Characterization of the interferon pathway in the European sea bass after nodavirus infection

One of the most powerful innate immune responses against virus is mediated by type I interferon (IFN). We searched the presence of genes involved in the IFN pathway in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and evaluated their regulation by nodavirus (VNNV) infection in brain and gonad of infected specimens as well as in a new sea bass cell line (DLB-1), derived from brain. We identified genes encoding MDA5 (Melanoma Differentiation Associated gene 5), LGP2 (Laboratory of Genetics and Physiology 2), MAVS (mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein), TRAF3 (tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 3), TANK (TRAF family member-associated NF-kB activator), TBK1 (TANK binding kinase 1), IRF3 (IFN regulatory factor 3), IRF7 and PKR (dsRNA dependent protein kinase receptor). Thus, in the susceptible species European sea bass, we found that mda5, lgp2 or irf3 gene expression in brain was up-regulated by VNNV infection, as ifn, mx and pkrgenes at different sampling times. Strikingly, most of the genes were up-regulated in gonad. In DLB-1 cell line, most of them were up-regulated by VNNV infection but in lower level than the induction provoked by poly I:C treatment. Further studies will be conducted to characterize the IFN pathway in sea bass and their role in the immune response against VNNV

Estimulación de la respuesta citotóxica en cerebro y gónada de lubina tras una infección con nodavirus

En este trabajo hemos analizado algunos genes efectores de la respuesta citotóxica en el cerebro, riñón cefálico y testículo de lubinas (Dicentrarchus labrax) tras una infección experimental con nodavirus (NNV), un virus con probada transmisión sexual tanto en hembras como en machos. Este estudio representa un estudio preliminar que demuestra por primera vez en peces, una inducción de varios genes implicados en la citotoxicidad mediada por leucocitos tras una infección viral del testículo y sugiere la búsqueda de tratamientos que estimulen la actividad citotóxica con el fin de bloquear la colonización de la gónada por NNV y su posterior transmisión vertical

Evaluating assumptions of scales for subjective assessment of thermal environments – Do laypersons perceive them the way, we researchers believe?

International audienc

Th17-related cytokines: new players in the control of chronic intestinal inflammation

Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), the main forms of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in man, are thought to be caused by an excessive and poorly controlled immune response that is directed against components of the normal microflora. The exact sequence of events by which this pathological process is triggered and maintained is not fully understood, but studies in experimental models of IBD and data emerging from recent clinical trials indicate that T cell-derived cytokines are crucial mediators of the tissue damage. Although CD and UC have been traditionally considered two typical examples of T helper (Th)1 or Th2-associated disease respectively, it is now known that CD- and UC-related inflammation is also marked by enhanced production of cytokines made by a distinct subset of Th cells, termed Th17 cells. Th17 cytokines can have both tissue-protective and inflammatory effects in the gut and there is evidence that Th17 cells can alter their cytokine program according to the stimuli received and convert into Th1-producing cells. These novel findings have contributed to advancing our understanding of mechanisms of gut tissue damage and open new avenues for development of therapeutic strategies in IBD

Analysis of the African coelacanth genome sheds light on tetrapod evolution

It was a zoological sensation when a living specimen of the coelacanth was first discovered in 1938, as this lineage of lobe-finned fish was thought to have gone extinct 70 million years ago. The modern coelacanth looks remarkably similar to many of its ancient relatives, and its evolutionary proximity to our own fish ancestors provides a glimpse of the fish that first walked on land. Here we report the genome sequence of the African coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae. Through a phylogenomic analysis, we conclude that the lungfish, and not the coelacanth, is the closest living relative of tetrapods. Coelacanth protein-coding genes are significantly more slowly evolving than those of tetrapods, unlike other genomic features . Analyses of changes in genes and regulatory elements during the vertebrate adaptation to land highlight genes involved in immunity, nitrogen excretion and the development of fins, tail, ear, eye, brain, and olfaction. Functional assays of enhancers involved in the fin-to-limb transition and in the emergence of extra-embryonic tissues demonstrate the importance of the coelacanth genome as a blueprint for understanding tetrapod evolution