Classificação Morfológica e Genotípica e Correlação Entre Propriedades Fisiológicas e Citopatogênicas de Isolados Clínicos e Ambientais de Acanthamoeba

Amebas de vida livre do gênero Acanthamoeba podem eventualmente sobreviver como parasitas, causando infecções graves no homem e em outros animais. Algumas características biológicas e fisiológicas têm sido relacionadas ao nível de patogenicidade das cepas, o que permite inferir sobre o potencial patogênico do gênero. O objetivo deste estudo foi classificar isolados de Acanthamoeba obtidos no Brasil, avaliar suas propriedades de patogenicidade e discutir os resultados com base na origem dos mesmos. Um total de 39 isolados obtidos de casos de ceratite amebiana (n=16) e de amostras ambientais (n=23) foram classificados em grupos morfológicos (I, II, III) e genotipados (T1-T20) pelo sequenciamento dos fragmentos ASA.S1 e GTSA.B1 do gene 18S rDNA. Para a caracterização, foram utilizados os ensaios de termotolerância, osmotolerância e de citopatogenicidade em células MDCK. Os resultados dos isolados clínicos e ambientais foram comparados pelo teste do x2 (p<0,05). A classificação foi realizada como segue: grupo I (T17, T18); grupo II (T1, T3, T4, T11); e grupo III (T5, T15), com predominância do genótipo T4 (22/39). Os isolados clínicos foram identificados como T3 (1/16), T4 (14/16) e T5 (1/16). A maioria dos isolados (38/39) cresceu a 37 °C, mas a tolerância a 40 °C foi mais observada entre os isolados ambientais. A tolerância a 1 M de manitol foi infrequente (4/39), sendo que três desses isolados são de origem clínica. Não houve diferença significativa entre os números de isolados clínicos e ambientais com tolerância a 40 °C (p=0,06), a 1 M de manitol (p=0,14) e com a capacidade de causar efeito citopático (p=0,59). E foi observada uma correspondência variável dessas propriedades entre os diferentes genótipos. Este estudo identifica, pela primeira vez, os genótipos T1, T15 e T18 no Brasil. Além disso, demonstra que há pouca correlação entre a origem clínica dos isolados e os testes fisiológicos de tolerância e citopatogenicidade, o que comprova que alguns parâmetros in vitro não refletem necessariamente uma maior propensão de Acanthamoeba para causar doenças

Resultados do monitoramento integrado da colheita da soja na safra 2018/2019 no Paraná.

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Coletor de esporos: descrição, uso e resultados no manejo da ferrugem-asiática da soja.

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Resultados do manejo integrado de pragas da soja na safra 2019/2020 no Paraná.

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Coinoculação da soja com Bradyrhizobium e Azospirillum na safra 2019/2020 no Paraná.

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Expansion of the miRNA Pathway in the Hemipteran Insect Acyrthosiphon pisum

The pathways that allow short noncoding RNAs such as the microRNAs (miRNAs) to mediate gene regulation and control critical cellular and developmental processes involve a limited number of key protein components. These proteins are the Dicer-like RNases, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-binding proteins, and the Argonaute (AGO) proteins that process stem-loop hairpin transcripts of endogenous genes to generate miRNAs or long dsRNA precursors (either exogenous or endogenous). Comparative genomics studies of metazoans have shown the pathways to be highly conserved overall; the major difference observed is that the vertebrate pathways overlap in sharing a single Dicer (DCR) and AGO proteins, whereas those of insects appear to be parallel, with distinct Dicers and AGOs required for each pathway. The genome of the pea aphid is the first available for a hemipteran insect and discloses an unexpected expansion of the miRNA pathway. It has two copies of the miRNA-specific dicr-1 and ago1 genes and four copies of pasha a cofactor of drosha involved in miRNA biosynthesis. For three of these expansions, we showed that one copy of the genes diverged rapidly and in one case (ago1b) shows signs of positive selection. These expansions occurred concomitantly within a brief evolutionary period. The pea aphid, which reproduces by viviparous parthenogenesis, is able to produce several adapted phenotypes from one single genotype. We show by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction that all the duplicated copies of the miRNA machinery genes are expressed in the different morphs. Investigating the function of these novel genes offers an exciting new challenge in aphid biology

Resultados do manejo integrado de pragas da soja na safra 2018/19 no Paraná.

