A proteored multi-centric study to assess reproducibility of relative quantification by LC-MS proteomic analysis

Comunicaciones a congreso

Rotifers in the Schelde estuary (Belgium): a test of taxonomic relevance

To investigate the reaction of the zooplankton community to improving water quality in the Schelde estuary, we studied the relationship between rotifer species distribution and environmental factors, and the feasibility of using a coarser level of taxonomic resolution. Fifty-two taxa, belonging to 26 genera, were identified, including 22 taxa new for the Schelde. Brachionus calyciflorus, Keratella cochlearis and B. angularis were the most abundant species. The highest diversity and abundances were observed in the freshwater reach. Redundancy analyses (RDA) showed that the main environmental factors explaining rotifer distribution were chlorinity and seasonal factors (discharge levels, cyclopoid abundance). Analysis carried out with data at the species and the genus level gave similar ordination plots, but the positioning of a genus relative to environmental factors did not always adequately represent the associations between the various species within the genus and environmental factors. Similar patterns in space and time were observed using taxonomic richness and diversity indices for analyses at species or genus level. Thus, in the context of the restoration of the Schelde estuary, the identification of rotifer species is very informative, but not essential for detecting important ecological associations

ErbB2 and bone sialoprotein as markers for metastatic osteosarcoma cells

Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone neoplasia occurring in young patients in the first two decades of life, and represents 20% of all primitive malignant bone tumours. At present, treatment of metastatic osteosarcoma is unsatisfactory. High-dose chemotherapy followed by CD34+ leukapheresis rescue may improve these poor results. Neoplastic cells contaminating the apheresis may, however, contribute to relapse. To identify markers suitable for detecting osteosarcoma cells in aphereses we analysed the expression of bone-specific genes (Bone Sialoprotein (BSP) and Osteocalcin) and oncogenes (Met and ErbB2) in 22 patients with metastatic osteosarcoma and six healthy stem cell donors. The expression of these genes in aphereses of patients affected by metastatic osteosarcoma was assessed by RT–PCR and Southern blot analysis. Met and Osteocalcin proved to be not useful markers since they are positive in aphereses of both patients with metastatic osteosarcoma and healthy stem cell donors. On the contrary, BSP was expressed at significant levels in 85% of patients. Moreover, 18% of patients showed a strong and significantly positive (seven to 16 times higher than healthy stem cell donors) ErbB2 expression. In all positive cases, neoplastic tissue also expressed ErbB2. Our data show that ErbB2 can be a useful marker for tumour contamination in aphereses of patients affected by ErbB2-expressing osteosarcomas and that analysis of Bone Sialoprotein expression can be an alternative useful marker

An invasive ant species able to counterattack marabunta raids

In the Neotropics where it was introduced, the invasive ant Pheidole megacephala counterattacked raids by the army ants Eciton burchellii or E. hamatum. The Eciton workers that returned to their bivouac were attacked and spread-eagled and most of them killed by their outgoing colony mates. Little by little the zone where returning and outgoing Eciton workers encountered one another moved away from the Pheidole nest which was no longer attacked, so that most of the colony was spared. Using a water-based technique rounded out by bioassays, we show that Pheidole compounds were transferred onto the Eciton cuticle during the counterattacks, so that outgoing workers do not recognize returning colony mates, likely perceived as potential prey. Because P. megacephala is an introduced African species, this kind of protection, which cannot be the result of coevolutive processes, corresponds to a kind of by-product due to its aggressiveness during colony defence

Covert orienting to central visual cues and sport practice relations in the development of visual attention.

This study examines the development of controlled covert orienting of visual attention, according to the age and the level of performance of tennis players. Practicers and nonpracticers age 13, 16, and 25 participated in a covert orienting task. On each trial, subjects responded to a target which appeared in one of four locations arrayed horizontally across the display. Three central cues were used: neutral, the cue did not specify in which location the target would appear; valid, the target was present in the cued location on 80% of the trials; invalid, the target was present in one of the uncued locations on the remaining 20% of the trials. The results showed that (1) practicers were not faster than nonpracticers in processing the signals, (2) observers of all ages oriented attention voluntarily to the cued locations, (3) central cues had a smaller effect on older and practiced subjects, and (4) developmental and sport practice factors had similar effects on orienting efficiency. The implications of these findings for theories of attentional development are discussed

Limited impact of several years of pretreated wastewater discharge on fauna and vegetation in a mangrove ecosystem

International audienc

The eye-mi study: a prospective acute coronary syndrome cohort evaluated by retinal optical coherence tomography angiography

International audienceBackground: Microvascular abnormalities have been demonstrated to play a key role in the development of coronary artery disease. Retinal artery calibre has been shown to correlate with the risk of cardiovascular events, and could serve as an inexpensive and reproducible biomarker for cardiovascular diseases. Recently, a new approach for retinal imaging with OCT angiography has been proposed to evaluate retinal blood vessel density (based on blood flow) without intravenous injection. Methods: The EYE-MI study prospectively included all consecutive patients admitted to our University Hospital for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) between October, 1st and December, 31 2016. Retinal OCT angiography was performed in every patient within 2 days after the ACS. Inner retina vascular density was measured with the proprietary software of the machine. The population was divided into tertiles according to OCT angiography data, and bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed. Patients with retinal diseases were excluded. Results: Of 212 patients, 173 were retained for analysis. The mean age of the population was 62±12 years and 79% were male. When compared with the other two tertiles for inner vascular density, patients with the lowest inner vascular density (first tertile) were more likely to be older and to have systemic hypertension, diabetes and previous renal failure at admission. Moreover, both the AHA risk score and the SCORE risk were significantly higher in these patients. Regarding ACS parameters, patients in the lowest retinal vascular density tertile had higher SYNTAX and GRACE scores, lower LVEF and a higher heart rate and systolic blood pressure despite similar rates of prescription and doses of beta-blockers and RAAS inhibitors. After multivariate analysis, only the AHA risk score (OR (95% CI): 1.07 (1.04–1.10), p<0.001) and LVEF (OR (95% CI): 0.95 (0.92–0.98), p=0.002) were significantly and independently associated with the lowest tertile of retinal vascular density measured by OCT angiography. The strong association between the AHA risk score and vascular density was confirmed by a significant Pearson correlation coefficient, (R= -0.48, p<0.001)