Evaluation of the anti-angiogenic potential of hydroxytyrosol derivatives

Angiogenesis, a process which allows the formation of new vessels from pre-existing ones, is an essential phenomenon for tumor survival since it allows cancer cells to obtain nutrients and oxygen. This explains the increasing interest showed by many groups of research and pharmaceutical companies to find compounds with potential to disrupt at least one of the steps within the angiogenic process. Hydroxytyrosol (3,4-dihydroxyphenyl ethanol) has been identified as the most important health-related phenolic compound of virgin olive oil because of its pleiotropic effects on multiple targets. In 2012, our group identified hydroxytyrosol as an anti-angiogenic compound able to inhibit several key steps in the angiogenic process. In the present study, the potential effects of six hydroxytyrosol derivatives are tested and compared with those exhibited by hydroxytyrosol by making use of several in vitro and in vivo assays. Results indicate that these are candidate new anti-angiogenic compounds with potential utility in anti-tumor and anti-angiogenic therapies.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech [Our experimental work is supported by grants BIO2014-56092-R (MINECO and FEDER) and P12-CTS-1507 (Andalusian Government and FEDER) and funds from group BIO-267 (Andalusian Government). The "CIBER de Enfermedades Raras" is an initiative from the ISCIII (Spain)]. This communication has the support of a travel grant

Ancient mitochondrial pseudogenes reveal hybridization between distant lineages in the evolution of the Rupicapra genus

© The Author(s), 2017. This is the author's version of the work and is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Gene 628 (2017): 63-71, doi:10.1016/j.gene.2017.07.035.Mitochondrial pseudogenes (numts) inserted in the nuclear genome are frequently found in population studies. Its presence is commonly connected with problems and errors when they are confounded with true mitochondrial sequences. In the opposite side, numts can provide valuable phylogenetic information when they are copies of ancient mitochondrial lineages. We show that Rupicapra individuals of different geographic origin from the Cantabrian Mountains to the Apennines and the Caucasus share a nuclear COI fragment. The numt copies are monophyletic, and their pattern of differentiation shows two outstanding features: a long evolution as differentiated true mitochondrial lineage, and a recent integration and spread through the chamois populations. The COI pseudogene is much older than the present day mitochondrial clades of Rupicapra and occupies a basal position within the Rupicapra-Ammotragus- Arabitragus node. Joint analysis of this numt and a cytb pseudogene with a similar pattern of evolution places the source mitochondrial lineage as a sister branch that separated from the Ammotragus-Arabitragus lineage 6 million years ago (Mya). The occurrence of this sequence in the nucleus of chamois suggests hybridization between highly divergent lineages. The integration event seems to be very recent, more recent than the split of the present day mtDNA lineages of Rupicapra (1.9 Mya). This observation invites to think of the spread across the genus by horizontal transfer through recent male-biased dispersal.This work was funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Spain. (Grant number CGL2011-25117).2018-07-1

Exploring the ring-closing metathesis for the construction of the solomonamide macrocyclic core: identification of bioactive precursors

New synthetic strategies directed toward the novel cyclopeptides solomonamides have been explored utilizing an olefin metathesis as the key reaction. In the various strategies investigated, we worked on minimally oxidized systems, and the olefin metathesis reaction demonstrated efficiency and validity for the construction of the macrocyclic core. The described synthetic strategies toward the solomonamides are well suited for the subsequent access to the natural products and represent flexible and diversityoriented routes that allow for the generation of a variety of analogues via oxidative transformations. In addition, preliminary biological evaluations of the generated solomonamide precursors revealed antitumor activity against various tumor cell lines.This work was financially supported by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO) (ref BIO2014-56092-R, CTQ2014-60223-R and CTQ2016-76311-R) and Junta de Andalucía and “Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional-FEDER” (P12 CTS-1507). I.C.-S. thanks Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte for a predoctoral fellowship (FPU programme)

Threatened vascular flora of León province

De los más de 2800 taxones que integran la flora vascular leonesa, 200 se han incluido en esta Lista de la Flora Leonesa amenazada. De ellos 61 forman parte de la Lista Roja de la Flora Vascular Española (que previamente sólo recogía 49 para León). Hemos catalogado hasta el momento 30 taxones vulnerables (VU) y 3 en peligro (EN). Los otros 28 están incluidos en la categoría «datos insuficientes» (DD). Incluimos en este trabajo además otros taxones que por sus peculiaridades pueden considerarse de interés; entre ellos, 38 con una sola población en León y, por ello, sometidos en este territorio a cierto grado de amenaza.The León flora includes more than 2800 taxa, from which we include some two hundred (200) in the Red List of the Leon Flora. 61 of them belong to the Red List of the Spanish Vascular Flora (only 49 formerly). From the 61 taxa, we have labelled 30 as Vulnerable (VU), 3 as Endangered (EN), and 28 as «with Deficient Data» (DD). In this paper, we include also other taxa that can be considered as interesting because of their peculiarities, like 38 taxa showing a sole population in León province, and thus threatened in some degree within this territory

Engineering plants against pathogens: A general strategy

A general strategy to identify defense proteins and genes and to use them in transgenic plants to engineer enhanced resistance against pathogens is illustrated with specific experimental examples. A combinatorial model for the expression of defense genes in response to different pathogens is discussed

Randomized clinical trial on the clinical effects of a toothpaste containing extra virgin olive oil, xylitol, and betaine in gingivitis

To determine the effects on gingival bleeding, dental biofilm, and salivary flow and pH in patients with gingivitis of using toothpaste with extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), xylitol, and betaine in comparison to a placebo or commercial toothpaste. This controlled, double blinded, and multicenter randomized clinical trial included patients with gingivitis randomly assigned to one of three groups: test group (EVOO, xylitol, and betaine toothpaste), control group 1 (placebo toothpaste), or control group 2 (commercial toothpaste). Percentage supragingival biofilm and gingival bleeding were evaluated at baseline (T0), 2 months (T2), and 4 months (T4), measuring non-stimulated salivary flow and salivary pH. Comparisons were performed between and within groups. The final study sample comprised 20 in the test group, 21 in control group 1, and 20 in control group 2. In comparison to control group 1, the test group showed significantly greater decreases in gingival bleeding between T4 and T0 (p = 0.02) and in biofilm between T2 and T0 (p = 0.02) and between T4 and T0 (p = 0.01). In the test group, salivary flow significantly increased between T2 and T0 (p = 0.01), while pH alkalization was significantly greater between T4 and T0 versus control group 2 (p = 0.01) and close-to-significantly greater versus control group 1 (p = 0.06). The toothpaste with EVOO, xylitol, and betaine obtained the best outcomes in patients with gingivitis, who showed reductions in gingival bleeding and supragingival biofilm and an increase in pH at 4 months in comparison to a commercial toothpaste.(STOP ORAL DYSBIOSIS) - University of Granada OTRI-4907Mucosal Innovations S.L. (Madrid

Calidad de vida profesional de enfermería en urgencias de un hospital de referencia

