Molecular evolution of aphids and their primary ( Buchnera sp.) and secondary endosymbionts: implications for the role of symbiosis in insect evolution.

Aphids maintain an obligate, endosymbiotic association with Buchnera sp., a bacterium closely related to Escherichia coli. Bacteria are housed in specialized cells of organ-like structures called bacteriomes in the hemocoel of the aphid and are maternally transmitted. Phylogenetic studies have shown that the association had a single origin, dated about 200-250 million years ago, and that host and endosymbiont lineages have evolved in parallel since then. However, the pattern of deepest branching within the aphid family remains unsolved, which thereby hampers tin appraisal of, for example, the role played by horizontal gene transfer in the early evolution of Buchnera. The main role of Buchnera in this association is the biosynthesis and provisioning of essential amino acids to its aphid host. Physiological and metabolic studies have recently substantiated such nutritional role. In addition, genetic studies of Buchnera from several aphids have shown additional modifications, such as strong genome reduction, high A+T content compared to free-living bacteria, differential evolutionary rates, a relative increase in the number of non-synonymous substitutions, and gene amplification mediated by plasmids. Symbiosis is an active process in insect evolution cis revealed by the intermediate values of the previous characteristics showed by secondary symbionts compared to free-living bacteria and Buchnera

Assessment of the corneal collagen organization after chemical burn using second harmonic generation microscopy

The organization of the corneal stoma is modified due to different factors, including pathology, surgery or external damage. Here the changes in the organization of the corneal collagen fibers during natural healing after chemical burn are investigated using second harmonic generation (SHG) imaging. Moreover, the structure tensor (ST) was used as an objective tool for morphological analyses at different time points after burn (up to 6 months). Unlike control corneas that showed a regular distribution, the collagen pattern at 1 month of burn presented a non-organized arrangement. SHG signal levels noticeably decreased and individual fibers were hardly visible. Over time, the healing process led to a progressive re-organization of the fibers that could be quantified through the ST. At 6 months, the stroma distribution reached values similar to those of control eyes and a dominant direction of the fibers re-appeared. The present results show that SHG microscopy imaging combined with the ST method is able to objectively monitor the temporal regeneration of the corneal organization after chemical burn. Future implementations of this approach into clinically adapted devices would help to diagnose and quantify corneal changes, not only due to chemical damages, but also as a result of disease or surgical procedures

The influence of pre-fermentative maceration and ageing factors on ester profile and marker determination of Pedro Ximenez sparkling wines

The influence of pre-fermentative maceration and ageing factors on the ester profiles of Pedro Ximenez sparkling wines was evaluated. The pre-fermentative maceration consisted of the skin-maceration of musts at 10 degrees C for 6 h. The sparkling wines were produced following the Champenoise method. Samples were monitored at 3, 6 and 9 months of ageing on lees. Sparkling wines with pre fermentative maceration displayed higher contents of ethyl esters of branched acids and cinnamates. Meanwhile, those without maceration showed higher levels of ethyl esters of fatty acids and higher alcohol acetates. The study of statistical interactions elucidated different hydrolytic kinetics and developments in higher alcohol acetates and ethyl esters of branched acids during ageing. The application of a dual criterion based on univariate (ANOVA) and multivariate analyses (OPLS-DA) allowed us to identify new potential volatile markers related to pre-fermentative maceration and ageing time, reported for the first time in sparkling wines

Upper extremity dvt in oncological patients: analysis of risk factors. Data from the RIETE registry

