Systematics of Palicoureeae (Rubiaceae): recent advances in Brazilian groups

Palicoureeae (Rubiaceae) has its centre of diversity in the neotropics and comprises about 1500 species. Two genera with great diversity considering the Brazilian Flora are Palicourea Aubl. and Rudgea Salisb. with ca 170 and 70 species, respectively. These numbers are still underestimated, especially because several species of Psychotria L. subgenus Heteropsychotria Steyerm. need to be transferred to Palicourea, and there are several undescribed species of Rudgea. Some of our recent studies focused on resolving some taxonomic gaps and phylogenetic questions with these genera. Considering Palicourea, phylogenetic analyses are being conducted with sections Codonocalyx, Solenocalyx, and Suteria, which include 15 species of Atlantic Forest. The monophyly of sections is being tested using molecular markers. Considering Rudgea, we are investigating its diversity in the Northeast region of Brazil, trying to answer how many species occur in the region and how climatic changes may affect its distribution. Besides, the domatia of Rudgea are also being investigated, since these structures have an important taxonomic value, but its description is not very clear in the literature. These studies are being conducted with field work, especially in eastern Brazil, exsiccatae analyses, mostly from Brazilian herbaria, and from images of digital herbaria. The phylogenetic analyses used rps16, psbA-trnH, trnL-F, and ITS markers, and were conducted using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Regarding the phylogenetic inference of Palicourea, the preliminary results showed that Codonocalyx, Solenocalyx, and Suteria do not have molecular support to be sustained as monophyletic taxa. Regarding the diversity of Rudgea, there are at least 22 (~31% of the total) species in Northeast Brazil, with 18 occurring in the state of Bahia. However, there are 12 uncertain taxa still being analysed. Finally, a new proposal to classify the domatia of Rudgea is being carried out, to accommodate variation and intermediate types of domatia. Acknowledgments: CAPES, FAPES, and FAPESP

Sanidade de sementes de girassol provenientes de três municípios do estado do Maranhão.

RESUMO: A crescente importância do girassol leva à necessidade da realização de estudos sobre detecção de patógenos, a fim de garantir a sanidade da cultura e a identificação de patógenos em novas áreas. Com o objetivo de avaliar a qualidade sanitária de sementes de girassol, foram analisadas sementes de vários de genótipos produzidas em ensaios na Embrapa Soja, Londrina, PR. Os ensaios foram conduzidos em três municípios do estado do Maranhão: Balsas, São Luís e Timon. A análise sanitária das sementes foi feita pelo método de papel de filtro e a identificação dos diferentes patógenos foi realizada com base nas características morfológicas. Verificou-se a ocorrência de Fusarium sp., Alternaria spp., Curvularia sp., Dreschelera sp., Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., Phoma sp., Trichoderma sp., Botrytis sp., Rhizoctonia sp., Rhizopus sp., Colletotrichum sp., Chaetomium sp., Cladosporium sp. e Sclerotinia sclerotiorum foi observada nas sementes de girassol, com índices de incidência variáveis. ABSTRACT: The increasing importance of sunflower leads to studies on seed pathogen, to guarantee crop sanity and to provide identification of pathogens in new areas. Genotypes seeds lots produced in Embrapa Soja assays carried out in tree cities of the State of Maranhão, Brazil (Balsas, São Luís and Timon) were analyzed, with the objective of evaluating sanitary quality of sunflower seeds. Sanitary analysis was performed by blotter test method and identification of fungi genera was based on morphological features. The occurrence of Fusarium sp., Alternaria spp., Curvularia sp., Dreschelera sp., Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., Phoma sp., Trichoderma sp., Botrytis sp., Rhizoctonia sp., Rhizopus sp., Colletotrichum sp., Chaetomium sp., Cladosporium sp. and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum was observed in seeds of sunflower, with variable incidences.Título em inglês: Sanity quality of sunflower seeds from three regions the state of Maranhão

Fertility and total organic carbon in oxisol under different management systems in Savannah of Piauí, Brazil.

Título em espanhol: Fertilidad y el carbono orgánico total en oxisol bajo diferentes manejos en el Cerrado Piauiense, Brasil

Levantamento preliminar das dicotiledôneas da Amazônia Brasileira.

Trabalho 06.57

Temperatura e restrição hídrica na germinação de sementes de Poincianella pyramidalis.

Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar a interação entre diferentes potenciais osmóticos do substrato (disponibilidade de água) e da temperaturas na resposta germinativa de sementes P. pyramidalis a diferentes condições de disponibilidade de água e temperatur

Development of a LAMP assay for detection of Leishmania infantum infection in dogs using conjunctival swab samples

Background: Leishmania infantum infections in dogs play a crucial role in the transmission of pathogens causing visceral leishmaniasis to humans in the Gansu province, northwest China. To be able to control zoonotic transmission of the parasite to humans, a non-invasive loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay to specifically detect L. infantum infections in dogs was developed. Methods: The primers used in the LAMP assay were designed to target kinetoplast DNA minicircle sequences of the L. infantum isolate MCAN/CN/90/SC and tested using DNA isolated from promastigotes of different Leishmania species. The LAMP assay was evaluated with conjunctional swab samples obtained from 111 and 33 dogs living in an endemic and a non-endemic region of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis in the Gansu province, respectively. The LAMP assay was also compared with conventional PCR, ELISA and microscopy using conjunctional swab, serum and bone marrow samples from the dogs, respectively. Results: The LAMP assay detected 1 fg of L. infantum DNA purified from cultured promastigotes which was 10-fold more sensitive than a conventional PCR test using Leishmania genus-specific primers. No cross reaction was observed with DNA isolated from promastigotes of L. donovani, L. major, L. tropica, and L. braziliensis, and the L. infantum reference strain MHOM/TN/80/IPT1. The L. infantum-positive rates obtained for field-collected samples were 61.3%, 58.6%, 40.5% and 10.8% by LAMP, PCR, ELISA and microscopy, respectively. As only one out of the 33 samples from control dogs from the non-endemic region of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis was positive by the LAMP assay and the PCR test, the observed true negative rate (specificity) was 97% for both methods. Conclusion: This study has shown that the non-invasive, conjunctional swab-based LAMP assay developed was more sensitive in the detection of leishmaniasis in dogs than PCR, ELISA and microscopy. The findings indicate that the LAMP assay is a sensitive and specific method for the field surveillance of domestic dogs, particularly of asymptomatic canines, in ZVL-endemic areas in western China

A unique serum IgG glycosylation signature predicts development of Crohn’s disease and is associated with pathogenic antibodies to mannose glycan

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by chronic inflammation in the gut. There is growing evidence in Crohn’s disease (CD) of the existence of a preclinical period characterized by immunological changes preceding symptom onset that starts years before diagnosis. Gaining insight into this preclinical phase will allow disease prediction and prevention. Analysis of preclinical serum samples, up to 6 years before IBD diagnosis (from the PREDICTS cohort), revealed the identification of a unique glycosylation signature on circulating antibodies (IgGs) characterized by lower galactosylation levels of the IgG fragment crystallizable (Fc) domain that remained stable until disease diagnosis. This specific IgG2 Fc glycan trait correlated with increased levels of antimicrobial antibodies, specifically anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae (ASCA), pinpointing a glycome–ASCA hub detected in serum that predates by years the development of CD. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that this agalactosylated glycoform of ASCA IgG, detected in the preclinical phase, elicits a proinflammatory immune pathway through the activation and reprogramming of innate immune cells, such as dendritic cells and natural killer cells, via an FcγR-dependent mechanism, triggering NF-κB and CARD9 signaling and leading to inflammasome activation. This proinflammatory role of ASCA was demonstrated to be dependent on mannose glycan recognition and galactosylation levels in the IgG Fc domain. The pathogenic properties of (anti-mannose) ASCA IgG were validated in vivo. Adoptive transfer of antibodies to mannan (ASCA) to recipient wild-type mice resulted in increased susceptibility to intestinal inflammation that was recovered in recipient FcγR-deficient mice. Here we identify a glycosylation signature in circulating IgGs that precedes CD onset and pinpoint a specific glycome–ASCA pathway as a central player in the initiation of inflammation many years before CD diagnosis. This pathogenic glyco-hub may constitute a promising new serum biomarker for CD prediction and a potential target for disease prevention.We wish to acknowledge the Gastroenterology Department of Centro Hospitalar Universitário de Santo António, in particular P. Lago, for providing samples from individuals with established CD. We kindly thank J. Rojo from the Instituto de Investigaciones Químicas (Universidad de Sevilla) for providing us with the di-GlcNAc glycodendrimer. We would also like to acknowledge J. V. Ravetch (Rockefeller University) and M. S. Cragg (University of Southampton) for kindly providing us with the FcγR-deficient mice used in the in vivo studies. S.S.P. acknowledges funding from the US Department of Defense, US Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity and FY18Peer-Reviewed Medical Research Program Investigator-Initiated Research Award (award number W81XWH1920053). S.S.P. also acknowledges funding from the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO) Pioneer Award 2021, the International Organization for the study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IOIBD) and the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT; EXPL/MED-ONC/0496/2021). J.G. acknowledges funding from European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID ResearchGrant 2022), European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO Grant 2023) and FCT (2020.00088.CEECIND). C.S.R. thanks FCT forfunding (2020.08422.BD). I.A. acknowledges funding from FCT (2022.00337.CEECIND) and the BIAL Foundation and PortugueseMedical Association (Maria de Sousa Award 2023). E.L.-G. thanks FCT for funding (UI/BD/152866/2022). F.P. and Z.H.G. were partially supported by the Kenneth-Rainin Foundation (20210021). B.C. acknowledges funding from FCT(CEECINST/00123/2021/CP1772/CT0001). J.T. acknowledges funding from the Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology and from Luz Saúde (Grupo dE iNvestIgação em Patologia Digestiva LUz Saúde LH.INV.F2019015). This study was also cofunded by the EuropeanUnion (GlycanTrigger, grant agreement number 101093997). The views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. This study was conducted under support of Peer-Reviewed Medical Research Program (PR180831P1). The views expressed in this article reflect the results of the research conducted by the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Navy, Department of Defense, the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine or the US Government. There are no restrictions on its use. This article was prepared while R.M.L. was employed at Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the view of the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services or the US Government. C.K.P. is an employee of the US Government. This work was prepared as part of official duties. Title 17 U.S.C. §105provides that ‘Copyright protection under this title is not available for any work of the United States Government.’ Title 17 U.S.C. §101 defines a US Government work as a work prepared by a military service member or employee of the US Government as part of that person’s official duties

Desempenho reprodutivo de cabras Alpinas tratadas com hCG cinco dias após o acasalamento.

Objetivou-se com este estudo avaliar o efeito da administração de hCG sobre o desempenho reprodutivo de cabras Alpinas i durante a estação de acasalamento natural. Trinta e duas fêmeas nulíparas e 124lactantes, após a identificação de estro e acasalamento, foram aleatoriamente divididas, de acordo com a categoria, em dois tratamentos. Em TI (n=75) e T2 (n=81), os animais receberam I roL de solução salina ou 250 UI de hCG, respectivamente, por via intramuscular cinco dias após o acasalamento. A gestação foi verificada por ultra-sonografia transabdominal (probe de 3,5 MHz) nos dias 35 e 70 após o acasalamento, para detecção e confirmação da gestação, respectivamente. As taxas de gestação não diferiram entre TI (86,7%) e T2 (70,6%) para nulíparas e TI (78,3 %) e T2 (84,4 %) para lactantes. Não houve diferença entre a taxa de parição (75,0 e 75,7%), o periodo de gestação (150,47 e 150,80 dias) e a prolificidade (1,75 e 1,80 fetos) entre os animais do TI e T2, respectivamente. A prolificidade foi superior em cabras lactantes (I ,90) que em nulíparas (I ,41). A administração de hCG cinco dias após o acasalamento não elevou o desempenho reprodutivo em cabras da raça Alpina. Reproductive performance of Alpine goats treated with hCG five days after breeding. Abstract: The effect of hCG administration on reproductive performance of Alpine goats during the natural breeding season was evaluated. Thirty-two nulliparous and 124 lactating goats, after estrus identification and breeding, were randomly assigned according to the categories to two treatments. In T1 (n=75) and T2 (n=81) the animals received 1 mL of saline solution or 250 IU of hCG intramuscularly, respectively, five days after breeding. Pregnancy was detected and confirmed on days 35 and 70 after breeding by transabdominal ultrasonography (3.5 MHz probe), respectively. Pregnancy rate did not differ between T1 (86.7%) and T2 (70.6%) for nulliparous and T1 (78.3%) and T2 (84.4%) for lactating does. There were no differences for kidding rate (75.0 and 75.7%), gestation period (150.47 and 150.80 days) and prolificacy (1.75 and 1.80 fetuses) between T1 and T2, respectively. Prolificacy was superior in lactating (1.90) than in nulliparous (1.41) goats. The administration of hCG five days after breeding did not increase reproductive performance in Alpine goats

Forage cactus as an additive in corn without the cob silages of feedlot sheep diets.

This study aimed to assess the impact of adding forage cactus as an additive to the production of corn silage without the cob on the performance of feedlot sheep and subsequent silage losses. The experimental design was completely randomized, consisting of three treatments: corn silage without cob; 0% = 100% corn plant without the cob; 10% = 90% corn plant without cob + 10% forage cactus; 20% = 80% corn plant without cob + 20% forage cactus. Significant effects were observed for dry matter intake (P = 0.0201), organic matter (P = 0.0152), ether extract (P = 0.0001), non-fiber carbohydrates (P = 0.0007). Notably, nutrient digestibility showed significant differences in organic matter (P = 0.0187), ether extract (P = 0.0095), neutral detergent fiber (P = 0.0005), non-fiber carbohydrates (P = 0.0001), and metabolizable energy (P = 0.0001). Performance variables, including total weight gain (P = 0.0148), average daily weight gain (P = 0.0148), feeding efficiency, and rumination efficiency of dry matter (P = 0.0113), also exhibited significant effects. Consequently, it is recommended to include 20% forage cactus in corn silage, which, based on natural matter, helps meet animals’ water needs through feed. This inclusion is especially vital in semi-arid regions and aids in reducing silage losses during post-opening silo disposal