Acute imidacloprid exposure alters mitochondrial function in bumblebee flight muscle and brain - Correction / Corrigendum

This article is a correction to: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/finsc.2021.765179 Acute Imidacloprid Exposure Alters Mitochondrial Function in Bumblebee Flight Muscle and Brai

Can traditionally administered home remedies be recommended? An assessment of 287 herbal home remedies for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and horses, collected in the Swiss Canton of Graubuenden

Introduction: In Switzerland, the administration of medicinal plants to livestock is almost completely confined to the use of home remedies. To save this traditional knowledge, which has been handed down through word of mouth, a project aims to collect this information from different regions of Switzerland. Grison home remedies have been evaluated to decide whether or not they can be recommended. Methods: 32 current or former Grison livestock keepers (average age 59 years) provided information on the home remedies they use or have used to maintain the health of their cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and horses and to treat them. The data collection was conducted by interview (28 on-site, 3 by phone, 1 in writing) with a standardised questionnaire about collecting medicinal plants, and preparing and administrating home remedies for farm animals. Only home remedies containing plants, lichens or products deriving from them were assessed by a practising veterinarian and a pharmacist. Results: Grison livestock keepers mentioned 407 home remedies. The assessment included 287 herbal home remedies with 346 different indications. The investigations resulted in classification into 3 categories: (1) 278 indications that can be recommended, provided, in some cases, changes were made to either their preparation or administration. (2) 17 indications that could not be assessed and (3) 51 indications where their use is not recommended at all. Overall, 122 different, mainly herbal ingredients were used in the home remedies assessed. The most frequently applied herbal drugs are shown in the table, including their legal status for use in food-producing animals and the results of the assessment. Discussion/Conclusion: To enable livestock keepers to gain access to traditional knowledge, experts need to make recommendations for appropriate preparation and application of home remedies, to provide advice on necessary precautions and information on the legal situation for use on farm animals

Epigenetic regulation of 5α reductase-1 underlies adaptive plasticity of reproductive function and pubertal timing

Women facing increased energetic demands in childhood commonly have altered adult ovarian activity and shorter reproductive lifespan, possibly comprising a strategy to optimize reproductive success. Here we sought to understand the mechanisms of early-life programming of reproductive function, by integrating analysis of reproductive tissues in an appropriate mouse model with methylation analysis of proxy tissue DNA in a well-characterized population of Bangladeshi migrants in the UK. Bangladeshi women whose childhood was in Bangladesh were found to have later pubertal onset and lower age-matched ovarian reserve than Bangladeshi women who grew-up in England. Subsequently we aimed to explore the potential relevance to the altered reproductive phenotype of one of the genes that emerged from the screens. Results: Of the genes associated with differential methylation in the Bangladeshi women whose childhood was in Bangladesh as compared to Bangladeshi women who grew up in the UK, 13 correlated with altered expression of the orthologous gene in the mouse model ovaries. These mice had delayed pubertal onset and a smaller ovarian reserve compared to controls. The most relevant of these genes for reproductive function appeared to be SRD5A1, which encodes the steroidogenic enzyme 5α reductase-1. SRD5A1 was more methylated at the same transcriptional enhancer in mice ovaries as in the women’s buccal DNA, and its expression was lower in the hypothalamus of the mice as well, suggesting a possible role in the central control of reproduction. The expression of Kiss1 and Gnrh was also lower in these mice compared to controls, and inhibition of 5α reductase-1 reduced Kiss1 and Gnrh mRNA levels and blocked GnRH release in GnRH neuronal cell cultures. Crucially, we show that inhibition of this enzyme in female mice in vivo delayed pubertal onset. Conclusions: SRD5A1/5α reductase-1 responds epigenetically to the environment and its down-regulation appears to alter the reproductive phenotype. These findings help to explain diversity in reproductive characteristics and how they are shaped by early-life environment, and reveal novel pathways that might be targeted to mitigate health issues caused by life-history trade-offs