Objective: The objective of this study was to measure the quality of professional life of nurses in their workplace in the emergency unit of a Hospital, through three dimensions intrinsic motivation, support and management workloads. Most studies on quality of life worldwide are made primarily in teaching groups and health professionals. According to various studies, this group is very likely to suffer burnout. If we improve the quality of care provided, we must start knowing how nursing professionals perceive quality of life, as well as whether there are constraining factors involved.Methods: Cross-sectional study survey of nurses working in an Emergency Unit of a Spanish public hospital. It was conducted between March and May of 2014. The sample consisted on 60 subjects. Data were collected using the CVP-35 questionnaire.Results: The response rate was high. The nurses perceived low quality of professional life. The professional quality of life correlates with management support and intrinsic motivation, although no association with the workload was found. Age is the demographic variable that influences how they perceive their quality of working life emergency nurses.Conclusion: Compared to other studies, if we improve the management support, perception of the quality of working life of nurses working in emergency increase.Objetivo: El objetivo de este estudio fue medir la Calidad de Vida Profesional de los enfermeros en la unidad de urgencias de un hospital en su puesto de trabajo, a través de tres dimensiones: motivación intrínseca, apoyo directivo y cargas de trabajo. La mayoría de estudios sobre calidad de vida a nivel mundial se hacen principalmente en colectivos de enseñanza y también los profesionales de la salud, sufren desgaste profesional, según estudios diversos. Si queremos mejorar la calidad de los cuidados prestados, debemos empezar conociendo cómo percibe el profesional de Enfermería dicha calidad de vida, así como si existen o no factores que la condicionen.Métodos: Estudio descriptivo transversal con análisis correlacional. El presente estudió investigó la calidad de vida profesional de los enfermeros de una Unidad de Urgencias de  un Hospital público español. Fue llevado a cabo entre Marzo y Mayo de 2014. Para ello se utilizó el “cuestionario CVP-35”.Resultados: La tasa de respuesta fue alta. Los enfermeros percibieron una baja calidad de vida profesional. La calidad de vida profesional se correlaciona con el Apoyo directivo y la Motivación intrínseca, aunque no se asocia con la Carga de Trabajo. La edad es la variable sociodemográfica que influye en cómo perciben su calidad de vida profesional los enfermeros de urgencias.Conclusión: En relación con otros estudios, si mejoramos el Apoyo directivo, la percepción de la calidad de vida profesional de los profesionales de enfermería que trabajan en urgencias aumentaría.

Antiradical and functional properties of subcritical water extracts from edible mushrooms and from commercial counterparts

This study deals with the antioxidant and functional potential of subcritical water extracts from edible mushrooms, in comparison to commercial products. Pleurotus citrinopileatus extracts showed the highest phenolic content and antioxidant properties. Similar results were determined in commercial extracts of Coriolus versicolor. The highest growth inhibition in selected human carcinogenic cells was identified for the P. citrinopileatus extract obtained during heating up to 160 °C. Rheological studies confirmed that glucan-based hydrogels prepared with mushroom extracts exhibited enhanced viscoelastic properties compared to those formulated with commercial products. The extracts providing the strongest gels were obtained from Pleurotus eryngii, followed by Hericium erinaceus and Pleurotus citrinopileatus. No water syneresis for the proposed hydrogels was observed. The formulated hydrogels could be interesting for their application in the food sector.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación | Ref. BES-2016-076840Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades | Ref. RYC2018-024454-

Ex-Vivo and In-Vivo Assessment of Cyclamen europaeum Extract After Nasal Administration

Rhinosinusitis is a prevalent disorder with a severe impact on the health-related quality of life. Saponins of Cyclamen europaeum exert a clinically proven curative effect on rhinosinusitis symptoms when instilled into the nasal cavity, however, more extensive preclinical assessment is required to better characterize the efficacy of this botanical extract. This work evaluates the potential use of a natural freeze-dried extract of C. europaeum given as topical nasal administration. Permeation experiment on porcine nasal mucosa was performed with Franz diffusion cells. Experiments in rabbits were performed to test for any toxicological, hematological, biochemical or histological evidence of systemic action. No theoretical levels of saponins were found in the receptor chamber of Franz diffusion cells. Hematological data did not show significant differences between control and experimental animals (p > 0.05). Histological studies also showed that enhanced secretory activity in response to intranasal administration was not accompanied by any visible signs of injury. An examination of the brain, lungs, liver, kidneys, spleen, and gastrointestinal organs did not reveal any abnormality. The absence of mucosal permeation of saponins and negligible probability of C. europaeum saponins absorption in the course of a therapeutic application was demonstrated