Aim: The aim of the study is to up date informations on the clinical characteristics and outcome of patients with upper-extremity deep vein thrombosis (DVT) from the Informatised Registry on Venous Thromboembolism (RIETE). Methods: RIETE is an ongoing registry of consecutive patients with symptomatic, objectively confirmed, acute venous thromboembolism. In this analysis the clinical characteristics and 3-month outcome of all cancer patients with upper-extremity DVT were evaluated. Results: Up to February 2006, a total of 14,391 patients with symptomatic, objectively confirmed acute venous thromboembolism had been enrolled in RIETE. Of the 2,945 patients with active cancer 196 (6.7%) had arm DVT: 104 had catheter-associated DVT. Most cancer patients with arm DVT were males, younger than 65, and had a low incidence of additional risk factors or underlying diseases. Twenty of them (10%) had symptomatic pulmonary embolism (PE). Most patients were treated with low-molecular-weigh heparin, both initially (94%) and after discharge (75%). During the 3-month follow-up period 12 patients (6.1%) developed VTE recurrences (PE 6, DVT 6), 8 (4.1%) had major bleeding (fatal in 3), 43 (22%) died. Conclusions: Our data from the RIETE registry show that upper limb DVT is a serious complication in patients with cancer, with a high incidence of recurrences and bleeding complications.Цель: обновить базу данных по клиническим характеристикам и течению заболевания у больных с тромбозом глубоких вен верхних конечностей (ТГВ) с использованием системы регистра венозного тромбоэмболизма (СРВТ). Методы: СРВТ является непрерывной системой регистрации больных с симптомами объективно подтвержденной острой венозной тромбоэмболии. Проанализированы клинические характеристики и течение болезни на протяжении месяцев у больных онкологического профиля с ТГВ. Результаты: в период декабря 2006 г. были обследованы 14 391 больных с симптоматической объективно подтвержденной острой венозной тромбоэмболией при помощи системы СРВТ. Из 2945 больных с прогрессирую­щим течением заболевания у196 (6,7%) человек выявили ТГВ верхних конечностей: у 104 — ассоциированный с катетером ТГВ. Большинство больных с ТГВ верхних конечностей — лица мужского пола в возрасте моложе 65 лет и с низкой частотой дополнительных факторов риска или первичного заболевания. У 20 из них (10%) отмечали симптомы эмболии легочной артерии (ЭЛА). Больные получали низкомолекулярный гепарин и в начале исследования (94%), и по его окончании (75%). В течение последующих трех месяцев у12 больных (6,1%) развился рецидив венозной тромбоэмболии (ВТЭ) (ЭЛА – у 6 больных, ТГВ – у 6 больных), у 8 (4,1%) отмечали кровотечение (3 случая с летальным исходом), 43 (22%) пациента умерли. Выводы: данные СРВТ системы показали, что ТГВ верхних конечностей является серьезным осложнением у больных, онкологического профиля, сочетающимся с высокой степенью развития рецидива и осложнений, сопровождающихся кровотечениями

Psychosocial burden in adult patients with atopic dermatitis

P16 Objective: Atopic dermatitis affects patients’ quality of life (QoL) in many ways. It is important to analyze the impact that the disease produces in order to better define the healthcare needs of adult patients with atopic dermatitis. Patients and Methods: 14 adult patients with atopic dermatitis were interviewed. The qualitative interviews were semi-structured and supported by a simple script, which allowed a complete and flexible interview. Results: Six affected areas of the patient’s life with atopic dermatitis were identified: economic, work-related, personal, psychosocial, clinical and relational. It is emphasized that atopic dermatitis has a great psychosocial impact on the adult patient, since it alters interpersonal relationships, generates rejection, stigmatization and social isolation, limits the patient in various areas and activities of their daily life or alters sleep, among others. The visible aspect, the itching-scratching cycle, the lack of awareness and ignorance of the disease, the lack of a definitive solution among the treatments and the side effects of some of them are of great concern. Conclusions: The QoL of the patients with atopic dermatitis is negatively affected and a holistic multidisciplinary intervention is necessary in order to mitigate the negative impact of the disease

IN PRAISE OF ENLIGHTENED PARTICULARITY

Autor u svojoj studiji analizira odnos opće kulture i njenih posebnih segmenata unutar jedinstvene političke zajednice te zaključuje: dok god, dakle, postoje građani, postojat će i sukob između općega i posebnog, i pritom će se uvijek iznova pokazivati da posredovanje između te dvije kategorije nikada nije konačno, nego da uvijek iznova treba određivati što je primjereno, što je ono pravo i obvezujuće. U tome se očituje snaga prosuđivanja kojoj su shematske orijentacije poput univerzalizma i partikularizma potrebne samo da bi se ukazalo na ono što nedostaje, te da bi se to nadopunilo.In this study, the author analyses the relationship between general culture and its particularistic segments within the integral political community and concludes: as long as there are citizens, there will be a conflict between the general and the singular; also, the mediation between these two categories is never final; instead, one should repeatedly define what is appropriate, right and compulsory. This is the strength of the type of reasoning to which the schematic landmarks such as universalism and particularism are necessary only as reminders of what is missing in order to fill in the gaps

Synthetic Conjugates of Ursodeoxycholic Acid Inhibit Cystogenesis in Experimental Models of Polycystic Liver Disease