Застосування інформаційних технологій в міжнародній торгівлі і на транспорті

This report describes the stable expression of a medically important antibody in the staple cereal crops rice and wheat. We successfully expressed a single-chain Fv antibody (ScFvT84.66) against carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), a well characterized tumor-associated marker antigen. scFv constructs were engineered for recombinant antibody targeting to the plant cell apoplast and ER. Up to 30 mg/g of functional recombinant antibody was detected in the leaves and seeds of wheat and rice. We confirmed that transgenic dry seeds could be stored for at least five months at room temperature, without significant loss of the amount or activity of scFvT84.66. Our results represent the first transition from model plant expression systems, such as tobacco and Arabidopsis, to widely cultivated cereal crops, such as rice and wheat, for expression of an antibody molecule that has already shown efficacy in clinical applications. Thus, we have established that molecular pharming in cereals can be a viable production system for such high-value pharmaceutical macromolecules. Our findings provide a strong foundation for exploiting alternative uses of cereal crops both in industrialized and developing countries

Исследование водородостойкости и коррозионной стойкости сплава Zr-1Nb, легированного титаном методом высокодозовой имплантации низкоэнергетических ионов

Выпускная квалификационная работа направлена на исследование возможности повышения водородостойкости и коррозионной стойкости сплава Zr-1Nb путем формирования модифицированного поверхностного слоя методом высокодозовой низкоэнергетичной ионной имплантации титана.Final qualification work is aimed at studying the possibility of increasing the hydrogen resistance and corrosion resistance of the Zr-1Nb alloy by forming a modified surface layer by the method of high-dose low-energy ion implantation of titanium

Testing the FMR1 Promoter for Mosaicism in DNA Methylation among CpG Sites, Strands, and Cells in FMR1-Expressing Males with Fragile X Syndrome

Variability among individuals in the severity of fragile X syndrome (FXS) is influenced by epigenetic methylation mosaicism, which may also be common in other complex disorders. The epigenetic signal of dense promoter DNA methylation is usually associated with gene silencing, as was initially reported for FMR1 alleles in individuals with FXS. A paradox arose when significant levels of FMR1 mRNA were reported for some males with FXS who had been reported to have predominately methylated alleles. We have used hairpin-bisufite PCR, validated with molecular batch-stamps and barcodes, to collect and assess double-stranded DNA methylation patterns from these previously studied males. These patterns enable us to distinguish among three possible forms of methylation mosaicism, any one of which could explain FMR1 expression in these males. Our data indicate that cryptic inter-cell mosaicism in DNA methylation can account for the presence of FMR1 mRNA in some individuals with FXS

Statistical Inference of In Vivo Properties of Human DNA Methyltransferases from Double-Stranded Methylation Patterns

DNA methyltransferases establish methylation patterns in cells and transmit these patterns over cell generations, thereby influencing each cell's epigenetic states. Three primary DNA methyltransferases have been identified in mammals: DNMT1, DNMT3A and DNMT3B. Extensive in vitro studies have investigated key properties of these enzymes, namely their substrate specificity and processivity. Here we study these properties in vivo, by applying novel statistical analysis methods to double-stranded DNA methylation patterns collected using hairpin-bisulfite PCR. Our analysis fits a novel Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to the observed data, allowing for potential bisulfite conversion errors, and yields statistical estimates of parameters that quantify enzyme processivity and substrate specificity. We apply this model to methylation patterns established in vivo at three loci in humans: two densely methylated inactive X (Xi)-linked loci ( and ), and an autosomal locus (), where methylation densities are tissue-specific but moderate. We find strong evidence for a high level of processivity of DNMT1 at and , with the mean association tract length being a few hundred base pairs. Regardless of tissue types, methylation patterns at are dominated by DNMT1 maintenance events, similar to the two Xi-linked loci, but are insufficiently informative regarding processivity to draw any conclusions about processivity at that locus. At all three loci we find that DNMT1 shows a strong preference for adding methyl groups to hemi-methylated CpG sites over unmethylated sites. The data at all three loci also suggest low (possibly 0) association of the de novo methyltransferases, the DNMT3s, and are consequently uninformative about processivity or preference of these enzymes. We also extend our HMM to reanalyze published data on mouse DNMT1 activities in vitro. The results suggest shorter association tracts (and hence weaker processivity), and much longer non-association tracts than human DNMT1 in vivo