3,315 research outputs found
Cross-cultural adaptation of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire 11–14 (CPQ11–14) for the Brazilian Portuguese language
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens
Insights into the role of fungi in Pine Wilt Disease
Pine wilt disease (PWD) is a complex disease that severely affects the biodiversity and
economy of Eurasian coniferous forests. Three factors are described as the main elements of the
disease: the pinewood nematode (PWN) Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, the insect‐vector Monochamus
spp., and the host tree, mainly Pinus spp. Nonetheless, other microbial interactors have also been
considered. The study of mycoflora in PWD dates back the late seventies. Culturomic studies have
revealed diverse fungal communities associated with all PWD key players, composed frequently of
saprophytic fungi (i.e., Aspergillus, Fusarium, Trichoderma) but also of necrotrophic pathogens
associated with bark beetles, such as ophiostomatoid or blue‐stain fungi. In particular, the
ophiostomatoid fungi often recovered from wilted pine trees or insect pupal chambers/tunnels, are
considered crucial for nematode multiplication and distribution in the host tree. Naturally occurring
mycoflora, reported as possible biocontrol agents of the nematode, are also discussed in this review.
This review discloses the contrasting effects of fungal communities in PWD and highlights
promising fungal species as sources of PWD biocontrol in the framework of sustainable pest
management actions
Portuguese wild grapevine genome re-sequencing (Vitis vinifera sylvestris)
Supplementary information is available for this paper at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-76012-6.The first genome of Vitis vinifera vinifera (PN40024), published in 2007, boosted grapevine related studies. While this reference genome is a suitable tool for the overall studies in the field, it lacks the ability to unveil changes accumulated during V. v. vinifera domestication. The subspecies V. v. sylvestris preserves wild characteristics, making it a good material to provide insights into V. v. vinifera domestication. The difference in the reproductive strategy between both subspecies is one of the characteristics that set them apart. While V. v. vinifera flowers are hermaphrodite, V. v. sylvestris is mostly dioecious. In this paper, we compare the re-sequencing of the genomes from a male and a female individual of the wild sylvestris, against the reference vinifera genome (PN40024). Variant analysis reveals a low number but with high impact modifications in coding regions, essentially non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms and frame shifts caused by insertions and deletions. The sex-locus was manually inspected, and the results obtained are in line with the most recent works related with wild grapevine sex. In this paper we also describe for the first time RNA editing in transcripts of 14 genes in the sex-determining region, including VviYABBY and VviPLATZ.Tis work was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) through the Research Center LEAF
(UIDP/04129/2020). Authors JLCoito, MJNRamos, MRocheta, were funded by FCT fellowships SFRH/
BD/85824/2012 and CEECIND2017, SFRH/BD/110274/2015, SFRH/BPD/64905/2009, respectively
Fungal Communities of the Pine Wilt Disease Complex: Studying the Interaction of Ophiostomatales With Bursaphelenchus xylophilus
Original ResearchConsidered one of the most devastating plant–parasitic nematodes worldwide,
Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (commonly known as pinewood nematode, PWN) is the
causal agent of the pine wilt disease in the Eurasian coniferous forests. This migratory
parasitic nematode is carried by an insect vector (Monochamus spp.) into the host
tree (Pinus species), where it can feed on parenchymal cells and reproduce massively,
resulting in the tree wilting. In declining trees, PWN populations are strongly dependent
on fungal communities colonizing the host (predominantly ophiostomatoid fungi known
to cause sapwood blue-staining, the blue-stain fungi), which not only influence their
development and life cycle but also the number of individuals carried by the insect vector
into a new host. Our main aim is to understand if PWN-associated mycobiota plays a
key role in the development of PWD, in interaction with the PWN and the insect vector,
and to what extent it can be targeted to disrupt the disease cycle. For this purpose, we
characterized the fungal communities of Pinus pinaster trees infected and non-infected
with PWN in three collection sites in Continental Portugal with different PWD temporal
incidences. Our results showed that non-infected P. pinaster mycoflora is more diverse
(in terms of abundance and fungal richness) than PWN-infected pine trees in the most
recent PWD foci, as opposed to the fungal communities of long-term PWD history
sites. Then, due to their ecological importance for PWN survival, representatives of the
main ophiostomatoid fungi isolated (Ophiostoma, Leptographium, and Graphilbum) were
characterized for their adaptative response to temperature, competition in-between taxa,
and as food source for PWN. Under the conditions studied, Leptographium isolates
showed promising results for PWN control. They could outcompete the other species,
especially O. ips, and significantly reduce the development of PWN populations when
compared to Botrytis cinerea (routinely used for PWN lab culturing), suggesting this to
