Mangrove vegetation

Mangrove vegetation includes plants ranging from herbs, shrubs to tall trees. In favourable conditions the mangrove trees can form dense forests in intertidal habitats. However; only a few species form a massive canopy. The main characteristic features of these special type of plants are the tidal amplitude, defined by the species, and their ability to tolerate high salinity and stress. The majority of the plant groups have adaptations like prop and stilt roots for fixing support and the pneumatophores otherwise called the breathing roots for exchanging gases and the viviparous germination. In addition to these, the plants have leathery, dark, ever green leaves with deeply embeded stomata and aquous tissues

Correlation of metallothionein expression with apoptosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

The expression of metallothionein (MT), an intracellular ubiquitous low molecular weight protein thiol with antioxidant properties, was studied in nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) and correlated with the apoptotic index. Immunohistochemical staining of randomly selected, formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded normal and malignant nasopharyngeal tissues were analysed for the expression of MT using the commercially available E9 antibody directed against MT I and MT II isoforms. The corresponding apoptosis labelling indices were evaluated by the TUNEL method. Localization of MT at the ultrastructural level was studied by immunogold labelling. All the tumour sections (17 specimens) showed MT-immunopositivity. A direct correlation between the percentage of MT-positive cells and the staining intensity was noted (P< 0.001; Pearson's r = 0.95). There was absence of cytoplasmic staining and only nuclear staining (with localization in the nucleoplasm) was demonstrated in the tumour cells. In normal epithelium of the nasopharynx, the basal layer was stained. An inverse relationship was observed between the level of MT expression and the apoptotic index in the NPC tissues (P = 0.0059; Pearson's r = –0.6380). The results suggest that overexpression of MT in NPC may protect the tumour cells from entering into the apoptotic process and thereby contribute to tumour expansion. Preferential localization of MT in the nuclei of NPC cells may possibly enhance radioresistance since radiotherapy is known to eradicate tumour cells by free radical-induced apoptosis. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaig

Mangrove ecosystems of Kerala: Resources north of Cochin

Mangroves are salt tolerant marshy vegetation found mainly along the tropical and subtropical intertidal regions of the world comprising trees and shrubs, adapted to thrive in shallow, muddy, salt and brackish waters. The canals, creeks and the estuarine environment provide home for a wide variety of aquatic fauna and the arid zone forms the nesting grounds for aquatic birds. Mangroves constitute the breeding and nursery grounds for the larvae and juveniles of commercially important species of prawns, fishes and molluscs

Analysis of metallothionein and vimentin immunoreactivity in pharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma and its microenvironment

Metallothionein (MT) has been shown to have pro-proliferative anti-apoptotic activity and to be involved in microenvironment remodeling. The aim of this study has been to determine whether the changes in MT and vimentin immunoreactivity observed in cancer and its microenvironment are related to the local spread of the disease. The immunoreactivity levels of both MT and vimentin were evaluated together with CD56 and CD57 antigens in 49 tissue samples taken from patients with squamous cell carcinoma originating from the palatine tonsils and in 20 tissue samples derived from patients with chronic tonsillitis (the reference group). MT immunoreactivity levels were statistically significantly higher in the tissue samples from squamous cell carcinoma than in those of the reference group and also higher in the squamous cell carcinoma samples compared with the stromal samples. Moreover, stromal fibroblasts exhibited high vimentin and MT immunoreactivity levels. Statistically significantly higher MT immunoreactivity levels within the tumor cells were identified in patients with the presence of lymph node metastases in contrast to those patients without such metastases. Vimentin was detected in both the tumor and the stromal tissue samples and presented an interesting pattern of staining strongly expressed within the stroma and the septal architecture of the tumor. The number of CD56- and CD57-positive lymphocytes identified in tissue samples both from squamous cell carcinoma and from the stroma was statistically significantly lower than that in the reference group. MT expression by tumor cells is thus associated with an aggressive phenotype of the tumor and the ability to create metastases

Outcome Prediction in Pneumonia Induced ALI/ARDS by Clinical Features and Peptide Patterns of BALF Determined by Mass Spectrometry

BACKGROUND: Peptide patterns of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were assumed to reflect the complex pathology of acute lung injury (ALI)/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) better than clinical and inflammatory parameters and may be superior for outcome prediction. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A training group of patients suffering from ALI/ARDS was compiled from equal numbers of survivors and nonsurvivors. Clinical history, ventilation parameters, Murray's lung injury severity score (Murray's LISS) and interleukins in BALF were gathered. In addition, samples of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were analyzed by means of hydrophobic chromatography and MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry (MALDI-ToF MS). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis for each clinical and cytokine parameter revealed interleukin-6>interleukin-8>diabetes mellitus>Murray's LISS as the best outcome predictors. Outcome predicted on the basis of BALF levels of interleukin-6 resulted in 79.4% accuracy, 82.7% sensitivity and 76.1% specificity (area under the ROC curve, AUC, 0.853). Both clinical parameters and cytokines as well as peptide patterns determined by MALDI-ToF MS were analyzed by classification and regression tree (CART) analysis and support vector machine (SVM) algorithms. CART analysis including Murray's LISS, interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 in combination was correct in 78.0%. MALDI-ToF MS of BALF peptides did not reveal a single identifiable biomarker for ARDS. However, classification of patients was successfully achieved based on the entire peptide pattern analyzed using SVM. This method resulted in 90% accuracy, 93.3% sensitivity and 86.7% specificity following a 10-fold cross validation (AUC = 0.953). Subsequent validation of the optimized SVM algorithm with a test group of patients with unknown prognosis yielded 87.5% accuracy, 83.3% sensitivity and 90.0% specificity. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: MALDI-ToF MS peptide patterns of BALF, evaluated by appropriate mathematical methods can be of value in predicting outcome in pneumonia induced ALI/ARDS