Ixodes ricinus transmits bacterial, protozoal and viral pathogens, causing disease and forming an increasing health concern in Europe. ANTIDotE is an European Commission funded consortium of seven ...institutes, which aims to identify and characterize tick proteins involved in feeding and pathogen transmission. The knowledge gained will be used to develop and evaluate anti-tick vaccines that may prevent multiple human tick-borne diseases. Strategies encompassing anti-tick vaccines to prevent transmission of pathogens to humans, animals or wildlife will be developed with relevant stakeholders with the ultimate aim of reducing the incidence of tick-borne diseases in humans.
Objectives Salicylate, a potent inducer of the MarA activator in Salmonella enterica, is the principal metabolite of aspirin, which is often consumed for medicinal and cosmetic uses. Our research was ...aimed at testing if salicylate activates the mar regulon in macrophage-associated Salmonella (intracellular bacteria), and investigating its effects on bacterial susceptibility to ciprofloxacin extracellularly and intracellularly. Methods J774 macrophages were infected with S. enterica serovar Typhimurium (wild-type and marA null mutant), treated with ciprofloxacin with and without pre-exposure to salicylate, and the surviving bacteria were counted. Similar experiments were conducted with bacteria in broth (extracellular bacteria). Phe-Arg-β-naphthylamide (PAβN) was added to investigate the role of efflux pumps in resistance. The transcriptional regulation of marRAB, acrAB and micF in extracellular and intracellular Salmonella Typhimurium with and without salicylate and ciprofloxacin was investigated using green fluorescent protein as a marker protein and quantitative real time PCR. Results Pre-exposure of Salmonella to salicylate increased the resistance of extracellular but not intracellular bacteria to ciprofloxacin, although salicylate stimulated the expression of mar genes in intracellular and extracellular bacteria. Using marA mutants and the inhibitor PAβN, we showed that the improved resistance in extracellular bacteria is derived from the induction of acrAB by salicylate, which is mediated by MarA. Conclusions In intracellular bacteria, the expression of acrAB is already higher when compared with extracellular cells; therefore, salicylate does not result in significant acrAB induction intracellularly and subsequent resistance enhancement. Results show that conclusions raised from extracellular studies cannot be applied to intracellular bacteria, although the systems have similar functions.
BACKGROUND: Ixodes scapularis is the most common tick species in North America and a vector of important pathogens that cause diseases in humans and animals including Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and ...babesiosis. Tick defensins have been identified as a new source of antimicrobial agents with putative medical applications due to their wide-ranging antimicrobial activities. Two multigene families of defensins were previously reported in I. scapularis. The objective of the present study was to characterise the potential antimicrobial activity of two defensins from I. scapularis with emphasis on human pathogenic bacterial strains and important phytopathogenic fungi. METHODS: Scapularisin-3 and Scapularisin-6 mature peptides were chemically synthesised. In vitro antimicrobial assays were performed to test the activity of these two defensins against species of different bacterial genera including Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Listeria spp. as well as Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa along with two plant-pathogenic fungi from the genus Fusarium. In addition, the tissue-specific expression patterns of Scapularisin-3 and Scapularisin-6 in I. scapularis midgut, salivary glands and embryo-derived cell lines were determined using PCR. Finally, tertiary structures of the two defensins were predicted and structural analyses were conducted. RESULTS: Scapularisin-6 efficiently killed L. grayi, and both Scapularisin-3 and Scapularisin-6 caused strong inhibition (IC₅₀value: ~1 μM) of the germination of plant-pathogenic fungi Fusarium culmorum and Fusarium graminearum. Scapularisin-6 gene expression was observed in I. scapularis salivary glands and midgut. However, Scapularisin-3 gene expression was only detected in the salivary glands. Transcripts from the two defensins were not found in the I. scapularis tick cell lines ISE6 and ISE18. CONCLUSION: Our results have two main implications. Firstly, the anti-Listeria and antifungal activities of Scapularisin-3 and Scapularisin-6 suggest that these peptides may be useful for (i) treatment of antibiotic-resistant L. grayi in humans and (ii) plant protection. Secondly, the antimicrobial properties of the two defensins described in this study may pave the way for further studies regarding pathogen invasion and innate immunity in I. scapularis.
Virus mitigation behavior has been and still is a powerful means to fight the COVID‐19 pandemic irrespective of the availability of pharmaceutical means (e.g., vaccines). We drew on health behavior ...theories to predict health‐protective (coping‐specific) responses and hope (coping non‐specific response) from health‐related cognitions (vulnerability, severity, self‐assessed knowledge, efficacy). In an extension of this model, we proposed orientation to internal (problem‐focused coping) and external (country capability) coping resources as antecedents of health protection and hope; health‐related cognitions were assumed as mediators of this link. We tested these predictions in a large multi‐national multi‐wave study with a cross‐sectional panel at T1 (Baseline, March‐April 2020; N = 57,631 in 113 countries) and a panel subsample at two later time points, T2 (November 2020; N = 3097) and T3 (April 2021; N = 2628). Multilevel models showed that health‐related cognitions predicted health‐protective responses and hope. Problem‐focused coping was mainly linked to health‐protective behaviors (T1‐T3), whereas country capability was mainly linked to hope (T1‐T3). These relationships were partially mediated by health‐related cognitions. We conceptually replicated predictions of health behavior theories within a real health threat, further suggesting how different coping resources are associated with qualitatively distinct outcomes. Both patterns were consistent across countries and time.
