Genetic variability of Phytophthora sojae isolates from Argentina

Phytophthora sojae causes root and stem rot, one of the most important diseases of soybean worldwide. Genetic diversity of 32 Phytophthora sojae isolates of different geographic origin from Argentina was evaluated with RAPD markers. The isolates were collected from diseased soybean plants and soil samples from Santa Fe, Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Entre Ríos provinces, in the Pampeana Region. DNA was amplified with 20 decanucleotides primers. Seven primers amplified 49 fragments, of which 35 were polymorphic, indicating high variability. RAPD analysis detected intraspecific variability even among isolates of the same geographic origin. © 2007 by The Mycological Society of America.Fil:Gally, M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Ramos, A.M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Dokmetzian, D. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Lopez, S.E. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina

Satisfiability Calculus: An Abstract Formulation of Semantic Proof Systems

The theory of institutions, introduced by Goguen and Burstall in 1984, can be thought of as an abstract formulation of model theory. This theory has been shown to be particularly useful in computer science, as a mathematical foundation for formal approaches to software construction. Institution theory was extended by a number of researchers, José Meseguer among them, who, in 1989, presented General Logics, wherein the model theoretical view of institutions is complemented by providing (categorical) structures supporting the proof theory of any given logic. In other words, Meseguer introduced the notion of proof calculus as a formalisation of syntactical deduction, thus ?implementing? the entailment relation of a given logic. In this paper we follow the approach initiated by Goguen and introduce the concept of Satisfiability Calculus. This concept can be regarded as the semantical counterpart of Meseguer?s notion of proof calculus, as it provides the formal foundations for those proof systems that resort to model construction techniques to prove or disprove a given formula, thus ?implementing? the satisfiability relation of an institution. These kinds of semantic proof methods have gained a great amount of interest in computer science over the years, as they provide the basic means for many automated theorem proving techniques.Fil: Lopez Pombo, Carlos Gustavo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Investigación en Ciencias de la Computación. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigación en Ciencias de la Computación; ArgentinaFil: Castro, Pablo. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Computación; ArgentinaFil: Aguirre, Nazareno M.. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Computación; ArgentinaFil: Maibaum, Thomas S.E.. Mc Master University; Canad

Laughter as a diagnostic measure of psoriasis severity

Laughter has been studied for its beneficial effects on health and as a therapeutic method to prevent and treat medical conditions. We explore the predictive potential of laughter as a psoriasis severity diagnostic tool. In this study, the dermatologist first examines the patient and registers the PASI and BSA scores. Then patients complete the DLQI and EQ-5D-3L (quality of life), as well as the HADS (anxiety and depression) and the NEO PI-R (personality traits). Finally, the laughs of 30 patients with plaque psoriasis (15 mild cases and 15 moderate to severe cases), and 30 healthy controls will be registered. To do this, patients and accompanying health controls (in pairs), watch a 15-minute video with humorous sketches..

Variability of Symmetric Dimethylarginine in apparently healthy dogs

Background: Symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) is a screening tool for early kidney dysfunction and monitoring treatment in cases of chronic kidney disease (CKD). There are no current studies describing the suitability of this test for use with published populationbased reference intervals. Hypothesis/Objectives: To determine the components of biological variability, the index of individuality (IOI), the critical difference between sequential measurements (CD) and the number of measurements required to assess the homeostatic set point (HSP), for both SDMA and serum creatinine (sCr), in apparently healthy dogs. Animals: Twenty apparently healthy adult dogs owned by clients or staff at a veterinary teaching hospital. Methods: Prospective, observational study. Blood was collected from each dog on 9 occasions, and SDMA and sCr were measured in duplicate using commercially available assays. Results: SDMA and sCr had intermediate and low IOI values of 0.87 and 0.28, respectively. The CD of SDMA and sCr, was 1.34 mg/dL and 0.89 mmol/L, respectively. The sample numbers required for estimation of an individual’s HSP (with 90 and 95% CI) for SDMA and sCr were 8 and 45, and 2 and 12 sequential measurements, respectively. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Based on our findings, in comparison to sCr, SDMA is better suited for use with population based reference intervals. False-negative test results could occur when comparing a single test result from an individual to such intervals. Ideally CD should be used with sequential measurements

The sociotype questionnaire: assessing the social burden of skin diseases

Skin diseases can cause a significant psychosocial burden. A number of studies have considered issues such as a lower quality of life, increased anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation and other psychological disorders. However, adequate means for evaluating social interaction difficulties, diminished social networks, and the impoverished conversational exchanges that affect the wellbeing and mental health of the individual, have not been sufficiently developed. This study is based on the sociotype approach that has recently been proposed as a new theoretical construct implemented in the form of a questionnaire; it examines the social bonding structures and relational factors associated with dermatological conditions..

Deconstructing sarcomeric structure-function relations in titin-BioID knock-in mice

Proximity proteomics has greatly advanced the analysis of native protein complexes and subcellular structures in culture, but has not been amenable to study development and disease in vivo. Here, we have generated a knock-in mouse with the biotin ligase (BioID) inserted at titin's Z-disc region to identify protein networks that connect the sarcomere to signal transduction and metabolism. Our census of the sarcomeric proteome from neonatal to adult heart and quadriceps reveals how perinatal signaling, protein homeostasis and the shift to adult energy metabolism shape the properties of striated muscle cells. Mapping biotinylation sites to sarcomere structures refines our understanding of myofilament dynamics and supports the hypothesis that myosin filaments penetrate Z-discs to dampen contraction. Extending this proof of concept study to BioID fusion proteins generated with Crispr/CAS9 in animal models recapitulating human pathology will facilitate the future analysis of molecular machines and signaling hubs in physiological, pharmacological, and disease context

Charge and spin configurations in the coupled quantum dots with Coulomb correlations induced by tunneling current

We investigated the peculiarities of non-equilibrium charge states and spin configurations in the system of two strongly coupled quantum dots (QDs) weakly connected to the electrodes in the presence of Coulomb correlations. We analyzed the modification of non-equilibrium charge states and different spin configurations of the system in a wide range of applied bias voltage and revealed well pronounced ranges of system parameters where negative tunneling conductivity appears due to the Coulomb correlations.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

The effect of urine concentration and pH on the growth of Escherichia coli in canine urine in vitro

Background: Lower urinary tract infections are common in dogs, and Escherichia coli is the most common bacterial pathogen isolated. The literature has conflicting evidence regarding the inhibitory effects of urine concentration and pH on E. coli growth. Hypothesis/Objectives: To determine the effect of different pH and urine concentrations on E. coli growth in vitro. Animals: Voided urine samples from 10 apparently healthy spayed female dogs were used. Methods: A matrix of 9 urine specific gravity (USG; 1.010, 1.020, and 1.030) and pH (5.5, 7.0, and 8.5) combinations was prepared by diluting and titrating filtered voided urine samples. Three E. coli isolates were obtained from urine of female dogs with signs of lower urinary tract infection and cultured at different urine pH and USG combinations in wells of a microtiter plate. The number of E. coli colony‐forming units (CFU) per mL of urine was calculated after aerobic incubation of the urine at 37°C for 18 hours, and statistically compared. Results: Significant differences were identified in the mean log CFU/mL among different combinations of pH and USG. The lowest log CFU/mL were observed in alkaline concentrated urine (pH 8.5 and USG 1.030). Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Escherichia coli in vitro growth was higher in neutral to acidic and diluted urine compared to alkaline and concentrated urine. The impact of non‐alkalizing diluting diets on the incidence of E. coli lower urinary tract infections should be further explored

sPLA2-V inhibits EPCR anticoagulant and antiapoptotic properties by accommodating lysophosphatidylcholine or PAF in the hydrophobic groove

The endothelial protein C receptor (EPCR) plays an important role in cardiovascular disease by binding protein C/activated protein C (APC). EPCR structure contains a hydrophobic groove filled with an unknown phospholipid needed to perform its function. It has not been established whether lipid exchange takes place in EPCR as a regulatory mechanism of its activity. Our objective was to identify this phospholipid and to explore the possibility of lipid exchange as a regulatory mechanism of EPCR activity driven by the endothelially expressed secretory group V phospholipase A2 (sPLA2-V). We identified phosphatidylcholine (PCh) as the major phospholipid bound to human soluble EPCR (sEPCR). PCh in EPCR could be exchanged for lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPCh) and platelet activating factor (PAF). Remarkably, lysoPCh and PAF impaired the protein C binding ability of sEPCR. Inhibition of sPLA2-V, responsible for lysoPCh and PAF generation, improved APC binding to endothelial cells. EPCR-dependent protein C activation and APC antiapoptotic effect were thus significantly enhanced. In contrast, endothelial cell supplementation with sPLA2-V inhibited both APC generation and its antiapoptotic effects. We conclude that APC generation and function can be modulated by changes in phospholipid occupancy of its endothelial cell receptor

Kinetics of plasma cell‐free DNA and creatine kinase in a canine model of tissue injury

Background: Cell‐free DNA (cfDNA) comprises short, double‐stranded circulating DNA sequences released from damaged cells. In people, cfDNA concentrations correlate well with disease severity and tissue damage. No reports are available regarding cfDNA kinetics in dogs. Objectives/Hypothesis: Cell‐free DNA will have a short biological half‐life and would be able to stratify mild, moderate, and severe tissue injury. Our study aims were to determine the kinetics and biological half‐life of cfDNA and to contrast them with those of creatine kinase (CK). Animals: Three groups of 10 dogs undergoing open ovariohysterectomy, surgery for cranial cruciate ligament rupture (CCLR), or hemilaminectomy. Methods: Plasma for cfDNA and CK analysis was collected at admission, at induction of anesthesia, postsurgery (time 0) and at 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, and 72 hours after surgery. Results: The biological half‐life of plasma cfDNA and CK were 5.64 hours (95% confidence interval [CI 95], 4.36–7.98 hours) and 28.7 hours (CI95, 25.3–33.3 hours), respectively. In the hemilaminectomy group, cfDNA concentrations differed significantly from admission at 6–12 hours after surgery. Creatine kinase activity differed among the surgical groups and reached a peak 6 hours after surgery. In the ovariohysterectomy and CCLR groups, plasma CK activity 72 hours after surgery did not differ from admission activity of the ovariohysterectomy group. In contrast, in the hemilaminectomy group, plasma CK activity after 72 hours did not return to the ovariohysterectomy group admission activity. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Plasma CK activity has a longer biological half‐life than previously thought. In contrast to plasma CK activity, cfDNA has a short half‐life and could be a useful marker for peracute severe tissue injury