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Male age is associated with extra-pair paternity, but not with extra-pair mating behaviour

Extra-pair paternity is the result of copulation between a female and a male other than her social partner. In socially monogamous birds, old males are most likely to sire extra-pair offspring. The male manipulation and female choice hypotheses predict that age-specific male mating behaviour could explain this old-over-young male advantage. These hypotheses have been difficult to test because copulations and the individuals involved are hard to observe. Here, we studied the mating behaviour and pairing contexts of captive house sparrows, Passer domesticus. Our set-up mimicked the complex social environment experienced by wild house sparrows. We found that middle-aged males, which would be considered old in natural populations, gained most extra-pair paternity. However, both, female solicitation behaviour and subsequent extra-pair matings were not associated with male age. Further, copulations were more likely when solicited by females than when initiated by males (i.e. unsolicited copulations). Male initiated within-pair copulations were more common than male initiated extra-pair copulations. To conclude, our results did not support either hypothesis regarding age-specific male mating behaviour. Instead, female choice, independent of male age, governed copulation success, especially in an extra-pair context. Post-copulatory mechanisms might determine why older males sire more extra-pair offspring

Adipose tissue concentrations of non-persistent environmental phenols and local redox balance in adults from Southern Spain

The aim was to evaluate the associations of environmental phenol and paraben concentrations with the oxidative microenvironment in adipose tissue. This study was conducted in a subsample (n=144) of the GraMo cohort (Southern Spain). Concentrations of 9 phenols and 7 parabens, and levels of oxidative stress biomarkers were quantified in adipose tissue. Associations were estimated using multivariable linear regression analyses adjusted for potential confounders. Benzophenone-3 (BP-3) concentration was borderline associated with enhanced glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity [exp(β)=1.20, p=0.060] and decreased levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) [exp(β)=0.55, p=0.070]. Concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) and methylparaben (MeP) were associated to lower glutathione reductase (GRd) activity [exp(β)=0.83, exp(β)=0.72, respectively], and BPA was borderline associated to increased levels of oxidized glutathione (GSSG) [exp(β)=1.73, p-value=0.062]. MeP was inversely associated to both hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1) and superoxide dismustase (SOD) activity, as well as to the levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) [0.75 < exp(β) < 0.79]. Our results suggest that some specific non-persistent pollutants may be associated with a disruption of the activity of relevant antioxidant enzymes, in addition to the depletion of the glutathione stock. They might act as a tissue-specific source of free radicals, contributing to the oxidative microenvironment in the adipose tissue.This research was supported in part by research grants from the European Union Commission (H2020-EJP-HBM4EU and SOE1/P1/F0082), Biomedical Research Networking Center-CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), from the Institute of Health Carlos III, supported by European Regional Development Fund/FEDER (FIS-PI13/02406, FISPI14/ 00067, FIS-PI16/01820, FIS-PI16/01812, FIS-PI16/01858 and FIS-PI17/01743), and from the Consejería de Salud, Junta de Andalucía (PS-0506-2016). Funding for the equipment used was provided by Velux Fonden, Augustinus Fonden and Svend Andersen Fonden. The authors thank Kirsten og Freddy Johansens Fond and the International Centre for Research and Research Training in Endocrine Disruption of Male Reproduction and Child Health (EDMaRC, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen University) for economic support. Dr. Juan Pedro Arrebola is under contract within Ramón y Cajal Program (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad de España, RYC-2016-20155)