enabled the modification of genomes by knocking in and/or knocking out genes. In this paper, we report the generation of modified pigs with ZFN mediated disruption of the GGTA1 gene encoding the enzyme responsible for synthesis of Galα1,3Gal antigens. ZFN plasmids designed to target the exon 9 region of the pig GGTA1 gene encoding the catalytic domain were injected into the pronuclei of fertilized egg cells. Among 107 piglets of the F0 gene- ration analyzed, one female with 9-nt deletion in exon 9 of the GGTA1 gene was found. 13 of 33 piglets of the F1 generation represented the +/- GGTA1 genotype and 2 of 13 F2 piglets repre- sented the -/- GGTA1 genotype. No changes in the animals’ behavior, phenotype or karyotype were observed. Analysis confirmed heredity of the trait in all animals. A complex functional analysis of the modified animals, including flow cytometry, human serum cytotoxicity test and immunohistochemical detection, was performed to estimate the phenotype effect of genetic modification and this indicated an efficient GGTA1 knock-out in modified pigs.
On November 2, 2018, an outstanding Polish medievalist Jerzy Lesław Wyrozumski died in Kraków; he was born on March 7, 1930 in Trembowla (now Ukraine). He graduated in 1955 with a degree in history at the Jagiellonian University. He wrote his master's thesis and doctoral dissertation under the supervision of Roman Grodecki. In 1981 he received the title of professor; he was dean of the Faculty of Philosophy and History in the years 1981–1987, and from 1987 to 1990 he was the prorector of the Jagiellonian University. He published over 600 scholarly books, articles and reviews.
Formacja intelektualna i duchowa Josepha Ratzingera – Benedykta XVI domaga się, aby mówić o jego procesie rozwoju. Artykuł pokazuje najczęściej pomijany etap młodego Ratzingera, który przechodzi ze stanowiska progresywnej i niekiedy nieod-powiedzialnej teoretyzującej teologii akademickiej na stanowisko myśliciela trwa-jącego we wspólnocie wiary, stając się stróżem chrześcijańskiej doktryny i nauczy-cielem zgodnie z duchem i tradycją Kościoła. Wiele światła na zmianę w postawie niemieckiego profesora rzuca etap przygotowawczy II Soboru Watykańskiego i jego obrady, a także przykre doświadczenie rewolty studenckiej w 1968 r., które zastaje naszego profesora w Tybindze. I tak oto z liberalnego teologa niemieckiego wyrasta nieprzeciętny katolicki teolog Kościoła powszechnego.
Article published in Science, 2012 by Jennifer A. Doudna, Emmanuelle Charpentier and their team presented a novel tool named as CRISPR/Cas9. The original CRISPR/Cas9 tool and the whole system developed from it since then allow making precise changes in the nucleotide sequence in the defined locus of the genome. The article presents the already known as well the potential future applications of the system for improvement of cultivated plants. The separate section is devoted to present the background of the Court of Justice decision C-528/16. Discussed are the far reaching negative consequences of this, based not on the merit decision, for the future of European green biotechnology.
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