Colleterial glands of Sesamia nonagrioides as a source of the host-recognition kairomone for the egg parasitoid Telenomus busseolae

The maize stemborer Sesamia nonagrioides glues its egg masses under the leaf sheaths or ear bracts using colleterial gland secretion. In spite of such concealed oviposition sites, these eggs are parasitized by Telenomus busseolae. The colleterial glands of S. nonagrioides are investigated as a possible source of the host-recognition kairomone for T. busseolae. This secretion, applied on glass beads, elicits intense antennal drumming and oviposition probing behaviour in the parasitoid. Through an histochemical study, neutral and acid glycoconjugates are identified as components of the secretion. Finally, using ultrastructural techniques, the colleterial glands are described and classified as comprising class 3 secretory cells

Changes in sputum composition during 15min of sputum induction in healthy subjects and patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

SummaryIntroductionThe use of sputum induction by inhalation of hypertonic saline to study the cellular and biochemical composition of the airways allows noninvasive sampling of the airways content and identification of markers of airways inflammation.ObjectiveThe present study aimed to identify possible changes in the cellular composition of induced sputum between samples obtained sequentially (three periods of 5min each) during one sputum induction. Moreover, difference between these samples and the mixed one (mixture of samples obtained after 5, 10 and 15min of induction) was investigated.MethodsForty-six subjects (10 healthy volunteers, 12 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and 24 patients with asthma) (mean age 53.0±14.0yr, forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) 71.8±19.0% pred) produced sputum after three consecutive 5min periods of hypertonic (4.5%) saline inhalation. Stained cytospins from the three periods separately and from the mixed sample were produced and analyzed.ResultsThe mean percentage of neutrophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes and epithelial cells did not change significantly in samples obtained consecutively after 5, 10 and 15min of the induction procedure. There was no significant difference in the cellular composition of samples obtained after 5, 10 and 15min of induction and the cellular composition of the mixed sample (P=0.06).ConclusionThe separate analysis of induced sputum from three consecutive sampling and the mixed sample did not demonstrate significant changes in their cellular composition. Fifteen minutes induction procedure with the fixed concentration of hypertonic saline and processing of the mixed sample can be recommended for clinical settings and clinical trials

Elucidation of Antioxidant Compounds in Moroccan Chamaerops humilis L. Fruits by GC-MS and HPLC-MS Techniques

The aim of this study was to characterize the phytochemical content as well as the antioxidant ability of the Moroccan species Chamaerops humilis L. Besides crude ethanolic extract, two extracts obtained by sonication using two solvents with increased polarity, namely ethyl acetate (EtOAc) and methanol-water (MeOH-H2O) 80:20 (v/v), were investigated by both spectroscopy and chromatography methods. Between the two extracts, the MeOH-H2O one showed the highest total polyphenolic content equal to 32.7 +/- 0.1 mg GAE/g DM with respect to the EtOAc extract (3.6 +/- 0.5 mg GAE/g DM). Concerning the antioxidant activity of the two extracts, the EtOAc one yielded the highest value (1.9 +/- 0.1 mg/mL) with respect to MeOH-H2O (0.4 +/- 0.1 mg/mL). The C. humilis n-hexane fraction, analyzed by GC-MS, exhibited 69 compounds belonging to different chemical classes, with n-Hexadecanoic acid as a major compound (21.75%), whereas the polyphenolic profile, elucidated by HPLC-PDA/MS, led to the identification of a total of sixteen and thirteen different compounds in both EtOAc (major component: ferulic acid: 104.7 +/- 2.52 mu g/g) and MeOH-H2O extracts (major component: chlorogenic acid: 45.4 +/- 1.59 mu g/g), respectively. The attained results clearly highlight the potential of C. humilis as an important source of bioactive components, making it a valuable candidate to be advantageously added to the daily diet. Furthermore, this study provides the scientific basis for the exploitation of the Doum in the food, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries

Adherence to growth hormone (GH) therapy in na\uefve to treatment GH-deficient children: data of the Italian Cohort from the Easypod Connect Observational Study (ECOS)

Background: With the use of non-objective measurement, adherence to growth hormone (GH) therapy has been reported suboptimal in a large proportion of patients, and poor adherence has been shown to affect short-term growth response in patients receiving GH treatment. Objective: The Easypod\u2122 electronic device allows objective measurement of adherence. In this study, we report 3-year prospective adherence data of the Italian cohort of na\uefve GH deficient (GHD) children extrapolated from the Easypod Connect Observational Study (ECOS) database. Patients and methods: Seventy-three GHD children na\uefve to GH treatment were included in the analysis. 22 Italian centers participated in the study. Results: Mean adherence rate was consistently above 85% across the 3-year observation period. Particularly, mean adherence was 88.5%, 86.6%, and 85.7% after 1, 2 and 3\ua0years, respectively. Mean (\ub1 SD) height-SDS increase after the first year was 0.41 (\ub1 0.38). Conclusions: The majority of na\uefve GHD children starting GH treatment with Easypod maintained an adherence rate > 85% up to 3\ua0years. Easypod is a useful tool to follow-up patients\u2019 adherence allowing timely intervention to improve optimal treatment for these patients

Adherence to growth hormone (GH) therapy in naïve to treatment GH-deficient children: data of the Italian Cohort from the Easypod Connect Observational Study (ECOS)

Background: With the use of non-objective measurement, adherence to growth hormone (GH) therapy has been reported suboptimal in a large proportion of patients, and poor adherence has been shown to affect short-term growth response in patients receiving GH treatment. Objective: The Easypod™ electronic device allows objective measurement of adherence. In this study, we report 3-year prospective adherence data of the Italian cohort of naïve GH deficient (GHD) children extrapolated from the Easypod Connect Observational Study (ECOS) database. Patients and methods: Seventy-three GHD children naïve to GH treatment were included in the analysis. 22 Italian centers participated in the study. Results: Mean adherence rate was consistently above 85% across the 3-year observation period. Particularly, mean adherence was 88.5%, 86.6%, and 85.7% after 1, 2 and 3 years, respectively. Mean (± SD) height-SDS increase after the first year was 0.41 (± 0.38). Conclusions: The majority of naïve GHD children starting GH treatment with Easypod maintained an adherence rate > 85% up to 3 years. Easypod is a useful tool to follow-up patients’ adherence allowing timely intervention to improve optimal treatment for these patients