In a phase 2 study, 62 patients with relapsed and refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML; n = 31), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS; n = 8), chronic myeloid leukemia in blastic phase (CMLBP; n = 11), ...and acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL; n = 12) received 40 mg/m2 clofarabine intravenously over 1 hour daily for 5 days, every 3 to 6 weeks. Twenty patients (32%) achieved complete response (CR), 1 had a partial response (PR), and 9 (15%) achieved CR but without platelet recovery (CRp), for an overall response rate of 48%. In AML, responses were noted in 2 (18%) of 11 patients in first salvage with short first CR (≤ 12 months), in 7 (87%) of 8 patients with longer first CR, and in 8 (67%) of 12 patients in second or subsequent salvage. Responses were observed in 4 of 8 patients with high-risk MDS (50%), in 7 (64%) of 11 with CML-BP, and in 2 (17%) of 12 with ALL. Severe reversible liver dysfunction was noted in 15% to 25%. After the first clofarabine infusion, responders accumulated more clofarabine triphosphate in blasts compared with nonresponders (median 18 vs 10 μM; P = .03). This increased only in responders (median, 1.8-fold; P = .008) after the second clofarabine infusion. In summary, clofarabine is active in acute leukemias and MDS; cellular pharmacokinetics may have prognostic significance. (Blood. 2003;102:2379-2386)
Este artículo trata sobre nuevas aproximaciones al diagrama de Jablonski y los conceptos del estado xi desde el punto de vista de la relación entre la desactivación electrónica y los procesos de ...relajación vibracional en especies electrónicamente excitadas. En ambos conceptos, la relajación vibracional precede a los procesos de desactivación electrónica de las moléculas excitadas. Los datos experimentales acumulados hasta el momento usando básicamente luminescencia resuelta en el tiempo y espectroscopia transiente de absorción del campo de la fotofísica de los compuestos de metales de transición y de diferentes moléculas orgánicas, han demostrado claramente que incluso las desactivaciones electrónicas de espín prohibido son, en muchos casos, más rápidas que la relajación vibracional. Ello significa que el diagrama de Jablonski clásico, que indica que los procesos de desactivación ocurren después de la relajación vibracional, pudieran modificarse. En general, las desactivaciones electrónicas ocurren desde estados vibracionales superiores. This paper deals with new approaches towards the Jablonski diagram and the xi state concepts from the viewpoint of the relationship between electronic deactivation and vibrational relaxation processes in electronically excited species. In both concepts, vibrational relaxation precedes the electronic deactivation processes of excited molecules. The experimental data accumulated up to the present using mainly time-resolved luminescence and transient absorption spectroscopy from the field of the photophysics of transition metal compounds and different organic molecules have clearly demonstrated that even spin-forbidden electronic deactivations are in many cases faster processes that vibrational relaxation. It means that the classical Jablonski diagram indicating that electronic deactivation processes occur after vibrational relaxation should be modified. In general, electronic deactivations occur from vibrationally higher states.
Resumen: Introducción y objetivos. Este artículo explora la red social de Instagram de Sanna Marin como medio de comunicación política desde su llegada al gobierno en diciembre de 2019 hasta el 1 de ...septiembre de 2022. El propósito de esta investigación es analizar la comunicación que utiliza Sanna Marin en la red social Instagram, y por lo tanto, conocer el modo en que emplea esta herramienta de comunicación política para conectar con su audiencia y qué tipo de contenidos proyecta en las publicaciones. Metodología. A través de la revisión bibliográfica se elabora una ficha de análisis de contenido en la que se analizan un total de 381 publicaciones y 932 elementos audiovisuales. Resultados. Sanna Marin es la protagonista en el 94,94% de los elementos audiovisuales, en los que los símbolos de identidad del partido no tienen una fuerte presencia con un 9,46%. La fotografía estándar destaca por encima de vídeos, selfies o portadas de revista, junto al ul uso del color es predominante frente al blanco y negro. La indumentaria intercala la formalidad e informalidad, con un tono informativo y cercano en las publicaciones. Conclusiones. Sanna Marin no utiliza un tipo de estrategia comunicativa determinada en la red social Instagram, ya que alterna publicaciones de tipo privado y de la actividad política diaria. Además, utiliza un lenguaje cercano para poder conectar con su público, acercar la vida política a la ciudadanía y humanizarla.
Comparative Genomics of the Eukaryotes Rubin, Gerald M.; Yandell, Mark D.; Wortman, Jennifer R. ...
Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science),
03/2000, Letnik:
287, Številka:
5461
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
A comparative analysis of the genomes of Drosophila melanogaster, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae-and the proteins they are predicted to encode-was undertaken in the context of ...cellular, developmental, and evolutionary processes. The nonredundant protein sets of flies and worms are similar in size and are only twice that of yeast, but different gene families are expanded in each genome, and the multidomain proteins and signaling pathways of the fly and worm are far more complex than those of yeast. The fly has orthologs to 177 of the 289 human disease genes examined and provides the foundation for rapid analysis of some of the basic processes involved in human disease.
The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera L.) is a common crop in pantropical areas facing various challenges, one of them being the control of diseases and pests. Diseases such as bud rot caused by ...Phytophthora palmivora, lethal yellowing caused by phytoplasmas of the types 16SrIV-A, 16SrIV-D or 16SrIV-E, among others, and pests like the coconut palm weevil, Rhynchophorus vulneratus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and the horned beetle, Oryctes rhinocerus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), are controlled by applying pesticides, pheromones and cultural control. These practices do not guarantee eradication since some causal agents have become resistant or are imbedded in infected tissues making them difficult to eradicate. This review condenses the current genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics studies which are being conducted with the aim of understanding the pathosystems associated with the coconut palm, highlighting the findings generated by omics studies that may become future targets for the control of diseases and pests in the coconut crop.
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