Selection of elms tolerant to Dutch elm Disease in south-west Romania

Ophoiostoma novo- ulmi continues to be one of the most dangerous invasive fungi, destroying many autochthonous elm forests and cultures throughout the world. Searching for natural genotypes tolerant to Dutch Elm Disease (DED) is one of the main objectives of silviculturists all over the northern hemisphere in order to save the susceptible elms and to restore their ecosystem biodiversity. In this regard, the first trial was established between 1991 and 1994, in south-west Romania (Padurea Verde, Timis, oara), using three elm species (Ulmus minor, U. glabra, and U. laevis) with 38 provenances. A local strain of Ophiostoma novo-ulmi was used to artificially inoculate all elm variants and the DED evolution was observed. Furthermore, in 2018–2021 the trial was inventoried to understand the local genotype reaction to DED in the local environmental conditions after almost 30 years. The outcomes of the present study proved the continuous presence of the infections in the comparative culture and its proximity, but the identified pathogen had a new hybrid form (found for the first time in Romania) between O. novo-ulmi ssp. Americana x O. novo-ulmi ssp. novo-ulmi. Wych elm (U. glabra) was extremely sensitive to DED: only 12 trees (out of 69 found in 2018) survived in 2021, and only one tree could be selected according to the adopted health criteria (resistance and vigour). The field elm (U. minor) was sensitive to the pathogen, but there were still individuals that showed good health status and growth. In contrast, the European white elm (U. laevis) proved constant tolerance to DED: only 15% had been found dead or presented severe symptoms of dieback. Overall, the results of this study report the diverse reactions of the Romanian regional elm genotypes to DED over the last three decades, providing promising perspectives for improving the presence of elms in the forest ecosystems of the Carpathian basin

How to stop disproportionation of a hydrochloride salt of a very weakly basic compound in a non-clinical suspension formulation

Our objectives were to stabilize a non-clinical suspension for use in toxicological studies and to develop methods to investigate the stability of the formulation in terms of salt disproportionation. The compound under research was a hydrochloride salt of a practically insoluble discovery compound ODM-203. The first of the three formulation approaches was a suspension prepared and stored at room temperature. The second formulation was stabilized by pH adjustment. In the third approach cooling was used to prevent salt disproportionation. 5 mg/mL aqueous suspension consisting of 20 mg/mL PVP/VA and 5 mg/mL Tween 80 was prepared for each of the approaches. The polymer was used as precipitation inhibitor to provide prolonged supersaturation while Tween 80 was used to enhance dissolution and homogeneity of the suspension. The consequences of salt disproportionation were studied by a small-scale in vitro dissolution method and by an in vivo pharmacokinetic study in rats. Our results show that disproportionation was successfully suppressed by applying cooling of the suspension in an ice bath at 2-8 degrees C. This procedure enabled us to proceed to the toxicological studies in rats. The in vivo study results obtained for the practically insoluble compound showed adequate exposures with acceptable variation at each dose level.Peer reviewe

Pine Pitch Canker and Insects: Regional Risks, Environmental Regulation, and Practical Management Options

Producción CientíficaPine pitch canker (PPC), caused by the pathogenic fungus Fusarium circinatum (Nirenberg and O’ Donnell), is a serious threat to pine forests globally. The recent introduction of the pathogen to Southern Europe and its spread in Mediterranean region is alarming considering the immense ecological and economic importance of pines in the region. Pines in forests and nurseries can be infected, resulting in severe growth losses and mortality. The pathogen is known to spread in plants for planting and in seeds, and results from recent studies have indicated that F. circinatum may also spread through phoretic associations with certain insects. With this review, we aim to expand the current understanding of the risk of insect-mediated spread of PPC in different parts of Europe. Through the joint action of a multinational researcher team, we collate the existing information about the insect species spectrum in different biogeographic conditions and scrutinize the potential of these insects to transmit F. circinatum spores in forests and nurseries. We also discuss the impact of environmental factors and forest management in this context. We present evidence for the existence of a high diversity of insects with potential to weaken pines and disseminate PPC in Europe, including several common beetle species. In many parts of Europe, temperatures are projected to rise, which may promote the activity of several insect species, supporting multivoltinism and thus, further amplifying the risk of insect-mediated dissemination of PPC. Integrated pest management (IPM) solutions that comply with forest management practices need to be developed to reduce this risk. We recommend careful monitoring of insect populations as the basis for successful IPM. Improved understanding of environmental control of the interaction between insects, the pathogen, and host trees is needed in order to support development of bio-rational strategies to safeguard European pine trees and forests against F. circinatum in future.European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST Action FP1406 PINESTRENGTH)Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad - Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (project AGL2015-69370-R)Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (contract IF/00471/2013/CP1203/CT0001)Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant 17-04-01486)Saint Petersburg State Polytechnical University (project 2019-0420

