Morfología y anatomía de dos variedades de Begonia cucullata (Begoniaceae) comercializadas como «agrial» en Paraguay

Deguen, Rosa; María I. Mercado; María V. Coll Aráoz; Ana I. Ruiz; Graciela I. Ponessa. 2012. “Morfología y anatomía de dos variedades de Begonia cucullata (Begoniaceae) comercializadas como ‘agrial’ en Paraguay”. Lilloa 49 (2). Se describe la morfología y la anatomía de las hojas y tallos de Begonia cucullata var. cucullata y B. cucullata var. arenosicola, comercializadas como “agrial”, en mercados de Paraguay y empleadas como antiinflamatorias, antitérmicas, para el tratamiento de faringitis y estomatitis. La variedad cucullata presenta un porte inferior a 1 m, tallos de color rojizo, hojas verde claro en el haz y rojizo en el envés, largamente elípticas con base subtruncada, estomas anisocíticos y anomocíticos y tricomas glandulares con cabeza pluricelular simétrica. La variedad arenosícola supera el metro de altura, con tallos y hojas de color verde oscuro en el haz y verde claro en el envés, base asimétrica, estomas anisocíticos y tricomas glandular con cabeza pluricelular asimétrica. Los resultados obtenidos aportan caracteres morfológicos y anatómicos vegetativos de diagnóstico que permiten una correcta identificación y caracterización de las variedades comercializadas bajo el nombre de “agrial”

gcProfileMakeR: An R Package for Automatic Classification of Constitutive and Non-Constitutive Metabolites

Circadian clock; Constitutive metabolome; Machine learningReloj circadiano; Metaboloma constitutivo; Aprendizaje automáticoRellotge circadià; Metaboloma constitutiu; Aprenentatge automàticMetabolomes comprise constitutive and non-constitutive metabolites produced due to physiological, genetic or environmental effects. However, finding constitutive metabolites and non-constitutive metabolites in large datasets is technically challenging. We developed gcProfileMakeR, an R package using standard Excel output files from an Agilent Chemstation GC-MS for automatic data analysis using CAS numbers. gcProfileMakeR has two filters for data preprocessing removing contaminants and low-quality peaks. The first function NormalizeWithinFiles, samples assigning retention times to CAS. The second function NormalizeBetweenFiles, reaches a consensus between files where compounds in close retention times are grouped together. The third function getGroups, establishes what is considered as Constitutive Profile, Non-constitutive by Frequency i.e., not present in all samples and Non-constitutive by Quality. Results can be plotted with the plotGroup function. We used it to analyse floral scent emissions in four snapdragon genotypes. These included a wild type, Deficiens nicotianoides and compacta affecting floral identity and RNAi:AmLHY targeting a circadian clock gene. We identified differences in scent constitutive and non-constitutive profiles as well as in timing of emission. gcProfileMakeR is a very useful tool to define constitutive and non-constitutive scent profiles. It also allows to analyse genotypes and circadian datasets to identify differing metabolites.This research was funded by Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and FEDER grant numbers BFU2017-88300-C2-1R to M.E.-C. and J.W.; BFU2017-88300-C2-2R to P.J.N.; and a PhD contract by the Ministerio de Educación Cultura y Deporte FPU13/03606 to V.R.-H

