Diversity and succession of pelagic microorganism communities in a newly restored Illinois River floodplain lake

While the success of restoration efforts frequently depends on reconstructing ecological communities, time series observations of community structure over the course of restoration are rare. Here, frequent sampling of bacterioplankton, phytoplankton, planktonic protozoa (ciliates and testaceans), and zooplankton was done along with measurements of select physical and chemical parameters during the first year of ecological restoration of Thompson Lake (TL), an Illinois River floodplain lake not connected to the river. The primary objective was to describe the microbial composition, diversity, and seasonal dynamics in TL and compare these results to similar measurements made in a nearby reference lake, river flood-pulsed Lake Chautauqua (LC). Strong seasonal patterns in bacterioplankton diversity were observed for both lakes. While TL phytoplankton diversity was lower and blooms more erratic than in LC, ciliate richness and abundance patterns were similar in both lakes. Rotifers and microcrustaceans were about 5× more abundant in TL than LC, with copepods and cladocerans exhibiting a fall abundance peak only in TL. When compared to temporal patterns of planktonic microorganisms in the reference lake (LC), the microbial dynamics in a lake recovering from decades of agriculture and drainage (TL) reflect the instability associated with early stages of ecological restoration.Ope

Production of Embryonic and Fetal-Like Red Blood Cells from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

We have previously shown that human embryonic stem cells can be differentiated into embryonic and fetal type of red blood cells that sequentially express three types of hemoglobins recapitulating early human erythropoiesis. We report here that we have produced iPS from three somatic cell types: adult skin fibroblasts as well as embryonic and fetal mesenchymal stem cells. We show that regardless of the age of the donor cells, the iPS produced are fully reprogrammed into a pluripotent state that is undistinguishable from that of hESCs by low and high-throughput expression and detailed analysis of globin expression patterns by HPLC. This suggests that reprogramming with the four original Yamanaka pluripotency factors leads to complete erasure of all functionally important epigenetic marks associated with erythroid differentiation regardless of the age or the tissue type of the donor cells, at least as detected in these assays. The ability to produce large number of erythroid cells with embryonic and fetal-like characteristics is likely to have many translational applications

Large-scale production of embryonic red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells

Objective<p></p> To develop a method to produce in culture large number of erythroid cells from human embryonic stem cells.<p></p> Materials and Methods<p></p> Human H1 embryonic stem cells were differentiated into hematopoietic cells by coculture with a human fetal liver cell line, and the resulting CD34-positive cells were expanded in vitro in liquid culture using a three-step method. The erythroid cells produced were then analyzed by light microscopy and flow cytometry. Globin expression was characterized by quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and by high-performance liquid chromatography.<p></p> Results<p></p> CD34-positive cells produced from human embryonic stem cells could be efficiently differentiated into erythroid cells in liquid culture leading to a more than 5000-fold increase in cell number. The erythroid cells produced are similar to primitive erythroid cells present in the yolk sac of early human embryos and did not enucleate. They are fully hemoglobinized and express a mixture of embryonic and fetal globins but no β-globin.<p></p> Conclusions<p></p> We have developed an experimental protocol to produce large numbers of primitive erythroid cells starting from undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells. As the earliest human erythroid cells, the nucleated primitive erythroblasts, are not very well characterized because experimental material at this stage of development is very difficult to obtain, this system should prove useful to answer a number of experimental questions regarding the biology of these cells. In addition, production of mature red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells is of great potential practical importance because it could eventually become an alternate source of cell for transfusion

De trabalhador(a) para trabalhador(a)

