Negative Selection in Social Insects

Eusociality, characterized by cooperative brood care, and reproductive division of labor, evolved independently in insects. The evolution of eusociality has been hypothesized to lead to differences in the extent of both positive and negative selection. While population genomics studies of eusocial insects have so far focused on positive selection, there have been fewer studies on negative selection in social insects, and its relationship to the evolution of caste-biased genes. To address this knowledge gap, our research estimated the extent of negative selection in honey bees, bumblebees, and paper wasps. We show a significant negative correlation between increasing social complexity and negative selection, suggesting effective population size affects the strength of negative selection. We identified a significantly stronger negative selection in queen traits relative to worker traits in honey bees. Lastly, we observe stronger negative selection in drone traits relative to queen traits in honeybees, possible due to the haplodiploidy system

Microbiota profile and impact of fusobacterium nucleatum in colorectal cancer patients of Barretos cancer hospital

Microbial diversity has been pointed out as a major factor in the development and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC). We sought to explore the richness and abundance of the microbial community of a series of colorectal tumor samples treated at Barretos Cancer Hospital, Brazil, through 16S rRNA sequencing. The presence and the impact of Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn) DNA in CRC prognosis was further evaluated by qPCR in a series of 152 CRC cases. An enrichment for potentially oncogenic bacteria in CRC was observed, with Fusobacterium being the most abundant genus in the tumor tissue. In the validation dataset, Fn was detected in 35/152 (23.0%) of fresh-frozen tumor samples and in 6/57 (10.5%) of paired normal adjacent tissue, with higher levels in the tumor (p = 0.0033). Fn DNA in the tumor tissue was significantly associated with proximal tumors (p = 0.001), higher depth of invasion (p = 0.014), higher clinical stages (p = 0.033), poor differentiation (p = 0.011), MSI-positive status (p < 0.0001), BRAF mutated tumors (p < 0.0001), and the loss of expression of mismatch-repair proteins MLH1 (p < 0.0001), MSH2 (p = 0.003), and PMS2 (p < 0.0001). Moreover, the presence of Fn DNA in CRC tissue was also associated with a worse patient cancer-specific survival (69.9 vs. 82.2% in 5 years; p = 0.028) and overall survival (63.5 vs. 76.5%; p = 0.037). Here we report, for the first time, the association of F. nucleatum presence with important clinical and molecular features in a Brazilian cohort of CRC patients. Tumor detection and classification based on the gut microbiome might provide a promising approach to improve the prediction of patient outcome.Barretos Cancer Hospital, Public Ministry of Labor Campinas (Research, Prevention, and Education of Occupational Cancer), and Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Capes, Brazil

Clinical, Epidemiologic, Histopathologic and Molecular Features of an Unexplained Dermopathy

BACKGROUND: Morgellons is a poorly characterized constellation of symptoms, with the primary manifestations involving the skin. We conducted an investigation of this unexplained dermopathy to characterize the clinical and epidemiologic features and explore potential etiologies. METHODS: A descriptive study was conducted among persons at least 13 years of age and enrolled in Kaiser Permanente Northern California (KPNC) during 2006-2008. A case was defined as the self-reported emergence of fibers or materials from the skin accompanied by skin lesions and/or disturbing skin sensations. We collected detailed epidemiologic data, performed clinical evaluations and geospatial analyses and analyzed materials collected from participants' skin. RESULTS: We identified 115 case-patients. The prevalence was 3.65 (95% CI = 2.98, 4.40) cases per 100,000 enrollees. There was no clustering of cases within the 13-county KPNC catchment area (p = .113). Case-patients had a median age of 52 years (range: 17-93) and were primarily female (77%) and Caucasian (77%). Multi-system complaints were common; 70% reported chronic fatigue and 54% rated their overall health as fair or poor with mean Physical Component Scores and Mental Component Scores of 36.63 (SD = 12.9) and 35.45 (SD = 12.89), respectively. Cognitive deficits were detected in 59% of case-patients and 63% had evidence of clinically significant somatic complaints; 50% had drugs detected in hair samples and 78% reported exposure to solvents. Solar elastosis was the most common histopathologic abnormality (51% of biopsies); skin lesions were most consistent with arthropod bites or chronic excoriations. No parasites or mycobacteria were detected. Most materials collected from participants' skin were composed of cellulose, likely of cotton origin. CONCLUSIONS: This unexplained dermopathy was rare among this population of Northern California residents, but associated with significantly reduced health-related quality of life. No common underlying medical condition or infectious source was identified, similar to more commonly recognized conditions such as delusional infestation

FINCH: A Blueprint for Accessible and Scientifically Valuable Remote Sensing Satellite Missions

