Identification and Characterization of the PEBP Family Genes in Moso Bamboo (Phyllostachys heterocycla).

Moso bamboo is one of the economically most important plants in China. Moso bamboo is a monocarpic perennial that exhibits poor and slow germination. Thus, the flowering often causes destruction of moso bamboo forestry. However, how control of flowering and seed germination are regulated in moso bamboo is largely unclear. In this study, we identified 5 members (PhFT1-5) of the phosphatidyl ethanolamine-binding proteins (PEBP) family from moso bamboo genome that regulate flowering, flower architecture and germination, and characterized the function of these PEBP family genes further in Arabidopsis. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that 3 (PhFT1, PhFT2 and PhFT3), 1 (PhFT4) and 1 (PhFT5) members belong to the TFL1-like clade, FT-like clade, and MFT-like clade, respectively. These PEBP family genes possess all structure necessary for PEBP gene function. The ectopic overexpression of PhFT4 and PhFT5 promotes flowering time in Arabidopsis, and that of PhFT1, PhFT2 and PhFT3 suppresses it. In addition, the overexpression of PhFT5 promotes seed germination rate. Interestingly, the overexpression of PhFT1 suppressed seed germination rate in Arabidopsis. The expression of PhFT1 and PhFT5 is significantly higher in seed than in tissues including leaf and shoot apical meristem, implying their function in seed germination. Taken together, our results suggested that the PEBP family genes play important roles as regulators of flowering and seed germination in moso bamboo and thereby are necessary for the sustainability of moso bamboo forest

Polyneuropathy as Novel Initial Manifestation in a Case of “Nonsecretory” POEMS Syndrome with Sjögren’s Syndrome

POEMS syndrome (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal gammopathy, and skin changes) is a paraneoplastic syndrome driven by plasma cell dyscrasias. We report a patient with novel initial manifestation of polyneuropathy, which was considered due to Sjögren’s syndrome but with poor response to methylprednisolone (120 mg/d) and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg). Further investigation by imaging tests and following biopsy eventually confirmed the diagnosis of POEMS syndrome secondary to solitary plasmocytoma. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of POEMS syndrome with Sjögren’s syndrome occurring in the absence of a peripheral monoclonal gammopathy, highlighting the diagnostic challenges posed by this disease and reviewing the diagnostic role of (18) F-FDG PET/CT in POEMS syndrome

Sparse Representation of Astronomical Images

Sparse representation of astronomical images is discussed. It is shown that a significant gain in sparsity is achieved when particular mixed dictionaries are used for approximating these types of images with greedy selection strategies. Experiments are conducted to confirm: i)Effectiveness at producing sparse representations. ii)Competitiveness, with respect to the time required to process large images.The latter is a consequence of the suitability of the proposed dictionaries for approximating images in partitions of small blocks.This feature makes it possible to apply the effective greedy selection technique Orthogonal Matching Pursuit, up to some block size. For blocks exceeding that size a refinement of the original Matching Pursuit approach is considered. The resulting method is termed Self Projected Matching Pursuit, because is shown to be effective for implementing, via Matching Pursuit itself, the optional back-projection intermediate steps in that approach.Comment: Software to implement the approach is available on http://www.nonlinear-approx.info/examples/node1.htm

Spatiotemporal trends of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Costa Rica.

BACKGROUND: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) remains an important neglected tropical disease in Costa Rica, which has one of the largest burdens of this disease in Latin America. METHODS: We identified district-level hotspots of CL from 2006 to 2017 and conducted temporal analysis to identify where hotspots were increasing across the country. RESULTS: Clear patterns of CL risk were detected, with persistent hotspots located in the Caribbean region, where risk was also found to be increasing over time in some areas. CONCLUSIONS: We identify spatiotemporal hotspots, which may be used in support of the leishmaniasis plan of action for the Americas

Gold amides as anticancer drugs: synthesis and activity studies

Modular gold amide chemotherapeutics: Access to modern chemotherapeutics with robust and flexible synthetic routes that are amenable to extensive customisation is a key requirement in drug synthesis and discovery. A class of chiral gold amide complexes featuring amino acid derived ligands is reported herein. They all exhibit in vitro cytotoxicity against two slow growing breast cancer cell lines with limited toxicity towards normal epithelial cells

Spatiotemporal dynamics of vector-borne disease risk across human land-use gradients: examining the role of agriculture, indigenous territories, and protected areas in Costa Rica

