A Novel Peptide with Antifungal Activity from Red Swamp Crayfish Procambarus clarkii

The defense system of freshwater crayfish Procambarus clarkii as a diversified source of bioactive molecules with antimicrobial properties was studied. Antimicrobial activity of two polypeptideenriched extracts obtained from hemocytes and hemolymph of P. clarkii were assessed against Gram positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis) and Gram negative (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli) bacteria and toward the yeast Candida albicans. The two peptide fractions showed interesting MIC values (ranging from 11 to 700 g/mL) against all tested pathogens. Polypeptideenriched extracts were further investigated using a high-resolution mass spectrometry and database search and 14 novel peptides were identified. Some peptides and their derivatives were chemically synthesized and tested in vitro against the bacterial and yeast pathogens. The analysis identified a synthetic derivative peptide, which showed an interesting antifungal (MIC and MFC equal to 31.2 g/mL and 62.5 g/mL, respectively) and antibiofilm (BIC50 equal to 23.2 g/mL) activities against Candida albicans and a low toxicity in human cells

Ordenamento do Território e Planeamento Ambiental : investigação e prática

A secção Biologia é coordenada pelo Professor Universitário Armindo Rodrigues.O CIGPT fundado pelos Geógrafos Helena Calado e João Porteiro desenvolveu nas duas últimas décadas um esforço considerável na investigação e prática do Ordenamento Territoria

Alpha Cluster Structure in16O

The main purpose of the present work is the investigation of the α-cluster phenomenon in 16 O. The 12 C( 6 Li,d) 16 O reaction was measured at a bombarding energy of 25.5 MeV employing the Sao Paulo Pelletron-Enge-Spectrograph facility and the nuclear emulsion detection technique. Resonant states around 4α threshold were measured and an energy resolution of 15 keV allows to define states previously unresolved. The angular distributions of the absolute cross sections were determined in a range of 4-40 degree in the center of mass system. The upper limit for the resonance widths was obtained, indicating that the α cluster structure information in this region should be revised

(18O,16O) Two-neutron transfer reactions for spectroscopic studies.

A systematic study of the response of different nuclei to the (18O, 16O) two-neutron transfer reaction at 84 MeV incident energy was pursued at the INFN-LNS in Catania (Italy). The experiments were performed using several solid targets from light (9Bc, 11 B, 12,13C, 16O, 28Si) to heavier ones (58,64Ni, 120Sn, 208Pb). The 16O ejectiles were detected at forward angles by the MAGNEX magnetic spectrometer and identified without the need of time of flight measurements. Exploiting the large momentum (≈ 25%) and angular (50 msr) acceptance of the spectrometer, energy spectra were obtained with a relevant yield up to about 20 MeV excitation energy. A common feature of the light nuclei spectra is the strong population of states with well known configuration of two-particle over a core and the appearance of unknown resonant structures in the continuum. These latter can reveal the excitation of a collective mode connected with the transfer of a pair. For the heavier nuclei as 66Ni a completely different behaviour is observed indicating the presence of more dissipative processes in the reaction mechanisms that hide the spectroscopic information

Alpha cluster structure in 16O.

The alpha cluster phenomenon in the light nuclei structure has been the subject of a longtime\ud investigation since the proposal of the Ikeda diagrams, however the mechanism of the cluster\ud formation is still not completely understood. In fact, if the clusters have a fairly rigid crystal-like or a\ud gas-like structure remains an open question. The interpretation of the Hoyle state as an α\ud condensate brought a renewed interest to this subject, in particular to resonances analogous to the\ud Hoyle state. In this context the study of the experimental evolution of the α-cluster phenomenon\ud through (6Li,d) transfer reactions has been performed in São Paulo. Particularly important are the\ud regions around the nα thresholds where the α-cluster structure states are predicted. The resonant\ud states around the 4α threshold in the nucleus 16O are the focus of the present contribution. The\ud 12C(6Li,d)16O reaction was measured at a bombarding energy of 25.5 MeV employing the São Paulo\ud Pelletron-Enge-Spectrograph facility and the nuclear emulsion detection technique. Resonant states\ud above the α threshold were measured and an energy resolution of 15-30 keV allows to define states\ud previously unresolved. The angular distributions of the absolute cross sections were determined in a\ud range of 4-40 degree in the center of mass system and up to 17 MeV excitation energy. The upper\ud limit for the resonance widths in the crucial region of the 4α threshold was obtained. These values\ud revealed to be at least a factor three smaller than the ones previously reported in the literature,\ud indicating that the α cluster structure information on this region should be revised

Surgical margins in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: what is \u2018close\u2019?

