Abstract We explore a precise method for determining the wavelength of light using a single-slit diffraction experiment. Normally, within a college level physics lab, an optical bench and a light detector arrangement is used in this experiment and the position of the maxima and minima are manually determined. This method is inaccurate, lengthy, and time consuming. We replace the light-detector by a paper-screen and webcam arrangement to record the image of the diffraction pattern with a computer. Then the recorded images are analysed with a software called ImageJ to determine the span of central maxima which is finally used to determine the wavelength of the incident light.
Abstract Background Reliable methods of labeling human enteric nervous system ( ENS ) stem cells for use in novel cell replacement therapies for enteric neuropathies are lacking. Here, we explore the possibility of using lentiviral vectors expressing fluorescent reporter genes to transduce, label, and trace mouse and human ENS stem cells following transplantation into mouse gut. Methods Enteric nervous system precursors, including ENS stem cells, were isolated from enzymatically dissociated mouse and human gut tissues. Lentivirus containing e GFP or mCherry fluorescent reporter genes was added to gut cell cultures at a multiplicity of infection of 2–5. After fluorescence activated cell sorting for e GFP and subsequent analysis with markers of proliferation and cell phenotype, transduced mouse and human cells were transplanted into the gut of C57 BL /6 and immune deficient Rag2‐/gamma chain‐/C5 mice, respectively and analyzed up to 60 days later. Key Results Mouse and human transduced cells survived in vitro , maintained intense e GFP expression, proliferated as shown by BrdU incorporation, and formed characteristic neurospheres. When transplanted into mouse gut in vivo and analyzed up to 2 months later, transduced mouse and human cells survived, strongly expressed e GFP and integrated into endogenous ENS networks. Conclusions & Inferences Lentiviral vectors expressing fluorescent reporter genes enable efficient, stable, long‐term labeling of ENS stem cells when transplanted into in vivo mouse gut. This lentiviral approach not only addresses the need for a reliable fluorescent marker of human ENS stem cells for preclinical studies, but also raises the possibility of using lentiviruses for other applications, such as gene therapy.
The prospect of using neural cell replacement for the treatment of severe enteric neuropathies has seen significant progress in the last decade. The ability to harvest and transplant enteric neural crest cells (ENCCs) that functionally integrate within recipient intestine has recently been confirmed by in vivo murine studies. Although similar cells can be harvested from human fetal and postnatal gut, no studies have as yet verified their functional viability upon in vivo transplantation. We sought to determine whether ENCCs harvested from human fetal bowel are capable of engraftment and functional integration within recipient intestine following in vivo transplantation into postnatal murine colon. Enteric neural crest cells selected and harvested from fetal human gut using the neurotrophin receptor p75NTR were lentivirally labeled with either GFP or calcium-sensitive GCaMP and transplanted into the hindgut of Rag2- /γc- /C5- -immunodeficient mice at postnatal day 21. Transplanted intestines were assessed immunohistochemically for engraftment and differentiation of donor cells. Functional viability and integration with host neuromusculature was assessed using calcium imaging. Transplanted human fetal gut-derived ENCC showed engraftment within the recipient postnatal colon in 8/15 mice (53.3%). At 4 weeks posttransplantation, donor cells had spread from the site of transplantation and extended projections over distances of 1.2 ± 0.6 mm (n = 5), and differentiated into enteric nervous system (ENS) appropriate neurons and glia. These cells formed branching networks located with the myenteric plexus. Calcium transients (change in intensity F/F0 = 1.25 ± 0.03; 15 cells) were recorded in transplanted cells upon stimulation of the recipient endogenous ENS demonstrating their viability and establishment of functional connections.