Obesity during pregnancy affects sex steroid concentrations depending on fetal gender

© 2017 Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature. All rights reserved. Background/Objective:It is not clear whether maternal obesity along with fetal gender affect sex steroid metabolism during pregnancy. Therefore, we compared sex steroid concentrations and placental expression of steroidogenic enzymes between non-obese and obese pregnant women with non-pathological pregnancies, and investigated the influence of fetal gender on these parameters.Methods:In 35 normal weight (body mass index (BMI) 20-24.9 kg m - 2) (controls) and 36 obese women (BMI 30-36 kg m - 2) (obese), a fasting blood sample was obtained at first and at third trimester of gestation to measure progesterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA sulfate, androstenedione, testosterone and estradiol by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and estrone by radioimmunoassay. In a subset of women, placental mRNA and protein expression of steroidogenic enzymes was measured by quantitative PCR and western

BAG3 regulates total MAP1LC3B protein levels through a translational but not transcriptional mechanism

<div><p></p><p>Autophagy is mainly regulated by post-translational and lipid modifications of ATG proteins. In some scenarios, the induction of autophagy is accompanied by increased levels of certain <i>ATG</i> mRNAs such as <i>MAP1LC3B/LC3B, ATG5</i> or <i>ATG12</i>. However, little is known about the regulation of ATG protein synthesis at the translational level. The cochaperone of the HSP70 system BAG3 (BCL2-associated athanogene 3) has been associated to LC3B lipidation through an unknown mechanism. In the present work, we studied how BAG3 controls autophagy in HeLa and HEK293 cells. Our results showed that BAG3 regulates the basal amount of total cellular LC3B protein by controlling its mRNA translation. This effect was apparently specific to LC3B because other ATG protein levels were not affected. <i>BAG3</i> knockdown did not affect LC3B lipidation induced by nutrient deprivation or proteasome inhibition. We concluded that BAG3 maintains the basal amount of LC3B protein by controlling the translation of its mRNA in HeLa and HEK293 cells.</p></div

Phenotypic diversity and relationships of fruit quality traits in peach and nectarine [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] breeding progenies

The definitive version is available at: http://www.springerlink.com/content/102881/Agronomic and fruit quality traits were evaluated and compared for three consecutive years on 1,111 seedlings coming from 15 peach and nectarine breeding crosses, grown under a Mediterranean climate. Significant differences among and within the different progenies were found for most of the traits analyzed. The breeding population segregated for several Mendelian characters such as peach or nectarine fruit, round or flat fruit, yellow or white flesh and freestone or clingstone. In addition, aborting fruit and flat fruit trees were found in our progeny, and our data seem to support multi-allelic control of both flat shape and aborting fruit. The variation within the progenies of some traits such as blooming and harvesting date, yield, fruit weight and SSC was continuous, suggesting a polygenic inheritance. Relationships between qualitative pomological traits and these agronomic and fruit quality parameters were also found. Valuable correlations among agronomic and fruit quality parameters were found, although coefficients of variation depending on the progeny should be considered. In addition, principal component analysis (PCA) revealed several relationships among quality traits in the evaluated progenies. Based on this evaluation, 26 outstanding genotypes were pre-selected from the initial breeding population for further studies.This study was supported by the Spanish MICINN (Ministry of Science and Innovation) grants AGL-2005-05533 and AGL-2008-00283, and the Regional Government of Aragón (A44). C.M. Cantín was supported by a FPU fellowship from Spanish MICINN.Peer reviewe

Inhibition of the proteasome preserves Mitofusin-2 and mitochondrial integrity, protecting cardiomyocytes during ischemia-reperfusion injury

Cardiomyocyte loss is the main cause of myocardial dysfunction following an ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. Mitochondrial dysfunction and altered mitochondrial network dynamics play central roles in cardiomyocyte death. Proteasome inhibition is cardioprotective in the setting of IR; however, the mechanisms underlying this protection are not well-understood. Several proteins that regulate mitochondrial dynamics and energy metabolism, including Mitofusin-2 (Mfn2), are degraded by the proteasome. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether proteasome inhibition can protect cardiomyocytes from IR damage by maintaining Mfn2 levels and preserving mitochondrial network integrity. Using ex vivo Langendorff-perfused rat hearts and in vitro neonatal rat ventricular myocytes, we showed that the proteasome inhibitor MG132 reduced IR-induced cardiomyocyte death. Moreover, MG132 preserved mitochondrial mass, prevented mitochondrial network fragmentation, and abolished IR-induced reductions in Mfn2 levels in heart tissue and cultured cardiomyocytes. Interestingly, Mfn2 overexpression also prevented cardiomyocyte death. This effect was apparently specific to Mfn2, as overexpression of Miro1, another protein implicated in mitochondrial dynamics, did not confer the same protection. Our results suggest that proteasome inhibition protects cardiomyocytes from IR damage. This effect could be partly mediated by preservation of Mfn2 and therefore mitochondrial integrity.Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT, Chile), Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (FONDECYT): 1130407, 1180613, 11170962, 1160704, 1200490, 11181000, 3190546, 3160549. Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT), CONICYT FONDAP

Influência do manejo do solo na conservação e na qualidade pós-colheita de pêssegos cv. Cerrito Soil management effects in respect to conservation and to quality post harvest of peaches variety Cerrito

Estudou-se o efeito do manejo do solo, mantido com cobertura vegetal, na linha de plantio, na qualidade pós-colheita de pêssegos cv. Cerrito durante o armazenamento refrigerado. Os tratamentos constaram de frutas colhidas em pomares com solo com cobertura vegetal (aveia) e com cultivo tradicional (sem cobertura) em três estádios de maturação. O armazenamento foi a 0&ordm;C e umidade relativa do ar acima de 90%. As avaliações de firmeza, acidez (ATT), sólido solúvel total (SST) e coloração foram feitas na colheita e após 6; 12 e 18 dias de armazenamento, mais 3 dias de simulação de comercialização. As frutas colhidas em pomares com solo com cobertura vegetal apresentaram maiores firmezas que as do cultivo tradicional. O teor de SST foi maior em pêssegos produzidos em pomares com manejo do solo tradicional. Já a acidez e a relação SST/ATT não foi influenciada pelo manejo do solo. Os pêssegos produzidos em pomar com aveia apresentaram predomínio da coloração mais esverdeada no início do armazenamento.<br>The effect of soil management, with mulching on the planting line, on the quality of post-harvest of peaches cv. Cerrito during cold storage was studied. The treatments were consisted by fruits harvested on orchards with mulching (oats) and without mulching (traditional cultivation) on three stages of maturation. The storage was performed at temperature 0&ordm; C and above 90% of air humidity. Evaluations of firmness, acidity (TTA), total soluble solid (TSS) and coloration, were performed at harvest and after 6, 12 and 18 days of storage, plus 3 days of commercialization simulation. The fruits harvested on orchards with mulching presented a larger firmness than the others. The percentage of TSS was larger in peaches produced in the orchards with traditional cultivation. The management of the soil didn't influenced the relation TSS/TTA and acidity. The peaches produced in the orchard with mulching of oat presented prevalence of the greenish coloration in the beginning of the storage