A monoclonal antibody (mAb) against 4-(diethoxyphosphorothioyloxy)benzoic acid (hapten 1) was raised and used to develop a broad-specificity competitive indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ciELISA) for 14 O,O-diethyl organophosphorus pesticides (OPs). Computer-assisted molecular modeling was used to model two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSARs) to study antibody recognition. On the basis of insights obtained from the QSAR models, two heterologous coating haptens, 4-(diethoxyphosphorothioylamino)butanoic acid (hapten 2) and 4-(diethoxyphosphorothioyloxy)-2-methylbenzoic acid (hapten 3) were designed, synthesized, and used to develop heterologous ciELISAs with significantly improved sensitivity. The heterologous ciELISA using hapten 2 as the coating hapten showed good sensitivity in a broad-specific manner for eight O,O-diethyl OPs and may be used as a screening method for the determination of these OPs. Our studies demonstrated that molecular modeling can provide insights into the spatial and electronic effects of molecular structures that are important for antibody activity, which can then be used to improve immunoassay sensitivity.

Edited by Tamas DalmayCircular RNA (circRNA), a class of RNAs with circular structure, has received little attention until recently, when some new features and functions were discovered. In the present study, we sequenced circRNAs in zebrafish (Danio rerio) and identified 3868 circRNAs using three algorithms (find_circ, CIRI, segemehl). The analysis of microRNA target sites on circRNAs shows that some circRNAs may function as miRNA sponges. Furthermore, we identified the existence of reverse complementary sequences in the flanking regions of only 25 (2.64%) exonic circRNAs, indicating that the mechanism of zebrafish exonic circRNA biogenesis might be different from that in mammals. Moreover, 1122 (29%) zebrafish circRNA sequences showed homology with human, mouse and coelacanth circRNAs.

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