The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate the definition of close margin in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), and its possible prognostic significance. An appropriate string was run on PubMed to retrieve articles discussing the 'close' surgical margin issue in HNSCC. A double cross-check was performed on citations and full-text articles retrieved. In total, 348 articles were identified. Further references were included by using the option "Titles in your search terms" option in PubMed. 15 papers were finally included for qualitative synthesis. In vocal cord surgery of HNSCC, a close margin could be considered to be 641 mm, in the larynx 645 mm, in the oral cavity 644 mm, and in the oropharynx 645 mm. In each patient, the choice of extent of close margin should be balanced against general condition, tumor stage, and functional issues to indicate appropriate adjuvant therapy

A rare but recurrent t(8;13)(q24;q14) translocation in B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia causing MYC up-regulation and concomitant loss of PVT1, miR-15/16 and DLEU7

B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) is the most common haematological malignancy in Western countries. Trisomy 12 (12%), and deletions of 13q14 (50%), 11q23 (18%) and 17p13 (7%) are the most frequent chromosomal aberrations (Palamarchuk et al, 2010). 13q14 losses, associated with better prognosis, are primary changes resulting in loss of MIR15A/MIR16-1 and DLEU7 (Palamarchuk et al, 2010). Notably, the 10% of these deletions occur together with unbalanced translocations with multiple partners (Puiggros et al, 2014). Two cases with t(8;13)(q14;q24) translocations have been described, although not characterized at molecular level (Gardiner et al, 1997; Put et al, 2012). 8q24 rearrangements are generally rare in CLL and their prognostic significance is unclear.This work was supported by the AIRC (Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro).Peer Reviewe

t(15;21) translocations leading to the concurrent downregulation of RUNX1 and its transcription factor partner genes SIN3A and TCF12 in myeloid disorders

Through a combined approach integrating RNA-Seq, SNP-array, FISH and PCR techniques, we identified two novel t(15;21) translocations leading to the inactivation of RUNX1 and its partners SIN3A and TCF12. One is a complex t(15;21)(q24;q22), with both breakpoints mapped at the nucleotide level, joining RUNX1 to SIN3A and UBL7-AS1 in a patient with myelodysplasia. The other is a recurrent t(15;21)(q21;q22), juxtaposing RUNX1 and TCF12, with an opposite transcriptional orientation, in three myeloid leukemia cases. Since our transcriptome analysis indicated a significant number of differentially expressed genes associated with both translocations, we speculate an important pathogenetic role for these alterations involving RUNX1.status: publishe

1q23.1 homozygous deletion and downregulation of Fc receptor-like family genes confer poor prognosis in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

The identification of chromosome 1 translocations and deletions is a rare and poorly investigated event in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Nevertheless, the identification of novel additional molecular alterations is of great interest, opening to new prognostic and therapeutic strategies for such heterogeneous hematological disease. We here describe a patient affected by CLL with a mutated IGHV status, showing a balanced t(1;3)(q23.1;q21.3) translocation and a der(18)t(1;18)(q24.2;p11.32), accompanying the recurrent 13q14 heterozygous deletion in all analyzed cells at onset. By combining whole-genome sequencing, SNP array, RNA sequencing, and FISH analyses, we defined a 1q23.1 biallelic minimally deleted region flanking translocations breakpoints at both derivative chromosome 1 homologues. The deletion resulted in the downregulation of the Fc receptor-like family genes FCRL1, FCRL2, and FCRL3 and in the lack of expression of FCRL5, observed by RT-qPCR. The mutational status of TP53, NOTCH1, SF3B1, MYD88, FBXW7, and XPO1 was investigated by targeted next-generation sequencing, detecting a frameshift deletion within NOTCH1 (c.7544_7545delCT). We hypothesize a loss of tumor suppressor function for FCRL genes, cooperating with NOTCH1 mutation and 13q14 genomic loss in our patient, both conferring a negative prognosis, independently from the known biological prognostic factors of CLL.This work was supported by the AIRC (Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro; AIRC IG No. 15413 for CTS)