Talk:Gnotobiosis

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Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 21:51, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

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Article merged: See old talk-page here

Gnotobiology, gnotobiotic, gnotophoric,gnotobiosis, germfree, axenic. These are all terms which describe the microbiological status of flora and fauna. The professional development of work with animals resulted in the formation of the Association for Gnotobiotics was founded in 1961 by Philip C. Trexler (at that time with the Lobund Laboratory, University of Notre Dame) in response to the need for organization and standardization in the rapidly expanding field of germfree research. The goals of the Association as defined in the original Articles of Incorporation are: a.. To stimulate research in the field of basic and applied gnotobiotics;

b.. To expedite the dissemination of information relative to gnotobiotics and gnotobiotic technology;

c.. To stimulate the production, maintenance, distribution and use of gnotobiotes;

d.. To establish standards for the microbiological testing and husbandry practice with Gnotobiotes, and to establish a certification program;

e.. To establish an acceptable nomenclature in the field of gnotobiotics. f.. At that time, Trexler defined gnotobiotics as the science involved with maintaining a microbiologically controlled environment and with the biological knowledge necessary to obtain and use biological specimens in this environment. Trexler devised an inexpensive, disposable flexible film (plastic) isolator system to house experimantal biota. The definition concisely reflects the roots of the word; that is "gnotos" meaning well known and "biota" meaning the combined flora and fauna of a region. The recently accepted definition of gnotobiote as put forth by the Committee on Standardized Nomenclature is: "Animal strains derived by aseptic surgical procedures or from sterile hatching of eggs, which are reared and maintained with germfree techniques under isolator conditions and in which the composition of the associated fauna and flora, if present, is fully defined by accepted current methodology." BOOKS . Wostmann, B.S. 1996. Germfree and Gnotobiotics Animal Models: Background and Applications, 208 pp. CRC Press, Inc.: Boca Raton, FL.

. Monastersky, G.M., and J.M. Robl. 1995. Strategies in Transgenic Animal Science. ASM Press: Washington, D.C.

. Svedsen, P., and J. Hau 1994. Handbook of Laboratory Animal Science. Vol. I: Selection and Handling of Animals in Biomedical Research, 448 pp. CRC Press, Inc.: Boca Raton, FL.

. Svedsen, P., and J. Hau. 1994. Handbook of Laboratory Animal Science. Vol. II: Animal Models, 224 pp. CRC Press, Inc.: Boca Raton, FL.

. Heidt, P.J. 1989. Gnotobiotics and Bone Marrow Transplantation: Experimental and Clinical Studies. Radiobiological Institute of the Div. for Health Research TNO: The Netherlands.

. Wostmann, B.S. 1984. Germfree Research Microflora Control and Its Application to the Biomedical Sciences, Vol. 181. Alan R. Liss, Inc., New York, NY.

. Inglis, J.K. 1980. Introduction to Laboratory Animal Science and Technology. Pergamon Press, Elmsford, NY.

. Pleasants, J.R. 1974. Gnotobiotics. In, Handbook of Laboratory Animal Science, Vol. I. Melby, Jr., E.C., and N.H. Altman.[editors] pp:119-174. CRC Press, Cleveland,OH.

. Porter, G. 1971. Notes for Breeders of Common Laboratory Animals. Lane-Petter, W. (ed.), Academic Press, New York, NY.

. Coates, M.E. 1968. The Germ-Free Animal in Research. Academic Press: London and New York.

. Luckey, Thomas D. 1963. Germfree Life and Gnotobiology. Academic Press, New York and London.

REFERENCE: Proceedings of the International Symposiums on Gnotobiology [International Meetings are held every 3 Years] . Hashimoto, K., B. Sakakibara, S. Tazume, and K. Shimizu. Germfree Life and Its Ramifications. Proc. of the XIIth International Symposium on Gnotobiology, Honolulu, Hawaii, June 24-28, 1996. XII ISG Publishing Committee, Shiozawa, Japan, 1996. Dprobinson 15:29, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 10 August 2020 and 10 December 2020. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Hend8304.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 22:29, 16 January 2022 (UTC)

Merger proposal
I propose that Gnotobiotic animal be merged into Gnotobiosis. Sarr Cat (talk) 01:45, 21 December 2014 (UTC)

