AMS congress report: Heart Failure and Europace 2005

The 2005 year has abounded in many crucial cardiologic and cardiosurgical congresses and conferences, beginning in Lisbon (Heart Failure), through Prague (Europace), Stockholm (ESC), ending in Barcelona (EACTS). Many important trails have been finished and have been presented during these Conferences, as an example: CIBIS III, PREAMI, SIRIUS II, CLARITY and TNT. Here you can find a short communication related to two of mentioned above conferences. Heart Failure 2005 The annual meeting of the Heart Failure Association (HFA of the ESC) Heart Failure 2005 in Lisbon, Portugal, June 11-14 2005, was exceptionally successful. At the Opening Ceremony, the HFA of the ESC celebrated the 10th Anniversary of Heart Failure within the European Society of Cardiology. Much over 4000 participants took part in this event, 1195 abstracts were submitted for the review process, out of which 554 have been accepted. It was a very successful meeting which took place in a great scenery. Lisbon is a beautiful town with a special atmosphere and with great moist climate from Tag River and the Atlantic Ocean. During the conference the weather – sunny with the temperature till 24 degrees, was suitable to the important debates which took place in modern Lisbon Congress Centre on the Praça das Ind?strias. There were many very interesting oral presentations, moderated posters and posters. In our opinion two workshops were uniquely interesting. The first – Clinical research methodology in heart failure (Chairmen: Prof. Mcmurray from Glasgow and Prof. Abreu E Lima from Porto) was dedicated to two essential subjects – the suitable preparing of a manuscript to be published in the best medical journal (with high impact factor) and the preparing and managing of a clinical trial. The former theme was brilliantly presented by Prof. Dickstein and the latter by Prof. Mcmurray. I hope Prof. Dickstein agrees to present his presentation in one of the following issues of Archives of Medical Science. It will be a great occasion for our readers – young scientists to get to know the secrets of the publishing art. During another workshop – I think the most interesting one – Statins in heart failure – Cholesterol-lowering is not the only goal (Chairmen: Prof. Kjekshus from Oslo and Prof. Charron from Paris) the mechanisms, influence and the role of statins in patients with heart failure was described. Dr. Ulf Landmesser (Hanover, Germany) discussed how low cholesterol levels are associated with poor outcomes in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). He proved that statins have an essential role in the management of CHF, which is connected with their pleiotropic effects and are independent of the drugs’ cholesterol-lowering effects. His team examined the beneficial effects of statins in animal models of post-myocardial infarction HF. They have also evaluated the influence of simvastatin on endothelial function in a group of patients with CHF. In the study patients with CHF were randomized to 4 weeks of treatment with either simvastatin (10 mg, once daily) or ezetimibe (10 mg, once daily). They observed that both simvastatin and ezetimibe reduced low-density lipid cholesterol by approximately 15%; however, the flow dependent dilation (FDD) was markedly improved after simvastatin compared to baseline, whereas there was no significant change after ezetimibe administration. They also obtained that simvastatin significantly increased the activity of extracellular superoxide dismutase, an important antioxidant, and increased the number of functionally active endothelial progenitor cells, while ezetimibe had no effect in either of these areas. Dr. Stephen Anker (London, UK) presented the lecture entitled The purpose of statin therapy in CHF. He agreed with his predecessor that statin therapy has a different function in the management of CHF. He emphasized that the aim of treatment is not to lower cholesterol. As the last lecturer appeared Prof. Kjekshus from Oslo. He added that, despite the established understanding that low cholesterol is associated with a poor prognosis in CHF, such patients benefit from statin therapy. Statins target 3-hydroxy-3-methyl glutaryl CoA (HMGCoA) reductase, therefore they may also inhibit multiple metabolic effects of this enzyme. He noted that some of this drug class’s benefits could be the reduction of cholesterol plaques and inhibition of the pro-inflammatory effects produced by HMGCoA reductase. Next he presented several trials which showed the role of statins in patients in CHF. He mentioned the beneficial role of statins in inhibiting of co-enzyme Q10 (CoQ10), which further promotes the production of high density-lipid (HDL) cholesterol. At the end of his presentation he showed the outcomes of his own research, where in over 4400 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) with no history of CHF simvastatin was administered. He observed that patients who received statin were less likely to develop CHF. All participants of the workshop emphasized that there is still much work to show the real role of statins in heart failure, however one is unquestionable – the role of statins in CHF patients is significantly beneficial. During Heart Failure 2005 Dr. Banach and Dr. Okoński presented two manuscripts. In the first one, which was presented during the session Mechanical intervention for the treatment of heart failure (Chairmen: Dr. Pacher from Hagenbrunn, Austria and Dr. De Sousa from Lisbon), our aim was to evaluate the early and long-term changes of: ejection fraction (EF), endsystolic and enddiastolic left ventricle diameters (LVESD and LVEDD), endsystolic and enddiastolic left ventricular wall thickness and left atrium diameter, in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) due to isolated aortic stenosis (AS) or regurgitation (AR). According to the obtained results we concluded that AVR both due to AS and AR is associated with improved functional status in early (7-21 days) postoperative period especially in groups with EF 70 years, preexisting cardiovascular disease, previous treatment by calcium-channel blockers, pulmonary congestion and respiratory insufficiency in the postoperative period and operation with standard CABG (Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting) technique. AF in the postoperative period was associated with an increase in the length of hospital stay (12.9±7.8 vs 9.4±5.2 days, p130 ms is nondependent factor which may predict the incidence of AF with 93.1% sensitivity after surgical closure of ASD t.2. Summing it up these two great conferences were a great opportunity to take part in many worthy workshop, listen to many high quality presentations, and meet and talk to famous, experienced researchers. Such occasions give the opportunity to exchange our own opinions and discuss. And it always favors with creating new great scientific ideas

