Low Apparent Survival and Heterogeneous Movement Patterns of Invasive Blue Catfish in a Coastal River

Blue Catfish Ictalurus furcatus were purposefully introduced into freshwater tributaries to Chesapeake Bay in the past, and populations have subsequently spread to new areas, negatively impacting native communities and causing concern for resource managers. To aid development of management strategies, we implemented a multiyear (2012-2015) tagging study of invasive Blue Catfish in a 40-km stretch of the Potomac River to estimate survival and assess movement patterns. Blue Catfish (N = 1,237) were captured by electrofishing and double-tagged to allow us to estimate tag retention rates; we used reward tags to increase reporting rates. Recaptured fish (N = 104; 8.4% return rate) were at large for between 2 and 1,208 d. Tag retention rates were 0.88 (SE = 0.045) after 1 year and declined to 0.31 (SE = 0.107) after 2.7 years. The mean minimum distance moved by fish was 24.1 km (range = 0.0-112.6 km). Most (63%) fish displayed downriver movements, but distance moved was unrelated to fish size or days at large. Greater distances were observed among fish that moved downriver (34.4 km) than those that moved upriver (6.7 km). These results suggest high variability in movement behaviors for Blue Catfish inhabiting the tidal Potomac River from freshwater reaches to estuarine habitats. We estimated an annual apparent survival rate of 0.56 (SE = 0.057; Brownie tag-return model) across the study period. This survival rate is lower than survival rates reported from their native range. Long-distance movements of Blue Catfish in the Potomac River indicate that robust, large-scale control measures will be needed to reduce population abundance and minimize negative impacts of this species on native communities

Dendritic cell defects in patients with cancer: mechanisms and significance

Dendritic cells (DCs) are a complex network of antigen-presenting cells that have an essential role in the modulation of primary immunity. There has been increasing evidence that DCs isolated from patients with malignancy demonstrate functional deficiencies that inhibit the capacity to mount an effective anti-tumor response. In this issue of Breast Cancer Research, Pinzon-Charry and colleagues investigate one of the possible mechanisms by which tumors induce DC dysfunction to evade host immune surveillance. They demonstrate that DCs isolated from the circulation of patients with early-stage breast cancer exhibit increased rates of spontaneous apoptosis. In vitro studies suggest that a soluble factor secreted by breast cancer cells is responsible for this phenomenon. In contrast, ex vivo conditioning of DCs with CD-40 ligand and IL-12 was protective against tumor-induced apoptosis

CD1a-positive infiltrating-dendritic cell density and 5-year survival from human breast cancer

© Churchill LivingstoneInfiltrating CD1a+ dendritic cells (DCs) have been associated with increased survival in a number of human cancers. This study investigated DC infiltration within breast cancers and the association with survival. Classical established prognostic factors, of tumour size, lymph node status, histological grade, lympho-vascular invasion, the KI-67 (MIB-1) fraction and the Nottingham Prognostic Index (NPI) were also compared. A total of 48 breast cancer patients were followed from the time of surgery and CD1a density analysis for 5 years or until death. Our data set validated previous studies, which show a relationship between survival and the NPI (P<0.001), tumour size (P<0.01) and lymph node status (P<0.05). Although more patients were alive at the 5-year time point in the group with higher CD1a DC density than the lower CD1a DC group, this failed to reach statistical significance at the P=0.05 level. Analysis at 10 years postsurgery is required to investigate the association further.B.J.Coventry and J. Morto

Dendritic cell density and activation status in human breast cancer – CD1a, CMRF-44, CMRF-56 and CD-83 expression

Low CD1a-positive putative dendritic cell numbers in human breast cancer has recently been described and may explain the apparent ‘poor immunogenicity’ previously reported in breast cancer. Little attention has been given to dendritic cell activation within the tumour microenvironment, which is another reason why the in-situ immune response may be severely deficient. We have therefore examined CD1a expression as a marker for dendritic cells, together with CMRF-44 and -56 as markers of dendritic cell activation status, in 40 human breast cancers. The results demonstrate few or no CD1a-positive putative dendritic cells and minimal or no expression of the dendritic cell activation markers. Both dendritic cell number and dendritic cell activation appear substantially deficient in human breast cancers, regardless of tumour histological grade

Captive-Carry Flight Demonstration of an Inert Test Rocket Using a Business Jet as an Air Launch Platform