Production of American lettuce cultivars under different colored shade nets

Email: [email protected] (autor de correspondencia)Shading nets are used to reduce the amount of radiant energy reaching crops. The objective of the work was to compare the influence of black and red shading nets on the production of nine American lettuce cultivars in the Autumn period under the conditions of the Central Department of Paraguay. The experiment was carried out in the Experimental Field of the Departmental Agronomic Center (CAD) in the Municipality of Julián Augusto Saldívar. The treatments consisted of the combination of two types of shading netting (red with 35% shade and black with 35% shade) and nine cultivars of American lettuce (Julia, Dora, Angelina, Tainá, Sun Valley, Betty, Lucy Brown, Mara, and Serena) totaling 18 treatments. The experiment consisted in a complete randomized block design, arranged in split blocks 2×9 (the color of shading netting was considered the main plot, and the lettuce cultivars as the secondary plot) with four repetitions. Each experimental unit consisted of four crop rows with seven plants. Plant diameter, plant height, head diameter and height, commercial number of leaves per plant, fresh mass, and commercial productivity were evaluated. The data were subjected to analysis of variance, and when differences were found, the means were compared by the Scott-Knott test at 5% probability. The results indicate that using the red netting with the Serena and Dora cultivars provides greater fresh mass and commercial production.Las mallas de sombra se utilizan para reducir la cantidad de energía radiante que llega a los cultivos. El objetivo de este trabajo fue comparar la influencia de las mallas sombreadoras negras y rojas en la producción de nueve cultivares de lechuga americana en el período otoñal en las condiciones del Departamento Central del Paraguay. El experimento se realizó en el Campo Experimental del Centro Agronómico Departamental (CAD), en el municipio de Julián Augusto Saldívar. Los tratamientos consistieron en una combinación de dos tipos de malla sombra (roja con 35% de sombra y negra con 35% de sombra) y nueve cultivares de lechuga americana (Julia, Dora, Angelina, Tainá, Sun Valley, Betty, Lucy Brown, Mara y Serena) totalizando 18 tratamientos. El diseño experimental fue en franjas en bloques completos al azar de 2×9 (las mallas de color fueron consideradas la parcela principal y los cultivares la parcela secundaria) y cuatro repeticiones. Cada unidad experimental constó de cuatro hileras de cultivo, con siete plantas. Se evaluó diámetro de planta, altura de planta, diámetro y altura de cabeza, número comercializable de hojas por planta, masa fresca y rendimiento comercializable. Los resultados fueron sometidos a análisis de varianza y, cuando se encontraron diferencias significativas, se usó la prueba de Scott-Knott al 5% de probabilidad para la comparación de medias. Los resultados indican que el uso de la red roja con los cultivares Serena y Dora proporciona mayor producción de masa fresca y comercializable.Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y TecnologíaPrograma Paraguayo para el Desarrollo de la Ciencia y Tecnología. Proyectos de investigación y desarroll

Early Cerebral Hemodynamic, Metabolic, and Histological Changes in Hypoxic–Ischemic Fetal Lambs during Postnatal Life

The hemodynamic, metabolic, and biochemical changes produced during the transition from fetal to neonatal life may be aggravated if an episode of asphyxia occurs during fetal life. The aim of the study was to examine regional cerebral blood flow (RCBF), histological changes, and cerebral brain metabolism in preterm lambs, and to analyze the role of oxidative stress in the first hours of postnatal life following severe fetal asphyxia. Eighteen chronically instrumented newborn lambs were randomly assigned to either a control group or the hypoxic–ischemic (HI) group, in which case fetal asphyxia was induced just before delivery. All the animals were maintained on intermittent positive pressure ventilation for 3 h after delivery. During the HI insult, the injured group developed acidosis, hypoxia, hypercapnia, lactic acidosis, and tachycardia (relative to the control group), without hypotension. The intermittent positive pressure ventilation transiently improved gas exchange and cardiovascular parameters. After HI injury and during ventilatory support, there continued to be an increased RCBF in inner regions among the HI group, but no significant differences were detected in cortical flow compared to the control group. Also, the magnitude of the increase in TUNEL positive cells (apoptosis) and antioxidant enzymes, and decrease of ATP reserves was significantly greater in the brain regions where the RCBF was not higher. In conclusion, our findings identify early metabolic, histological, and hemodynamic changes involved in brain damage in premature asphyxiated lambs. Such changes have been described in human neonates, so our model could be useful to test the safety and the effectiveness of different neuroprotective or ventilation strategies applied in the first hours after fetal HI injury

Functional polymorphisms in the CYP3A4, CYP3A5, and CYP21A2 genes in the risk for hypertension in pregnancy

