To support personalized diets targeting the gut microbiota, we employed an
digestion-fermentation model and 16S rRNA gene sequencing to analyze the microbiota growing on representative foods of the ...Mediterranean and Western diets, as well as the influence of cooking methods. Plant- and animal-derived foods had significantly different impacts on the abundances of bacterial taxa. Animal and vegetable fats, fish and dairy products led to increases in many taxa, mainly within the Lachnospiraceae. In particular, fats favored increases in the beneficial bacteria
,
, and
. However, butter, as well as gouda cheese and fish, also resulted in the increase of
, associated to several diseases. Frying and boiling produced the most distinct effects on the microbiota, with members of the Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae responding the most to the cooking method employed. Nevertheless, cooking effects were highly individualized and food-dependent, challenging the investigation of their role in personalized diets.
Abstract Cerebellar ataxia is one of the most frequent syndromes associated with autoantibodies against glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD-ab). Antibodies recognize the isoform GAD65, which is the ...standard biomarker, but additional immunoreactivity against GAD67 is found in high proportion of patients with GAD-ab-associated neurological disorders. We describe the case of a 59-year-old woman who presented with pancerebellar syndrome of subacute onset (9 weeks to nadir). In the etiological study, high titers of GAD-ab were found, but these only recognized the GAD67 isoform and not the GAD65. Screening of GAD67-ab should be considered in late-onset cerebellar ataxia when GAD65-ab are absent.
•T. sinensis can attack native species under laboratory and field conditions.•Molecular and mating data show that there is no hybridization with the native species.•We detected the presence of the ...alien species Torymus beneficus in Spain.•Decisions on biological control of D. kuriphilus by T. sinensis are discussed.
A common strategy to limit the negative impact of biological invasions is biological control through the release of specialized alien natural enemies. However, biological control plans are not without risks, which include parasitism of native hosts and hybridization with related native species, particularly those that are potential natural enemies of the invasive species. Here, we evaluate these potential risks resulting from the introduction of the parasitoid wasp Torymus sinensis (Hymenoptera: Torymidae) in Europe to control the invasive Asian chestnut gall wasp Dryocosmus kuriphilus (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae).
We found that, under laboratory conditions, the physiological host range of T. sinensis includes several native non-target species of Cynipidae, with oviposition observed on the galls of 8 of the 11 species tested. However, physiological host range of T. sinensis appears to be limited under field conditions, as we observed only one parasitized gall of Andricus curvator in the field. Regarding hybridization, inter-species mating between T. sinensis and its phylogenetically closest native Torymus species was not observed in the laboratory. Moreover, discordance between nuclear (ITS2) and mitochondrial (coxI) data does not support the presence of genetic introgression, suggesting that hybridization between T. sinensis and native Torymus species does not occur. In addition, we cite and discuss the unexpected presence of one individual of the related alien species Torymus beneficus in Spain.
Our results suggest that T. sinensis may negatively impact several non-target species, highlighting the need for careful monitoring of the extent of such undesired behaviour and its effects on the native fauna.
SKP2 is the ubiquitin ligase subunit that targets p27(KIP1) (p27) for degradation. SKP2 is induced in the G(1)-S transit of the cell cycle, is frequently overexpressed in human cancer, and displays ...transformation activity in experimental models. Here we show that MYC induces SKP2 expression at the mRNA and protein levels in human myeloid leukemia K562 cells with conditional MYC expression. Importantly, in these systems, induction of MYC did not activate cell proliferation, ruling out SKP2 up-regulation as a consequence of cell cycle entry. MYC-dependent SKP2 expression was also detected in other cell types such as lymphoid, fibroblastic, and epithelial cell lines. MYC induced SKP2 mRNA expression in the absence of protein synthesis and activated the SKP2 promoter in luciferase reporter assays. With chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, MYC was detected bound to a region of human SKP2 gene promoter that includes E-boxes. The K562 cell line derives from human chronic myeloid leukemia. In a cohort of chronic myeloid leukemia bone marrow samples, we found a correlation between MYC and SKP2 mRNA levels. Analysis of cancer expression databases also indicated a correlation between MYC and SKP2 expression in lymphoma. Finally, MYC-induced SKP2 expression resulted in a decrease in p27 protein in K562 cells. Moreover, silencing of SKP2 abrogated the MYC-mediated down-regulation of p27. Our data show that SKP2 is a direct MYC target gene and that MYC-mediated SKP2 induction leads to reduced p27 levels. The results suggest the induction of SKP2 oncogene as a new mechanism for MYC-dependent transformation.
Many patients suffering late-onset Alzheimer disease show a deficit in respiratory complex IV activity. The
pyrimidine biosynthesis pathway connects with the mitochondrial respiratory chain upstream ...from respiratory complex IV. We hypothesized that these patients would have decreased pyrimidine nucleotide levels. Then, different cell processes for which these compounds are essential, such as neuronal membrane generation and maintenance and synapses production, would be compromised. Using a cell model, we show that inhibiting oxidative phosphorylation function reduces neuronal differentiation. Linking these processes to pyrimidine nucleotides, uridine treatment recovers neuronal differentiation. To unmask the importance of these pathways in Alzheimer disease, we firstly confirm the existence of the
pyrimidine biosynthesis pathway in adult human brain. Then, we report altered mRNA levels for genes from both
pyrimidine biosynthesis and pyrimidine salvage pathways in brain from patients with Alzheimer disease. Thus, uridine supplementation might be used as a therapy for those Alzheimer disease patients with low respiratory complex IV activity.