Entendemos que a qualificação do trabalho e do processo de trabalho na área da saúde está diretamente ligada ao fortalecimento e consolidação do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Identifica-se a importância do trabalho multi, trans e interdisciplinar da Saúde Coletiva, bem como a necessidade do autocuidado de cada trabalhador. Desse modo, se torna relevante a reflexão sobre o panorama atual da Saúde brasileira, contextualizada numa lógica hegemônica e hospitalocêntrica, segundo a qual a doença é tida como mercadoria e o modelo médico-centrado ainda prepondera. A consolidação das noções de prevenção aos agravos nas redes de atenção à saúde pode ser a peça chave para a fragmentação verificada no modelo vigente. Assim, se tornaria possível potencializar a transformação da relação desses trabalhadores com os seus próprios espaços laborais na busca de condições mais dignas de trabalho, visando também o reavivamento do SUS (universal, integral, equânime e gratuito). Nesse sentido, o recurso apresentado tem por objetivos problematizar/discutir/fomentar questões que perpassam o trabalho no SUS, interagindo com o conceito de trabalho e com o conceito ampliado de Saúde, além de auxiliar as equipes de trabalhadores da Saúde a pensar em modos mais efetivos de exercitar a atividade do cuidado singularizado, a partir do entendimento do seu próprio lugar, enquanto os mesmos indivíduos que fazem parte das equipes prestam o serviço e também dele usufruem, como usuários do SUS. Para tal, o recurso educativo propõe a reflexão a partir do entendimento de três perspectivas: 1. O trabalho enquanto categoria de análise que sustenta os processos de atuação profissional; 2. O trabalho na Saúde e seus desdobramentos para o conceito ampliado de Saúde; 3. Para quê e para quem se trabalha no SUS, na perceptiva do SUS como conquista do processo de democratização da Saúde.Não é possível instalar um arquivo de vídeo. Apenas transfira-o para seu computador e abra como um arquivo comum. Arquivos de vídeo não podem ser editados, mas podem ser visualizados em players como o VLC Media Player (que é gratuito), o Windows Media Player ou o QuickTime. Os formatos mais comuns de vídeo serão executados normalmente por estes players (avi, mpeg e mp4).VídeoO material educativo proposto poderá ser utilizado em diversos segmentos de atenção à saúde, visto que a temática está inserida no cotidiano de todos os profissionais que atuam no SUS. Após a exibição do material educativo, pode-se lançar mão de rodas de conversa para aprofundar os sentimentos e percepções dos profissionais acerca da temática, proporcionando espaços de reflexão e de transformação, ressignificando sentidos, saberes e, por que não, sabores.1. ed., versão

Herpes simplex virus mucocutaneous tumoural lesions - systematic review

The goal was to characterize the clinical-epidemiological profile of patients with mucocutaneous tumoural herpes simplex virus (MCT HSV) lesions across the world. Two researchers extracted and independently reviewed data from the literature search engine PubMed/MEDLINE through October 2018. From 110 reported patients, the following data were available: the patients' ages ranged from 7 to 76 years; the majority was male (62.73 %-69/110) and immunosuppression was found in 97.25 % (106/109, missing 1) cases, of whom 88 were HIV- related. Lesions size varied from 0.2-13 cm, settling in the anogenital region in 76.36 % (84/110) patients; 84.13 % (53/63, missing 47) complained of pain and multiple recurrences were found in 44.94 % (40/89, missing 21) cases. On clinical basis, the initial hypothesis was neoplasia in 36/53 patients. Histopathological diagnosis was achieved in 90 % (90/100, missing 10) cases and was sample size-dependent. Type 2 HSV was detected in 86.07 % (68/79, missing 31) lesions. MCT HSV lesions recurrence after treatment was reported in 33.96 % (18/53, missing 57) patients. Pathophysiology is poorly understood. Physicians should be aware of MCT HSV lesions in immunosuppressed patients to avoid inappropriate therapeutic strategies12

Human embryonic stem cells in culture possess primary cilia with hedgehog signaling machinery.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are potential therapeutic tools and models of human development. With a growing interest in primary cilia in signal transduction pathways that are crucial for embryological development and tissue differentiation and interest in mechanisms regulating human hESC differentiation, demonstrating the existence of primary cilia and the localization of signaling components in undifferentiated hESCs establishes a mechanistic basis for the regulation of hESC differentiation. Using electron microscopy (EM), immunofluorescence, and confocal microscopies, we show that primary cilia are present in three undifferentiated hESC lines. EM reveals the characteristic 9 + 0 axoneme. The number and length of cilia increase after serum starvation. Important components of the hedgehog (Hh) pathway, including smoothened, patched 1 (Ptc1), and Gli1 and 2, are present in the cilia. Stimulation of the pathway results in the concerted movement of Ptc1 out of, and smoothened into, the primary cilium as well as up-regulation of GLI1 and PTC1. These findings show that hESCs contain primary cilia associated with working Hh machinery

Search for a third susceptibility gene for maturity-onset diabetes of the young : Studies with eleven candidate genes

Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a model for genetic studies of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. We have identified 15 MODY families in which diabetes is not the result of mutations in the glucokinase gene. This cohort of families will be useful for identifying other diabetes-susceptibility genes. Nine other candidate genes potentially implicated in insulin secretion or insulin action have been tested for linkage with MODY in these families, including glucokinase regulatory protein, hexokinase II, insulin receptor substrate 1, fatty acid-binding protein 2, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor, apolipoprotein C-II, glycogen synthase, adenosine deaminase (a marker for the MODY gene on chromosome 20), and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase. None of these loci showed evidence for linkage with MODY, implying that mutations in these genes do not make a major genetic contribution to the development of MODY. In addition to these linkage analyses, one or two affected subjects from each family were screened for the presence of the A to G mutation at nucleotide 3,243 of the mitochondrial tRNALeu(UUR) gene. This mutation was not found in any of these subjects. Finally, we report the localization of the gene encoding the regulatory protein of glucokinase to chromosome 2, band p22.3 and the identification of a restriction fragment length polymorphism at this locus