Substitution de la liaison amide par un triazole 1,4- disubstitué dans le but d’étudier l’impact de ce remplacement sur la structure secondaire et l’activité biologique de peptides

The cycloaddition reaction between an azide and an alkyne catalyzed by copper (I) (CuAAC) to form a 1,2,3-triazole 1,4-disubstituted is widely used in many areas of chemistry. This reaction was rapidily used in peptide synthesis because of the isosteric nature between the triazole ring and the amide bond. However, impact of the insertion of a triazole on the secondary structure of peptides was only scarcely explored. Thus, to study the effect of such a replacement we chose two models of structured peptides. The first models are linear peptides of the peptaibols family and the second is the cyclic peptide tamandarin B.First, we have optimized a peptaibols synthesis that was applied to alamethicin F50 / 5 and to an analog of bergofungin D. For this we used a solid phase peptide synthesis under microwave irradiation taking advantage of the efficient cocktail consisting of diisopropylcarbodiimide as a coupling agent and Oxyma. This synthesis has been extended to silylated analogues of alamethicin by substituting in different positions the aminobutyric acid by the hydrophobic and crowded residue: bis-triethylsilyl-dipropylglycine (Dpg-TES).In the second part we have developed the synthesis of dipeptides containing a triazole motif. Then we defined the reaction conditions necessary for their use in SPPS and synthesized peptides containing several triazoles rings. These dipeptides were then used to perform a triazole scan on the two peptaibols models. The structural studies by circular dichroism, NMR and biological tests of various analogs allow us to conclude that the triazole affect the secondary structure of peptaibols and consequently induces a loss of activity. Thus it appears that the concept of triazole as isosteric of the peptide bond should be used with caution.In order to understand the triazole impact on the activity and the secondary structure of cyclic peptides, we generated simplified cyclic analogues of tamandarin B a depsipeptide of marine origin. We report the preliminary results of this study.La réaction de cycloaddition entre un azoture et un alcyne catalysée par le cuivre (I) (CuAAC) pour former un 1,2,3-triazole 1,4-disubstitué est très utilisée dans de nombreux domaines de la chimie. Cette réaction a très vite été utilisée en synthèse peptidique notamment du fait du caractère isostère du noyau triazole et de la liaison amide. Toutefois l'impact de l'insertion d'un triazole sur la structure secondaire de peptides n'a été que faiblement exploré. Ainsi, pour étudier l'effet d'un tel remplacement nous avons choisi deux peptides modèles structurés le premier modèle est un peptide linéaire de la famille des peptaibols et le second est un peptide cyclique la tamandarine B. Dans un premier temps, nous avons optimisé une voie de synthèse de peptaibols que nous avons appliqué à l'alaméthicine F50/5 et à un analogue de la bergofungine D. Pour cela, nous avons utilisé une synthèse peptidique en phase solide sous irradiation micro-ondes en profitant d'un cocktail de réactifs efficaces contenant du diisopropylcarbodiimide comme agent de couplage et de l'oxyma. Cette méthode de synthèse a été étendue à l'obtention d'analogues silylés de l'alamethicine en substituant dans différentes positions l'acide aminobutyrique par un résidu hydrophobe et encombré : la bis-triethylsilyl-dipropylglycine (TES-Dpg). Dans la deuxième partie nous avons développé la synthèse de dipeptides à motif triazole. Puis nous avons défini les conditions réactionnelles nécessaires pour leur utilisation en SPPS et synthétisé des peptides contenant plusieurs motifs triazoles. Ces dipeptides ont ensuite été utilisés pour réaliser un scan triazole sur les deux peptaibols modèles. Les études structurales par dichroïsme circulaire, RMN et les tests biologiques de différents analogues nous permettent de conclure que le triazole affecte la structure secondaire des peptaibols et par conséquence induit une perte d'activité. Ainsi il apparaît que le concept de triazole comme isostère de la liaison peptidique doit être employé avec prudence. Dans l'optique de comprendre l'impact de triazole sur l'activité et la structure secondaire de peptides cycliques, nous avons généré des analogues simplifiés de la tamandarine B un depsipeptide cyclique d'origine marine. Nous rapportons les résultats préliminaires de cette étude

Case Study 3: Movement Lawyers and Community Organizers in Litigation: Issues of Finances and Collaboration

