Blood pressure-lowering effects of nifedipine/candesartan combinations in high-risk individuals: Subgroup analysis of the DISTINCT randomised trial

The DISTINCT study (reDefining Intervention with Studies Testing Innovative Nifedipine GITS - Candesartan Therapy) investigated the efficacy and safety of nifedipine GITS/candesartan cilexetil combinations vs respective monotherapies and placebo in patients with hypertension. This descriptive sub-analysis examined blood pressure (BP)-lowering effects in high-risk participants, including those with renal impairment (estimated glomerular filtration rate<90 ml min-1, n=422), type 2 diabetes mellitus (n=202), hypercholesterolaemia (n=206) and cardiovascular (CV) risk factors (n=971), as well as the impact of gender, age and body mass index (BMI). Participants with grade I/II hypertension were randomised to treatment with nifedipine GITS (N) 20, 30, 60 mg and/or candesartan cilexetil (C) 4, 8, 16, 32 mg or placebo for 8 weeks. Mean systolic BP and diastolic BP reductions after treatment in high-risk participants were greater, overall, with N/C combinations vs respective monotherapies or placebo, with indicators of a dose-response effect. Highest rates of BP control (ESH/ESC 2013 guideline criteria) were also achieved with highest doses of N/C combinations in each high-risk subgroup. The benefits of combination therapy vs monotherapy were additionally observed in patient subgroups categorised by gender, age or BMI. All high-risk participants reported fewer vasodilatory adverse events in the pooled N/C combination therapy than the N monotherapy group. In conclusion, consistent with the DISTINCT main study outcomes, high-risk participants showed greater reductions in BP and higher control rates with N/C combinations compared with respective monotherapies and lesser vasodilatory side-effects compared with N monotherapy

Doing synthetic biology with photosynthetic microorganisms

The use of photosynthetic microbes as synthetic biology hosts for the sustainable production of commodity chemicals and even fuels has received increasing attention over the last decade. The number of studies published, tools implemented, and resources made available for microalgae have increased beyond expectations during the last few years. However, the tools available for genetic engineering in these organisms still lag those available for the more commonly used heterotrophic host organisms. In this mini-review, we provide an overview of the photosynthetic microbes most commonly used in synthetic biology studies, namely cyanobacteria, chlorophytes, eustigmatophytes and diatoms. We provide basic information on the techniques and tools available for each model group of organisms, we outline the state-of-the-art, and we list the synthetic biology tools that have been successfully used. We specifically focus on the latest CRISPR developments, as we believe that precision editing and advanced genetic engineering tools will be pivotal to the advancement of the field. Finally, we discuss the relative strengths and weaknesses of each group of organisms and examine the challenges that need to be overcome to achieve their synthetic biology potential.Peer reviewe

Isolation and characterization of heat-shock protein 90 (hsp90) specific promoter of Cryptocoryne ciliata

Plants are equipped with various mechanisms for survival in extreme environments. Their ability to grow and adapt to extreme conditions such as high salinity, osmotic stress and ion toxicity is amazing. Heat-shock protein, particularly Hsp90, is one of the important parts of the chaperone machinery that involves in the protection of the structure and functions of cells and has a significant task in maintaining the cellular homeostasis. To further understand the functions of Hsp90 protein, a specific promoter for the CcHsp90-2 gene that encoded 700 amino acids (GenBank accession number: JN120021) was isolated from Cryptocoryne ciliata using the genome walker approach and later characterized. Based on the functional motif of the sequence (319 bp), the promoter consists of 13 cis-elements and stress factors such as light responsiveness, methyl jasmonate (MeJA) responsiveness, jasmonate-responsiveness (JERE) and many more. This finding gives further understanding on acquired stress tolerance of Hsp90 such as communication of specific Hsp/chaperones in a crowded cellular environment, the specific regulation of Hsp/chaperone molecules, participation in stress sensing, signal transduction and transcription activation of the stress gene

The growth and post harvest performances of different species of oyster mushroom (Pleurotus sp.) cultivated on sawdust and oil palm frond

Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus sp.) have more than 1000 species worldwide such as grey (Pleurotus sajor-caju), yellow (P. citrinopealatus), pink (P. flabellatus) and white (P. florida) which are cultivated on various agricultural wastes. In this study, the growth performance, yield and postharvest quality of different species of oyster mushroom cultivated on sawdust and oil palm frond (OPF) were determined. Sawdust and OPF in combination with rice bran and calcium carbonate in 100:10:1 ratio respectively was used as substrates. The growth performance in terms of mycelium growth, days for mycelium to fill up the bag, pinhead emergence and fruiting body formation were measured. The postharvest qualities studied involved color, texture, moisture, ash, protein and crude fiber contents. Yellow oyster mushroom on OPF took the shortest time for mycelium growth, mycelium fill up the bag, pinhead emergence and fruiting body formation. However, oyster mushrooms cultivated on sawdust had higher biological efficiency (29.34 to 60.76%) as compared to on OPF (21.49 to 45.08%). White oyster mushroom had the highest biological efficiency followed by yellow, grey and pink. Meanwhile, grey oyster mushroom showed darker color compared to other oyster mushroom species. OPF used as substrates provide brighter yellow and pink color in yellow and pink oyster mushrooms respectively and greater in firmness especially for pink oyster mushroom. There was no significant difference (P>0.05) found in chemical properties of different oyster mushroom species cultivated on sawdust and OPF. In conclusion, oyster mushrooms cultivated on sawdust produced better yield even though OPF gave better growth performance and physical properties of color and firmness

Evaluation of a hanging core support concept for LMR application

The paper describes an innovative design concept for a liquid metal reactor (LMR) core support structure (CSS). A hanging core support structure is described and analyzed. The design offers inherent safety features, constructability advantages, and potential cost reductions. Some safety considerations are examined which include the in-service inspection (ISI), the backup support system and the structural behavior in a hypothetical case of a broken beam in the core support structure

Construction strategies for new generation micro-porous solids

Approaches to the formation of three new types of micro-porous materials that complement zeolites will be discussed. In each case, whether metal coordination polymers, metal-linked ceramic oxide clusters, or new hybrids containing both coordination and ceramic components, engineering of the Secondary Building Unit (SBU) is of critical importance. Successful examples of these approaches include the first thermally stable 3-D micro-porous coordination polymer with chemical functionalizability [Cu₃(TMA)₂(H₂O)₃]_n, as well as a 3-D micro-porous cluster based material [V₁₂B₁₈O₆₀H₈{Cd(en)(H ₂O)}₃]^n-. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved