Poly(hydroxyalkanoate) production by Cupriavidus necator from fatty waste can be enhanced by phaZ1 inactivation

PHA production from waste oils or fats requires microorganisms that should be both excellent PHA producers and equipped with enzymatic activities allowing hydrolysation of triglycerides. Unfortunately, microbes with the combination of substrate-utilization and PHA production are not currently available, and the strategies to be adopted are the use of costly commercial enzymes, or genetic modification of microorganisms exhibiting high PHA product yields. In the present work, after a general investigation on the ability of Cupriavidus necator to grow on a number of fatty substrates, the possibility to enhance PHA production by limiting intracellular depolymerisation, was investigated. By knocking out the related phaZ1 gene, the construction of C. necator recombinant strains impaired in depolymerase (PhaZ1) activity was achieved. The polymer yield of the recombinant strain was finally compared to that of the parental C. necator DSM 545

Multiple Species of Cuckoos Are Superior Predictors of Bird Species Richness in Asia

The abundance and the presence of common cuckoos Cuculus canorus have been shown to predict species richness of birds across Europe, while there are no such analyses available for other continents where species richness of parasitic cuckoos is larger. Here, we tested whether species richness of birds increased with the number of cuckoo species in two study areas in China and one in Japan. We also tested whether species richness of birds can be predicted by the number of cuckoo individuals. Furthermore, we compared the strength of association between overall bird species richness and species richness of cuckoos, Paridae, Corvidae, and birds of prey. This is the first study demonstrating that cuckoo species richness is more strongly associated with overall bird species richness than richness of species belonging to other families, and rather than occurrence of a single cuckoo species, as already demonstrated for the common cuckoo in Europe. The number of cuckoo species was positively associated with both non‐host and host species richness. We found evidence of the number of cuckoo species being associated with species richness of birds independently of country and year, while abundance of individual cuckoos was not a statistically significant predictor. Furthermore, we showed that richness of host species is strongly positively correlated with overall bird species richness in both countries. This implies that the high species richness of cuckoos in South‐East Asia is a reliable predictor of overall bird species richness

Physiological recovery among workers in long-distance sleddog race: a case study on female veterinarians in Finnmarksløpet.

During Finnmarksløpet (FL, one of the longest distance sleddog races in the world), veterinarians are exposed to extreme environmental conditions and tight working schedules, with little and fragmented sleep. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this case study was to examine cardiovascular parameters and sleep-wake patterns among veterinarians working within FL, during and after (for a month) the end of the race. METHODS: Six female veterinarians volunteered for the study. The participants wore a wrist device for a total of eight weeks in order to passively and semi-continuously record physiological responses throughout the day (i.e., heart rate, heart rate variability, number of steps, and sleep quality). Moreover, perceived sleep quality was assessed by Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). RESULTS: During and for one month after completion of the FL, most veterinarians presented an alteration of cardiovascular parameters and sleep quality. The heart rate circadian rhythm returned to pre-race values within about two weeks. CONCLUSIONS: The long-lasting alteration of the veterinarians’ cardiovascular parameters and sleep-wake patterns might have negative consequences for their health in the long-term, especially if similar experiences are repeated more times though the course of a year or season. More research is needed in order to understand the health risks, as well as how to prevent them, among veterinarians in long-distance sleddog races or other similar events.acceptedVersio

Effect of pre-seasonal seasonal treatment with budesonide topical nasal powder in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis

abstract The efficacy and safety of budesonide nasal powder (Rhinocort Turbuhaler®) in seasonal allergic rhinitis when given only at the onset of symptoms during the pollen season or when also given before the pollen season, were compared. The study was carried out in 364 patients from 14 centres in Italy as a randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, placebo- controlled comparison of five alternative treatment regimens given for 4 weeks during the pre-pollen and early pollen season (PPS) and for 6 weeks during the pollen season (PS). It was concluded that either 200 μ g or 400 μ g of budesonide given once daily PPS provides significant control of symptoms experienced during PPS. The 400 μ g dose, however, also provides additional prophylactic protection against symptoms during early PS. When the pollen season is established, the dose of budesonide may be reduced to 200 μ g