The correlation of dust and gas emission in star-forming environments

We present ammonia maps of portions of the W3 and Perseus molecular clouds in order to compare gas emission with submillimetre continuum thermal emission which are commonly used to trace the same mass component in star-forming regions, often under the assumption of local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). The Perseus and W3 star-forming regions are found to have significantly different physical characteristics consistent with the difference in size scales traced by our observations. Accounting for the distance of the W3 region does not fully reconcile these differences, suggesting that there may be an underlying difference in the structure of the two regions. Peak positions of submillimetre and ammonia emission do not correlate strongly. Also, the extent of diffuse emission is only moderately matched between ammonia and thermal emission. Source sizes measured from our observations are consistent between regions, although there is a noticeable difference between the submillimetre source sizes with sources in Perseus being significantly smaller than those in W3. Fractional abundances of ammonia are determined for our sources which indicate a dip in the measured ammonia abundance at the positions of peak submillimetre column density. Virial ratios are determined which show that our sources are generally bound in both regions, although there is considerable scatter in both samples. We conclude that sources in Perseus are bound on smaller scales than in W3 in a way that may reflect their previous identification as low- and high-mass, respectively. Our results indicate that assumptions of local thermal equilibrium and/or the coupling of the dust and gas phases in star-forming regions may not be as robust as commonly assumed

Hyperlipidemia and Atherosclerotic Lesion Development in Ldlr-Deficient Mice on a Long-Term High-Fat Diet

BACKGROUND: Mice deficient in the LDL receptor (Ldlr(-/-) mice) have been widely used as a model to mimic human atherosclerosis. However, the time-course of atherosclerotic lesion development and distribution of lesions at specific time-points are yet to be established. The current study sought to determine the progression and distribution of lesions in Ldlr(-/-) mice. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Ldlr-deficient mice fed regular chow or a high-fat (HF) diet for 0.5 to 12 months were analyzed for atherosclerotic lesions with en face and cross-sectional imaging. Mice displayed significant individual differences in lesion development when fed a chow diet, whereas those on a HF diet developed lesions in a time-dependent and site-selective manner. Specifically, mice subjected to the HF diet showed slight atherosclerotic lesions distributed exclusively in the aortic roots or innominate artery before 3 months. Lesions extended to the thoracic aorta at 6 months and abdominal aorta at 9 months. Cross-sectional analysis revealed the presence of advanced lesions in the aortic sinus after 3 months in the group on the HF diet and in the innominate artery at 6 to 9 months. The HF diet additionally resulted in increased total cholesterol, LDL, glucose, and HBA1c levels, along with the complication of obesity. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Ldlr-deficient mice on the HF diet tend to develop site-selective and size-specific atherosclerotic lesions over time. The current study should provide information on diet induction or drug intervention times and facilitate estimation of the appropriate locations of atherosclerotic lesions in Ldlr(-/-) mice

Relationship between the Sensory-Determined Astringency and the Flavanolic Composition of Red Wines

[EN] The relationship between the proanthocyanidin profile and the perceived astringency was assessed in 13 commercial Tempranillo red wines. The concentration and compositional information were obtained by liquid chromatography with diode array detection coupled to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry after acid-catalyzed depolymerization of wine proanthocyanidins in the presence of excess phloroglucinol. Statistical analysis of the results showed significant correlations between sensory and chemical determinations. Astringency was more affected by the subunit composition than by the total concentration or the average degree of polymerization of wine proanthocyanidins. Higher proportions of epicatechin (EC) subunits in extension positions and gallocatechin (GC) subunits in terminal positions were shown to increase astringency. On the contrary, the amount of epigallocatechin (EGC) in both extension and terminal positions was negatively correlated with the perceived astringency