The role of endoglin in post-ischemic revascularization

60 p.-5 fig.-1 tab.Following arterial occlusion, blood vessels respond by forming a new network of functional capillaries (angiogenesis), by re-organizing pre-existing capillaries through the recruitment of smooth muscle cells to generate new arteries (arteriogenesis) and by growing and remodeling pre-existing collateral arterioles into physiologically relevant arteries (collateral development). All these processes result in the recovery of organ perfusion. The importance of endoglin in post-occlusion reperfusion is sustained by several observations: i) endoglin expression is increased in vessels showing active angiogenesis/remodeling; ii) genetic endoglin haploinsufficiency in humans causes deficient angiogenesis; and iii) the reduction of endoglin expression by gene disruption or the administration of endoglin-neutralizing antibodies reduces angiogenesis and revascularization. However, the precise role of endoglin in the several processes associated with revascularization has not been completely elucidated and, in some cases, the function ascribed to endoglin by different authors is controversial. The purpose of this review is to organize in a critical way the information available for the role of endoglin in several phenomena (angiogenesis, arteriogenesis, and collateral development) associated with post-ischemic revascularization.Peer reviewe

Critical Theory and the Loneliness of the Tax Prof

This essay, prepared for a symposium on critical theory and tax law, has two goals: to suggest why feminist theory and critical race theory are spreading in taxation and to discuss some dangers of that criticism. The author evaluates three examples of the new criticism: an article on critical race theory by Professors Moran and Whitford; an article on feminist statutory interpretation by Professor Handelman; and a book, Taxing Women, by Professor McCaffery

Endoglin-mediated angiogenic responses are regulated by its cytosolic domain

1 p.This work was supported by grants from Czech Science foundation GACR number 15-24015S, the Grant Agency of Charles University in Prague (1284214/C and 1158413/C), Charles University in Prague (SVV/2014/260064), European Regional Development Fund under the Innovative Economy Program of the European Union (grant coordinated by JCET-UJ, No POIG.01.01.02- 00-069/09), Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad of Spain (SAF2010-19222 and SAF2013-43421-R and SAF2010-1588), Junta de Castilla y Leon (GR100), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER) and Red de Investigación Cooperativa en Enfermedades Renales (RD12/0021/0032; REDINREN). CIBERER and REDINREN are initiatives of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) of Spain supported by FEDER funds. The Cardiovascular Phenotyping Unit of the University of Salamanca, including the telemetry equipment, was acquired with the support of the European Regional Development Funds (FEDER). Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (BES-2008-005550). The publication is co-financed by the European Social Fund and the state budget of the Czech Republic (Project No.CZ.1.07/2.3.00/30.0061).Peer reviewe

Influencia de la composición de la dieta sobre el perfil de ácidos grasos y la expresión génica en tejidos adiposo, muscular y hepático de cerdos ibéricos

La composición de los tejidos animales es determinante en la calidad de los productos y está influida por varios factores como la dieta, el tipo genético, la edad y el sexo. En este trabajo se ha evaluado el efecto de la composición de ácidos grasos (AG) de la dieta de cerdos ibéricos en fase de cebo, sobre la composición de AG de los tejidos y la transcripción de genes codificantes para enzimas clave del metabolismo lipídico (SCD, ME1, FASN, ACACA, LEP, CPT, HADH). Se utilizaron 40 machos Torbiscal que recibieron diferentes dietas: saturada (S), monoinsaturada (M) y poliinsaturada (P). La composición de AG de los tejidos adiposo, hepático y muscular mostró grandes diferencias del grupo P respecto a M y S, que mostraron un perfil similar. La dieta afectó también a la expresión génica en hígado y tejido adiposo, sugiriendo una mayor expresión de enzimas lipogénicas en el grupo M y menor en el P. Estos resultados no explican la mayor capacidad del grupo S para la síntesis endógena de AG, que podría deducirse de los análisis de composición tisular.La composición de los tejidos animales es determinante en la calidad de los productos y está influida por varios factores como la dieta, el tipo genético, la edad y el sexo. En este trabajo se ha evaluado el efecto de la composición de ácidos grasos (AG) de la dieta de cerdos ibéricos en fase de cebo, sobre la composición de AG de los tejidos y la transcripción de genes codificantes para enzimas clave del metabolismo lipídico (SCD, ME1, FASN, ACACA, LEP, CPT, HADH). Se utilizaron 40 machos Torbiscal que recibieron diferentes dietas: saturada (S), monoinsaturada (M) y poliinsaturada (P). La composición de AG de los tejidos adiposo, hepático y muscular mostró grandes diferencias del grupo P respecto a M y S, que mostraron un perfil similar. La dieta afectó también a la expresión génica en hígado y tejido adiposo, sugiriendo una mayor expresión de enzimas lipogénicas en el grupo M y menor en el P. Estos resultados no explican la mayor capacidad del grupo S para la síntesis endógena de AG, que podría deducirse de los análisis de composición tisular

Prevalence, risk factors, and identification of Salmonella spp. in stray dogs of northwest Mexico

Salmonellosis has a worldwide relevance in aspects associated with public health, as only in 2009 were reported 93.8 million cases in humans. The objective of the study was to establish the prevalence, risk factors and bacteriological and molecular identification of Salmonella spp in stray dogs in urban, rural and coastal areas of Mexicali, a city in northwest Mexico. From May 2014 to February 2015, 385 dogs were tested. Sampling was performed by rectal swab and conventional bacteriological techniques were applied, for later implementation of the API 20E system and molecular identification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The data were analysed statistically by means of descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression modelling. A prevalence of 6.27% was obtained in the dogs examined, the samples obtained were characterised to subspecies (Salmonella enterica subspecies enterica and Salmonella enterica subspecie arizonae). The geographical region with the highest prevalence in the study was the coast (10%), followed by the rural area (8.57%) and the urban area (5.8%), however, no significant statistical differences were detected. There was significant difference in the prevalence by age of dogs under one year (P<0.05). The identification of Salmonella in dogs from northwest Mexico could correspond to serovars of zoonotic importance indicating a potential risk for the population

SK channels contribution to ventricular electrophysiology in heart failure patients

Heart failure (HF) is characterized by deterioration of the electrical and contractile function of the heart due to structural and functional remodelling, leading to development of arrhythmias and increased sudden cardiac death risk. SK channels are a type of calcium-activated potassium channels that do not play a relevant role in normal ventricular electrophysiology. However, it has been hypothesized that these channels become more relevant in pathologies such as HF. Nontheless, their role in human ventricular electrophysiology is not fully characterized

Evaluation of bacterial adherence of clinical isolates of Staphylococcus sp. using a competitive model: An in vitro approach to the "race for the surface" theory

Objectives Implant-related infection is one of the most devastating complications in orthopaedic surgery. Many surface and/or material modifications have been developed in order to minimise this problem; however, most of the in vitro studies did not evaluate bacterial adhesion in the presence of eukaryotic cells, as stated by the 'race for the surface' theory. Moreover, the adherence of numerous clinical strains with different initial concentrations has not been studied. Methods We describe a method for the study of bacterial adherence in the presence of preosteoblastic cells. For this purpose we mixed different concentrations of bacterial cells from collection and clinical strains of staphylococci isolated from implant-related infections with preosteoblastic cells, and analysed the minimal concentration of bacteria able to colonise the surface of the material with image analysis. Results Our results show that clinical strains adhere to the material surface at lower concentrations than collection strains. A destructive effect of bacteria on preosteoblastic cells was also detected, especially with higher concentrations of bacteria. Conclusions The method described herein can be used to evaluate the effect of surface modifications on bacterial adherence more accurately than conventional monoculture studies. Clinical strains behave differently than collection strains with respect to bacterial adherence.This work was funded by the following grants from the Spanish MINECO (MAT2013- 48224-C2-2-R and MAT2013-48224-C2-1-R). M. Martínez-Pérez reports funding received from EFORT 2015 congress: travel supported by PFIZER, which is related to this article. J. Esteban and E. Gómez-Barrena report funding received from several companies for travel, expenses and grants, none of which is related to this articl

The Koskobilo (Olazti, Navarre, Northern Iberian Peninsula) paleontological collection: New insights for the Middle and Late Pleistocene in Western Pyrenees

The destroyed site(s) of Koskobilo (Olazti, Navarre, Northern Iberian Peninsula) have yielded unique archaeo-paleontological evidence in the Western Pyrenees region. The quarry uncovered a karstic site with faunal remains in 1940, and fossils were recovered both in situ and from the quarry dump. Ten years later, while the quarry was still working, a new visit to the dump yielded a large lithic assemblage and additional fossil remains with a different taphonomic pattern, which has been interpreted as the remains coming from a different site or zone within the same karst system. Here we re-study the paleontological evidence and provide new dating on a speleothem covering a Stephanorhinus hemitoechus tooth, which has yielded a minimum date of c. 220 ka for part of the assemblage. In total, the fossil assemblage comprises 38 mammal and six avian taxa and three fish remains. The faunal evidence indicates that in 1940 a mix of taxa from both the Middle and Upper Pleistocene were recovered, and it is difficult to assign most of them to a concrete period. However, based on biochronological criteria some of the identified taxa (e.g., Ursus thibetanus, Ursus cf. deningeri, Cuon cf. priscus, Macaca sylvanus, cf. Megaceroides) could be roughly contemporaneous with the dated rhino tooth, which would provide a new window to the Middle Pleistocene of the region, with deposits from MIS 7d and/or older. Despite the difficulties in studying this collection, recovered without stratigraphic context and in a salvage operation, Koskobilo has yielded an important paleontological assemblage which helps to understand the paleoecology of the Middle Pleistocene human occupations in the Western Pyrenees