Cardiovascular features of possible autonomous cortisol secretion in patients with adrenal incidentalomas

Background: Low-grade incomplete post-dexamethasone cortisol suppression in patients with adrenal incidentalomas – recently defined as possible autonomous cortisol secretion (pACS) – has been associated with increased cardiovascular events and mortality. However, prospective studies documenting cardiac abnormalities in these patients are lacking. Subjects and methods: Between July 2016 and September 2017, 71 consecutive patients with adrenal lesions were prospectively screened for hypercortisolism by dexamethasone suppression test (NCT 02611258). Complete anthropometric, metabolic and hormonal parameters were recorded along with full cardiac ultrasound assessment and noninvasive measurement of arterial stiffness. All patients underwent chemical-shift magnetic resonance imaging to characterize the lesions. Cardiovascular outcomes were recorded in blind. Results: According to post-dexamethasone suppression cortisol values (post-DST), 34 patients had pACS and 37 nonfunctioning adenomas (NFA). The two groups were similar in sex, BMI, age distribution, cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities. Left ventricular mass index (LVMIBSA) was increased in pACS compared to NFA (P=0.006) and mildly correlated to the post-DST cortisol level (rho=0.347; P=0.004). The post-DST cortisol levels explained up to 13.7% of LVMIBSAvariance (P=0.002). Compared to NFA, patients with pACS had a higher prevalence of diastolic dysfunction (35.1% vs 82.6%; P=0.001) and worse arterial stiffness assessed by pulse wave velocity (P=0.033). Conclusions: In apparently asymptomatic patients, mild autonomous cortisol secretion can sustain early cardiac and vascular remodeling, independently of other risk factors. The morphological and functional cardiovascular changes observed in pACS underline the need for further studies to correctly define the long-term management of this relatively common condition

Regulatory T cells with multiple suppressive and potentially pro-tumor activities accumulate in human colorectal cancer

Tregs can contribute to tumor progression by suppressing antitumor immunity. Exceptionally, in human colorectal cancer (CRC), Tregs are thought to exert beneficial roles in controlling pro-tumor chronic inflammation. The goal of our study was to characterize CRC-infiltrating Tregs at multiple levels, by phenotypical, molecular and functional evaluation of Tregs from the tumor site, compared to non-tumoral mucosa and peripheral blood of CRC patients. The frequency of Tregs was higher in mucosa than in blood, and further significantly increased in tumor. Ex vivo, those Tregs suppressed the proliferation of tumor-infiltrating CD8+ and CD4+ T cells. A differential compartmentalization was detected between Helioshigh and Helioslow Treg subsets (thymus-derived versus peripherally induced): while Helioslow Tregs were enriched in both sites, only Helioshigh Tregs accumulated significantly and specifically in tumors, displayed a highly demethylated TSDR region and contained high proportions of cells expressing CD39 and OX40, markers of activation and suppression. Besides the suppression of T cells, Tregs may contribute to CRC progression also through releasing IL-17, or differentiating into Tfr cells that potentially antagonize a protective Tfh response, events that were both detected in tumor-associated Tregs. Overall, our data indicate that Treg accumulation may contribute through multiple mechanisms to CRC establishment and progression

Assessment of the Feasibility of an Extended Range Helicopter Operational Standard for Offshore Flights

The accident rate of rotorcraft has improved signi1cantly over the years but at a slow pace, and in any case the number of accidents per 2ight hours is one or two orders of magnitude higher than that of commercial aircraft, a consideration that could be reasonably related to the inherent higher risk associate with rotorcraft operations. This represent a strong evidence of the necessity to introduce airworthiness operation standards also in the rotorcraft community, as an effective mean to improve safety records, borrowing from the experience done in the commercial air transport community with the introduction of ETOPS. In this paper, a 1rst proposal of development of a safety standard for helicopter offshore operation is discussed together with the possible support to this development that could be given by the EU H2020 project NITROS

Bacterial Production of PHAs from Lipid-Rich by-Products

Background and Objective: Due to oil shortage and environmental problems, synthetic plastics will surely be replaced by alternative, biodegradable materials. A possible good example could be polyhydroxyalkanoates, and the inexpensive agricultural fatty byproducts could be usefully converted to polyhydroxyalkanoates by properly selected and/or developed microbes.Material and Methods: Among the more common by-products available, a variety of lipid-rich residues have been explored as substrate, such as crude glycerol from biodiesel, biodiesel obtained from fatty residues, and, from slaughterhouse, bacon rind, udder and tallow. In this paper, several new isolates and collection PHA-producing microbes have been screened for both lipolytic activities and polyhydroxyalkanoates production. The soil proved to be the most promising mining place to find new interesting microbial species, even better than more specific and selective environments such as slaughterhouses.Results and Conclusion: Remarkably, two of the collection strains used here, known to be polyhydroxyalkanoates producers, resulted as really promising, being able to grow directly on all the substrates tested and to produce variable amounts of the polymer, including the co-polymers P (3HB-co-3HV).Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest

Transcriptional regulation of insulin-degrading enzyme modulates mitochondrial amyloid β (Aβ) peptide catabolism and functionality

Studies of post-mortem brains from Alzheimer disease patients suggest that oxidative damage induced by mitochondrial amyloid β (mitAβ) accumulation is associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. However, the regulation of mitAβ metabolism is unknown. One of the proteases involved in mitAβ catabolism is the long insulin-degrading enzyme (IDE) isoform (IDE-Met(1)). However, the mechanisms of its expression are unknown, and its presence in brain is uncertain. We detected IDE-Met(1) in brain and showed that its expression is regulated by the mitochondrial biogenesis pathway (PGC-1α/NRF-1). A strong positive correlation between PGC-1α or NRF-1 and long IDE isoform transcripts was found in non-demented brains. This correlation was weaker in Alzheimer disease. In vitro inhibition of IDE increased mitAβ and impaired mitochondrial respiration. These changes were restored by inhibition of γ-secretase or promotion of mitochondrial biogenesis. Our results suggest that IDE-Met(1) links the mitochondrial biogenesis pathway with mitAβ levels and organelle functionality.Fil: Leal, Maria Celeste. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Magnani, Natalia Daniela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica; ArgentinaFil: Villordo, Sergio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Marino, Cristina Ester. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Evelson, Pablo Andres. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica; ArgentinaFil: Castaño, Eduardo Miguel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Morelli, Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Negative Feedback Regulation of Auxin Signaling by ATHB8/ACL5–BUD2 Transcription Module

ABSTRACT The role of auxin as main regulator of vascular differentiation is well established, and a direct correlation between the rate of xylem differentiation and the amount of auxin reaching the (pro)cambial cells has been proposed. It has been suggested that thermospermine produced by ACAULIS5 (ACL5) and BUSHY AND DWARF2 (BUD2) is one of the factors downstream to auxin contributing to the regulation of this process in Arabidopsis . Here, we provide an in-depth characterization of the mechanism through which ACL5 modulates xylem differentiation. We show that an increased level of ACL5 slows down xylem differentiation by negatively affecting the expression of homeodomain-leucine zipper ( HD–ZIP ) III and key auxin signaling genes. This mechanism involves the positive regulation of thermospermine biosynthesis by the HD–ZIP III protein ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX8 tightly controlling the expression of ACL5 and BUD2 . In addition, we show that the HD–ZIP III protein REVOLUTA contributes to the increased leaf vascularization and long hypocotyl phenotype of acl5 likely by a direct regulation of auxin signaling genes such as LIKE AUXIN RESISTANT2 ( LAX2 ) and LAX3 . We propose that proper formation and differentiation of xylem depend on a balance between positive and negative feedback loops operating through HD–ZIP III genes