Azucares reductores y azucares totales en 10 genotipos de nopales productores de Xoconostle (Opuntia spp.)

En este estudio se determinó el contenido de azucares totales y azucares reductores de diferentes genotipos de nopales productores de xoconostle (Opuntia spp.) colectados en localidades de los estados de Hidalgo, Estado de México y Zacatecas, México. La variables evaluadas fueron; Sólidos solubles totales, azúcares reductores y azúcares totales. Los resultados mostraron diferencias estadísticas significativas (P< 0.05) en el contenido de azúcares totales en el mesocarpio (pulpa) de los frutos de Xoconostle frutos de ‘Manso’, ‘Cuerón’ y ‘Invierno’ con valores de 0.65, 0.61 y 0.60 mg·g-1 y entre los frutos de ‘Virgen’ y ‘’Cuaresmeño Zacatecano’’ con 0.30 y 0.26 mg·g-1. El mayor contenido de azúcares totales se observó en los frutos de Xoconostle ‘Ulapa’ y ‘Cambray’ con valores de 1.3 y 0.91 mg·g-1. En relación al contenido de azúcares reductores en el mesocarpio (pulpa) de xoconostles, no se observaron diferencias estadísticas significativas, con valores que van de 0.13 a 0.18 mg·g-1, excepto en el mesocarpio (pulpa) de frutos de Xoconostle Ulapa (O. Oligacantha C. F. Först) 1.3 mg·g-1. El valor más alto en el contenido de azúcares reductores se observó en el mesocarpio de frutos de Xoconostle ‘Ulapa’ con valor de 0.84 mg·g-1. El mayor contenido de sólidos solubles totales (°Brix) se observó en Xoconostle ‘’Manzano’’, El mayor contenido de azúcares totales y azúcares reductores se observó en los frutos de Xoconostle ‘’Ulapa’’

Evaluación fisicoquímica y capacidad antioxidante de chiltepín silvestre de Nuevo León, México.

La demanda del chile piquín por sus amplios atributos, además de su importancia socioeconómica como recurso natural en las áreas rurales y su potencial como nueva opción productiva en el noreste de México, ha motivado la realización de varios estudios. Por lo anterior en este trabajo se realizó una evaluación fisicoquímica y actividad antioxidante de chiltepín silvestre de Nuevo León, México. Se tuvieron seis tratamientos, con base en los tres sitios de colecta y dos índices de madurez. Se determinaron las siguientes variables de estudio; peso, largo ancho, pH, °Brix, acidez titulable, color y actividad antioxidante por DPPH. El diseño experimental utilizado fue completamente al azar y la prueba de comparaciones de medias de Tukey (p≤ 0.05). El mayor peso y tamaño se observó en los frutos de chiltepín verdes, mientras que los valores más altos de luminosidad e intensidad se observaron en los frutos de chiltepín rojos. En relación al contenido de sólidos solubles totales y acidez titulable los frutos de chiltepín rojo presentaron el mayor contenido en relación a los frutos de chiltepín verdes. Sin embargo la mayor actividad antioxidante se encontró en los frutos de chiltepín verdes

Chemically Induced Cryptic Sesquiterpenoids and Expression of Sesquiterpene Cyclases in Botrytis cinerea Revealed New Sporogenic (+)-4-Epieremophil-9-en-11-ols

The sequencing of the genomes of the B05.10 and T4 strains of the fungus Botrytis cinerea revealed an abundance of novel biosynthetic gene clusters, the majority of which were unexpected on the basis of the previous analyses of the fermentation of these and closely related species. By systematic alteration of easy accessible cultivation parameters, using chemical induction with copper sulfate, we have found a cryptic sesquiterpenoid family with new structures related to eremophil-9-ene, which had the basic structure of the sesquiterpene (+)-5-epiaristolochene ((+)-4-epieremophil-9- ene). An expression study of the sesquiterpene cyclase genes present in the Botrytis cinerea genome, under culture conditions, is reported. In general, a 3 day delay and a higher BcSTC genes expression were observed when copper (5 ppm) was fed to the fermentation broth. In addition, to the observed effect on the BcBOT2 (BcSTC1) gene, involved in the biosynthesis of the botrydial toxin, a higher expression level for BcSTC3 and BcSTC4 was observed with respect to the control in the strain B05.10. Interestingly, under copper conditions, the BcSTC4 gene was the most expressed gene in the Botrytis cinerea UCA992 strain. In vitro evaluation of the biological role of these metabolites indicates that they contributed to the conidial development in B. cinerea and appear to be involved in self-regulation of the production of asexual spores. Furthermore, they promoted the formation of complex appressoria or infection cushions

Predicting Survival after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis : Performance of the Myelofibrosis Transplant Scoring System (MTSS) and Development of a New Prognostic Model

