The significance of mycorrhizal fungi for crop productivity and ecosystem sustainability in organic farming systems

Mycorrhizal fungi are widespread in agricultural systems and are especially relevant for organic agriculture because they can act as natural fertilisers, enhancing plant yield. Here we explore the various roles that mycorrhizal fungi play in sustainable farming systems with special emphasis on their contribution to crop productivity and ecosystem functioning. We review the literature and provide a number of mechanisms and processes by which mycorrhizal fungi can contribute to crop productivity and ecosystem sustainability. We then present novel results, showing that mycorrhizal fungi can be used to suppress several problematic agricultural weeds. Our results highlight the significance of mycorrhizal fungi for sustainable farming systems and point to the need to develop farming systems in which the positive effect of these beneficial soil fungi is optimally being utilized

99mTc-labelled S-HYNIC certolizumab pegol in rheumatoid arthritis and spondyloarthritis patients : a biodistribution and dosimetry study

Background: Biologicals directed against tumour necrosis factor (TNF) have proven their efficacy in the treatment of spondyloarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. We present a radiolabelling method for certolizumab pegol (CZP), a commercially available humanized Fab'-fragment directed against TNF. A biodistribution and dosimetry study was conducted. Tc-S-HYNIC CZP was synthesized. The in vitro TNF neutralizing activity was tested by exposing L929s-cells to various concentrations 99mTc-S-HYNIC CZP and measuring TNF-induced cytotoxicity. For biodistribution and dosimetry, WB images and blood and urine sampling were performed up to 24 h pi. Cumulative activities were estimated using mono-exponential fitting, and organ doses were estimated using OLINDA/EXM. The effective dose was calculated using the International Commission on Radiological Protection 103 recommendations. The uptake of the tracer in the peripheral joints was assessed visually and semiquantitatively. Results: In vitro tests showed blocking of TNF cytotoxicity by the Tc-99m-S-HYNIC CZP formulation comparable to the effect obtained with the unlabelled CZP with or without the HYNIC linker. We analysed eight patients with rheumatoid arthritis or spondyloarthritis. The highest mean absorbed organ doses were recorded for kidneys, spleen, and liver: 56 (SD 7), 34 (SD 6), and 33 (SD 7) mu Gy/MBq. The effective dose was 6.1 (SD 0.9) mSv for a mean injected activity of 690 (SD 35) MBq. The urinary excretion was 15.1% (SD 8.1) of the IA at 22.5 h. Blood analysis yielded a distribution half-life of 1.2 h (SD 1.5) and an elimination half-life of 26.9 h (SD 2.7). Visual analysis of the scans revealed marked tracer accumulation in the clinically affected peripheral joints. In addition, there was a statistically significant higher uptake of the tracer in the swollen joints (median uptake ratio compared to background of 3.3 in rheumatoid arthritis and 2.4 in peripheral spondyloarthritis) compared to clinically negative joints (respectively 1.3 and 1.6). Conclusions: We present a radiolabelling technique for CZP, a Fab'-fragment directed against TNF and currently used as a therapeutic agent in rheumatology. An effective dose of 6.1 mSv (SD 0.9) was estimated. We confirmed the uptake of this new radiopharmaceutical in clinically affected peripheral joints

The use of adalimumab for cricoarytenoid arthritis in ankylosing spondylitis--an effective therapy

This report describes cartilaginous regeneration in a cricoarytenoid joint affected by spondyloarthropathy using tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) blockade, monitored by magnetic resonance (MR) and computed tomography (CT) imaging. This case is interesting for several reasons. It is only the eighth case of destructive ankylosing spondylitis-related cricoarytenoid arthritis published in the English language literature. It describes, for the first time, full recovery of vocal cord mobility following TNF-α blockade. It is also the first case to be published with MR imaging demonstrating regeneration of the cricoarytenoid cartilage following treatment. This case represents a landmark in the treatment of patients presenting with destructive arthritis involving the cricoarytenoid joint

The use of adalimumab for cricoarytenoid arthritis in ankylosing spondylitis: an effective therapy

This report describes cartilaginous regeneration in a cricoarytenoid joint affected by spondyloarthropathy using tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) blockade, monitored by magnetic resonance (MR) and computed tomography (CT) imaging. This case is interesting for several reasons. It is only the eighth case of destructive ankylosing spondylitis-related cricoarytenoid arthritis published in the English language literature. It describes, for the first time, full recovery of vocal cord mobility following TNF-alpha blockade. It is also the first case to be published with MR imaging demonstrating regeneration of the cricoarytenoid cartilage following treatment. This case represents a landmark in the treatment of patients presenting with destructive arthritis involving the cricoarytenoid joint

Phyllodictyon robustum (Setchell et Gardner) comb. nov. (Siphonocladales, Chlorophyta), a morphologically variable species from the tropical Pacific coast of America

The systematic positions of Cladophoropsis robusta and Willeella mexicana, both occurring along the tropical Pacific coast of America, have long been uncertain. Willeella mexicana has been generally accepted as a synonym of C. robusta, which is currently placed in the genus Struveopsis. Reinvestigation of type material and recently collected specimens from Mexico and Panama, including culture observations, along with a molecular phylogenetic analysis inferred from rDNA ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 sequences, confirm that both taxa belong to the same, morphologically variable species. Thallus architecture ranges from stipitate, Struveopsis-like blades (produced by apical cell divisions and formation of opposite and flabellate branches) to Valoniopsis-like plants, composed of coarse, cylindrical filaments with lateral branches initiated by lenticular cells. Additionally, DNA sequence data and morphological features such as branching pattern of blade filaments, presence of tenacular cells and crystalline cell inclusions provide evidence that Struveopsis robusta falls within the Phyllodictyon clade and is most closely related with the Atlantic-Caribbean Phyllodictyon pulcherrimum, with the Indo-Pacific Phyllodictyon orientale forming a sister species. The binomial Phyllodictyon robustum (Setchell et Gardner) comb. nov. is thus proposed. © 2008 Adac