Christine Picard

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https://hdl.handle.net/1805/30169

Discovering Nature's Powerful Allies in Sustainability and Justice

Professor Christine Picard is a member of the groundbreaking team that established the world's first research center dedicated to insects as feed and food, known as the Center for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming (CEIF), funded in by the National Science Foundation, and other industry members. Their mission involves collaborating with industry members to address the pressing needs of this emerging field through multidisciplinary research.

The insect farming industry is still in its nascent stage, and the growth potential is nothing short of remarkable. What adds to the excitement is the availability of advanced technological tools and the remarkably short generation times of insects, which enable Professor Picard and her research partners to make significant advancements in their work at an accelerated pace.

Her specific focus lies in leveraging genetic and genomic tools to enhance our ability to predict breeding outcomes and optimize production efficiency of these insects. Whether they are used as feed ingredients for livestock or as a sustainable protein source for human consumption, insects possess incredible potential. They are highly efficient protein factories, requiring fewer resources compared to traditional protein sources, and they excel at recycling food waste.

These tiny creatures are projected to have a tremendous impact as a climate solution in the future of food production. Their ability to provide sustainable protein, while minimizing resource usage and contributing to waste reduction, positions them as a crucial element in addressing the environmental challenges associated with traditional protein production methods. As part of The Center for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming, the research team is dedicated to pioneering research and driving innovation in this field, ensuring a more sustainable and resilient future for the food industry. Professor Picard's translation of insects into sustainable protein sources for humans and animals is another excellent example of how IUPUI's faculty members are TRANSLATING their RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE.

