Coral Disease and Health Workshop: Coral Histopathology II

The health and continued existence of coral reef ecosystems are threatened by an increasing array of environmental and anthropogenic impacts. Coral disease is one of the prominent causes of increased mortality among reefs globally, particularly in the Caribbean. Although over 40 different coral diseases and syndromes have been reported worldwide, only a few etiological agents have been confirmed; most pathogens remain unknown and the dynamics of disease transmission, pathogenicity and mortality are not understood. Causal relationships have been documented for only a few of the coral diseases, while new syndromes continue to emerge. Extensive field observations by coral biologists have provided substantial documentation of a plethora of new pathologies, but our understanding, however, has been limited to descriptions of gross lesions with names reflecting these observations (e.g., black band, white band, dark spot). To determine etiology, we must equip coral diseases scientists with basic biomedical knowledge and specialized training in areas such as histology, cell biology and pathology. Only through combining descriptive science with mechanistic science and employing the synthesis epizootiology provides will we be able to gain insight into causation and become equipped to handle the pending crisis. One of the critical challenges faced by coral disease researchers is to establish a framework to systematically study coral pathologies drawing from the field of diagnostic medicine and pathology and using generally accepted nomenclature. This process began in April 2004, with a workshop titled Coral Disease and Health Workshop: Developing Diagnostic Criteria co-convened by the Coral Disease and Health Consortium (CDHC), a working group organized under the auspices of the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, and the International Registry for Coral Pathology (IRCP). The workshop was hosted by the U.S. Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) in Madison, Wisconsin and was focused on gross morphology and disease signs observed in the field. A resounding recommendation from the histopathologists participating in the workshop was the urgent need to develop diagnostic criteria that are suitable to move from gross observations to morphological diagnoses based on evaluation of microscopic anatomy. (PDF contains 92 pages

Novelty detection in an auditory oddball task on freely moving rats

The relative importance or saliency of sensory inputs depend on the animal’s environmental context and the behavioural responses to these same inputs can vary over time. Here we show how freely moving rats, trained to discriminate between deviant tones embedded in a regular pattern of repeating stimuli and different variations of the classic oddball paradigm, can detect deviant tones, and this discriminability resembles the properties that are typical of neuronal adaptation described in previous studies. Moreover, the auditory brainstem response (ABR) latency decreases after training, a finding consistent with the notion that animals develop a type of plasticity to auditory stimuli. Our study suggests the existence of a form of long-term memory that may modulate the level of neuronal adaptation according to its behavioural relevance, and sets the ground for future experiments that will help to dis- entangle the functional mechanisms that govern behavioural habituation and its relation to neuronal adaptation

Glycolytic pathway activity: effect on IVM and oxidative metabolism of bovine oocytes

The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of altering glycolytic pathway activity during bovine IVM on the meiotic maturation rate, oxidative activity, mitochondrial activity and the mitochondrial distribution within oocytes. Glycolytic activity was manipulated using two inhibitors (ATP, NaF) and a stimulator (AMP) of key enzymes of the pathway. Inhibition of glucose uptake, lactate production and meiotic maturation rates was observed when media were supplemented with ATP or NaF. The addition of AMP to the maturation medium had no effect on glucose uptake, lactate production or meiotic maturation. In the absence of gonadotrophin supplementation, AMP stimulated both glucose uptake and lactate production. However, AMP also decreased cytoplasmic maturation, as determined by early cleavage. During IVM, oocyte oxidative and mitochondrial activity was observed to increase at 15 and 22 h maturation. Inhibiting glycolysis with ATP or NaF led to a reduced oxidative and mitochondrial pattern compared with the respective control groups. Stimulation of the pathway with AMP increased oxidative and mitochondrial activity. A progressive mitochondrial migration to the central area was observed during maturation; oocytes treated with ATP, NaF or AMP showed limited migration. The present study reveals the effects of altering glycolytic pathway activity in cumulus–oocyte complexes, revealing the link between glycolysis of the cumulus–oocyte complex and the oxidative and mitochondrial activity of the oocyte.Cynthia Gutnisky, Sergio Morado, Gabriel C. Dalvit, Jeremy G. Thompson and Pablo D. Cetic

Reactive oxygen species production and redox state in parthenogenetic and sperm-mediated bovine oocyte activation

The knowledge concerning redox and reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated regulation of early embryo development is scarce and remains controversial. The aim of this work was to determine ROS production and redox state during early in vitro embryo development in sperm-mediated and parthenogenetic activation of bovine oocytes. Sperm-mediated oocyte activation was carried out in IVF-modified synthetic oviductal fluid (mSOF) with frozen-thawed semen. Parthenogenetic activation was performed in TALP plus ionomycin and then in IVF-mSOF with 6-dimethylaminopurine plus cytochalasin B. Embryos were cultured in IVF-mSOF. ROS and redox state were determined at each 2-h interval (7-24 h from activation) by 2',7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate and RedoxSensor Red CC-1 fluorochromes respectively. ROS levels and redox state differed between activated and non-activated oocytes (P<0.05 by ANOVA). In sperm-activated oocytes, an increase was observed between 15 and 19 h (P<0.05). Conversely, in parthenogenetically activated oocytes, we observed a decrease at 9 h (P<0.05). In sperm-activated oocytes, ROS fluctuated throughout the 24 h, presenting peaks around 7, 19, and 24 h (P<0.05), while in parthenogenetic activation, peaks were detected at 7, 11, and 17 h (P<0.05). In the present work, we found clear distinctive metabolic patterns between normal and parthenogenetic zygotes. Oxidative activity and ROS production are an integral part of bovine zygote behavior, and defining a temporal pattern of change may be linked with developmental competence.S Morado, P Cetica, M Beconi, J G Thompson and G Dalvi

