Primer informe de Fusarium incarnatum (Desm.) Sacc. afectando al cultivo del garbanzo en Cuba

The objective of the work was to characterize isolates of Fusarium sp. from chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) morphologically and molecularly. For this, the morphological characterization of the isolates of Fusarium sp. was conducted by using a taxonomic key and, for their molecular identification, DNA extraction, amplification of the translation and elongation factor 1α (tef-1α) gene, purification and sequencing of the amplified fragments were performed. The results allowed reporting the first identification of a new Fusarium species on chickpea in Cuba [Fusarium incarnatum (Desm.) Sacc.], a species belonging to the Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex (FIESC). The Cuban strains were phylogenetically clustered with the FIESC 15 group. This is the first report of F. incarnatum associated with chickpea in Cuba.El trabajo tuvo como objetivo caracterizar morfológica y molecularmente aislamientos de Fusarium sp. procedentes de plantas de garbanzo (Cicer arietinum L.). Para ello, se realizó la caracterización morfológica de los aislados de Fusarium sp. mediante el uso de una clave taxonómica. Para la identificación molecular se realizó la extracción de ADN, amplificación del gen que codifica para el factor de elongación y traducción 1α (tef- 1α), purificación de los fragmentos amplificados y su secuenciación. Los resultados permitieron informar, por primera vez en Cuba, una nueva especie de Fusarium en el garbanzo [Fusarium incarnatum (Desm.) Sacc.], incluida en el clado Incarnatum, que pertenece al complejo de especies Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti (FIESC). Las cepas cubanas se agruparon filogenéticamente con el grupo FIESC 15. Este es el primer informe de F. incarnatum asociado al garbanzo en Cuba

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1,2,3,4,5,6 in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees

dUTPase as a platform for anti-malarial drug design: structural basis for the selectivity of a class of nucleoside inhibitors.

Pyrimidine metabolism is a major route for therapeutic intervention against malaria. Here we report inhibition and structural studies on the deoxyuridine nucleotidohydrolase from the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum (PfdUTPase). We have identified a series of triphenylmethane derivatives of deoxyuridine with antimalarial activity in vitro which inhibit specifically the Plasmodium dUTPase versus the human enzyme. A 2.4 Å crystal structure of PfdUTPase in complex with one of these inhibitors reveals an atypical trimeric enzyme in which the triphenylmethane derivative can be seen to select for PfdUTPase by way of interactions between the trityl group and the side chains of residues Phe46 and Ile117. Immunofluorescence microscopy studies of parasitized red blood cells reveal that enzyme concentrations are highest during the trophozoite/schizont stages, suggesting that PfdUTPase has a major role in DNA replication. Taken together the data show that PfdUTPase may be considered as an antimalarial drug target

Bypassing cellular senescence by genetic screening tools

8 páginas, figuras.Bypassing cellular senescence is a prerequisite step in the tumorigenic transformation. It has long been known that loss of a key tumour suppressor gene, such as p53 or pRB, is necessary but not sufficient for spontaneous cellular immortalisation. Therefore, there must be additional mutations and/or epigenetic alterations required for immortalisation to occur. Early work on these processes included somatic-cell genetic studies to estimate the number of senescence genes and nowadays are completed by in vivo models and with the requirements to bypass senescence induced by oncogenic transformation in stem cells. These principal studies laid the foundation for the field of senescence/immortalisation but were labour intensive and the results were somewhat limited. Using retroviral-based functional genetic screening, we and others identified universal genes regulating senescence/immortalisation (either by gain or loss of function) and found that some of these genes are widely altered in human tumours. We also explored the molecular mechanisms throughout these genes that regulate senescence and established the causality of the genetic alteration in tumorigenesis. The identification of genes and pathways regulating senescence/immortalisation could provide novel molecular targets for the treatment and/or prevention of cancer.Peer reviewe

Consenso colombiano de atención, diagnóstico y manejo de la infección por SARS-COV-2/COVID-19 en establecimientos de atención de la salud Recomendaciones basadas en consenso de expertos e informadas en la evidencia

The “Asociación Colombiana de Infectología” (ACIN) and the “Instituto de Evaluación de Nuevas Tecnologías de la Salud” (IETS) created a task force to develop recommendations for Covid 19 health care diagnosis, management and treatment informed, and based, on evidence. Theses reccomendations are addressed to the health personnel on the Colombian context of health services. © 2020 Asociacion Colombiana de Infectologia. All rights reserved