This presentation is to discuss the Armstron airworthiness process and the work required to clear to GO1 Inert Test Article for captive carry flights

Body size in early life and risk of epithelial ovarian cancer: results from the Nurses' Health Studies

Adult body mass index (BMI) has been associated with ovarian cancer risk, but few studies have examined body size earlier in life. We prospectively examined associations of body fatness at ages 5 and 10, BMI at age 18, height, and birthweight with risk of epithelial ovarian cancer in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS: 110 311 women, 735 cases) and Nurses' Health Study II (NHSII: 113 059 women, 137 cases). Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). There was a weak inverse association between average body fatness at ages 5 and 10 and risk in the NHS (RR for heaviest vs most lean=0.81, 95% CI: 0.53–1.24, P for trend=0.04) and a nonsignificant positive association in the NHSII (RR=2.09, 95% CI: 0.98–4.48, P for trend=0.10), possibly due to differences in age and menopausal status. Height was positively associated with risk in both cohorts (RR for ⩾1.75 vs <1.6 m=1.43, 95% CI: 1.05–1.96, P for trend=0.001). Body mass index at the age of 18 years and birthweight were not associated with risk. Further research should examine the biological mechanisms underlying the observed associations

Genome sequencing of the extinct Eurasian wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, illuminates the phylogeography and evolution of cattle

Background Domestication of the now-extinct wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, gave rise to the two major domestic extant cattle taxa, B. taurus and B. indicus. While previous genetic studies have shed some light on the evolutionary relationships between European aurochs and modern cattle, important questions remain unanswered, including the phylogenetic status of aurochs, whether gene flow from aurochs into early domestic populations occurred, and which genomic regions were subject to selection processes during and after domestication. Here, we address these questions using whole-genome sequencing data generated from an approximately 6,750-year-old British aurochs bone and genome sequence data from 81 additional cattle plus genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism data from a diverse panel of 1,225 modern animals. Results Phylogenomic analyses place the aurochs as a distinct outgroup to the domestic B. taurus lineage, supporting the predominant Near Eastern origin of European cattle. Conversely, traditional British and Irish breeds share more genetic variants with this aurochs specimen than other European populations, supporting localized gene flow from aurochs into the ancestors of modern British and Irish cattle, perhaps through purposeful restocking by early herders in Britain. Finally, the functions of genes showing evidence for positive selection in B. taurus are enriched for neurobiology, growth, metabolism and immunobiology, suggesting that these biological processes have been important in the domestication of cattle. Conclusions This work provides important new information regarding the origins and functional evolution of modern cattle, revealing that the interface between early European domestic populations and wild aurochs was significantly more complex than previously thought

Chemokine-mediated distribution of dendritic cell subsets in renal cell carcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) represents one of the most immunoresponsive cancers. Antigen-specific vaccination with dendritic cells (DCs) in patients with metastatic RCC has been shown to induce cytotoxic T-cell responses associated with objective clinical responses. Thus, clinical trials utilizing DCs for immunotherapy of advanced RCCs appear to be promising; however, detailed analyses concerning the distribution and function of DC subsets in RCCs are lacking.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We characterized the distribution of the different immature and mature myeloid DC subsets in RCC tumour tissue and the corresponding normal kidney tissues. In further analyses, the expression of various chemokines and chemokine receptors controlling the migration of DC subsets was investigated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The highest numbers of immature CD1a+ DCs were found within RCC tumour tissue. In contrast, the accumulation of mature CD83+/DC-LAMP+ DCs were restricted to the invasive margin of the RCCs. The mature DCs formed clusters with proliferating T-cells. Furthermore, a close association was observed between MIP-3α-producing tumour cells and immature CCR6+ DC recruitment to the tumour bed. Conversely, MIP-3β and SLC expression was only detected at the tumour border, where CCR7-expressing T-cells and mature DCs formed clusters.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Increased numbers of immature DCs were observed within the tumour tissue of RCCs, whereas mature DCs were found in increased numbers at the tumour margin. Our results strongly implicate that the distribution of DC subsets is controlled by local lymphoid chemokine expression. Thus, increased expression of MIP-3α favours recruitment of immature DCs to the tumour bed, whereas <it>de novo </it>local expression of SLC and MIP-3β induces accumulation of mature DCs at the tumour margin forming clusters with proliferating T-cells reflecting a local anti-tumour immune response.</p