The concept for protection of flood plain forests in the Uroczysko Warta forest district

Flood plain forests are the richest and highly picturesque forest ecosystems. Unfortunately, river regulation and flood control contribute to their degradation. In Poland only 0.2% of total area is covered by flood plain forests. The Uroczysko Warta forest district constitutes one of the most important clusters of these sites. The construction of the Jeziorsko reservoir in the middle course of the Warta River has contributed to changes in the river regime (reduced flooding areas and decreased flooding frequency). It seems that the use of simple land improvement systems, i.e. gates, river bars and culverts with flap check valves, may result in the recreation of advantageous hydrological conditions. In such a case storage volume of oxbow lakes would be increased and ground water would be maintained at a higher level over longer periods of time. This study presents a concept for protection of the Uroczysko Warta, thanks to the construction of appropriate engineering infrastructure

Effect-based monitoring of Danube river using mobile passive sampling approach

Surface waters are often polluted by complex mixtures of pollutants whose toxic properties are relatively difficult to describe. Effect-based monitoring with a battery of bioassays represents an efficient approach for toxicological profiling and identification of samples of major interest through providing data of the toxic potencies and mode of action of the extracted mixtures that cannot be evaluated by chemical analysis alone. In our work we used an “active” passive sampling system (APS) for temporally and spatially integrative sampling using silicone rubber and EMPORE disc based passive samplers, which efficiently preconcentrate a wide spectrum of polar and non-polar organic pollutants from the water column along a defined river stretch. This concept was employed during Joint Danube Survey 3 in summer 2013. Eight Danube river stretches were sampled to cover spatial distribution of the pollutants characterized through a set of bioassays investigating presence of contaminants with several non-specific and important specific toxic modes of action. Presence of contaminants with potentials for causing endocrine disruption (anti/estrogenic anti/androgenic), dioxin-like activities, potential to elicit adaptive stress responses associated with oxidative stress, p53-mediated apoptotic response and NF-κB-associated inflammatory response were characterized in samples from different river stretches. This wide range of assessed endpoints serves as a toxicological profiling tool to describe risks associated with fresh water pollutant mixtures. The obtained results also serve for spatial characterization of pollution gradients along the river and selecting hotspots for further studies. This research was supported by SOLUTIONS Project from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-ENV-2013-two-stage Collaborative project) under grant agreement 603437

Pesticides in the atmosphere: a comparison of gas-particle partitioning and particle size distribution of legacy and current-use pesticides

