Physiological Responses to Drought Stress in Jatropha curcas Seedlings

Aims: The aim of the study was to investigate the physiological mechanisms of Jatropha curcas seedlings exposed to drought and the possible influence of seedling age. Study Design: A pot experiment was carried out using a completely randomized design with two seedling ages (2- and 3-month-old seedlings), two treatments per age (Watered: fully irrigated, and Unwatered: Not irrigated), six replicates (24 pots). Place and Duration of Study: The experiment was performed in a greenhouse facility located at the Experimental Station “Mauro Deidda” (Department of Agriculture of University of Sassari) at Ottava (Sassari, Italy) between June and September 2011. Methodology: To investigate the responses of 2- and 3-month-old J. curcas seedlings exposed to drought stress on 4th, 8th, 12th, 19th, and 26th day from treatment’s beginning, leaf and soil water content, biometric, gas exchange, and chlorophyll a fluorescence measurements were performed; on 26th day from treatment’s beginning, biometric destructive measurements were carried out. Results: Results support the hypothesis that J. curcas is appropriate to be cultivated in areas with limited water availability or prolonged periods of drought and highlight that mechanisms of drought response are highly influenced by seedling age. J. curcas seedlings maintained a good leaf water status by means of an effective stomatal closure, associated with a reduced aboveground growth and an increased root:shoot ratio. Under drought stress, 2-month seedlings showed a higher allocation of resources to roots compared to 3-month seedlings. Drought resulted in more detrimental effects on the photosynthetic response of 3-month seedlings, inducing the reduction of stomata conductance and the loss of photosystem II integrity. 2-month seedlings were instead able to activate mechanisms of drought tolerance through the activation of excess energy dissipation mechanisms. Conclusion: In the early stage of crop establishment, the transplanting of J. curcas 2-month seedlings proved to be more effective in order to avoid water stress related consequences

Síndrome de Cushing secundario a carcinoma de la glándula suprarrenal izquierda con metástasis hepáticas y trombosis tumoral masiva de la vena cava

Se presenta el caso de una mujer de 47 años con cuadro clínico de siete meses de evolución caracterizado por aumento progresivo de peso, hipertensión arterial y diabetes mellitus de reciente aparición, hirsutismo facial y en tórax, alopecia frontal, alteraciones en la menstruación e hipopotasiemia. Se consideró el diagnóstico de síndrome de Cushing, por lo cual se iniciaron estudios de extensión para establecer su etiología. Durante su hospitalización presentó una evolución tórpida y falleció. En la autopsia clínica se encontró un carcinoma de la glándula suprarrenal izquierda, de 400g, aproximadamente, con metástasis a hígado y trombosis masiva de la vena cava, lo que finalmente produjo su muerte.   doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.7705/biomedica.v32i4.56

3D Reconstruction of the Morpho-Functional Topography of the Human Vagal Trigone

The Vagal Trigone, often referred to as Ala Cinerea, is a triangular-shaped area of the floor of the fourth ventricle that is strictly involved in the network of chardiochronotropic, baroceptive, respiratory, and gastrointestinal control systems of the medulla oblongata. While it is frequently identified as the superficial landmark for the underlying Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus, this correspondence is not univocal in anatomical literature and is often oversimplified in neuroanatomy textbooks and neurosurgical atlases. As the structure represents an important landmark for neurosurgical procedures involving the floor of the fourth ventricle, accurate morphological characterization is required to avoid unwanted side effects (e.g., bradychardia, hypertension) during neuorphysiological monitoring and cranial nerve nuclei stimulation in intraoperative settings. The aim of this study was to address the anatomo-topographical relationships of the Vagal Trigone with the underlying nuclei. For this purpose, we have conducted an anatomo-microscopical examination of serial sections deriving from 54 Human Brainstems followed by 3D reconstruction and rendering of the specimens. Our findings indicate that the Vagal Trigone corresponds only partially with the Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus, while most of its axial profile is occupied by the dorsal regions of the Solitary Tract Nucleus. Furthermore, basing on literature and our findings we speculate that the neuroblasts of the Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus undergo neurobiotaxic migration induced by the neuroblasts of the dorsolaterally located solitary tract nucleus, giving rise to the Ala Cinerea, a topographically defined area for parasympathetic visceral control

New diagnostic approaches for inflammatory bowel diseases

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), that include ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) are among the most serious and perplexing digestive diseases. Indeed, diagnosis is sometimes delayed due to the variability and subtlety of its initial manifestations, especially in CD. Since no gold standard is currently defined for the diagnosis and monitoring of IBD, a number of genomic, metabolomic and proteomic studies have tried to address this issue. After illustrating the traditional diagnostic approach (mainly fecal calprotectin), this Opinion Paper reports about the utility of some new biomarkers (micro-RNA, proteomic and metabolomic markers). In particular, the results of a study on fecal peptides are commented. After verifying that proteolytic degradation was clearly visible in fecal samples of a number of control (n=34) and patients with IBD (n=133), the matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) time of flight (TOF) mass spectrometry was used to evaluate peptides patterns of fecal samples, in a range from 1000 to 4000 Da. This cohort was used to derive an algorithm for IBD diagnosis. Diagnostic performances were then estimated using an additional validation cohort, including subjects with IBD (n=42) and without IBD (n= 28). Sensitivity was 54.8% (95%CI: 38.7%-70.2%) and specificity 96.4% (95%CI: 81.7%-99.9%) with a positive and a negative predictive value of 95.8% (95%CI: 76.7%-99.4%) and 58.7% (95%CI: 50.3-66.6%), respectively. In comparison, fecal calprotectin, achieved sensitivity and specificity of 78.6% (95%CI: 63.2%-89.7%) and 42.9% (95%CI: 24.5%-62.8%). In spite of the obtained good diagnostic performances, any candidate biomarker, once identified, should be carefully validated before being translated into clinical practice