This essay represents one of several Case Studies published as the Movement Lawyering Roundtable Symposium by Hofstra Law Review. The Case Studies were developed within a roundtable of movement lawyers, community organizers, and legal ethics experts convened in March, 2018 by the Monroe H. Freedman Institute for the Study of Legal Ethics at Hofstra University’s Maurice A. Deane School of Law. This Case Study addresses the ethical tensions encountered by movement lawyers and community organizers engaged in public interest litigation. The Study consists of three topics, with resulting ethics analyses of the issues that arise in the differing settings. The first involves questions of financing the broad work of a community organizing client, while honoring the mandates of the rule of professional conduct prohibiting a lawyer from offering financial assistance to clients in litigation. The second issue addressed how lawyers might share attorneys’ fees awards with community groups who are ongoing clients. The third issue pivots to questions of how movement lawyers might counsel community organizations about disagreements with other pro bono lawyers representing the clients. Each of these sets of legal ethics issues arises in movement lawyering practice, and can be confounding. This essay seeks to offer guidance to lawyers navigating these sometimes delicate ethical waters

WR279,396, a Third Generation Aminoglycoside Ointment for the Treatment of Leishmania major Cutaneous Leishmaniasis: A Phase 2, Randomized, Double Blind, Placebo Controlled Study

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is due to a small parasite (Leishmania) that creates disfiguring sores, and affects more than one million persons (mainly children) each year. Treating lesions with a cream—instead of with injections as currently done—would greatly improve the well-being of affected patients. No cream formulation that would be efficient and would not create important skin irritation has been identified yet. Here, we tested a new cream formulation (WR279,396) containing paromomycin and gentamicin, two members of a well-known family of antibacterial antibiotics (aminoglycosides). Injectable paromomycin is efficient in other forms of the disease (visceral leishmaniasis). This was a carefully monitored study (phase 2) involving mainly children in Tunisia and France. The cream was applied twice a day for 20 days. The proportion of patients treated with the paromomycin-containing cream (active formulation) that cured (94%) was higher than that observed (71%) in patients treated with a cream that did not contain the active product (placebo formulation). Local irritation affected less than one-third of the patients and was usually mild. This new cream formulation was safe and effective in treating cutaneous leishmaniasis, thereby providing a new, simple, easily applicable, and inexpensive treatment for this neglected disease

Diel time-courses of leaf growth in monocot and dicot species: endogenous rhythms and temperature effects

Diel (24 h) leaf growth patterns were differently affected by temperature variations and the circadian clock in several plant species. In the monocotyledon Zea mays, leaf elongation rate closely followed changes in temperature. In the dicotyledons Nicotiana tabacum, Ricinus communis, and Flaveria bidentis, the effect of temperature regimes was less obvious and leaf growth exhibited a clear circadian oscillation.These differences were related neither to primary metabolism nor to altered carbohydrate availability for growth. The effect of endogenous rhythms on leaf growth was analysed under continuous light in Arabidopsis thaliana, Ricinus communis, Zea mays, and Oryza sativa. No rythmic growth was observed under continuous light in the two monocotyledons, while growth rhythmicity persisted in the two dicotyledons. Based on model simulations it is concluded that diel leaf growth patterns in mono- and dicotyledons result from the additive effects of both circadian-clock-controlled processes and responses to environmental changes such as temperature and evaporative demand. Apparently very distinct diel leaf growth behaviour of monocotyledons and dicotyledons can thus be explained by the different degrees to which diel temperature variations affect leaf growth in the two groups of species which, in turn, depends on the extent of the leaf growth control by internal clocks

QTL Analysis of Shading Sensitive Related Traits in Maize under Two Shading Treatments