Accurate prognostic tools are crucial to assess the risk/benefit ratio of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) in patients with myelofibrosis (MF). We aimed to evaluate the performance of the Myelofibrosis Transplant Scoring System (MTSS) and identify risk factors for survival in a multicenter series of 197 patients with MF undergoing allo-HCT. After a median follow-up of 3.1 years, 47% of patients had died, and the estimated 5-year survival rate was 51%. Projected 5-year risk of nonrelapse mortality and relapse incidence was 30% and 20%, respectively. Factors independently associated with increased mortality were a hematopoietic cell transplantation-specific comorbidity index (HCT-CI) ≥3 and receiving a graft from an HLA-mismatched unrelated donor or cord blood, whereas post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PT-Cy) was associated with improved survival. Donor type was the only parameter included in the MTSS model with independent prognostic value for survival. According to the MTSS, 3-year survival was 62%, 66%, 37%, and 17% for low-, intermediate-, high-, and very high-risk groups, respectively. By pooling together the low- and intermediate-risk groups, as well as the high- and very high-risk groups, we pinpointed 2 categories: standard risk and high risk (25% of the series). Three-year survival was 62% in standard-risk and 25% in high-risk categories (P <.001). We derived a risk score based on the 3 independent risk factors for survival in our series (donor type, HCT-CI, and PT-Cy). The corresponding 5-year survival for the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk categories was 79%, 55%, and 32%, respectively (P <.001). In conclusion, the MTSS model failed to clearly delineate 4 prognostic groups in our series but may still be useful to identify a subset of patients with poor outcome. We provide a simple prognostic scoring system for risk/benefit considerations before transplantation in patients with MF

Spread of a SARS-CoV-2 variant through Europe in the summer of 2020.

Following its emergence in late 2019, the spread of SARS-CoV-21,2 has been tracked by phylogenetic analysis of viral genome sequences in unprecedented detail3–5. Although the virus spread globally in early 2020 before borders closed, intercontinental travel has since been greatly reduced. However, travel within Europe resumed in the summer of 2020. Here we report on a SARS-CoV-2 variant, 20E (EU1), that was identified in Spain in early summer 2020 and subsequently spread across Europe. We find no evidence that this variant has increased transmissibility, but instead demonstrate how rising incidence in Spain, resumption of travel, and lack of effective screening and containment may explain the variant’s success. Despite travel restrictions, we estimate that 20E (EU1) was introduced hundreds of times to European countries by summertime travellers, which is likely to have undermined local efforts to minimize infection with SARS-CoV-2. Our results illustrate how a variant can rapidly become dominant even in the absence of a substantial transmission advantage in favourable epidemiological settings. Genomic surveillance is critical for understanding how travel can affect transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and thus for informing future containment strategies as travel resumes. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited

Spread of a SARS-CoV-2 variant through Europe in the summer of 2020

[EN] Following its emergence in late 2019, the spread of SARS-CoV-21,2 has been tracked by phylogenetic analysis of viral genome sequences in unprecedented detail3,4,5. Although the virus spread globally in early 2020 before borders closed, intercontinental travel has since been greatly reduced. However, travel within Europe resumed in the summer of 2020. Here we report on a SARS-CoV-2 variant, 20E (EU1), that was identified in Spain in early summer 2020 and subsequently spread across Europe. We find no evidence that this variant has increased transmissibility, but instead demonstrate how rising incidence in Spain, resumption of travel, and lack of effective screening and containment may explain the variant’s success. Despite travel restrictions, we estimate that 20E (EU1) was introduced hundreds of times to European countries by summertime travellers, which is likely to have undermined local efforts to minimize infection with SARS-CoV-2. Our results illustrate how a variant can rapidly become dominant even in the absence of a substantial transmission advantage in favourable epidemiological settings. Genomic surveillance is critical for understanding how travel can affect transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and thus for informing future containment strategies as travel resumes.S

The SuperCam Instrument Suite on the Mars 2020 Rover: Science Objectives and Mast-Unit Description

On the NASA 2020 rover mission to Jezero crater, the remote determination of the texture, mineralogy and chemistry of rocks is essential to quickly and thoroughly characterize an area and to optimize the selection of samples for return to Earth. As part of the Perseverance payload, SuperCam is a suite of five techniques that provide critical and complementary observations via Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Time-Resolved Raman and Luminescence (TRR/L), visible and near-infrared spectroscopy (VISIR), high-resolution color imaging (RMI), and acoustic recording (MIC). SuperCam operates at remote distances, primarily 2-7 m, while providing data at sub-mm to mm scales. We report on SuperCam's science objectives in the context of the Mars 2020 mission goals and ways the different techniques can address these questions. The instrument is made up of three separate subsystems: the Mast Unit is designed and built in France; the Body Unit is provided by the United States; the calibration target holder is contributed by Spain, and the targets themselves by the entire science team. This publication focuses on the design, development, and tests of the Mast Unit; companion papers describe the other units. The goal of this work is to provide an understanding of the technical choices made, the constraints that were imposed, and ultimately the validated performance of the flight model as it leaves Earth, and it will serve as the foundation for Mars operations and future processing of the data.In France was provided by the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES). Human resources were provided in part by the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) and universities. Funding was provided in the US by NASA's Mars Exploration Program. Some funding of data analyses at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) was provided by laboratory-directed research and development funds

Outcomes from elective colorectal cancer surgery during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

This study aimed to describe the change in surgical practice and the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on mortality after surgical resection of colorectal cancer during the initial phases of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic