CARACTERIZACIÓN GEOQUÍMICA DE LOS SEDIMENTOS SUPERFICIALES DEL CAÑO MÁNAMO, DELTA DEL RÍO ORINOCO, VENEZUELA

Se realizó la caracterización geoquímica sedimentos superficiales de caño Mánamo en el delta del río Orinoco. Las muestras de sedimento analizadas corresponden a 7 estaciones establecidas a todo lo largo del caño, muestreándose en cada estación ambas márgenes y la zona central del río. El análisis textural de los sedimentos se llevó a cabo mediante el método sedimentológico de Bouyoucos, la materia orgánica por termogravimetría y el carbono orgánico mediante digestión húmeda. Los sedimentos pulverizados fueron sometidos a fraccionamiento con ácidos débiles y fuertes para separar los metales asociados a la fracción biodisponible (extraídos con ácido acético al 10%) y residuales (extraídos con mezcla de ácido nítrico y peróxido de hidrógeno). La cuantificación de los metales se realizó por espectrometría de emisión atómica con plasma acoplado inductivamente (ICP-EOS). La concentración de aceites y grasas e hidrocarburos se determinó por el métodoCARIPOL y el método 8440 de la US EPA. Los sedimentos superficiales del caño Mánamo se clasifican como del tipo arenoso y areno limosos, con un promedio de 65,66% de arena, 21,84% de limo y 11,93% de arcilla. El contenido materia orgánica fluctuó entre 0,12 a 14,92% y un valor promedio de 2,54%. La máxima concentración de materia orgánica se determinó en una de las márgenes del sector de Winamorena. El resto de las estaciones presentaron valores inferiores al 5%. Las concentraciones de carbonatos variaron 0,14-2,51%, con un promedio de 0,62%. Las mayores concentraciones de metales se presentan en la fracción residual (Fr) así como en los oxihidróxidos de hierro y manganeso (F3). En el caso de Mn y el Cu se detectaron niveles de metales asociados a las fracciones intercambiables (F1) y carbonatos (F2). No se detectaron los metales Cd, Ni, Co y As en ninguna de las estaciones ni fracciones geoquímicas de los sedimentos superficiales. Se observa una tendencia general donde las mayores concentraciones de aceite y grasas e hidrocarburos alifáticos se presentan hacia la margen con menor influencia delflujo del caño donde se presentan menores contenidos de limos y arcillas. La textura de los sedimentos así como el contenidode metales y materia orgánica están condicionados por la hidrodinámica del caño Mánamo y la interacción con la cuña salina en el tramo cercano a su desembocadura. Existe una fuerte asociación entre los metales y la materia orgánica con las fracciones limosas y arcillosas de los sedimentos.Palabras clave: Calidad de sedimentos, fraccionamiento geoquímico, caño MánamoABSTRACT: The geochemical characterization of surface sediments of caño Mánamo in the delta of the Orinoco River,was performed. The sediment samples analyzed correspond to 7 stations established throughout the pipe, both being sampledat each station and the central banks of the river. Textural analysis of sediment was conducted by the sedimentological method of Bouyoucos, organic matter by thermogravimetry and organic carbon by wet digestion. Powdered sediment underwentfractionation with weak and strong acid to remove metals associated to the bioavailable fraction (extracted with 10% aceticacid) and residual (extracted with mixture of nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide). The quantification of metals was performedby atomic emission spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma (ICP-EOS). The concentration of oils and fats andhydrocarbons were determined by the methods of CARIPOL and 8440 U.S. EPA. The surface sediments of caño Mánamo areclassified as sandy and sandy silt, with an average of 65.66% sand, 21.84% silt and 11.93% clay. The organic matter contentranged from 0.12 to 14.92% and an average value of 2.54%. The highest concentration of organic matter was found in oneof the margins Winamorena sector. The remaining stations had values lower than 5%. Carbonate concentrations ranged from0.14 to 2.51%, with an average of 0.62%. The highest concentrations of metals were identified in the residual fraction (Fr) as well as the iron and manganese oxyhydroxides (F3). In the case of Mn and Cu, metal levels were discovered associated with interchangeable fractions (F1) and carbonates (F2). We detected metals Cd, Ni, Co and As in none of the stations orgeochemical fractions of the surface sediments. There is a general trend where the highest concentrations of oil and grease and aliphatic hydrocarbons occur toward the lower margin of the river flow influence which have lower content of silt and clay.The texture of the sediments and metal content and organic matter are conditioned by the hydrodynamics of caño Mánamoand interaction with the salt wedge in the stretch near its mouth. There is a strong association between metals and organicmatter silt and clay fractions of sediments.Key words: Quality of sediment, geochemical fractionation, caño Mánamo