Background Costa Rica has undergone significant changes to its forest ecosystems due, in part, to the proliferation of palm oil and other industrial agriculture operations. However, the country also boasts conservation programmes that are among the most robust in the neotropics. Consequently, gradients of anthropogenic to intact ecosystems are found throughout the country. Forest ecosystems may decrease vector-borne disease (VBD) risk by maintaining insect populations in a state of relative equilibrium; however, evidence suggests that intact forests foster biodiversity and may also amplify VBD risk in some circumstances. As a result, focal points of human-vector contact are likely idiosyncratic. This may be particularly true in indigenous territories, which have been shown to play a vital role in maintaining the ecological integrity of conservation areas. Here, we investigate the relationships between anthropogenic landscapes, indigenous territories, protected areas, and risk of VBD. Methods We quantified spatial dynamics of risk across three distinct categories of VBD in Costa Rica: emerging flaviviruses (Zika virus disease and dengue); neglected tropical diseases (cutaneous leishmaniasis and Chagas disease); and a disease nearing eradication (malaria). We collected district-level incidence data from between 2006 and 2017 and used spatial statistics to identify hotspots of elevated risk. We then quantified the associations between anthropogenic landscapes, intact forest ecosystems, and indigenous territories with both the presence and persistence of elevated transmission risk over time using multivariate hurdle models. Findings We detected clear patterns of non-random disease risk across each of the three categories of VBD. Compared with protected areas, districts with higher proportions of human-altered landscapes, particularly agricultural intensification, were at higher risk for VBD across all categories. Districts with the highest proportion of crop cover, compared with the lowest proportion, were significantly associated with the presence of hotspots for Zika virus disease (OR 15·19 [95% CI 6·19–37·26]), dengue (13·00 [7·24–23·35]), leishmaniasis (4·46 [1·18–16·84]), Chagas disease (3·09 [1·47–6·49]), and malaria (8·40 [3·56–19·83]). Interpretation A set of spatial epidemiology tools within a planetary health framework allowed for a refined understanding of the risk of VBD of global public health significance in a biodiversity hotspot. Our findings may be used to better guide targeted public health disease surveillance, control, and prevention programmes. Additional research to understand the role that socioeconomic factors play in the variating VBD risk would contribute additional context to these findings, as these factors are often also spatially associated

Radiotherapy or chemotherapy: a real-world study of the first-time relapsed and refractory primary central nervous system lymphoma

BackgroundPrimary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is an uncommon variant of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) with high aggressiveness and poor prognosis. Although complete remission (CR) could be achieved with therapy, some patients remain refractory or recurrently with a worse response to salvage treatment and poor prognosis. No consensus on rescue therapy has been established currently. This study is aimed to evaluate the efficacy of radiotherapy or chemotherapy in first-time relapsed or refractory progressed PCNSL (R/R PCNSL) and analysis the prognostic factors, to explore differences between relapsed and refractory PCNSL.MethodsTotally 105 R/R PCNSL patients from Huashan Hospital between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2020 were enrolled, underwent salvage radiotherapy or chemotherapy and received response assessments after each course. PFS1 was defined as the time from diagnosis to the first time of recurrence or refractory progression. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS version 26.0.ResultsResponse and survival were analyzed over a 17.5months (median) follow-up. Compared to relapsed PCNSL (n = 42), refractory PCNSL (n = 63) had a shorter median PFS1 related to deep lesions. 82.4% of cases were discovered as the second relapse or progression. ORR and PFS were both higher in relapsed PCNSL than those in refractory PCNSL. ORR of radiotherapy in both relapsed and refractory PCNSL was higher than that of chemotherapy. Elevated CSF protein and ocular involvement were related to PFS and OS after recurrence respectively in relapsed PCNSL. Age ≥ 60y was unfavorable to OS-R (OS after recurrence or progression) in refractory PCNSL.ConclusionsOur results indicate that relapsed PCNSL responds well to inducing and salvage therapy and has a better prognosis compared to refractory PCNSL. Radiotherapy is effective for PCNSL after the first relapse or progression. Age, CSF protein level, and ocular involvement could be potential factors to predict prognosis

Immunomodulatory Hydrogels:Advanced Regenerative Tools for Diabetic Foot Ulcer

Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is one of the most common complications of diabetes, bringing physical and mental challenges for patients due to the lack of efficient curative therapy. Despite considerable advances in pharmacological and surgical approaches, clinical trials for DFU patients remain disappointing due to the local overactive and excessive inflammation. Immunomodulatory hydrogels has significant advantages to overcome the clinical challenge of DFUs therapy. Here, recent fabrication and regenerative advances in the utilization of functional hydrogels for altering the immune microenvironment of DFUs are comprehensively reviewed. The pathological features and the healing processes of DFUs, followed by summarizing the physicochemical properties essential for the design of regenerative hydrogels for immunomodulation in DFUs, are briefly introduced. Then, the potential immuno-therapeutic modalities of hydrogels and emerging trends used to treat DFUs via multitherapeutic approaches and enhanced efficacy and safety are discussed. Taken together, by linking the structural properties of hydrogels to their functions in DFU therapy with a particular focus on immunomodulatory stimuli, this review can promote further advances in designing advanced hydrogels for DFUs, resulting in improved diabetic wound repair through translation into clinical setting in the near future.</p