This study presents a comparison of seasonal variation, gas-particle partitioning, and particle-phase size distribution of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and current-use pesticides (CUPs) in air. Two years (2012/2013) of weekly air samples were collected at a background site in the Czech Republic using a high-volume air sampler. To study the particle-phase size distribution, air samples were also collected at an urban and rural site in the area of Brno, Czech Republic, using a cascade impactor separating atmospheric particulates according to six size fractions. Major differences were found in the atmospheric distribution of OCPs and CUPs. The atmospheric concentrations of CUPs were driven by agricultural activities while secondary sources such as volatilization from surfaces governed the atmospheric concentrations of OCPs. Moreover, clear differences were observed in gas-particle partitioning; CUP partitioning was influenced by adsorption onto mineral surfaces while OCPs were mainly partitioning to aerosols through absorption. A predictive method for estimating the gas-particle partitioning has been derived and is proposed for polar and non-polar pesticides. Finally, while OCPs and the majority of CUPs were largely found on fine particles, four CUPs (carbendazim, isoproturon, prochloraz, and terbuthylazine) had higher concentrations on coarse particles ( >  3.0 µm), which may be related to the pesticide application technique. This finding is particularly important and should be further investigated given that large particles result in lower risks from inhalation (regardless the toxicity of the pesticide) and lower potential for long-range atmospheric transport

Mobile passive sampling as a tool for toxicological profiling

Many components of complex organic pollutant mixtures in waters are often present at very low levels, posing a challenge for current analytical methods. Passive sampling is one of the perspective methods that could address this problem. In our work, we used a mobile "active" passive sampling system with two types of sorbent (EMPORE discs, silicone rubbers), which preconcentrates a wide spectrum of polar and non-polar organic pollutants from the water column. Eight Danube river stretches were sampled and spatial distribution profiles were described for a comprehensive range of organic pollutants including pesticides, pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals. Sampling rate and the original concentrations of the pollutants in water were estimated for pollutants with different physicochemical properties by a set of reference compounds. The employed mode of passive sampling with an active exchange of water in the sampling chamber proved to be about five-times more effective than static exposure and in relatively short sampling times allowed quantification of chemicals in pg.L-1 levels. Beside chemical analyses, samples were characterized with a battery of in vitro bioassays sensitive to chemicals with selected modes of action. Toxic potentials for causing endocrine disruption (anti/estrogenic, anti/androgenic), dioxin-like activity, pregnane X receptor (PXR)-mediated activity and oxidative stress-associated response showed spatial variation along the river. Polarity of chemicals played an important role, while AhR-mediated effects were associated mostly with non-polar compounds (sampled by the silicone rubber sampler) the rest of toxic potentials was associated mainly with more polar chemicals sampled by the EMPORE disc samplers. To link the toxic potentials with chemical analysis data, the detected pollutant levels and their relative effect potencies were used for calculation of bioanalytical equivalent concentrations (BEQs) using the concentration addition concept, with effect concentrations obtained from literature or US EPA ToxCast database. BEQs served for explaining the observed bioassay-derived toxic potentials and identification of the main drivers of toxicity. Our work demonstrates the utility of passive sampling for analysis of trace contaminants in river water as well as effect-based monitoring. The SOLUTIONS Project is supported by the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-ENV-2013) of the European Union under grant agreement no. 603437

Chemical and toxicological profiling of large rivers using mobile passive sampling and comparison to large volume active sampling

Risks associated with complex mixtures of chemicals in freshwaters are difficult to predict. Efficient sampling methods and sensitive effect based tools can significantly improve the risk assessment. Novel mobile “enhanced” passive sampling system was applied within the Joint Danube Survey 3 in 2013. The partitioning samplers for non-polar compounds, i.e. silicone rubber sheets, and an adsorption sampler for polar compounds based on Empore SPE disks integrated water pollutants in time and space over 8 river stretches. Spot sampling of high water volumes was conducted by large volume solid phase extraction at 22 sites along the river. Up to 500 L of water were passed through extraction system containing neutral sorbent Chromabond HR-X, anionic exchanger Chromabond HR-XAW, and cationic exchanger Chromabond HR-XCW. Extracts of samples were subjected to analysis of organic pollutants and to toxicological profiling. Spatial profiles of a broad range of organic pollutants and studied toxicological endpoints were identified. In many cases the integrative character of passive sampling allowed measurement of compounds at pg L-1 levels. Besides oxidative stress response, toxic equivalents were detected in a similar range for active and passive sampling. The passive sampling reflected the physical-chemical characteristics of the compounds driving individual effects. While the PXR-mediated and estrogenic effect potentials were detected namely in Empore samplers, thus were elicited mainly by polar chemicals, AhR-mediated effect potential was primarily detected in silicone rubber samples, which reflects significant contribution of less polar compounds. The bioanalytical equivalent concentration approach was used to characterize the contribution of the detected chemicals to observed toxic potentials and identify the main toxicity drivers. The fraction of biological effects explained by the detected chemicals in samples from passive sampling of water from the Danube river differed depending on the studied effect and the type of sampler. Our study demonstrates the utility of the integrated approach using toxicological profiling to characterize pollutant mixtures along with chemical analysis in monitoring of fresh water quality and good applicability of passive sampling and large volume solid phase extraction in this assessment. This research was supported by EU FP7 Project SOLUTIONS (no. 603437)

Leader-Containing Uncapped Viral Transcript Activates RIG-I in Antiviral Stress Granules

[Correction]5 Apr 2016: Oh SW, Onomoto K, Wakimoto M, Onoguchi K, Ishidate F, et al. (2016) Correction: Leader-Containing Uncapped Viral Transcript Activates RIG-I in Antiviral Stress Granules. PLOS Pathogens 12(4): e1005563. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1005563RIG-I triggers antiviral responses by recognizing viral RNA (vRNA) in the cytoplasm. However, the spatio-temporal dynamics of vRNA sensing and signal transduction remain elusive. We investigated the time course of events in cells infected with Newcastle disease virus (NDV), a non-segmented negative-strand RNA virus. RIG-I was recruited to viral replication complexes (vRC) and triggered minimal primary type I interferon (IFN) production. RIG-I subsequently localized to antiviral stress granules (avSG) induced after vRC formation. The inhibition of avSG attenuated secondary IFN production, suggesting avSG as a platform for efficient vRNA detection. avSG selectively captured positive-strand vRNA, and poly(A)+ RNA induced IFN production. Further investigations suggested that uncapped vRNA derived from read-through transcription was sensed by RIG-I in avSG. These results highlight how viral infections stimulate host stress responses, thereby selectively recruiting uncapped vRNA to avSG, in which RIG-I and other components cooperate in an efficient antiviral program

Benthic communities in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean: Conservation value of animal forests at the Burdwood Bank slope

The characterization of benthic communities at the Burdwood Bank slope(≥200 m depth) is provided, comprising data from the marine protected area(MPA) Namuncurá II (created in December 2018), as well as from some deepbathyal surrounding areas in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean. This information was acquired during two research cruises with RV Puerto Deseado (Argentina) during 2016 and 2017. Marine animal forests were detected in the study area: coral gardens, mainly composed of alcyonaceans, were detected in the south and west of Burdwood Bank(MPA Namuncurá II) and neighbouring areas, whereas pennatulacean aggregations were detected in the north-west of the plateau. The three-dimensional structures of live but also dead corals provide substrate and refuge to many associated species. Benthic communities dominated by sponges were also recorded between 200 and 300 m in depth. Six sites that meet the characteristics of vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs)are reported. Conservation strategies applied to scarcely known austral Argentinean waters ledto the establishment of a pioneer MPA (Namuncurá I). Following the management plan that aimed to establish the biodiversity of Namuncurá I and neighbouring areas, the area of protection has now been enlarged to include the southern slope of the bank (currently Namuncurá II), where marine animal forests were detected at depths below 200 m. The data presented here provide empirical evidence to support the conservation value of the region.Fil: Schejter, Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones y Desarrollo Pesquero; ArgentinaFil: Genzano, Gabriel Nestor. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; ArgentinaFil: Gaitán, Esteban Nicolás. Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones y Desarrollo Pesquero; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Perez, Carlos D.. Universidad Federal Rural Pernambuco; BrasilFil: Bremec, Claudia Silvia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentin