Avaliação agronomia e teor de ácidos graxos em sementes de Plukenetia volubilis (Euphorbiaceae) na Amazônia Central.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar subamostras de sacha inchi para caracteres de produção e qualidade de frutos e sementes da espécie na região da Amazônia Central

Nit1 is a metabolite repair enzyme that hydrolyzes deaminated glutathione

The mammalian gene Nit1 (nitrilase-like protein 1) encodes a protein that is highly conserved in eukaryotes and is thought to act as a tumor suppressor. Despite being ∼35% sequence identical to ω-amidase (Nit2), the Nit1 protein does not hydrolyze efficiently α-ketoglutaramate (a known physiological substrate of Nit2), and its actual enzymatic function has so far remained a puzzle. In the present study, we demonstrate that both the mammalian Nit1 and its yeast ortholog are amidases highly active toward deaminated glutathione (dGSH; i.e., a form of glutathione in which the free amino group has been replaced by a carbonyl group). We further show that Nit1-KO mutants of both human and yeast cells accumulate dGSH and the same compound is excreted in large amounts in the urine of Nit1-KO mice. Finally, we show that several mammalian aminotransferases (transaminases), both cytosolic and mitochondrial, can form dGSH via a common (if slow) side-reaction and provide indirect evidence that transaminases are mainly responsible for dGSH formation in cultured mammalian cells. Altogether, these findings delineate a typical instance of metabolite repair, whereby the promiscuous activity of some abundant enzymes of primary metabolism leads to the formation of a useless and potentially harmful compound, which needs a suitable “repair enzyme” to be destroyed or reconverted into a useful metabolite. The need for a dGSH repair reaction does not appear to be limited to eukaryotes: We demonstrate that Nit1 homologs acting as excellent dGSH amidases also occur in Escherichia coli and other glutathione-producing bacteria

EurA1c: the European HbA1c Trial to Investigate the Performance of HbA1c Assays in 2166 Laboratories across 17 Countries and 24 Manufacturers by Use of the IFCC Model for Quality Targets

Background: A major objective of the IFCC Committee on Education and Use of Biomarkers in Diabetes is to generate awareness and improvement of HbA1c assays through evaluation of the performance by countries and manufacturers. Methods: Fresh whole blood and lyophilized hemolysate specimens manufactured from the same pool were used by 17 external quality assessment organizers to evaluate analytical performance of 2166 laboratories. Results were evaluated per country, per manufacturer, and per manufacturer and country combined according to criteria of the IFCC model for quality targets. Results: At the country level with fresh whole blood specimens, 6 countries met the IFCC criterion, 2 did not, and 2 were borderline. With lyophilized hemolysates, 5 countries met the criterion, 2 did not, and 3 were borderline. At the manufacturer level using fresh whole blood specimens, 13 manufacturers met the criterion, 8 did not, and 3 were borderline. Using lyophilized hemolysates, 7 manufacturers met the criterion, 6 did not, and 3 were borderline. In both country and manufacturer groups, the major contribution to total error derived from between-laboratory variation. There were no substantial differences in performance between groups using fresh whole blood or lyophilized hemolysate samples. Conclusions: The state of the art is that 1 of 20 laboratories does not meet the IFCC criterion, but there are substantial differences between country and between manufacturer groups. Efforts to further improve quality should focus on reducing between-laboratory variation. With some limitations, fresh whole blood and well-defined lyophilized specimens are suitable for purpose

Monumentos da Guerra de Inverno (1939‐1940) no Ártico Selvagem:herança das valas comuns soviéticas da Segunda Guerra Mundial na Lapônia Finlandesa

Resumo O artigo apresenta os resultados de pesquisa produzida sobre monumentos, valas e sepulturas soviéticas em território finlandês (região da Lapônia), historicamente constituídos desde a primeira fase da Segunda Guerra Mundial desenrolada naquele território, conhecida como a Guerra de Inverno (1939‐1940). Com o fim da maior contenda mundial, foram se produzindo memoriais ao longo de todo o norte da Finlândia, com especial destaque para áreas próximas à fronteira com a Rússia, criando-se assim complexas tensões e negociações relativas às memórias e esquecimentos da presença bélica soviética naquela área. Os autores tiveram a oportunidade de visitar alguns destes lugares e entrevistar importantes personagens envolvidos na constituição destes memoriais, no ano de 2016, sob a égide de um projeto de pesquisa sobre o patrimônio da Segunda Guerra Mundial em sua fácies norte europeia.Abstract Winter War Monuments (1939‐1940) in the Wild Arctic: heritage of WWII soviet mass graves in Finnish Lapland The article presents the results of research produced on Soviet monuments, fortifications and graves in Finnish territory (region of Lapland), historically constituted since the first phase of the Second World War unfolded in that territory, known as the Winter War (1939‐1940). After the World War, Soviet memorials were produced throughout the whole north of Finland, with special emphasis on areas close to the border with Russia, thus creating complex tensions and negotiations related to the memories and forgetfulness of the Soviet war presence in that area. The authors had the opportunity to visit some of these places and interview important figures involved in the constitution of these memorials in the year of 2016, under the auspices of a wider research project on Second World War heritage in its northern European theatre