During maize development and reproduction, shading stress is an important abiotic factor influencing grain yield. To elucidate the genetic basis of shading stress in maize, an F2:3 population derived from two inbred lines, Zhong72 and 502, was used to evaluate the performance of six traits under shading treatment and full-light treatment at two locations. The results showed that shading treatment significantly decreased plant height and ear height, reduced stem diameter, delayed day-to-tassel (DTT) and day-to-silk (DTS), and increased anthesis-silking interval (ASI). Forty-three different QTLs were identified for the six measured traits under shading and full light treatment at two locations, including seven QTL for plant height, nine QTL for ear height, six QTL for stem diameter, seven QTL for day-to-tassel, six QTL for day-to-silk, and eight QTL for ASI. Interestingly, three QTLs, qPH4, qEH4a, and qDTT1b were detected under full sunlight and shading treatment at two locations simultaneously, these QTL could be used for selecting elite hybrids with high tolerance to shading and high plant density. And the two QTL, qPH10 and qDTS1a, were only detected under shading treatment at two locations, should be quit for selecting insensitive inbred line in maize breeding procedure by using MAS method

Mapping 123 million neonatal, infant and child deaths between 2000 and 2017

Since 2000, many countries have achieved considerable success in improving child survival, but localized progress remains unclear. To inform efforts towards United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.2—to end preventable child deaths by 2030—we need consistently estimated data at the subnational level regarding child mortality rates and trends. Here we quantified, for the period 2000–2017, the subnational variation in mortality rates and number of deaths of neonates, infants and children under 5 years of age within 99 low- and middle-income countries using a geostatistical survival model. We estimated that 32% of children under 5 in these countries lived in districts that had attained rates of 25 or fewer child deaths per 1,000 live births by 2017, and that 58% of child deaths between 2000 and 2017 in these countries could have been averted in the absence of geographical inequality. This study enables the identification of high-mortality clusters, patterns of progress and geographical inequalities to inform appropriate investments and implementations that will help to improve the health of all populations

Adolescent transport and unintentional injuries: a systematic analysis using the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background: Globally, transport and unintentional injuries persist as leading preventable causes of mortality and morbidity for adolescents. We sought to report comprehensive trends in injury-related mortality and morbidity for adolescents aged 10–24 years during the past three decades. Methods: Using the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factors 2019 Study, we analysed mortality and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) attributed to transport and unintentional injuries for adolescents in 204 countries. Burden is reported in absolute numbers and age-standardised rates per 100 000 population by sex, age group (10–14, 15–19, and 20–24 years), and sociodemographic index (SDI) with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs). We report percentage changes in deaths and DALYs between 1990 and 2019. Findings: In 2019, 369 061 deaths (of which 214 337 [58%] were transport related) and 31·1 million DALYs (of which 16·2 million [52%] were transport related) among adolescents aged 10–24 years were caused by transport and unintentional injuries combined. If compared with other causes, transport and unintentional injuries combined accounted for 25% of deaths and 14% of DALYs in 2019, and showed little improvement from 1990 when such injuries accounted for 26% of adolescent deaths and 17% of adolescent DALYs. Throughout adolescence, transport and unintentional injury fatality rates increased by age group. The unintentional injury burden was higher among males than females for all injury types, except for injuries related to fire, heat, and hot substances, or to adverse effects of medical treatment. From 1990 to 2019, global mortality rates declined by 34·4% (from 17·5 to 11·5 per 100 000) for transport injuries, and by 47·7% (from 15·9 to 8·3 per 100 000) for unintentional injuries. However, in low-SDI nations the absolute number of deaths increased (by 80·5% to 42 774 for transport injuries and by 39·4% to 31 961 for unintentional injuries). In the high-SDI quintile in 2010–19, the rate per 100 000 of transport injury DALYs was reduced by 16·7%, from 838 in 2010 to 699 in 2019. This was a substantially slower pace of reduction compared with the 48·5% reduction between 1990 and 2010, from 1626 per 100 000 in 1990 to 838 per 100 000 in 2010. Between 2010 and 2019, the rate of unintentional injury DALYs per 100 000 also remained largely unchanged in high-SDI countries (555 in 2010 vs 554 in 2019; 0·2% reduction). The number and rate of adolescent deaths and DALYs owing to environmental heat and cold exposure increased for the high-SDI quintile during 2010–19. Interpretation: As other causes of mortality are addressed, inadequate progress in reducing transport and unintentional injury mortality as a proportion of adolescent deaths becomes apparent. The relative shift in the burden of injury from high-SDI countries to low and low–middle-SDI countries necessitates focused action, including global donor, government, and industry investment in injury prevention. The persisting burden of DALYs related to transport and unintentional injuries indicates a need to prioritise innovative measures for the primary prevention of adolescent injury. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic