Stellenbosch University

2 ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JoVE

Biochemistry

Leaf Spray Mass Spectrometry: A Rapid Ambient Ionization Technique to Directly Assess Metabolites from Plant Tissues

Dana M. Freund¹, Katherine A. Sammons², Nokwanda P. Makunga³, Jerry D. Cohen¹, Adrian D. Hegeman²

¹Department of Horticultural Science, Microbial and Plant Genomics Institute, University of Minnesota, ²Department of Horticultural Science, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, Microbial and Plant Genomics Institute, University of Minnesota, ³Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University

Leaf spray mass spectrometry is a direct chemical analysis technique that minimizes the sample preparation and eliminates chromatography, allowing for the rapid detection of small molecules from plant tissues.

Cancer Research

An Automated Microscopic Scoring Method for the γ-H2AX Foci Assay in Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes

Shankari Nair¹, Samantha Cairncross², Xanthene Miles¹, Monique Engelbrecht³, Peter du Plessis¹, Julie Bolcaen¹, Randall Fisher¹, Roya Ndimba¹, Charnay Cunningham⁴, Wilner Martínez-López⁵, Christian Schunck⁶, Charlot Vandevoorde¹

¹Radiation Biophysics Division, Nuclear Medicine Department, iThemba LABS, ²Department of Biotechnology, University of the Western Cape, ³Department of Medical Biosciences, University of the Western Cape, ⁴Division of Medical Physiology, Department of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, ⁵Biodosimetry Service, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable and Academic Unit on Radiation Protection, Faculty of Medicine, University of the Republic, ⁶MetaSystems Hard & Software GmbH

This protocol presents the slide preparation and automated scoring of the γ-H2AX foci assay on peripheral blood lymphocytes. To illustrate the method and sensitivity of the assay, isolated lymphocytes were irradiated in vitro. This automated method of DNA DSB detection is useful for fast and high-throughput biological dosimetry applications.