be a natural antagonist not only for the other blue-stain species but also for the PWNinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11–14) – short forms
PtOEP–PDMS-based optical oxygen sensor
The advanced and widespread use of microfluidic devices, which are usually fabricated in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), requires the integration of many sensors, always compatible with microfluidic fabrication processes. Moreover, current limitations of the existing optical and electrochemical oxygen sensors regarding long-term stability due to sensor degradation, biofouling, fabrication processes and cost have led to the development of new approaches. Thus, this manuscript reports the development, fabrication and characterization of a low-cost and highly sensitive dissolved oxygen optical sensor based on a membrane of PDMS doped with platinum octaethylporphyrin (PtOEP) film, fabricated using standard microfluidic materials and processes. The excellent mechanical and chemical properties (high permeability to oxygen, anti-biofouling characteristics) of PDMS result in membranes with superior sensitivity compared with other matrix materials. The wide use of PtOEP in sensing applications, due to its advantage of being easily synthesized using microtechnologies, its strong phosphorescence at room temperature with a quantum yield close to 50%, its excellent Strokes Shift as well as its relatively long lifetime (75 µs), provide the suitable conditions for the development of a miniaturized luminescence optical oxygen sensor allowing long-term applications. The influence of the PDMS film thickness (0.1–2.5 mm) and the PtOEP concentration (363, 545, 727 ppm) in luminescent properties are presented. This enables to achieve low detection levels in a gas media range from 0.5% up to 20%, and in liquid media from 0.5 mg/L up to 3.3 mg/L at 1 atm, 25 °C. As a result, we propose a simple and cost-effective system based on a LED membrane photodiode system to detect low oxygen concentrations for in situ applications.This work was co-financed by national funds through FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, I.P. under project SONDA (PTDC/EME-SIS/1960/2020), by Programa Operacional Regional
do Norte (NORTE2020), through Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER), Project
NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000032—NextSea, by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
through INTERREG V-A Spain-Portugal Programme (POCTEP) 2014–2020, Project N. 0591_FOODSENS_1_E and by FCT national funds, under the national support to R&D units grants, through the reference projects UIDB/04436/2020 and UIDP/04436/2020
RNA editing in inflorescences of wild grapevine unveils association to sex and development
RNA editing challenges the central dogma of molecular biology, by modifying the genetic
information at the transcription level. Recent reports, suggesting increased levels of RNA
editing in plants, raised questions on the nature and dynamics of such events during
development. We here report the occurrence of distinct RNA editing patterns in wild Vitis
flowers during development, with twelve possible RNA editing modifications observed
for the first time in plants. RNA editing events are gender and developmental stage
specific, identical in subsequent years of this perennial species and with distinct
nucleotide frequencies neighboring editing sites on the 5' and 3' flanks. The
transcriptome dynamics unveils a new regulatory layer responsible for gender plasticity
enhancement or underling dioecy evolution in Vitis
Measurement properties of the Brazilian version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL™) cancer module scale
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens
Incidence, in-hospital case-fatality rates, and management practices in Puerto Ricans hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction
OBJECTIVE: There are extremely limited data on minority populations, especially Hispanics, describing the clinical epidemiology of acute coronary disease. The aim of this study is to examine the incidence rate of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), in-hospital case-fatality rate (CFR), and management practices among residents of greater San Juan (Puerto Rico) who were hospitalized with an initial AMI.
METHODS: Our trained study staff reviewed and independently validated the medical records of patients who had been hospitalized with possible AMI at any of the twelve hospitals located in greater San Juan during calendar year 2007.
RESULTS: The incidence rate (# per 100,000 population) of 1,415 patients hospitalized with AMI increased with advancing age and were significantly higher for older patients for men (198) than they were for women (134). The average age of the study population was 64 years, and women comprised 45% of the study sample. Evidence-based cardiac therapies, e.g., aspirin, beta blockers, ACE inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers, and statins, were used with 60% of the hospitalized patients, and women were less likely than men to have received these therapies (59% vs. 65%) or to have undergone interventional cardiac procedures (47% vs. 59%) (p \u3c 0.05). The in-hospital CFR increased with advancing age and were higher for women (8.6%) than they were for men (6.0%) (p \u3c 0.05).
CONCLUSION: Efforts are needed to reduce the magnitude of AMI, enhance the use of evidence-based cardiac therapies, reduce possible gender disparities, and improve the short-term prognoses of Puerto Rican patients hospitalized with an initial AMI
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