Ciona intestinalis interleukin 17-like genes expression is upregulated by LPS challenge

In humans, IL-17 is a proinflammatory cytokine that plays a key role in the clearance of extracellular bacteria promoting cell infiltration and production of several cytokines and chemokines. Here, we report on three Ciona intestinalis IL-17 homologues (CiIL17-1, CiIL17-2, CiIL17-3). The gene organisation, phylogenetic tree and modelling supported the close relationship with the mammalian IL-17A and IL-17F suggesting that the C. intestinalis IL-17 genes share a common ancestor in the chordate lineages. Real time PCR analysis showed a prompt expression induced by LPS inoculation suggesting that they are involved in the first phase of inflammatory response. In situ hybridization assays disclosed that the genes transcription was upregulated in the pharynx, the main organ of the ascidian immune system, and expressed by hemocytes (granulocytes and univacuolar refractile granulocyte) inside the pharynx vessels

Pan-Cancer Analysis of lncRNA Regulation Supports Their Targeting of Cancer Genes in Each Tumor Context

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are commonly dys-regulated in tumors, but only a handful are known toplay pathophysiological roles in cancer. We inferredlncRNAs that dysregulate cancer pathways, onco-genes, and tumor suppressors (cancer genes) bymodeling their effects on the activity of transcriptionfactors, RNA-binding proteins, and microRNAs in5,185 TCGA tumors and 1,019 ENCODE assays.Our predictions included hundreds of candidateonco- and tumor-suppressor lncRNAs (cancerlncRNAs) whose somatic alterations account for thedysregulation of dozens of cancer genes and path-ways in each of 14 tumor contexts. To demonstrateproof of concept, we showed that perturbations tar-geting OIP5-AS1 (an inferred tumor suppressor) andTUG1 and WT1-AS (inferred onco-lncRNAs) dysre-gulated cancer genes and altered proliferation ofbreast and gynecologic cancer cells. Our analysis in-dicates that, although most lncRNAs are dysregu-lated in a tumor-specific manner, some, includingOIP5-AS1, TUG1, NEAT1, MEG3, and TSIX, synergis-tically dysregulate cancer pathways in multiple tumorcontexts

Pan-cancer Alterations of the MYC Oncogene and Its Proximal Network across the Cancer Genome Atlas

Although theMYConcogene has been implicated incancer, a systematic assessment of alterations ofMYC, related transcription factors, and co-regulatoryproteins, forming the proximal MYC network (PMN),across human cancers is lacking. Using computa-tional approaches, we define genomic and proteo-mic features associated with MYC and the PMNacross the 33 cancers of The Cancer Genome Atlas.Pan-cancer, 28% of all samples had at least one ofthe MYC paralogs amplified. In contrast, the MYCantagonists MGA and MNT were the most frequentlymutated or deleted members, proposing a roleas tumor suppressors.MYCalterations were mutu-ally exclusive withPIK3CA,PTEN,APC,orBRAFalterations, suggesting that MYC is a distinct onco-genic driver. Expression analysis revealed MYC-associated pathways in tumor subtypes, such asimmune response and growth factor signaling; chro-matin, translation, and DNA replication/repair wereconserved pan-cancer. This analysis reveals insightsinto MYC biology and is a reference for biomarkersand therapeutics for cancers with alterations ofMYC or the PMN

Genomic, Pathway Network, and Immunologic Features Distinguishing Squamous Carcinomas