Altres ajuts: Suported by IKERBASQUE, Basque foundation for Science (M.J. Perugorria and J.M. Banales), Spain; "Junta de Castilla y Leon" (J.J.G. Marin: SA06P17); "Diputación Foral Gipuzkoa" (J.M. Banales: DFG15/010, DFG16/004; M.J. Perugorria: DFG18/114, DFG19/081), BIOEF (Basque Foundation for Innovation and Health Research: EiTB Maratoia BIO15/CA/016/BD to J.M. Banales), Department of Health of the Basque Country (J.M. Banales: 2017111010; M.J. Perugorria: 2019111024), and Euskadi RIS3 (J.M. Banales: 2016222001, 2017222014, and 2018222029; 2019222054); La Caixa Scientific Foundation (J.M. Banales: HR17-00601); "Fundación Científica de la Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer" (AECC Scientific Foundation, to J.M. Banales and J.J.G. Marin); and "Centro Internacional sobre el Envejecimiento", Spain (J.J.G. Marin: OLD-HEPAMARKER, 0348-CIE-6-E). A. Santos-Laso by the Basque Government (PRE_2018_2_0195), and Pui Y. Lee-Law by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL; Sheila Sherlock Award). Basque Government (F.P. Cossío: IT-324-07). I. Rivilla had a postdoctoral contract from the Donostia International Physics Center.Background and Aims: Polycystic liver diseases (PLDs) are genetic disorders characterized by progressive development of symptomatic biliary cysts. Current surgical and pharmacological approaches are ineffective, and liver transplantation represents the only curative option. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and histone deacetylase 6 inhibitors (HDAC6is) have arisen as promising therapeutic strategies, but with partial benefits. Approach and Results: Here, we tested an approach based on the design, synthesis, and validation of a family of UDCA synthetic conjugates with selective HDAC6i capacity (UDCA-HDAC6i). Four UDCA-HDAC6i conjugates presented selective HDAC6i activity, UDCA-HDAC6i #1 being the most promising candidate. UDCA orientation within the UDCA-HDAC6i structure was determinant for HDAC6i activity and selectivity. Treatment of polycystic rats with UDCA-HDAC6i #1 reduced their hepatomegaly and cystogenesis, increased UDCA concentration, and inhibited HDAC6 activity in liver. In cystic cholangiocytes UDCA-HDAC6i #1 restored primary cilium length and exhibited potent antiproliferative activity. UDCA-HDAC6i #1 was actively transported into cells through BA and organic cation transporters. Conclusions: These UDCA-HDAC6i conjugates open a therapeutic avenue for PLDs

Generalized Parton Distributions from Hadronic Observables: Non-Zero Skewness

We propose a physically motivated parametrization for the unpolarized generalized parton distributions, H and E, valid at both zero and non-zero values of the skewness variable, \zeta. Our approach follows a previous detailed study of the \zeta=0 case where H and E were determined using constraints from simultaneous fits of the experimental data on both the nucleon elastic form factors and the deep inelastic structure functions in the non singlet sector. Additional constraints at \zeta \neq 0 are provided by lattice calculations of the higher moments of generalized parton distributions. We illustrate a method for extracting generalized parton distributions from lattice moments based on a reconstruction using sets of orthogonal polynomials. The inclusion in our fit of data on Deeply Virtual Compton Scattering is also discussed. Our method provides a step towards a model independent extraction of generalized distributions from the data. It also provides an alternative to double distributions based phenomenological models in that we are able to satisfy the polynomiality condition by construction, using a combination of experimental data and lattice, without resorting to any specific mathematical construct.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figures; added references, changed text in several place

Fermion Masses and Mixing in Intersecting Branes Scenarios

We study the structure of Yukawa couplings in intersecting D6-branes wrapping a factorizable 6-torus compact space T^6. Models with MSSM-like spectrum are analyzed and found to fail in predicting the quark mass spectrum because of the way in which the family structure for the left-handed, right-handed quarks and, eventually, the Higgses is `factorized' among the different tori. In order to circumvent this, we present a model with three supersymmetric Higgs doublets which satisfies the anomaly cancellation condition in a more natural way than the previous models, where quarks were not treated universally regarding their branes assignments, or some particular branes were singled out being invariant under orientifold projection. In our model, the family structures for the left, right quarks, left leptons and the Higgses arise from one of the tori and can naturally lead to universal strength Yukawa couplings which accommodate the quark mass hierarchy and the mixing angles.Comment: 21 pages, latex, matches the Phys. Rev. D versio