December 2012: This Month in JoVE

Abstract

Here's a look at what's coming up in the December 2013 issue of JoVE: The Journal of Visualized Experiments. This holiday season, we bring you techniques for studying carnivorous plants. Rottloff et al. study Nepenthes, also known as pitcher plants. They mostly prey on insects, but some species have been known to trap and digest small lizards, birds, and even rodents. Inside the pitcher are tiny glands that secrete digestive fluid and take up the nutrients released from the prey. Using a mechanized microdissection technique, Rottloff et al. precisely isolate these glands, which can then be processed for RNA extraction and gene expression analysis. Genes of interest can be directly amplified from the glands without an additional DNA extraction step. This technique facilitates the analysis of specific genes as well as gene expression in the digestive glands of these meat-eating plants. In JoVE Bioengineering, typical microbial experiments are performed on bulk cultures containing billions of cells. This month, Gruenberger et al. present a microfluidic cultivation device to study bacterial physiology on a single-cell level. The device is first designed using CAD software and then fabricated out of PDMS. Picoliter bioreactors in the microfluidic device restrict bacteria to monolayer growth. The chip is mounted on a microscope, which is focused on the bioreactors. Bacterial suspension is infused into the chip to seed the bioreactors with single cells. Through time-lapse microscopy, various biological processes can be studied in real time. In JoVE Environment, we have a protocol that tackles water shortage, a major concern for not only agriculture, but also wetland science, forestry, urban planning, and industry. In the environment, much water is lost through evapotranspiration (a combination of evaporation and plant transpiration). McElrone et al. use a solar-powered field station to measure surface renewal, which provides estimates of crop evapotranspiration. This system can efficiently quantify water use in real time, facilitating water conservation in multiple settings. In Clinical and Translational Medicine, image guidance is the cornerstone of many interventional techniques, and advances in optical imaging have revolutionized many health care practices. One such practice is trans-arterial chemo-embolization (TACE), a minimally invasive treatment for hepatic tumors. Chemotherapeutic drugs are delivered to the tumor through its feeding arteries along with an occluding agent, which blocks the blood supply to starve the tumor. In this issue of JoVE, Tacher et al. use cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to guide transarterial chemoembolization. They first perform angiography to visualize the blood vessels and locate the tumor. Then, they acquire CBCT images to verify the supplying vessels and construct a tumor road map, which guides drug delivery to the tumor. Advanced imaging technologies continue to revolutionize medicine and many other fields. Not surprisingly, 3D optical imaging is the focus of extensive research. In JoVE Applied Physics, we feature a technique called digital fringe projection, which provides dense, superfast 3D measurements of dynamic surfaces. Ekstrand et al. present the principles of digital fringe projection and illustrate its design and operation. They also demonstrate its many potential uses, including facial function analysis, cardiac mechanics studies, and enhanced video conferencing You've just had a sneak peek of the December 2013 issue of JoVE. Visit the website to see the full-length articles, plus many more, in JoVE: The Journal of Visualized Experiments.