The Ustilago maydis Effector Pep1 Suppresses Plant Immunity by Inhibition of Host Peroxidase Activity

The corn smut Ustilago maydis establishes a biotrophic interaction with its host plant maize. This interaction requires efficient suppression of plant immune responses, which is attributed to secreted effector proteins. Previously we identified Pep1 (Protein essential during penetration-1) as a secreted effector with an essential role for U. maydis virulence. pep1 deletion mutants induce strong defense responses leading to an early block in pathogenic development of the fungus. Using cytological and functional assays we show that Pep1 functions as an inhibitor of plant peroxidases. At sites of Δpep1 mutant penetrations, H2O2 strongly accumulated in the cell walls, coinciding with a transcriptional induction of the secreted maize peroxidase POX12. Pep1 protein effectively inhibited the peroxidase driven oxidative burst and thereby suppresses the early immune responses of maize. Moreover, Pep1 directly inhibits peroxidases in vitro in a concentration-dependent manner. Using fluorescence complementation assays, we observed a direct interaction of Pep1 and the maize peroxidase POX12 in vivo. Functional relevance of this interaction was demonstrated by partial complementation of the Δpep1 mutant defect by virus induced gene silencing of maize POX12. We conclude that Pep1 acts as a potent suppressor of early plant defenses by inhibition of peroxidase activity. Thus, it represents a novel strategy for establishing a biotrophic interaction

Swiss virtual animal pathology: www.animalpatho.org

The pedagogical challenge to the teaching veterinary pathologist is ntegrating visuallybased learning with in depth understanding of disease mechanisms. This process is heavily image dependent, didactically best taught in a highly interactive manner. To achieve this, the teaching of pathology within the curriculum of veterinary medicine or human medicine is divided into two major areas: General pathology deals with principles of disease processes as a basis for understanding the reactions of a multi-cellular organism to adverse effects from within the organism itself or from the environment. Specific pathology, building on the principles of general pathology, explains the malfunctions of individual organ systems and relates them to disease processes of a patient as a whole. To meet the needs of swiss students of veterinary medicine, and those of advanced students specializing in pathology and studying for the European Board qualification (European College of Veterinary Pathology, ECVP), we are developing this new integrated online e-learning platform in veterinary pathology (http://www.animalpatho.org). In the near future, we hope this will also serve an international audience of veterinary pathologists

Observer‐independent assessment of psoriasis affected area using machine learning

Background Assessment of psoriasis severity is strongly observer‐dependent and objective assessment tools are largely missing. The increasing number of patients receiving highly expensive therapies that are reimbursed only for moderate‐to‐severe psoriasis motivates the development of higher quality assessment tools. Objective To establish an accurate and objective psoriasis assessment method based on segmenting images by machine learning technology. Methods In this retrospective, non‐interventional, single‐centered, interdisciplinary study of diagnostic accuracy 259 standardized photographs of Caucasian patients were assessed and typical psoriatic lesions were labelled. 203 of those were used to train and validate an assessment algorithm which was then tested on the remaining 56 photographs. The results of the algorithm assessment were compared with manually marked area, as well as with the affected area determined by trained dermatologists. Results Algorithm assessment achieved accuracy of more than 90% in 77% of the images and differed on average 5.9% from manually marked areas. The difference between algorithm predicted and photo based estimated areas by physicians were 8.1% on average. Conclusion The study shows the potential of the evaluated technology. In contrast to the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) it allows for objective evaluation and should therefore be developed further as an alternative method to human assessment

Künstliche Intelligenz zur Unterstützung der Telemedizin am Beispiel Afrikas

Telemedizin findet seit Jahrzehnten Anwendung im Alltag von Dermatologen. Insbesondere in afrikanischen Ländern mit begrenzter medizinischer Versorgung, zu überbrückenden geografischen Distanzen und einem zwischenzeitlich relativ gut ausgebauten Telekommunikationssektor liegen die Vorteile auf der Hand. Nationale und internationale Arbeitsgruppen unterstützen den Aufbau von teledermatologischen Projekten und bedienen sich in den letzten Jahren zunehmend KI(künstliche Intelligenz)-gestützter Technologien, um Ärzte vor Ort zu unterstützen. Vor diesem Hintergrund stellen ethnische Variationen eine besondere Herausforderung in der Entwicklung automatisierter Algorithmen dar. Um die Genauigkeit der Systeme weiter zu verbessern und globalisieren zu können, ist es wichtig, die Zahl der verfügbaren klinischen Daten zu erhöhen. Dies kann nur mit der aktiven Beteiligung der lokalen Gesundheitsversorger sowie der dermatologischen Gemeinschaft gelingen und muss stets im Interesse des einzelnen Patienten erfolgen. Telemedicine has been used in the daily routine of dermatologists for decades. The potential advantages are especially obvious in African countries having limited medical care, long geographical distances, and a meanwhile relatively well-developed telecommunication sector. National and international working groups support the establishment of teledermatological projects and in recent years have increasingly been using artificial intelligence (AI)-based technologies to support the local physicians. Ethnic variations represent a challenge in the development of automated algorithms. To further improve the accuracy of the systems and to be able to globalize, it is important to increase the amount of available clinical data. This can only be achieved with the active participation of local health care providers as well as the dermatological community and must always be in the interest of the individual patient

European Registry for Hidradenitis Suppurativa (ERHS): State of play

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Timing Is Everything: Highly Specific and Transient Expression of a MAP Kinase Determines Auxin-Induced Leaf Venation Patterns in Arabidopsis

Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades are universal signal transduction modules present in all eukaryotes. In plants, MAPK cascades were shown to regulate cell division, developmental processes, stress responses, and hormone pathways. The subgroup A of Arabidopsis MAPKs consists of AtMPK3, AtMPK6, and AtMPK10. AtMPK3 and AtMPK6 are activated by their upstream MAP kinase kinases (MKKs) AtMKK4 and AtMKK5 in response to biotic and abiotic stress. In addition, they were identified as key regulators of stomatal development and patterning. AtMPK10 has long been considered as a pseudo-gene, derived from a gene duplication of AtMPK6. Here we show that AtMPK10 is expressed highly but very transiently in seedlings and at sites of local auxin maxima leaves. MPK10 encodes a functional kinase and interacts with the upstream MAP kinase kinase (MAPKK) AtMKK2. mpk10 mutants are delayed in flowering in long-day conditions and in continuous light. Moreover, cotyledons of mpk10 and mkk2 mutants have reduced vein complexity, which can be reversed by inhibiting polar auxin transport (PAT). Auxin does not affect AtMPK10 expression while treatment with the PAT inhibitor HFCA extends the expression in leaves and reverses the mpk10 mutant phenotype. These results suggest that the AtMKK2–AtMPK10 MAPK module regulates venation complexity by altering PAT efficiency