Green tea catechin inhibits fatty acid synthase without stimulating carnitine Palmitoyltransferase-1 or inducing weight loss in experimental animals

Background: The enzyme fatty acid synthase (FASN) is highly expressed in many human carcinomas and its inhibition is cytotoxic to human cancer cells. The use of FASN inhibitors has been limited until now by anorexia and weight loss, which is associated with the stimulation of fatty acid oxidation. Materials and Methods: The in vitro effect of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) on fatty acid metabolism enzymes, on apoptosis and on cell signalling was evaluated. In vivo, the effect of EGCG on animal body weight was addressed. Results: EGCG inhibited FASN activity, induced apoptosis and caused a marked decrease of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT and extracellular (signal)-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 proteins, in breast cancer cells. EGCG did not induce a stimulatory effect on CPT-1 activity in vitro (84% of control), or on animal body weight in vivo (99% of control). Conclusion: EGCG is a FASN inhibitor with anticancer activity which does not exhibit cross-activation of fatty acid oxidation and does not induce weight loss, suggesting its potential use as an anticancer drug

New synthetic inhibitors of fatty acid synthase with anticancer activity

Fatty acid synthase (FASN) is a lipogenic enzyme that is highly expressed in different human cancers. Here we report the development of a new series of polyphenolic compounds 5-­30 that have been evaluated for their cytotoxic capacity in SK-­Br3 cells, a human breast cancer cell line with high FASN expression. The compounds with an IC50 < 50 M have been tested for their ability to inhibit FASN activity. Among them, derivative 30 blocks the 90% of FASN activity at low concentration (4 M), is highly cytotoxic in a broad panel of tumor cells, induces apoptosis, and blocks the activation of HER2, AKT and ERK pathways. Remarkably, 30 does not activate carnitine palmitoyltransferase-­1 (CPT-­1) nor induces in mice weight loss, which are the main drawbacks of other previously described FASN inhibitors. Thus, FASN inhibitor 30 may aid the validation of this enzyme as a therapeutic target for the treatment of cancer

Volatile fingerprinting differentiates diverse-aged craft beers

Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2019.03.044.Beer ageing on wood is a complex and difficult to control process involving several reactions and compounds. Difficulties in understanding the underlying phenomena often lead to empirical and unpredictable processes and heterogeneous products. This work resorts to volatile fingerprinting along with multivariate analysis as tools to differentiate and highlight differences in beers derived from diverse production processes. Volatile composition of beers originating from barrel ageing processes and unaged beer were analyzed by GC-MS. The collected data was processed by principal component analysis, which allowed the evaluation of relations between samples and volatile compounds. Beers were distinguished by clusters comprising different groups of volatiles. Beer with the longest period in barrel was in the cluster with the most volatiles. Beer produced by resident barrel microbiota fermentation was characterized by presence of Brettanomyces sp. metabolites. Beer aged in barrel by a shorter time period showed characteristic content of ethyl esters and oak extractives. Beer produced in inox vat and beer fermented in barrel with pitching of S. cerevisiae appeared in the same cluster, relating with fermentative esters. Volatile fingerprinting was a viable approach to characterize and distinguish the analyzed beers, providing relevant information regarding the impact of production methodologies in volatile composition.This work had funding support of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2019 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145 FEDER-006684) and BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 – Programa Operacional Regional do Norte. Fermentum –EngenhariadasFermentações Lda.also participated incofunding and supplying materials for this work. Authors would like to thank Mr. Paulo Coutinho and Quinta do Portal for supplying the oak barrels used in this work.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Report based on comparison of case studies in different wild boar populations representative of the different management and habitat conditions across Europe

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El sistema hidroturboso de Trescuro: gradientes ambientales y eventos climáticos limitan la distribución local de las comunidades vegetales

E. Carrillo, J. Ninot, T. Buchaca and M. Ventura. Blanes, LIFE+ LIMNOPIRINEUS Technical OfficeLos ecosistemas hidroturbosos que se encuentran en las montañas alpinas tienen un gran valor ecológico, ya que su distribución está muy limitada por la fisiografía abrupta y por la influencia climática mediterránea. La gestión y la conservación de estos ecosistemas vulnerables pasa por comprender cómo los factores ambientales, junto con los variables regímenes hídricos, condicionan sus patrones de vegetación. En este trabajo analizamos la relación entre los factores abióticos y la distribución de diferentes tipos de comunidades vegetales en el sistema hidroturboso de Trescuro. Para ello, establecimos 30 puntos de muestreo en el mosaico de vegetación en los que se registraron el pH, la conductividad eléctrica, la profundidad de la capa freática y la concentración de iones durante los veranos de 2014 y 2015. Los resultados evidencian que la variación en el nivel freático es el principal condicionante de la distribución de la vegetación a pequeña escala, seguida de la concentración de iones. Las comunidades solígenas, que dependen en gran medida del agua de escorrentía superficial, fueron las más afectadas por los eventos de sequía y, por lo tanto, las más sensibles a la colonización por parte de los árboles.Peer reviewe

El sistema de molleres de Trescuro: gradients ambientals i esdeveniments climàtics limiten la distribució local de les comunitats vegetals