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Population Genetics of the blow fly Phormia regina (Meigen)
(Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2014-04-11) Whale, John W.; Picard, Christine J.
Blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) are a family of flies which are associated with the decomposition of organic matter, and the many species are widely distributed across the globe inhabiting almost every ecosystem and continent, with the exception being Antarctica. For many years, biologists have been interested in these metamorphic insects with much attention in recent years with their predictable life cycle and subsequent application in death investigations. Phormia regina (Meigen) is a primary colonizer of carrion and is widely distributed across the United States and can be found throughout the year. Recently, molecular techniques have been applied to a number of blow fly species, initially for identification purposes to corroborate morphological taxonomy but also as an alternative to morphology when specimens are damaged. Even more recently, population structure of these flies have been investigated, however these studies have primarily focused on pest species which infest living livestock and directly affect the agricultural economy. Here, we build upon previous analysis with AFLP markers on P. regina to determine the population structure of this integral species by using tetra-nucleotide microsatellite markers. From the recently constructed draft genome of P. regina, several thousand tetra-nucleotide (four-base repeating sequences of DNA) were identified. Due to the high A-T content of insect DNA, repeats consisting wholly of adenine and thymine bases were discarded. From the remaining tetra-repeats, 14 were chosen for initial analysis to determine their polymorphic nature; from here six were selected for genotypic analysis. More than 200 different P. regina individuals belonging to 27 populations collected from across the contiguous United States have been genotyped across these six tetra-nucleotide loci. Five loci possess ≥30 different alleles, while the sixth appears to be fairly conserved with eight different alleles. Heterozygosity exhibited between these populations is uniform (0.5-0.8) while inbred lab colonies exhibit an increase in homozygosity from their ancestral population. Further analyses are to be performed in order to determine the population structure and geography-genetic relationships of these flies.
De Novo Genome Assembly of Phormia regina (Diptera: Calliphoridae)
(Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2014-04-11) Andere, Anne A.; Picard, Christine J.
Phormia regina (Meigen), commonly known as the black blow fly, is a dipteran that belongs to the family Calliphoridae (blow flies). Calliphorids play an important role in various research fields like ecology, medical studies, veterinary and forensic sciences. P. regina is one of the common forensically relevant insects in North America and is typically used to assist in estimating post-mortem intervals (PMI). To better understand the roles it plays in the numerous research fields, we aim to re-construct its genome using next generation sequencing technologies. We are specifically focusing on generating a reference genome by de novo assembly then use the genomic data to identify genetic markers (microsatellites, single nucleotide polymorphisms) that contribute to intra- and inter-population variation with regards to geographic location. DNA was extracted from five adult male and female flies and was sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq2000 sequencing platform. More than 250 million high quality reads were produced from each sex. These reads were used in the de novo genome assembly of the female, male and combined sexes. The assembled draft genomes produced approximately 251,115 contigs, 306,273 contigs, and 325,664 contigs respectively. The assembled genome sizes totaled to ~524 Mbp and ~508 Mbp for the female and male flies, respectively. Compared to the estimated genome sizes from a previous study of 529 Mbp for females and 517 Mbp for males, we can conclude that a majority of the genome sequence (~99%) is included in the assembly. Gene prediction and annotation of the draft genomes are currently in progress. The draft reference genomes assembled from this study will provide an important resource for analyzing genetic basis of variations between and among blow fly species, which will ultimately facilitate ongoing studies in various areas of research that utilize blow flies as study models. It will also be a source where reliable genomic data can be readily available and used in downstream analysis to increase the understanding of the genetic, molecular and cellular processes of blow flies.
Comparative genomics of the sheep blow fly Lucilia cuprina
(Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2016-04-08) Picard, Christine J.; Andere, Anne A.
Insects employ different adaptive strategies in response to selective pressures, such as competition for limited resources. Carrion insects provide the ideal case to study these fundamental processes of adaptive evolution due to the intense selective pressures placed on developing larvae with limited food resources, their widespread and abundant distributions, and the presence of geographically distinct populations with specialized adaptations. One adaptation is facultative ectoparasitism, where the insect strikes a healthy animal and feeds on the living flesh, providing a developmental advantage over competitor fly species, but causing significant harm to the host. Lucilia species, which hybridize in the wild and form geographically distinct subpopulations in other regions, are diverging, meaning that we can observe and quantify early biological adaptive processes that govern speciation as they are occurring over hundreds, instead of millions, of years. The draft genome of a North American male Lucilia cuprina fly (carrion breeder) was assembled using a combination of short and long read sequences. This genome is compared to an existing Australian draft genome (ectoparasite) by elucidating genomic structure in key adaptive processes (i.e. immune system evasion) via high-throughput re-sequencing of parasitic specimens, gene prediction and annotation. The carcass colonized by or animal parasitized by both species, with some geographic overlap, provides a semi-controlled environment within the larger context of the ecosystem to sample a large number of individuals with similar life history strategies, allowing for direct comparative studies to elucidate the correlation between structure and function in the genomes of carrion flies – allowing us to understand biological adaptation and speciation.