An intronic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the CYP3A5 gene (CYP3A5*3; SNP rs776746) affects RNA splicing and enzymatic activity. The CYP3A5*3 frequency increased with distance from the equator and natural selection has been proposed to explain the worldwide distribution of this allele. CYP3A activity has been related with the risk for hypertension in pregnancy, a major cause of morbidity and mortality among women, and CYP3A5*3 could reduce the risk for this disease in populations from regions with high sodium and water availability. The CYP3A5 genotype was related with blood pressure in the general population, but the effect on the risk for hypertension in pregnancy has not been evaluated. We compared the allele and genotype frequencies of three functional SNPs in the CYP3A5 (rs776746), CYP3A4 (rs2740574), and CYP21A2 (rs6471) genes between pregnant women who developed hypertension (n=250) or who remained normotensive (control group, n=250). In addition, we sequenced the full CYP3A5 coding sequence in 40 women from the two groups to determine whether some gene variants could explain the risk for hypertensive pregnancies in our population. Allele and genotype frequencies did not differ between hypertensive and normotensive women for the three CYP variants. We did not find CYP3A5 nucleotide changes that could explain a higher risk for hypertension in pregnancy. Our data suggests that the variation in CYP3A5, CYP3A4, and CYP21A2 did not contribute to the risk for hypertension in pregnancy in our populationThe author´s work is supported by a grant from the Spanish Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias/Fondos FEDER European Union (ETS PI08/90008)

Inhibition of fatty acid synthesis induces differentiation and reduces tumor burden in childhood neuroblastoma

Many metabolic pathways, including lipid metabolism, are rewired in tumors tosupport energy and biomass production and to allow adaptation to stressful en-vironments. Neuroblastoma is the second deadliest solid tumor in children. Ge-netic aberrations, as the amplification of theMYCN-oncogene, correlate stronglywith disease progression. Yet, there are only a few molecular targets successfullyexploited in the clinic. Here we show that inhibition of fatty acid synthesis led toincreased neural differentiation and reduced tumor burden in neuroblastomaxenograft experiments independently ofMYCN-status. This was accompaniedby reduced levels of the MYCN or c-MYC oncoproteins and activation of ERKsignaling. Importantly, the expression levels of genes involved inde novofattyacid synthesis showed prognostic value for neuroblastoma patients. Our findingsdemonstrate that inhibition ofde novofatty acid synthesis is a promising pharma-cological intervention strategy for the treatment of neuroblastoma indepen-dently ofMYCN-status

Epigenetic profiling linked to multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C): A multicenter, retrospective study

Background Most children and adolescents infected with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) remain asymptomatic or develop a mild coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that usually does not require medical intervention. However, a small proportion of pediatric patients develop a severe clinical condition, multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). The involvement of epigenetics in the control of the immune response and viral activity prompted us to carry out an epigenomic study to uncover target loci regulated by DNA methylation that could be altered upon the appearance of MIS-C. Methods Peripheral blood samples were recruited from 43 confirmed MIS-C patients. 69 non-COVID-19 pediatric samples and 15 COVID-19 pediatric samples without MIS-C were used as controls. The cases in the two groups were mixed and divided into discovery (MIS-C= 29 and non-MIS-C= 56) and validation (MIS-C= 14 and non-MIS C = 28) cohorts, and balanced for age, gender and ethnic background. We interrogated 850,000 CpG sites of the human genome for DNA methylation variants. Findings The DNA methylation content of 33 CpG loci was linked with the presence of MIS-C. Of these sites, 18 (54.5%) were located in described genes. The top candidate gene was the immune T-cell mediator ZEB2; and others highly ranked candidates included the regulator of natural killer cell functional competence SH2D1B; VWA8, which contains a domain of the Von Willebrand factor A involved in the pediatric hemostasis disease; and human leukocyte antigen complex member HLA-DRB1; in addition to pro-inflammatory genes such as CUL2 and AIM2. The identified loci were used to construct a DNA methylation profile (EPIMISC) that was associated with MIS-C in both cohorts. The EPIMISC signature was also overrepresented in Kawasaki disease patients, a childhood pathology with a possible viral trigger, that shares many of the clinical features of MIS-C. Interpretation We have characterized DNA methylation loci that are associated with MIS-C diagnosis. The identified genes are likely contributors to the characteristic exaggerated host inflammatory response observed in these patients. The described epigenetic signature could also provide new targets for more specific therapies for the disorder.Copyright (c) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd