Novas raças de Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. phaseoli identificadas em Goiás e Minas Gerais, Brasil.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar a variabilidade patogênica de isolados de Fop oriundos de 53 amostras coletadas em municípios de Minas Gerais e Goiás.Pôster - graduação

Amplificação por PCR do gene de um fator de transcrição de Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. vasinfectum.

O Fungo Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. vasinfectum (Fov) , afeta o algodoeiro em qualquer estádio de desenvolvimento. Em plântulas, ocorre amarelecimento, murcha e necrose das folhas cotiledonares; em plantas adultas, ocorre amarelecimento em áreas irregulares da superfície foliar e murcha de folhas e ramos. Algumas plantas afetadas podem sobreviver à doença, emitindo novas brotações próximas ao solo, mas, em geral, os ramos originados a partir desses novos brotos não são produtivos.Pôster - graduação

Prevalence of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations in unselected breast cancer patients from Greece

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Inheritance of a mutation in either <it>BRCA1 </it>or <it>BRCA2 </it>accounts for approximately 5% of all breast cancer cases, but varies by country. Investigations into the contribution of <it>BRCA </it>mutations to breast cancer incidence in Greece have been, for the most part, limited by small sample sizes and by the use of cases selected for their family history of cancer. The aim of the current study was to estimate <it>BRCA </it>mutation frequencies in breast cancer patients unselected for family history.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To do so, we enrolled 127 unselected women with breast cancer from the Alexandra Hospital in Athens, Greece, a large public hospital in the city. Mutations in <it>BRCA1 </it>and <it>BRCA2 </it>were detected using a combination of techniques and were confirmed by direct sequencing. Two large genomic deletions were sought using mutation-specific assays. A detailed family history of cancer was obtained from each patient.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We were able to successfully complete testing on samples from 127 women. Among these, six mutations were identified (four in <it>BRCA1 </it>and two in <it>BRCA2</it>) representing 4.7% of the total or 9.5% of cases diagnosed before age forty. None of the mutation carriers had a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. Three of the four <it>BRCA1 </it>mutations were in exon 20: two were a G5331A mutation and the third was a 3.2 kb deletion. The fourth <it>BRCA1 </it>mutation was the 3819delGTAAA in exon 11. The two <it>BRCA2 </it>mutations were in exon 11 (3782del10 and 4512insT).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The G5331A mutation in <it>BRCA1 </it>appears to be a founder mutation in the Greek population.</p

Thermogravimetric and reaction kinetic analysis of biomass samples from an energy plantation

The products of a Hungarian experimental plantation for energy crops were investigated. Young shoots of poplar clones (Populus x euramericana and Populus x interamericana), black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), willow (Salix alba), and an herbaceous plant (Miscanthus sinensis) revealed unexpectedly similar thermal behavior in inert and oxidative atmospheres, as well. An 8-fold difference in the level of grinding did not result in substantial differences in the thermal decomposition. The effect of oxygen in the ambient gas was studied at low sample masses (0.2-0.4 mg) that excluded the overheating due to the high reaction heat of the combustion process. The presence of oxygen affects the decomposition from ca. 220 degreesC. Nevertheless, the extrapolated onset temperature of the hemicellulose decomposition is practically the same at 0, 5, and 21 V/V% oxygen. A group of 12 experiments, representing two grinding levels, three plant genera and four different heating programs were evaluated simultaneously by the method of least squares employing the model of independent pseudocomponents. All evaluated experiments were well described by the same set of kinetic parameters; only the parameters describing the peak area of the partial processes differed. A technique was recommended for the appropriate handling of the nonrandom errors in the simultaneous evaluation of experiment series

Ancient DNA reveals admixture history and endogamy in the prehistoric Aegean (advance online)

The Neolithic and Bronze Ages were highly transformative periods forthe genetic history of Europe but for the Aegean—a region fundamentalto Europe’s prehistory—the biological dimensions of cultural transitionshave been elucidated only to a limited extent so far. We have analysed newlygenerated genome-wide data from 102 ancient individuals from Crete, theGreek mainland and the Aegean Islands, spanning from the Neolithic tothe Iron Age. We found that the early farmers from Crete shared the sameancestry as other contemporaneous Neolithic Aegeans. In contrast, the endof the Neolithic period and the following Early Bronze Age were marked by‘eastern’ gene flow, which was predominantly of Anatolian origin in Crete.Confirming previous findings for additional Central/Eastern Europeanancestry in the Greek mainland by the Middle Bronze Age, we additionallyshow that such genetic signatures appeared in Crete gradually from theseventeenth to twelfth centuries bc, a period when the influence of themainland over the island intensified. Biological and cultural connectednesswithin the Aegean is also supported by the finding of consanguineousendogamy practiced at high frequencies, unprecedented in the globalancient DNA record. Our results highlight the potential of archaeogenomicapproaches in the Aegean for unravelling the interplay of genetic admixture,marital and other cultural practice

Archaeometric evidence for the earliest exploitation of lignite from the bronze age Eastern Mediterranean

This paper presents the earliest evidence for the exploitation of lignite (brown coal) in Europe and sheds new light on the use of combustion fuel sources in the 2nd millennium BCE Eastern Mediterranean. We applied Thermal Desorption/Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry and Polarizing Microscopy to the dental calculus of 67 individuals and we identified clear evidence for combustion markers embedded within this calculus. In contrast to the scant evidence for combustion markers within the calculus samples from Egypt, all other individuals show the inhalation of smoke from fires burning wood identified as Pinaceae, in addition to hardwood, such as oak and olive, and/ or dung. Importantly, individuals from the Palatial Period at the Mycenaean citadel of Tiryns and the Cretan harbour site of Chania also show the inhalation of fire-smoke from lignite, consistent with the chemical signature of sources in the northwestern Peloponnese and Western Crete respectively. This first evidence for lignite exploitation was likely connected to and at the same time enabled Late Bronze Age Aegean metal and pottery production, significantly by both male and female individuals

Macrophages promote angiogenesis in human breast tumour spheroids in vivo

An in vivo model has been established to study the role of macrophages in the initiation of angiogenesis by human breast tumour spheroids in vivo. The extent of the angiogenic response induced by T47D spheroids implanted into the dorsal skinfold chamber in nude mice was measured in vivo and compared to that induced by spheroids infiltrated with human macrophages prior to implantation. Our results indicate that the presence of macrophages in spheroids resulted in at least a three-fold upregulation in the release of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in vitro when compared with spheroids composed only of tumour cells. The angiogenic response measured around the spheroids, 3 days after in vivo implantation, was significantly greater in the spheroids infiltrated with macrophages. The number of vessels increased (macrophages vs no macrophages 34±1.9 vs 26±2.5, P<0.01), were shorter in length (macrophages vs no macrophages 116±4.92 vs 136±6.52, P<0.008) with an increased number of junctions (macrophages vs no macrophages 14±0.93 vs 11±1.25, P<0.025) all parameters indicative of new vessel formation. This is the first study to demonstrate a role for macrophages in the initiation of tumour angiogenesis in vivo

TGF-beta receptor 2 downregulation in tumour-associated stroma worsens prognosis and high-grade tumours show more tumour-associated macrophages and lower TGF-beta1 expression in colon carcinoma: a retrospective study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Histological phenotype and clinical behaviour of malignant tumours are not only dependent on alterations in the epithelial cell compartment, but are affected by their interaction with inflammatory cells and tumour-associated stroma. Studies in animal models have shown influence of tumour-associated macrophages (TAM) on histological grade of differentiation in colon carcinoma. Disruption of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) signalling in tumour cells is related to more aggressive clinical behaviour. Expression data of components of this pathway in tumour-associated stroma is limited.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Tissue micro arrays of 310 colon carcinomas from curatively resected patients in UICC stage II and III were established. In a first step we quantified amount of CD68 positive TAMs and expression of components of TGF-beta signalling (TGF-beta1, TGF-beta receptors type 1 and 2, Smad 3 and 4) in tumour and associated stroma. Further we analyzed correlation to histological and clinical parameters (histological grade of differentiation (low-grade (i.e. grade 1 and 2) vs. high-grade (i.e. grade 3 and 4)), lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, 5 year cancer related survival) using Chi-square or Fisher's exact test, when appropriate, to compare frequencies, Kaplan-Meier method to calculate 5-year rates of distant metastases and cancer-related survival and log rank test to compare the rates of distant metastases and survival. To identify independent prognostic factors Cox regression analysis including lymph node status and grading was performed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>High-grade tumours and those with lymph node metastases showed higher rates of TAMs and lower expression of TGF-beta1. Loss of nuclear Smad4 expression in tumor was associated with presence of lymph node metastasis, but no influence on prognosis could be demonstrated. Decrease of both TGF-beta receptors in tumour-associated stroma was associated with increased lymph node metastasis and shorter survival. Stromal TGF-beta receptor 2 expression was an independent prognostic factor for cancer related survival.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Histological phenotype and clinical behaviour of colon cancer is not only influenced by mutational incidents in tumour cells but also affected by interaction of tumour tissue with inflammatory cells like macrophages and associated stroma and TGF-beta signalling is one important part of this crosstalk. Further studies are needed to elucidate the exact mechanisms.</p

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors reprogramming immunity in renal cell carcinoma: rethinking cancer immunotherapy

Review article[Abstract] The immune system regulates angiogenesis in cancer by way of both pro- and antiangiogenic activities. A bidirectional link between angiogenesis and the immune system has been clearly demonstrated. Most antiangiogenic molecules do not inhibit only VEGF signaling pathways but also other pathways which may affect immune system. Understanding of the role of these pathways in the regulation of immunosuppressive mechanisms by way of specific inhibitors is growing. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is an immunogenic tumor in which angiogenesis and immunosuppression work hand in hand, and its growth is associated with impaired antitumor immunity. Given the antitumor activity of selected TKIs in metastatic RCC (mRCC), it seems relevant to assess their effect on the immune system. The confirmation that TKIs improve cell cytokine response in mRCC provides a basis for the rational combination and sequential treatment of TKIs and immunotherapy