Mitochondrial DNA mutations in genes encoding respiratory complex I polypeptides can cause Leber hereditary optic neuropathy. Toxics affecting oxidative phosphorylation system can also cause ...mitochondrial optic neuropathy. Some complex I inhibitors found in edible plants might differentially interact with these pathologic mutations and modify their penetrance. To analyze this interaction, we have compared the effect of rotenone, capsaicin and rolliniastatin-1 on cybrids harboring the most frequent Leber hereditary optic neuropathy mutations and found that m.3460G > A mutation increases rotenone resistance but capsaicin and rolliniastatin-1 susceptibility. Thus, to explain the pathogenicity of mitochondrial diseases due to mitochondrial DNA mutations, their potential interactions with environment factors will have to be considered.
•Some mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations cause Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON).•Some oxidative phosphorylation system inhibitors cause mitochondrial optic neuropathies.•Food derived xenobiotics modify the penetrance of LHON mtDNA mutations.•The m.3460G > A mutation increases rotenone resistance but capsaicin and rolliniastatin-1 susceptibility.•Gene-environment interactions must be considered to explain mitochondrial disease pathogenicity.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in Western countries. Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), a negative modulator of insulin and cytokine ...signaling, is a therapeutic target for type 2 diabetes and obesity. We investigated the impact of PTP1B deficiency during NAFLD, particularly in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
NASH features were evaluated in livers from wild-type (PTP1BWT) and PTP1B-deficient (PTP1BKO) mice fed methionine/choline-deficient diet (MCD) for 8 weeks. A recovery model was established by replacing MCD to chow diet (CHD) for 2-7 days. Non-parenchymal liver cells (NPCs) were analyzed by flow cytometry. Oval cells markers were measured in human and mouse livers with NASH, and in oval cells from PTP1BWT and PTP1BKO mice.
PTP1BWT mice fed MCD for 8 weeks exhibited NASH, NPCs infiltration, and elevated Fgf21, Il6 and Il1b mRNAs. These parameters decreased after switching to CHD. PTP1B deficiency accelerated MCD-induced NASH. Conversely, after switching to CHD, PTP1BKO mice rapidly reverted NASH compared to PTP1BWT mice in parallel to the normalization of serum triglycerides (TG) levels. Among NPCs, a drop in cytotoxic natural killer T (NKT) subpopulation was detected in PTP1BKO livers during recovery, and in these conditions M2 macrophage markers were up-regulated. Oval cells markers (EpCAM and cytokeratin 19) significantly increased during NASH only in PTP1B-deficient livers. HGF-mediated signaling and proliferative capacity were enhanced in PTP1BKO oval cells. In NASH patients, oval cells markers were also elevated.
PTP1B elicits a dual role in NASH progression and reversion. Additionally, our results support a new role for PTP1B in oval cell proliferation during NAFLD.
Late-onset Parkinson disease is a multifactorial and multietiological disorder, age being one of the factors implicated. Genetic and/or environmental factors, such as pesticides, can also be ...involved. Up to 80% of dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra are lost before motor features of the disorder begin to appear. In humans, these neurons are only formed a few weeks after fertilization. Therefore, prenatal exposure to pesticides or industrial chemicals during crucial steps of brain development might also alter their proliferation and differentiation. Oxidative phosphorylation is one of the metabolic pathways sensitive to environmental toxicants and it is crucial for neuronal differentiation. Many inhibitors of this biochemical pathway, frequently found as persistent organic pollutants, affect dopaminergic neurogenesis, promote the degeneration of these neurons and increase the risk of suffering late-onset Parkinson disease. Here, we discuss how an early, prenatal, exposure to these oxidative phosphorylation xenobiotics might trigger a late-onset, old age, Parkinson disease.
Since the 1990s, most currently assessed Mediterranean nekto‐benthic stocks have been exploited above maximum sustainable yield and have declined. This study explores the co‐occurrence of essential ...fish habitats for the most important nekto‐benthic resources exploited by bottom‐trawl fisheries in the western Mediterranean and areas of importance for nekto‐benthic communities.
Fishery‐independent data obtained from Mediterranean scientific bottom‐trawl surveys were used to identify persistent hotspots of recruitment for the most important nekto‐benthic species around the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands between 2002 and 2016, as an indicator of their essential fish habitats. Likewise, hotspots of nekto‐benthic community diversity and density were also determined, as an estimate of key areas for nekto‐benthic communities.
Areas of overlap of persistent hotspots of recruitment and of community species richness and density were mainly found on the deep shelf and the upper slope (100–200 m and 200–500 m deep respectively).
These overlapping areas could be of particular interest in the development of fishery management plans aiming to implement an ecosystem approach to fisheries. Protection, through temporary or permanent closures, of the overlapping areas identified would contribute to improving both the sustainable exploitation of the main target species of bottom‐trawl fisheries and the conservation of nekto‐benthic communities.
A comparison between the properties of chars produced by pyrolysis of rice husk and eucalyptus at different temperatures and heating rates has been performed. Low heating rate (LHR) devolatilization ...experiments were conducted in a fixed bed reactor at temperatures ranging from 600 to 900 °C, while a fluidized bed reactor was used for preparing chars at high heating rate (HHR) and temperatures of 800 and 900 °C. The morphological changes in carbonaceous solids produced in the different thermal treatments were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectra were obtained to evaluate the degree of char structural order. The chars were characterized by their ultimate analysis, oxygen functional group content, and CO2 adsorption at 0 °C using the Dubinin–Radushkevich method. The results obtained from the different techniques were contrasted to give an overview of the chemical and physical properties of the biomass char samples studied. The influence of the parent material and char properties on char reactivity toward O2 and NO reduction was further investigated. It was found that, though rice husk chars have a greater reactivity toward oxygen, the NO reduction ability was significantly higher for the eucalyptus chars.
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