Estudio prospectivo, de seguimiento en pacientes con enfermedad de Gaucher Tipo 1 que reciben tratamiento con CERDELGA®. Proyecto TRAZELGA

Poster [PC-303] Introducción: La enfermedad de Gaucher tipo 1 (EG1), secundaria al déficit en la enzima glucocerebrosidasa lisosomal, provoca el acúmulo de glucocerebrósido principalmente en macrófagos, causando deterioro de los órganos en los que se deposita. El nuevo inhibidor de substrato Eliglustat (ELG), aprobado por la EMEA en 2015 y disponible desde enero 2017, inhibe de forma selectiva y potente la enzima glucosilceramida sintasa, disminuyendo el acúmulo de substrato, está indicado en EG1 metabolizadores rápidos, intermedios o lentos para el citocromo CYP2D6. Los ensayos clínicos de fase 2 y 3 demostraron mejora y estabilización de los parámetros tanto en los pacientes naïve, como en los de tratamiento enzimático sustitutivo. En este trabajo se expone el estudio de trazabilidad del tratamiento con eliglustat en pacientes con GD1 en España (TRAZELGA). Material y Métodos: El estudio nacional, multicéntrico TRAZELGA, ha sido diseñado como herramienta para evaluar de forma uniforme la respuesta al tratamiento durante un año, analizando los cambios en parámetros clínicos y biomarcadores habituales, registro de medicamentos concomitantes y efectos adversos a ELG, estudio de calidad de vida e incorporando un estudio exploratorio de marcadores de activación del sistema inmune (perfil de citoquinas, ferritina, lipocalina, gammaglobulinas, marcadores de estrés oxidativo), así como cambios en la infiltración medular cuantificados por RM y DEXA. Previo al inicio de ELG se realizó una evaluación de función cardíaca, hepática y renal. Resultados: 35 pacientes han iniciado tratamiento oral con Eliglustat. En esta presentación aportamos resultados preliminares de 21 pacientes (mediana de edad: 43, 8 años(23-75), 47% varones), genotipo de EG N370S/N370S: (29, 4%), N370S/L444P (41, 2%), otros dobles heterocigotos con N370S (29, 4%), metabolismo del CYP2D6 (12% metabolizadores lentos, 64, 5% intermedios y 33, 5% rápidos, ningún paciente recibió el tratamiento en prímera línea y sus características basales (tabla1), son de pacientes estabilizados con TES (15 casos) o miglustat (6). Un paciente esplenectomizado. 3 pacientes esplenomegalia palpable al momento de inclusión. 6 pacientes con multimorbilidades y polimedicaciones y 5 pacientes aquejaban astenia como síntoma principal antes de su inclusión en este estudio. El seguimiento medio actual es de 6 meses. Conclusiones: Se espera incluir un total de 30 pacientes en el estudio y analizar la influencia de Eliglustat sobre los biomarcadores, marcadores de inflamación, densidad mineral ósea. Tener información sobre adherencia, efectos adversos en práctica clínica habitual y grado de satisfacción. Aunque escasos, hasta ahora no hay publicada información de la respuesta al tratamiento en pacientes provenientes de tratamiento con miglustat. En caso de aceptación se presentará un análisis exhaustivo, invitando a todos los interesados a unirse al proyecto

A genome-wide association study identifies risk alleles in plasminogen and P4HA2 associated with giant cell arteritis

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is the most common form of vasculitis in individuals older than 50 years in Western countries. To shed light onto the genetic background influencing susceptibility for GCA, we performed a genome-wide association screening in a well-powered study cohort. After imputation, 1,844,133 genetic variants were analysed in 2,134 cases and 9,125 unaffected controls from ten independent populations of European ancestry. Our data confirmed HLA class II as the strongest associated region (independent signals: rs9268905, P = 1.94E-54, per-allele OR = 1.79; and rs9275592, P = 1.14E-40, OR = 2.08). Additionally, PLG and P4HA2 were identified as GCA risk genes at the genome-wide level of significance (rs4252134, P = 1.23E-10, OR = 1.28; and rs128738, P = 4.60E-09, OR = 1.32, respectively). Interestingly, we observed that the association peaks overlapped with different regulatory elements related to cell types and tissues involved in the pathophysiology of GCA. PLG and P4HA2 are involved in vascular remodelling and angiogenesis, suggesting a high relevance of these processes for the pathogenic mechanisms underlying this type of vasculitis

Analysis of the common genetic component of large-vessel vasculitides through a meta- Immunochip strategy

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) and Takayasu's arteritis (TAK) are major forms of large-vessel vasculitis (LVV) that share clinical features. To evaluate their genetic similarities, we analysed Immunochip genotyping data from 1,434 LVV patients and 3,814 unaffected controls. Genetic pleiotropy was also estimated. The HLA region harboured the main disease-specific associations. GCA was mostly associated with class II genes (HLA-DRB1/HLA-DQA1) whereas TAK was mostly associated with class I genes (HLA-B/MICA). Both the statistical significance and effect size of the HLA signals were considerably reduced in the cross-disease meta-analysis in comparison with the analysis of GCA and TAK separately. Consequently, no significant genetic correlation between these two diseases was observed when HLA variants were tested. Outside the HLA region, only one polymorphism located nearby the IL12B gene surpassed the study-wide significance threshold in the meta-analysis of the discovery datasets (rs755374, P?=?7.54E-07; ORGCA?=?1.19, ORTAK?=?1.50). This marker was confirmed as novel GCA risk factor using four additional cohorts (PGCA?=?5.52E-04, ORGCA?=?1.16). Taken together, our results provide evidence of strong genetic differences between GCA and TAK in the HLA. Outside this region, common susceptibility factors were suggested, especially within the IL12B locus