E. Carrillo, J. Ninot, T. Buchaca and M. Ventura. Blanes, LIFE+ LIMNOPIRINEUS Technical OfficeEls ecosistemes de mollera que es troben a les muntanyes alpines tenen un gran valor ecològic, ja que la seva distribució està molt limitada per la fisiografia abrupta i per la influència climàtica mediterrània. La gestió i la conservació d’aquests ecosistemes vulnerables passa per entendre com els factors ambientals, juntament amb un règim hídric variable, condicionen els patrons de vegetació a les molleres. En aquest treball, analitzem la relació entre els factors abiòtics i la distribució de diferents tipus de comunitats vegetals en el sistema hidrotorbós de Trescuro. Amb aquest objectiu, vam establir 30 punts de mostreig en el mosaic de vegetació, on es van registrar el pH, la conductivitat elèctrica, la profunditat de la capa freàtica i la concentració d’ions durant els estius de 2014 i 2015. Els resultats evidencien que la variació en el nivell freàtic és el principal condicionant de la distribució de la vegetació a petita escala, seguida de la concentració d’ions. Les comunitats solígenes, que depenen en gran mesura de l’aigua d’escolament superficial, van ser les més afectades pels esdeveniments de sequera i, per tant, les més sensibles a la colonització per part dels arbres.Peer reviewe

Fine-scale vegetation mosaics in Pyrenean mires are driven by complex hydrological regimes and threatened by extreme weather events

Holarctic mires are systems of great ecological value and limited alpine distribution. Their southernmost European boundary borders the Mediterranean region. Understanding how environmental factors influence the plant community distribution and its response to disturbances, especially in the water regime, is a key step for their management and conservation. Here, we report our study of the main ecological gradients that determine the distribution of different plant community types in the Trescuro mire system, and their response to variations in the environmental conditions such as summer drought. We set up 30 sampling points across the vegetation mosaic where pH, electrical conductivity, water table depth and ion concentration were recorded during the 2014 and 2015 summers. The results revealed that variation in the water table level is what most drives the vegetation distribution at the local scale, followed by the ion concentration. Soligenous communities, which are highly dependent on water runoff, were the most affected by the drought event in 2015. Since these communities are generally situated in the marginal parts of mire systems, summer drought periods may facilitate invasion by trees into the areas they occupy, which may eventually lead to a reduction of mire area. This study contributes to the understanding of the dynamics of these unique and complex systems through elucidating the relationship between the vegetation and climatic variations.This research was funded by the project LIFE+ LIMNOPIRINEUS (NAT/ES/001210).Peer reviewe

The Trescuro Mire System: How sharp environmental gradients and climatic events constrain the local distribution of plant community types

E. Carrillo, J. Ninot, T. Buchaca and M. Ventura. Blanes, LIFE+ LIMNOPIRINEUS Technical OfficeMire ecosystems found in Alpine mountains are of great ecological value, since their distribution is very limited by rough physiography and by Mediterranean climatic influence. Understanding how environmental factors together with varying water regime drive the vegetation patterns is a key step for the management and conservation of vulnerable mire systems. Here, we analyse the relationship between these abiotic drivers and the distribution of different plant community types in the Trescuro mire system. We set up 30 sampling points across the vegetation mosaic where pH, electrical conductivity, water table depth and ion concentration were recorded during the 2014 and 2015 summers. The results evidenced that variation in the water table level is the main driver for small-scale vegetation distribution, followed by the ion concentration. Soligenous communities, which are highly dependent on water runoff, were the most affected by drought events, and thus the most sensitive to eventual invasion by trees.Peer reviewe

El programa de mindfulness “Aprendiendo a Respirar” en adolescentes haciendo la transición a la universidad: Ensayo piloto controlado aleatorizado

La transición a la universidad puede ser un momento estresante para muchos adolescentes. En este estudio piloto se evalúan los efectos de una intervención basada en mindfulness en estudiantes que inician estudios universitarios. Se realizó un ensayo controlado aleatorizado con 114 estudiantes (92 chicas, media de edad = 17.99, DT = 0.69). Se empleó el programa Aprendiendo a Respirar (Learning to Breathe, L2B) traducido y adaptado para el presente estudio. Los participantes completaron diferentes medidas en el pretest y el postest, incluyendo depresión, ansiedad, rumiación, autoconcepto, autocompasión, resiliencia y mindfulness. Los resultados mostraron una disminución significativa de la depresión, la ansiedad y la rumiación y un aumento significativo de la resiliencia, el autoconcepto, y algunas facetas de mindfulness y autocompasión. Los programas basados en mindfulness pueden ser una estrategia efectiva para mejorar la transición a la universidad, favoreciendo estrategias saludables de adaptación a los nuevos cambios.“Learning to Breathe”: a Mindfulness Program for Adolescents in Transition to University: Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial. Transition to university can be a stressful moment for many adolescents. In this pilot study we examined the effect of a mindfulness based intervention in first year university students. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 114 students (92 women, mean age = 17.99, SD = 0.69). The intervention was the program Learning to Breathe (L2B), which was translated and adapted for the present study. The adolescents completed different measures at pretest and postest, including depression, anxiety, rumination, self-concept, self-compassion and mindfulness. Participation in the intervention was associated with a significant decrease in depression, anxiety and rumination and an increase in resilience, self-concept and some facets of mindfulness and self-compassion. Mindfulness based interventions may be an effective way to favor healthy adaptation strategies to new changes and to enhance an adequate transition into college