A collection of indigenous saccharomyces cerevisiae strains from appellations of origin in Portugal and France

Apresentação efectuada nas "Jornadas Portuguesas de Genética, 35, Braga, 2010"The model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae stands today at the forefront of molecular biology and functional analysis in genetics and genomics. However, understanding of the ecological, evolutionary and population genetic features that shaped the biology of this species is underscored by a wealth of knowledge on molecular and cellular biology obtained from a very limited number of laboratory strains. In this reasoning, we constituted one of the largest bio-databanks of S. cerevisiae that were obtained from winemaking environments in Portugal and France. During the harvest time of 2001 to 2009, 604 grape samples were collected in appellations of origin in Portugal (Vinho Verde, Dão, Douro, Bairrada, Estremadura, Palmela, Ribatejo, Açores) and France (Languedoc). The grape samples belonged to the varieties Alvarinho, Aragonez, Arinto, Avesso, Baga, Bical, Castelão, Carignan, Loureiro, Maria Gomes, Terrantez, Touriga Nacional and Verdelho. Yeast populations, in particular S. cerevisiae, were isolated after spontaneous fermentation of the extracted grape juice. From the final stage of 258 fermentations, 7740 yeast isolates were obtained, belonging mainly (5496 isolates) to the species S. cerevisiae. An initial genetic screen, based on mitochondrial DNA restriction fragment length polymorphism (mtDNA RFLP), electrophoretic karyotyping or interdelta sequence analysis, was followed by microsatellite analysis of strains with unique genetic profiles. Isolates were assigned to 752 different strains, based on their microsatellite allelic distribution. The resulting web-based autochthonous strain collection is one of the largest S. cerevisiae bio-databanks and is a resource for sustainable biodiversity preservation, equitable sharing of genetic data and winemaking strain selection.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT)Direcção Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia (DRCT

Multimeric structures of HLA-G isoforms function through differential binding to LILRB receptors

The non-classical Human leukocyte antigen G (HLA-G) differs from classical HLA class I molecules by its low genetic diversity, a tissue-restricted expression, the existence of seven isoforms, and immuno-inhibitory functions. Most of the known functions of HLA-G concern the membrane-bound HLA-G1 and soluble HLA-G5 isoforms, which present the typical structure of classical HLA class I molecule: a heavy chain of three globular domains α(1)-α(2)-α(3) non-covalently bound to β-2-microglobulin (B2M) and a peptide. Very little is known of the structural features and functions of other HLA-G isoforms or structural conformations other than B2M-associated HLA-G1 and HLA-G5. In the present work, we studied the capability of all isoforms to form homomultimers, and investigated whether they could bind to, and function through, the known HLA-G receptors LILRB1 and LILRB2. We report that all HLA-G isoforms may form homodimers, demonstrating for the first time the existence of HLA-G4 dimers. We also report that the HLA-G α(1)-α(3) structure, which constitutes the extracellular part of HLA-G2 and HLA-G6, binds the LILRB2 receptor but not LILRB1. This is the first report of a receptor for a truncated HLA-G isoform. Following up on this finding, we show that the α(1)-α(3)-Fc structure coated on agarose beads is tolerogenic and capable of prolonging the survival of skin allografts in B6-mice and in a LILRB2-transgenic mouse model. This study is the first proof of concept that truncated HLA-G isoforms could be used as therapeutic agents

Whole proteome analyses on Ruminiclostridium cellulolyticum show a modulation of the cellulolysis machinery in response to cellulosic materials with subtle differences in chemical and structural properties

Lignocellulosic materials from municipal solid waste emerge as attractive resources for anaerobic digestion biorefinery. To increase the knowledge required for establishing efficient bioprocesses, dynamics of batch fermentation by the cellulolytic bacterium Ruminiclostridium cellulolyticum were compared using three cellulosic materials, paper handkerchief, cotton discs and Whatman filter paper. Fermentation of paper handkerchief occurred the fastest and resulted in a specific metabolic profile: it resulted in the lowest acetate-to-lactate and acetate-to-ethanol ratios. By shotgun proteomic analyses of paper handkerchief and Whatman paper incubations, 151 proteins with significantly different levels were detected, including 20 of the 65 cellulosomal components, 8 non-cellulosomal CAZymes and 44 distinct extracytoplasmic proteins. Consistent with the specific metabolic profile observed, many enzymes from the central carbon catabolic pathways had higher levels in paper handkerchief incubations. Among the quantified CAZymes and cellulosomal components, 10 endoglucanases mainly from the GH9 families and 7 other cellulosomal subunits had lower levels in paper handkerchief incubations. An in-depth characterization of the materials used showed that the lower levels of endoglucanases in paper handkerchief incubations could hypothetically result from its lower crystallinity index (50%) and degree of polymerization (970). By contrast, the higher hemicellulose rate in paper handkerchief (13.87%) did not result in the enhanced expression of enzyme with xylanase as primary activity, including enzymes from the xyl-doc cluster. It suggests the absence, in this material, of molecular structures that specifically lead to xylanase induction. The integrated approach developed in this work shows that subtle differences among cellulosic materials regarding chemical and structural characteristics have significant effects on expressed bacterial functions, in particular the cellulolysis machinery, resulting in different metabolic patterns and degradation dynamics.This work was supported by a grant [R2DS 2010-08] from Conseil Regional d'Ile-de-France through DIM R2DS programs (http://www.r2ds-ile-de-france.com/). Irstea (www.irstea.fr/) contributed to the funding of a PhD grant for the first author. The funders provided support in the form of salaries for author [NB], funding for consumables and laboratory equipment, but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Omics Services provided support in the form of salaries for authors [VS, MD], but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors [NB, VS, MD] are articulated in the 'author contributions' section.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The ARIA-MASK-air® approach

Funding Information: The authors thank Ms Véronique Pretschner for submitting the paper. MASK‐air has been supported by Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, EU grants (EU Structural and Development Funds Languedoc Roussillon and Region PACA; POLLAR: EIT Health; Twinning: EIP on AHA; Twinning DHE: H2020; Catalyse: Horizon Europe) and educational grants from Mylan‐Viatris, ALK, GSK, Novartis, Stallergènes‐Greer and Uriach. None for the study. ® Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors. Clinical and Translational Allergy published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.MASK-air®, a validated mHealth app (Medical Device regulation Class IIa) has enabled large observational implementation studies in over 58,000 people with allergic rhinitis and/or asthma. It can help to address unmet patient needs in rhinitis and asthma care. MASK-air® is a Good Practice of DG Santé on digitally-enabled, patient-centred care. It is also a candidate Good Practice of OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). MASK-air® data has enabled novel phenotype discovery and characterisation, as well as novel insights into the management of allergic rhinitis. MASK-air® data show that most rhinitis patients (i) are not adherent and do not follow guidelines, (ii) use as-needed treatment, (iii) do not take medication when they are well, (iv) increase their treatment based on symptoms and (v) do not use the recommended treatment. The data also show that control (symptoms, work productivity, educational performance) is not always improved by medications. A combined symptom-medication score (ARIA-EAACI-CSMS) has been validated for clinical practice and trials. The implications of the novel MASK-air® results should lead to change management in rhinitis and asthma.publishersversionpublishe

Adherence to treatment in allergic rhinitis using mobile technology. The MASK Study

Background: Mobile technology may help to better understand the adherence to treatment. MASK-rhinitis (Mobile Airways Sentinel NetworK for allergic rhinitis) is a patient-centred ICT system. A mobile phone app (the Allergy Diary) central to MASK is available in 22 countries. Objectives: To assess the adherence to treatment in allergic rhinitis patients using the Allergy Diary App. Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was carried out on all users who filled in the Allergy Diary from 1 January 2016 to 1 August 2017. Secondary adherence was assessed by using the modified Medication Possession Ratio (MPR) and the Proportion of days covered (PDC) approach. Results: A total of 12143 users were registered. A total of 6949 users reported at least one VAS data recording. Among them, 1887 users reported >= 7 VAS data. About 1195 subjects were included in the analysis of adherence. One hundred and thirty-six (11.28%) users were adherent (MPR >= 70% and PDC = 70% and PDC = 1.50) and 176 (14.60%) were switchers. On the other hand, 832 (69.05%) users were non-adherent to medications (MPR Conclusion and clinical relevance: Adherence to treatment is low. The relative efficacy of continuous vs on-demand treatment for allergic rhinitis symptoms is still a matter of debate. This study shows an approach for measuring retrospective adherence based on a mobile app. This also represents a novel approach for analysing medication-taking behaviour in a real-world setting.Peer reviewe

ARIA 2016 : Care pathways implementing emerging technologies for predictive medicine in rhinitis and asthma across the life cycle

The Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) initiative commenced during a World Health Organization workshop in 1999. The initial goals were (1) to propose a new allergic rhinitis classification, (2) to promote the concept of multi-morbidity in asthma and rhinitis and (3) to develop guidelines with all stakeholders that could be used globally for all countries and populations. ARIA-disseminated and implemented in over 70 countries globally-is now focusing on the implementation of emerging technologies for individualized and predictive medicine. MASK [MACVIA (Contre les Maladies Chroniques pour un Vieillissement Actif)-ARIA Sentinel NetworK] uses mobile technology to develop care pathways for the management of rhinitis and asthma by a multi-disciplinary group and by patients themselves. An app (Android and iOS) is available in 20 countries and 15 languages. It uses a visual analogue scale to assess symptom control and work productivity as well as a clinical decision support system. It is associated with an inter-operable tablet for physicians and other health care professionals. The scaling up strategy uses the recommendations of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing. The aim of the novel ARIA approach is to provide an active and healthy life to rhinitis sufferers, whatever their age, sex or socio-economic status, in order to reduce health and social inequalities incurred by the disease.Peer reviewe

Correlation between work impairment, scores of rhinitis severity and asthma using the MASK-air (R) App

Background In allergic rhinitis, a relevant outcome providing information on the effectiveness of interventions is needed. In MASK-air (Mobile Airways Sentinel Network), a visual analogue scale (VAS) for work is used as a relevant outcome. This study aimed to assess the performance of the work VAS work by comparing VAS work with other VAS measurements and symptom-medication scores obtained concurrently. Methods All consecutive MASK-air users in 23 countries from 1 June 2016 to 31 October 2018 were included (14 189 users; 205 904 days). Geolocalized users self-assessed daily symptom control using the touchscreen functionality on their smart phone to click on VAS scores (ranging from 0 to 100) for overall symptoms (global), nose, eyes, asthma and work. Two symptom-medication scores were used: the modified EAACI CSMS score and the MASK control score for rhinitis. To assess data quality, the intra-individual response variability (IRV) index was calculated. Results A strong correlation was observed between VAS work and other VAS. The highest levels for correlation with VAS work and variance explained in VAS work were found with VAS global, followed by VAS nose, eye and asthma. In comparison with VAS global, the mCSMS and MASK control score showed a lower correlation with VAS work. Results are unlikely to be explained by a low quality of data arising from repeated VAS measures. Conclusions VAS work correlates with other outcomes (VAS global, nose, eye and asthma) but less well with a symptom-medication score. VAS work should be considered as a potentially useful AR outcome in intervention studies.Peer reviewe

The dominant Anopheles vectors of human malaria in Africa, Europe and the Middle East: occurrence data, distribution maps and bionomic précis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This is the second in a series of three articles documenting the geographical distribution of 41 dominant vector species (DVS) of human malaria. The first paper addressed the DVS of the Americas and the third will consider those of the Asian Pacific Region. Here, the DVS of Africa, Europe and the Middle East are discussed. The continent of Africa experiences the bulk of the global malaria burden due in part to the presence of the <it>An. gambiae </it>complex. <it>Anopheles gambiae </it>is one of four DVS within the <it>An. gambiae </it>complex, the others being <it>An. arabiensis </it>and the coastal <it>An. merus </it>and <it>An. melas</it>. There are a further three, highly anthropophilic DVS in Africa, <it>An. funestus</it>, <it>An. moucheti </it>and <it>An. nili</it>. Conversely, across Europe and the Middle East, malaria transmission is low and frequently absent, despite the presence of six DVS. To help control malaria in Africa and the Middle East, or to identify the risk of its re-emergence in Europe, the contemporary distribution and bionomics of the relevant DVS are needed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A contemporary database of occurrence data, compiled from the formal literature and other relevant resources, resulted in the collation of information for seven DVS from 44 countries in Africa containing 4234 geo-referenced, independent sites. In Europe and the Middle East, six DVS were identified from 2784 geo-referenced sites across 49 countries. These occurrence data were combined with expert opinion ranges and a suite of environmental and climatic variables of relevance to anopheline ecology to produce predictive distribution maps using the Boosted Regression Tree (BRT) method.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The predicted geographic extent for the following DVS (or species/suspected species complex*) is provided for Africa: <it>Anopheles </it>(<it>Cellia</it>) <it>arabiensis</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>funestus*</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>gambiae</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>melas</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>merus</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>moucheti </it>and <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>nili*</it>, and in the European and Middle Eastern Region: <it>An. </it>(<it>Anopheles</it>) <it>atroparvus</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Ano.</it>) <it>labranchiae</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Ano.</it>) <it>messeae</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Ano.</it>) <it>sacharovi</it>, <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>sergentii </it>and <it>An. </it>(<it>Cel.</it>) <it>superpictus*</it>. These maps are presented alongside a bionomics summary for each species relevant to its control.</p

ARIA digital anamorphosis : Digital transformation of health and care in airway diseases from research to practice

Digital anamorphosis is used to define a distorted image of health and care that may be viewed correctly using digital tools and strategies. MASK digital anamorphosis represents the process used by MASK to develop the digital transformation of health and care in rhinitis. It strengthens the ARIA change management strategy in the prevention and management of airway disease. The MASK strategy is based on validated digital tools. Using the MASK digital tool and the CARAT online enhanced clinical framework, solutions for practical steps of digital enhancement of care are proposed.Peer reviewe