Proposed Restructuring and Updating
I propose that this article be restructured and updated. I will be adding more examples of gnotobiotic systems (e.g. pigs, mice/rats, plants) over the next couple of weeks. Specifically, I propose that the "Gnotobiotic Animals" section be changed to "Gnotobiotic Organisms" or "Gnotobiotic Systems" because there are gnotobiotic plant systems as well. I will also be rewriting the introductory/lead section of the article as the current language seems to rely on prior knowledge. I think some rewording here could be beneficial for the clarity and accessibility of the information in the article. I also propose that a section describing the applications of this tool be added. -- OMathie (talk) 12:33, 30 October 2021 (UTC) I also propose that the "history" section is updated and more sources are added. Currently, there are many statements without adequate sources. -- OMathie (talk) 23:18, 2 November 2021 (UTC)
 * I am replacing the text, "The first discussion of the concept of gnotobiotics is generally attributed to the postulations of Louis Pasteur in the late 19th century, in which he questioned whether animals could survive without microbes. From the late 1890's through the 1920's, numerous scientists attempted gnotobiotic experiments with limited success. The success of these experiments was limited mostly due to the lack of knowledge surrounding nutrition and the biochemical implications of steam sterilizing food, which can degrade essential vitamins. Major accomplishments in the field of gnotobiotics in the early years (1930-1950s) came from primarily Notre Dame University, The University of Lund, and Nagoya University. The Laboratories of Bacteriology, University of Notre Dame (known as LOBUND), founded by John J. Cavanaugh, is cited for making some of the most notable achievements in the field of gnotobiotic research by conducting more expansive tests on some of the first germ-free rats in 1939 and by reducing the cost of isolators.   Early isolators were bulky and costly steel containers that were designed to withstand high pressure steam sterilization techniques. Refined sterilization techniques and manufacturing changes from LOBUND significantly reduced the size and cost of isolators, making gnotobiotic research more universally accessible., " with an edited version incorporating more information based on more references and adjusted current wording to improve clarity. Proposed edits:"In the late 19th century, the concept and field of gnotobiology was born of a debate between Louis Pasteur and Marceli Nencki, in which Pasteur argued that animal life could not be possible without bacteria while Nencki argued that the absence of bacteria would result in healthier animals, but it wasn't until 1960 that the Association for Gnotobiotics was formed. Early attempts in gnotobiology were limited by inadequate equipment and nutritional knowledge, however, advancements in nutritional sciences, animal anatomy and physiology, and immunology have allowed for the improvement of gnotobiotic organisms. Guinea pigs were the first germ-free animal model described in 1896 by George Nuttall and Hans Thierfelder, establishing techniques still used today in gnotobiology. Early methods for maintaining sterile environments involved sterile glass jars and glove boxes, which developed into a conversation surrounding uniformity of the methods in the field at the 1939 symposium on Micrurgical and Germ-free Methods at the University of Notre Dame. Many early (1930-1950s) accomplishments in the field of gnotobiotics came from the Univeristy of Notre Dame, the University of Lund, and Nagoya University. The Laboratories of Bacteriology at the University of Notre Dame (known as LOBUND) was founded by John J. Cavanaugh and is cited for making some of the most notable achievements in the field of gnotobiotic research.  Under the direction of James A. Reyniers, early work at LOBUND focused on obtaining gnotobiotes from contaminated stocks and using isolators that were bulky and costly high pressure steam sterilized steel containers, however, later work at the institute shifted the focus of the field towards establishing colonies of isolator animals. The first germ-free rat colony was generated and maintained using a steam sterilized isolator in 1946 by Swedish scientist Bengt Gustafsson. Flexible film isolators using peracetic acid vapor began being developed in the 1950s. Refined sterilization techniques and manufacturing changes from LOBUND reduced the size and cost of isolators, making gnotobiotic research more universally accessible.  Between the 1950s and 1970s, germ-free models were used to study the effects of the absence of bacteria on host organism metabolism and physiology, which later evolved into inoculating germ-free organisms with specific microorganisms to investigate their functions and other questions relating to the biomedical field.  -- OMathie (talk) 18:30, 7 November 2021 (UTC)
 * I propose the lead of the article be modified to allow the content to be accessible to a larger audience. As written, it relies on the prior knowledge that other forms of life are present on an organism and does not mention the type of life that this definition refers to. Also, there are no references for the information presented in the lead of the article. Links to other Wikipedia articles will also increase the accessibility of the information. Proposed edit: "Gnotobiosis (from Greek roots gnostos "known" and bios "life") refers to an engineered state of an organism in which all the forms of life (i.e., microorganisms) in or on it, including its microbiota, are known. The term gnotobiotic organism, or gnotobiote, can refer to a model organism that is colonized with a specific community of known microorganisms (isobiotic) or that contains no microorganisms (germ-free) often for experimental purposes.  Additionally, specific-pathogen-free (SPF) organisms are another type of gnotobiosis in which it is known that a certain pathogen is absent from the microbial community while little is known about the remaining microbial community composition. The study of gnotobiosis and the generation of various types of gnotobiotic model organisms as tools for studying interactions between host organisms and microbes is referred to as gnotobiology. -- OMathie (talk) 18:36, 12 November 2021 (UTC)
 * I am removing these sentences from the article, "Such animals may also be used in animal production, especially in the rearing of pigs. After the Caesarean birth, these animals are introduced to their natural microflora in a stepwise fashion. This avoids undesired infections and leads to faster growth." There is no source for this information and I have not been able to find a source. If anyone finds a source and decides to add it back please do. --OMathie (talk) 23:01, 17 November 2021 (UTC)