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Molecular and genetic analysis of the
extracellular matrix during Drosophila development
Mechanisms of bicoid mRNA gradient formation.
Cancer in Drosophila: a novel genetic
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Molecular
and genetic analysis of Drosophila dystroglycan, a regulator of
epithelial polarity.
Embryology
and molecular biology of the blow fly Lucilia sericata.
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Embryology and molecular biology of the blow fly Lucilia sericata.
The blow fly Lucilia sericata has a long standing history in medicine due to the fact that blow fly maggots can be used in wound healing. During the second half of the twentieth century, maggot therapy was used sporadically, and only as a treatment of last resort for serious and recalcitrant wounds. Life-threatening infections such as temporal mastoiditis and perineal gangrene were treated with maggot therapy, following unsuccessful surgical and antibiotic treatments. More recently, small prospective controlled trials demonstrated benefits from maggot therapy as an early intervention in the treatment of pressure ulcers. Maggot therapy is now used as an adjunct to conventional modalities, and not only as an alternative when all else has failed. Laboratory investigations have demonstrated that medicinal maggots can be administered to patients concurrently receiving systemic antibiotics without adverse effects on the debriding capability of the larvae (see picture below). Today, maggot therapy is used to debride many different types of skin and soft tissue wounds: pressure ulcers, venous stasis ulcers, neurovascular ulcers such as diabetic foot wounds, traumatic and post-surgical wounds, and burns. Incidental maggot infestations of necrotic skin tumors have been noted to eliminate odor and even destroy some of the malignant tissue. However, even though it may be useful for controlling some of the problems associated with tumor necrosis, maggot therapy is not considered to be a likely cure for cancer.
Modern maggot therapy dressings, constructed from readily available medical supplies, are designed to contain the maggots within the wound. Whenever possible, a tracing of the wound is prepared on a sterile plastic sheet. This template is then used to cut a matching wound-sized hole from a hydrocolloid dressing (a self adhesive wafer with a semi permeable plastic outer surface). This hydrocolloid pad forms the foundation of the dressings: It provides a base to which adhesives can be fixed, it protects the intact skin from irritation by the proteolytic enzymes from the maggots, and it protects the patient from sensing the movement of the larvae. Sterile medicinal maggots are placed on the wound, with or without a small piece of gauze.
Film:
To see maggots in action, click on the film below.
This film was taken from the German TV (ZDF) and shows the use and action of medicinal maggots during wound healing. Unfortunately, the film is in German, and even if you do not understand this language, just watch and look! The film is 11 Mb in size and may require some time for downloading.
2 pictures showing the maggots how they exert wound healing on emperor Maximus, the hero of the recent Hollywood movie "the Gladiator" (2000).
To date, the embryology of the blow fly Lucilia sericata has not been described in detail and hardly any molecular and functional characterization of genes has been reported so far.
The embryology of the blow fly is remarkably similar to that of Drosophila, for this reason we have adapted embryonic stages according to the definition of stages in Drosophila (Campos-Ortega and Hartenstein, 1985). Many antibodies made against Drosophila proteins work fine in Lucilia and allow to highlight the different organs within the blow fly embryo (see below).
A Lucilia sericata embryo stained with mAb 22C10 to reveal elements of the peripheral nervous system. For size comparison, look at theDrosophila embryo on the top, from the same staining experiment.
Our lab has spent some time on this insect and we have recently (2005 and 2006) published two articles on the molecular and functional analysis of two genes working in the wingless pathway. Check our publication section.
