Genetics of Wilms' tumor: A blend of aberrant development and genomic imprinting

Wilms' tumor or nephroblastoma (WT), one of the most common childhood solid tumors (1:10,000, 8% of childhood tumors), is probably the one that best deserves the designation of embryonal tumor. Wilms' tumors are composed of three major elements in variable proportions: compact areas of blastemal cells, tubular structures of various sizes and fibrous or mixoid stroma containing elongated stellate-shaped large round cells. These components are reminiscent of normal human nephrogenesis, known to be initiated by the ingrowth of the ureteral bud into the metanephrogenic mesenchyma which then condenses and forms the different portions of the nephron. These tumors thus show a remarkable mimicry of the normal nephrogenic processes, although in an extravagant mode leading to incompletely differentiated structures with as many dead ends as a labyrinth [1]. These structures are accompanied, in a minority of cases, by heterologous ectopic tissues of mesodermal origin including bone, cartilage and skeletal muscle [2]

The use of the Infection and Treatment Method vaccine in controlling East Coast Fever in Kenya: Does gender matter for adoption and impact?

United States Agency for International DevelopmentInternal Revie

Darker eumelanic barn owls better withstand food depletion through resistance to food deprivation and lower appetite

The intensity of selection exerted on ornaments typically varies between environments. Reaction norms may help to identify the conditions under which ornamented individuals have a selective advantage over drab conspecifics. It has been recently hypothesized that in vertebrates eumelanin-based coloration reflects the ability to regulate the balance between energy intake and expenditure. We tested two predictions of this hypothesis in barn owl nestlings, namely that darker eumelanic individuals have a lower appetite and lose less weight when food-deprived. We found that individuals fed ad libitum during 24h consumed less food when their plumage was marked with larger black spots. When food-deprived for 24h nestlings displaying larger black spots lost less weight. Thus, in the barn owl the degree of eumelanin-based coloration reflects the ability to withstand periods of food depletion through lower appetite and resistance to food restriction. Eumelanic coloration may therefore be associated with adaptations to environments where the risk of food depletion is hig

Dans les coulisses de la BMVR de Toulouse

Qui n’a pas entendu parler du projet de BMVR à Toulouse ? Le bâtiment prend forme, ainsi que l’organisation des services et des futures collections. L’ouverture est prévue d’ici un an et les bibliothécaires s’y préparent. Nous vous livrons, en avant-première, quelques éléments de ce grand projet