Satellite remote sensing missions have grown in popularity over the past fifteen years due to their ability to cover large swaths of land at regular time intervals, making them suitable for monitoring environmental trends such as greenhouse gas emissions and agricultural practices. As environmental monitoring becomes central in global efforts to combat climate change, accessible platforms for contributing to this research are critical. Many remote sensing missions demand high performance of payloads, restricting research and development to organizations with sufficient resources to address these challenges. Atmospheric remote sensing missions, for example, require extremely high spatial and spectral resolutions to generate scientifically useful results. As an undergraduate-led design team, the University of Toronto Aerospace Team’s Space Systems Division has performed an extensive mission selection process to find a feasible and impactful mission focusing on crop residue mapping. This mission profile provides the data needed to improve crop residue retention practices and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from soil, while relaxing performance requirements relative to many active atmospheric sensing missions. This is accompanied by the design of FINCH, a 3U CubeSat with a hyperspectral camera composed of custom and commercial off-the-shelf components. The team’s custom composite payload, the FINCH Eye, strives to advance performance achieved at this form factor by leveraging novel technologies while keeping design feasibility for a student team a priority. Optical and mechanical design decisions and performance are detailed, as well as assembly, integration, and testing considerations. Beyond its design, the FINCH Eye is examined from operational, timeline, and financial perspectives, and a discussion of the supporting firmware, data processing, and attitude control systems is included. Insight is provided into open-source tools that the team has developed to aid in the design process, including a linear error analysis tool for assessing scientific performance, an optical system tradeoff analysis tool, and data processing algorithms. Ultimately, the team presents a comprehensive case study of an accessible and impactful satellite optical payload design process, in hopes of serving as a blueprint for future design teams seeking to contribute to remote sensing research

Negative Selection in Social Insects

Eusociality, characterized by cooperative brood care, and reproductive division of labor, evolved independently in insects. The evolution of eusociality has been hypothesized to lead to differences in the extent of both positive and negative selection. While population genomics studies of eusocial insects have so far focused on positive selection, there have been fewer studies on negative selection in social insects, and its relationship to the evolution of caste-biased genes. To address this knowledge gap, our research estimated the extent of negative selection in honey bees, bumblebees, and paper wasps. We show a significant negative correlation between increasing social complexity and negative selection, suggesting effective population size affects the strength of negative selection. We identified a significantly stronger negative selection in queen traits relative to worker traits in honey bees. Lastly, we observe stronger negative selection in drone traits relative to queen traits in honeybees, possible due to the haplodiploidy system

Abundance and Diversity of Insects at Stong Pond

<p>This experiment was performed on the September 28 2015, between 2.45 pm and 4.30 pm at the Stong Pond Grassland (43°46'14.2"N,79°30'22.7"W) at York University, ON. The weather was overcast, with a temperature of 21°C. It rained about 0.5 mm that morning. The experiment was performed to familiarize students with the different techniques of animals and insect sampling.<br><br>Method<br>A 15 m transect was run out in the grassland. Using a sweep net, the experimenter sweeped with an arc of 1 m on both sides of the transect while walking along the transect. The sweeps were performed for every 0.5 m on the transect. After walking the 15 m of the transect in 1 minute (to allow time to capture the insects), the experimenter carefully examined the sweep net and recorded the total number of insects, as well as the number of different type of insects and the number of insects in each of these taxonomic units. The insects were then released. This whole procedure was performed 9 more times (for a total of 10) and the transects were run out randomly by walking in different directions from the center of the grassland.<br><br>The experimenters were Mohammad Imrit, Ron Kleiman, Fadumo Hersi and Gurjot Mukher.</p

Daucus carota-Effect of crowding on Plant Height, Number of leaves and Number of Flowers

<p>This experiment was performed on the 21st of September 2015, between 2.45 pm and 4.30 pm at the Stong Pond (43°46'14.2"N,79°30'22.7"W) at York University, ON. The weather was sunny, with an average temperature of 23°C and the plant chosen to be counted was <em>Daucus carota</em>. When a plant of that species was found along the edge of the grassland, a transect was run out from that plant towards the center of the grassland. The distance along the transect where the plant was found and the height of the plant were measured, in metres, and the number of leaves and number of flowers counted, with a crowding number assigned. Each time a <em>Daucus carota</em> was found along the transect, the above values were measured again. This was done for 50 plants (replicates). Experimenters were Mohammad Imrit, Gurjot Mukher, Fadumo Hersi and Ron Kleiman. The same experimenter was chosen to count the measurables, to ensure constant accuracy.</p> <p>There was no significant relationship between crowding, number of leaves, number of flowers and height of the plant.</p

Permeability of Novel Chitosan-g-Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) Amphiphilic Nanoparticles in a Model of Small Intestine In Vitro

Engineering of drug nanocarriers combining fine-tuned mucoadhesive/mucopenetrating properties is currently being investigated to ensure more efficient mucosal drug delivery. Aiming to improve the transmucosal delivery of hydrophobic drugs, we designed a novel nanogel produced by the self-assembly of amphiphilic chitosan graft copolymers ionotropically crosslinked with sodium tripolyphosphate. In this work, we synthesized, for the first time, chitosan-g-poly(methyl methacrylate) nanoparticles thiolated by the conjugation of N-acetyl cysteine. First, we confirmed that both non-crosslinked and crosslinked nanoparticles in the 0.05&ndash;0.1% w/v concentration range display very good cell compatibility in two cell lines that are relevant to oral delivery, Caco-2 cells that mimic the intestinal epithelium and HT29-MTX cells that are a model of mucin-producing goblet cells. Then, we evaluated the effect of crosslinking, nanoparticle concentration, and thiolation on the permeability in vitro utilizing monolayers of (i) Caco-2 and (ii) Caco-2:HT29-MTX cells (9:1 cell number ratio). Results confirmed that the ability of the nanoparticles to cross Caco-2 monolayer was affected by the crosslinking. In addition, thiolated nanoparticles interact more strongly with mucin, resulting in a decrease of the apparent permeability coefficient (Papp) compared to the pristine nanoparticles. Moreover, for all the nanoparticles, higher concentration resulted in lower Papp, suggesting that the transport pathways can undergo saturation