Best Participatory Practices in Mangrove Conservation Management: The Case in the Mangrove Rehabilitation Program in the Fishing Villages in the Philippines

The mangrove conservation program is one of the measures to address climate change at the village or community level and is the most effective and sustainable. For it entails a community participatory approach and is anchored on the participation of the private sector, and people’s organizations.  Bayabas, a coastal municipality of Surigao del Sur, in the Philippines with the communities Cabugo, Magobawok, Belete, and La Paz, the sites of the study, has a robust mangrove conservation program.  The study used mixed methods of survey, ethnographic, and observation/case study methods which capture the organizational culture of the sites. The findings of the study include the following:  The Mangrove Conservation sites were established in response to the significant provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991 bearing on Environmental Conservation duly supported by an Ordinance of the LGU of Bayabas. The operation of the Mangrove Conservation sites was being assisted by the People’s Organization (PO) which is also a quasi-cooperative for fishers. The POs were established by a joint effort of the PFAR/BFAR and the LGU of Bayabas. Sagip Wakatan, the Mangrove Conservation Program of the LGU of Bayabas was anchored on food security, sustainable development, people’s empowerment, eco-tourism, and the response to climate change initiatives at the grassroots levels. Livelihood integration is one of the most important features of the Mangrove Conservation Program and was directly channeled into the four (4) People’s Organizations (POs). The fishers across four (4) sites are active enough in their participation in the Mangrove Conservation

WNT8 and BMP2B co-regulate non-axial mesoderm patterning during zebrafish gastrulation

AbstractDuring vertebrate mesoderm formation, fates are established according to position in the dorsoventral (D/V) axis of the embryo. Initially, maternal signaling divides nascent mesoderm into axial (dorsal) and non-axial (ventral) domains. Although the subsequent subdivision of non-axial mesoderm into multiple D/V fate domains is known to involve zygotic Wnt8 and BMP signaling as well as the Vent/Vox/Ved family of transcriptional repressors, how levels of signaling activity are translated into differential regulation of fates is not well understood. To address this question, we have analyzed zebrafish embryos lacking Wnt8 and BMP2b. Zebrafish wnt8; swr (bmp2b) double mutants display a progressive loss of non-axial mesoderm and a concomitant expansion of axial mesoderm during gastrulation. Mesoderm induction and specification of the axial domain occur normally in wnt8; swr mutants, but dorsal mesoderm genes eventually come to be expressed throughout the mesoderm, suggesting that the establishment of non-axial mesoderm identity requires continual repression of dorsal mesoderm factors, including repressors of ventral genes. Loss-of-function for Vent, Vox, and Ved phenocopies the wnt8; swr mutant phenotype, consistent with Wnt8 and BMP2b maintaining non-axial mesoderm identity during gastrulation through the regulation of these three transcriptional repressors. We postulate that timely differentiation of the mesoderm requires the maintenance of non-axial mesoderm identity by Wnt8 and BMP2b at the onset of gastrulation followed by subdivision of the non-axial mesoderm into different functional domains during gastrulation

Assessing the comparative effectiveness of Tai Chi versus physical therapy for knee osteoarthritis: design and rationale for a randomized trial

Background: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) causes pain and long-term disability with annual healthcare costs exceeding $185 billion in the United States. Few medical remedies effectively influence the course of the disease. Finding effective treatments to maintain function and quality of life in patients with knee OA is one of the national priorities identified by the Institute of Medicine. We are currently conducting the first comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness randomized trial of Tai Chi versus a physical-therapy regimen in a sample of patients with symptomatic and radiographically confirmed knee OA. This article describes the design and conduct of this trial. Methods/Design A single-center, 52-week, comparative effectiveness randomized controlled trial of Tai Chi versus a standardized physical-therapy regimen is being conducted at an urban tertiary medical center in Boston, Massachusetts. The study population consists of adults ≥ 40 years of age with symptomatic and radiographic knee OA (American College of Rheumatology criteria). Participants are randomly allocated to either 12 weeks of Tai Chi (2x/week) or Physical Therapy (2x/week for 6 weeks, followed by 6 weeks of rigorously monitored home exercise). The primary outcome measure is pain (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities WOMAC) subscale at 12 weeks. Secondary outcomes include WOMAC stkiffness and function domain scores, lower extremity strength and power, functional balance, physical performance tests, psychological and psychosocial functioning, durability effects, health related quality of life, and healthcare utilization at 12, 24 and 52 weeks. Discussion This study will be the first randomized comparative-effectiveness and cost-effectiveness trial of Tai Chi versus Physical Therapy in a large symptomatic knee OA population with long-term follow up. We present here a robust and well-designed randomized comparative-effectiveness trial that also explores multiple outcomes to elucidate the potential mechanisms of mind-body effect for a major disabling disease with substantial health burdens and economic costs. Results of this study are expected to have important public health implications for the large and growing population with knee OA. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01258985 Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1472-6882-14-333) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

A New Class of Small Molecule Inhibitor of BMP Signaling

Growth factor signaling pathways are tightly regulated by phosphorylation and include many important kinase targets of interest for drug discovery. Small molecule inhibitors of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) receptor kinase ALK2 (ACVR1) are needed urgently to treat the progressively debilitating musculoskeletal disease fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP). Dorsomorphin analogues, first identified in zebrafish, remain the only BMP inhibitor chemotype reported to date. By screening an assay panel of 250 recombinant human kinases we identified a highly selective 2-aminopyridine-based inhibitor K02288 with in vitro activity against ALK2 at low nanomolar concentrations similar to the current lead compound LDN-193189. K02288 specifically inhibited the BMP-induced Smad pathway without affecting TGF-β signaling and induced dorsalization of zebrafish embryos. Comparison of the crystal structures of ALK2 with K02288 and LDN-193189 revealed additional contacts in the K02288 complex affording improved shape complementarity and identified the exposed phenol group for further optimization of pharmacokinetics. The discovery of a new chemical series provides an independent pharmacological tool to investigate BMP signaling and offers multiple opportunities for pre-clinical development

Carbon Dynamics, Development and Stress Responses in Arabidopsis: Involvement of the APL4 Subunit of ADP-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase (Starch Synthesis)

An Arabidopsis thaliana T-DNA insertional mutant was identified and characterized for enhanced tolerance to the singlet-oxygen-generating herbicide atrazine in comparison to wild-type. This enhanced atrazine tolerance mutant was shown to be affected in the promoter structure and in the regulation of expression of the APL4 isoform of ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase, a key enzyme of the starch biosynthesis pathway, thus resulting in decrease of APL4 mRNA levels. The impact of this regulatory mutation was confirmed by the analysis of an independent T-DNA insertional mutant also affected in the promoter of the APL4 gene. The resulting tissue-specific modifications of carbon partitioning in plantlets and the effects on plantlet growth and stress tolerance point out to specific and non-redundant roles of APL4 in root carbon dynamics, shoot-root relationships and sink regulations of photosynthesis. Given the effects of exogenous sugar treatments and of endogenous sugar levels on atrazine tolerance in wild-type Arabidopsis plantlets, atrazine tolerance of this apl4 mutant is discussed in terms of perception of carbon status and of investment of sugar allocation in xenobiotic and oxidative stress responses

Mutations in the SLC2A9 Gene Cause Hyperuricosuria and Hyperuricemia in the Dog

Allantoin is the end product of purine catabolism in all mammals except humans, great apes, and one breed of dog, the Dalmatian. Humans and Dalmatian dogs produce uric acid during purine degradation, which leads to elevated levels of uric acid in blood and urine and can result in significant diseases in both species. The defect in Dalmatians results from inefficient transport of uric acid in both the liver and renal proximal tubules. Hyperuricosuria and hyperuricemia (huu) is a simple autosomal recessive trait for which all Dalmatian dogs are homozygous. Therefore, in order to map the locus, an interbreed backcross was used. Linkage mapping localized the huu trait to CFA03, which excluded the obvious urate transporter 1 gene, SLC22A12. Positional cloning placed the locus in a minimal interval of 2.5 Mb with a LOD score of 17.45. A critical interval of 333 kb containing only four genes was homozygous in all Dalmatians. Sequence and expression analyses of the SLC2A9 gene indicated three possible mutations, a missense mutation (G616T;C188F) and two promoter mutations that together appear to reduce the expression levels of one of the isoforms. The missense mutation is associated with hyperuricosuria in the Dalmatian, while the promoter SNPs occur in other unaffected breeds of dog. Verification of the causative nature of these changes was obtained when hyperuricosuric dogs from several other breeds were found to possess the same combination of mutations as found in the Dalmatian. The Dalmatian dog model of hyperuricosuria and hyperuricemia underscores the importance of SLC2A9 for uric acid transport in mammals

FONZIE: An optimized pipeline for minisatellite marker discovery and primer design from large sequence data sets

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Micro-and minisatellites are among the most powerful genetic markers known to date. They have been used as tools for a large number of applications ranging from gene mapping to phylogenetic studies and isolate typing. However, identifying micro-and minisatellite markers on large sequence data sets is often a laborious process.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>FONZIE was designed to successively 1) perform a search for markers via the external software Tandem Repeat Finder, 2) exclude user-defined specific genomic regions, 3) screen for the size and the percent matches of each relevant marker found by Tandem Repeat Finder, 4) evaluate marker specificity (i.e., occurrence of the marker as a single copy in the genome) using BLAST2.0, 5) design minisatellite primer pairs via the external software Primer3, and 6) check the specificity of each final PCR product by BLAST. A final file returns to users all the results required to amplify markers. A biological validation of the approach was performed using the whole genome sequence of the phytopathogenic fungus <it>Leptosphaeria maculans</it>, showing that more than 90% of the minisatellite primer pairs generated by the pipeline amplified a PCR product, 44.8% of which showed agarose-gel resolvable polymorphism between isolates. Segregation analyses confirmed that the polymorphic minisatellites corresponded to single-locus markers.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>FONZIE is a stand-alone and user-friendly application developed to minimize tedious manual operations, reduce errors, and speed up the search for efficient minisatellite and microsatellite markers departing from whole-genome sequence data. This pipeline facilitates the integration of data and provides a set of specific primer sequences for PCR amplification of single-locus markers. FONZIE is freely downloadable at: <url>http://www.versailles-grignon.inra.fr/bioger/equipes/leptosphaeria_maculans/outils_d_analyses/fonzie</url></p

Probenecid Blocks Human P2X7 Receptor-Induced Dye Uptake via a Pannexin-1 Independent Mechanism

P2X7 is a ligand-gated ion channel which is activated by ATP and displays secondary permeability characteristics. The mechanism of development of the secondary permeability pathway is currently unclear, although a role for the hemichannel protein pannexin-1 has been suggested. In this study we investigated the role of pannexin-1 in P2X7-induced dye uptake and ATP-induced IL-1β secretion from human monocytes. We found no pharmacological evidence for involvement of pannexin-1 in P2X7-mediated dye uptake in transfected HEK-293 cells with no inhibition seen for carbenoxolone and the pannexin-1 mimetic inhibitory peptide, 10Panx1. However, we found that probenecid inhibited P2X7-induced cationic and anionic dye uptake in stably transfected human P2X7 HEK-293 cells. An IC50 value of 203 μM was calculated for blockade of ATP-induced responses at human P2X7. Probenecid also reduced dye uptake and IL-1β secretion from human CD14+ monocytes whereas carbenoxolone and 10Panx1 showed no inhibitory effect. Patch clamp and calcium indicator experiments revealed that probenecid directly blocks the human P2X7 receptor

Activation of Akt by the Bacterial Inositol Phosphatase, SopB, is Wortmannin Insensitive

Salmonella enterica uses effector proteins translocated by a Type III Secretion System to invade epithelial cells. One of the invasion-associated effectors, SopB, is an inositol phosphatase that mediates sustained activation of the pro-survival kinase Akt in infected cells. Canonical activation of Akt involves membrane translocation and phosphorylation and is dependent on phosphatidyl inositide 3 kinase (PI3K). Here we have investigated these two distinct processes in Salmonella infected HeLa cells. Firstly, we found that SopB-dependent membrane translocation and phosphorylation of Akt are insensitive to the PI3K inhibitor wortmannin. Similarly, depletion of the PI3K regulatory subunits p85α and p85ß by RNAi had no inhibitory effect on SopB-dependent Akt phosphorylation. Nevertheless, SopB-dependent phosphorylation does depend on the Akt kinases, PDK1 and rictor-mTOR. Membrane translocation assays revealed a dependence on SopB for Akt recruitment to Salmonella ruffles and suggest that this is mediated by phosphoinositide (3,4) P2 rather than phosphoinositide (3,4,5) P3. Altogether these data demonstrate that Salmonella activates Akt via a wortmannin insensitive mechanism that is likely a class I PI3K-independent process that incorporates some essential elements of the canonical pathway

Tai Chi for treating knee osteoarthritis: Designing a long-term follow up randomized controlled trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Knee Osteoarthritis (KOA) is a major cause of pain and functional impairment among elders. Currently, there are neither feasible preventive intervention strategies nor effective medical remedies for the management of KOA. Tai Chi, an ancient Chinese mind-body exercise that is reported to enhance muscle function, balance and flexibility, and to reduce pain, depression and anxiety, may safely and effectively be used to treat KOA. However, current evidence is inconclusive. Our study examines the effects of a 12-week Tai Chi program compared with an attention control (wellness education and stretching) on pain, functional capacity, psychosocial variables, joint proprioception and health status in elderly people with KOA. The study will be completed by July 2009.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>Forty eligible patients, age > 55 yr, BMI ≤ 40 kg/m²with tibiofemoral osteoarthritis (American College of Rheumatology criteria) are identified and randomly allocated to either Tai Chi (10 modified forms from classical Yang style Tai Chi) or attention control (wellness education and stretching). The 60-minute intervention sessions take place twice weekly for 12 weeks. The study is conducted at an urban tertiary medical center in Boston, Massachusetts. The primary outcome measure is the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) pain subscale at 12 weeks. Secondary outcomes include weekly WOMAC pain, function and stiffness scores, patient and physician global assessments, lower-extremity function, knee proprioception, depression, self-efficacy, social support, health-related quality of life, adherence and occurrence of adverse events after 12, 24 and 48 weeks.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>In this article, we present the challenges of designing a randomized controlled trial with long-term follow up. The challenges encountered in this design are: strategies for recruitment, avoidance of selection bias, the actual practice of Tai Chi, and the maximization of adherence/follow-up while conducting the clinical trial for the evaluation of the effectiveness of Tai Chi on KOA.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00362453</p