This integrated, multiplatform PanCancer Atlas study co-mapped and identified distinguishing molecular features of squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) from five sites associated with smokin

Spatial Organization and Molecular Correlation of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes Using Deep Learning on Pathology Images

Beyond sample curation and basic pathologic characterization, the digitized H&E-stained images of TCGA samples remain underutilized. To highlight this resource, we present mappings of tumorinfiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) based on H&E images from 13 TCGA tumor types. These TIL maps are derived through computational staining using a convolutional neural network trained to classify patches of images. Affinity propagation revealed local spatial structure in TIL patterns and correlation with overall survival. TIL map structural patterns were grouped using standard histopathological parameters. These patterns are enriched in particular T cell subpopulations derived from molecular measures. TIL densities and spatial structure were differentially enriched among tumor types, immune subtypes, and tumor molecular subtypes, implying that spatial infiltrate state could reflect particular tumor cell aberration states. Obtaining spatial lymphocytic patterns linked to the rich genomic characterization of TCGA samples demonstrates one use for the TCGA image archives with insights into the tumor-immune microenvironment

Transmission of MRSA between Companion Animals and Infected Human Patients Presenting to Outpatient Medical Care Facilities

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a significant pathogen in both human and veterinary medicine. The importance of companion animals as reservoirs of human infections is currently unknown. The companion animals of 49 MRSA-infected outpatients (cases) were screened for MRSA carriage, and their bacterial isolates were compared with those of the infected patients using Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE). Rates of MRSA among the companion animals of MRSA-infected patients were compared to rates of MRSA among companion animals of pet guardians attending a “veterinary wellness clinic” (controls). MRSA was isolated from at least one companion animal in 4/49 (8.2%) households of MRSA-infected outpatients vs. none of the pets of the 50 uninfected human controls. Using PFGE, patient-pets MRSA isolates were identical for three pairs and discordant for one pair (suggested MRSA inter-specie transmission p-value = 0.1175). These results suggest that companion animals of MRSA-infected patients can be culture-positive for MRSA, representing a potential source of infection or re-infection for humans. Further studies are required to better understand the epidemiology of MRSA human-animal inter-specie transmission

Serum Albumin Is Inversely Associated With Portal Vein Thrombosis in Cirrhosis

We analyzed whether serum albumin is independently associated with portal vein thrombosis (PVT) in liver cirrhosis (LC) and if a biologic plausibility exists. This study was divided into three parts. In part 1 (retrospective analysis), 753 consecutive patients with LC with ultrasound-detected PVT were retrospectively analyzed. In part 2, 112 patients with LC and 56 matched controls were entered in the cross-sectional study. In part 3, 5 patients with cirrhosis were entered in the in vivo study and 4 healthy subjects (HSs) were entered in the in vitro study to explore if albumin may affect platelet activation by modulating oxidative stress. In the 753 patients with LC, the prevalence of PVT was 16.7%; logistic analysis showed that only age (odds ratio [OR], 1.024; P = 0.012) and serum albumin (OR, -0.422; P = 0.0001) significantly predicted patients with PVT. Analyzing the 112 patients with LC and controls, soluble clusters of differentiation (CD)40-ligand (P = 0.0238), soluble Nox2-derived peptide (sNox2-dp; P < 0.0001), and urinary excretion of isoprostanes (P = 0.0078) were higher in patients with LC. In LC, albumin was correlated with sCD4OL (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient [r(s)], -0.33; P < 0.001), sNox2-dp (r(s), -0.57; P < 0.0001), and urinary excretion of isoprostanes (r(s), -0.48; P < 0.0001) levels. The in vivo study showed a progressive decrease in platelet aggregation, sNox2-dp, and urinary 8-iso prostaglandin F2 alpha-III formation 2 hours and 3 days after albumin infusion. Finally, platelet aggregation, sNox2-dp, and isoprostane formation significantly decreased in platelets from HSs incubated with scalar concentrations of albumin. Conclusion: Low serum albumin in LC is associated with PVT, suggesting that albumin could be a modulator of the hemostatic system through interference with mechanisms regulating platelet activation