Genome sequence of Phormia regina Meigen (Diptera: Calliphoridae): implications for medical, veterinary and forensic research
(Springer (Biomed Central Ltd.), 2016-10-28) Andere, Anne A.; Platt, Roy N.; Ray, David A.; Picard, Christine J.; Department of Biology, School of Science
BACKGROUND: Blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) are important medical, veterinary and forensic insects encompassing 8 % of the species diversity observed in the calyptrate insects. Few genomic resources exist to understand the diversity and evolution of this group. RESULTS: We present the hybrid (short and long reads) draft assemblies of the male and female genomes of the common North American blow fly, Phormia regina (Diptera: Calliphoridae). The 550 and 534 Mb draft assemblies contained 8312 and 9490 predicted genes in the female and male genomes, respectively; including > 93 % conserved eukaryotic genes. Putative X and Y chromosomes (21 and 14 Mb, respectively) were assembled and annotated. The P. regina genomes appear to contain few mobile genetic elements, an almost complete absence of SINEs, and most of the repetitive landscape consists of simple repetitive sequences. Candidate gene approaches were undertaken to annotate insecticide resistance, sex-determining, chemoreceptors, and antimicrobial peptides. CONCLUSIONS: This work yielded a robust, reliable reference calliphorid genome from a species located in the middle of a calliphorid phylogeny. By adding an additional blow fly genome, the ability to tease apart what might be true of general calliphorids vs. what is specific of two distinct lineages now exists. This resource will provide a strong foundation for future studies into the evolution, population structure, behavior, and physiology of all blow flies.
Estimation of the number of contributors of theoretical mixture profiles based on allele counting: Does increasing the number of loci increase success rate of estimates?
(Elsevier, 2018-03) Dembinski, Gina M.; Sobieralski, Carl; Picard, Christine J.; Biology, School of Science
DNA mixtures are more frequently encountered in casework due to increased kit sensitivity, protocols with increased cycle number, and requests for low copy number DNA samples to be tested. Generally, the first step in mixture interpretation is determining the number of contributors, with the most common approach of maximum allele count. Although there are previous studies regarding the accuracy of this approach, none have evaluated the accuracy with the newly expanded U.S. core STR loci. In this work, 4,976,355 theoretical mixture combinations were generated with the PowerPlex® Fusion 6C system which includes 23 autosomal STR loci and three Y-STR loci. The number of contributors could be correctly assumed for 100% two-person and 99.99% three-person mixtures, whereas, four-, five-, and six-person mixtures were correctly assumed in 89.7%, 57.3%, and 7.8% of mixtures, respectively. Y-STR analysis showed the 3 Y-STR markers are only accurate for two-person male mixtures (96.7%). This work demonstrates that maximum allele count using the expanded U.S. core loci is not much improved from previous smaller panels, reiterating that this method is not as accurate beyond three contributors.
Optimization of total vaporization solid-phase microextraction (TV-SPME) for the determination of lipid profiles of Phormia regina, a forensically important blow fly species
(Springer, 2017-11) Kranz, William; Carroll, Clinton; Dixon, Darren; Picard, Christine J.; Goodpaster, John V.; Chemistry and Chemical Biology, School of Science
A new method has been developed for the determination of fatty acids, sterols, and other lipids which naturally occur within pupae of the blow fly Phormia regina. The method relies upon liquid extraction in non-polar solvent, followed by derivatization using N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) w/ 1% trimethylchlorsilane (TMCS) carried out inside the sample vial. The analysis is facilitated by total vaporization solid-phase microextraction (TV-SPME), with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) serving as the instrumentation for analysis. The TV-SPME delivery technique is approximately a factor of five more sensitive than traditional liquid injection, which may alleviate the need for rotary evaporation, reconstitution, collection of high performance liquid chromatography fractions, and many of the other pre-concentration steps that are commonplace in the current literature. Furthermore, the ability to derivatize the liquid extract in a single easy step while increasing sensitivity represents an improvement over current derivatization methods. The most common lipids identified in fly pupae were various saturated and unsaturated fatty acids ranging from lauric acid (12:0) to arachinoic acid (20:4), as well as cholesterol. The concentrations of myristic acid (14:0), palmitelaidic acid (16:2), and palmitoleic acid (16:1) were the most reliable indicators of the age of the pupae.
Factors Affecting Species Identifications of Blow Fly Pupae Based upon Chemical Profiles and Multivariate Statistics
(MDPI, 2017-04-11) Kranz, William; Carroll, Clinton; Dixon, Darren A.; Goodpaster, John V.; Picard, Christine J.; Chemistry and Chemical Biology, School of Science
Alternative methods for the identification of species of blow fly pupae have been developed over the years that consist of the analyses of chemical profiles. However, the effect of biotic and abiotic factors that could influence the predictive manner for the tests have not been evaluated. The lipids of blowfly pupae (Cochliomyia macellaria, Lucilia cuprina, Lucilia sericata, and Phormia regina) were extracted in pentane, derivatized, and analyzed by total-vaporization solid phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TV-SPME GC-MS). Peak areas for 26 compounds were analyzed. Here we evaluated one biotic factor (colonization) on four species of blow flies to determine how well a model produced from lipid profiles of colonized flies predicted the species of flies of offspring of wild-caught flies and found very good species identification following 10 generations of inbreeding. When we evaluated four abiotic factors in our fly rearing protocols (temperature, humidity, pupation substrate, and diet), we found that the ability to assign the chemical profile to the correct species was greatly reduced.
Ubiquity of polystyrene digestion and biodegradation within yellow mealworms, larvae of Tenebrio molitor Linnaeus (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)
(Elsevier, 2018) Yang, Shan-Shan; Wu, Wei-Min; Brandon, Anja M.; Fan, Han-Qing; Receveur, Joseph P.; Li, Yiran; Wang, Zhi-Yue; Fan, Rui; McClellan, Rebecca L.; Gao, Shu-Hong; Ning, Daliang; Phillips, Debra H.; Peng, Bo-Yu; Wang, Hongtao; Cai, Shen-Yang; Li, Ping; Cai, Wei-Wei; Ding, Ling-Yun; Yang, Jun; Zheng, Min; Ren, Jie; Zhang, Ya-Lei; Gao, Jie; Xing, Defeng; Ren, Nan-Qi; Waymouth, Robert M.; Zhou, Jizhong; Tao, Hu-Chun; Picard, Christine J.; Benbow, Mark Eric; Criddle, Craig S.; Biology, School of Science
Academics researchers and “citizen scientists” from 22 countries confirmed that yellow mealworms, the larvae of Tenebrio molitor Linnaeus, can survive by eating polystyrene (PS) foam. More detailed assessments of this capability for mealworms were carried out by12 sources: five from the USA, six from China, and one from Northern Ireland. All of these mealworms digested PS foam. PS mass decreased and depolymerization was observed, with appearance of lower molecular weight residuals and functional groups indicative of oxidative transformations in extracts from the frass (insect excrement). An addition of gentamycin (30 mg g−1), a bactericidal antibiotic, inhibited depolymerization, implicating the gut microbiome in the biodegradation process. Microbial community analyses demonstrated significant taxonomic shifts for mealworms fed diets of PS plus bran and PS alone. The results indicate that mealworms from diverse locations eat and metabolize PS and support the hypothesis that this capacity is independent of the geographic origin of the mealworms, and is likely ubiquitous to members of this species.
New Distribution Record for Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in Indiana, United States
(Oxford University Press, 2018-07-01) Owings, Charity G.; Picard, Christine J.; Biology, School of Science
Determining range expansion for insect species is vital in order to evaluate their impact on new ecosystems and communities. This is particularly important for species which could be potentially harmful to humans or domestic animals. Lucilia cuprina Wiedemann (Diptera: Calliphoridae) can act as a facultative ectoparasite and has an extensive history as the primary inducer of sheep-strike in Australia, New Zealand, and Africa. We present here the first record of this species in Indiana, United States. Lucilia cuprina's range expansion northward in the United States may be indicative of changing environmental conditions conducive to the proliferation of this species into historically cooler climates. The presence of this species could significantly impact forensic death investigations utilizing dipteran larvae to estimate a minimum postmortem interval. If range expansion of this species is not taken into account by a forensic entomologist (especially if L. cuprina is not known previously in their region), an inaccurate minimum postmortem interval (PMIMIN) estimation may be made, given the differences in development times for both species. Therefore, the range expansion of this fly could have large impacts for many different entomological disciplines.
Amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis supports the valid separate species status of Lucilia caesar and L. illustris (Diptera: Calliphoridae)
(Taylor & Francis:, 2017-12-08) Picard, Christine J.; Wells, Jeffrey D.; Ullyot, Anne; Rognes, Knut; Biology, School of Science
Common DNA-based species determination methods fail to distinguish some blow flies in the forensically and medically important genus Lucilia Robineau-Desvoidy. This is a practical problem, and it has also been interpreted as casting doubt on the validity of some morphologically defined species. An example is Lucilia illustris and L. caesar, which co-occur in Europe whilst only L. illustris has been collected in North America. Reports that these species shared both mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences, along with claims that diagnostic morphological characters are difficult to interpret, were used to question their separate species status. We report here that amplified fragment length polymorphism profiles strongly support the validity of both species based on both assignment and phylogenetic analysis, and that traditional identification criteria based on male and female genital morphology are more reliable than has been claimed.

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