Control of spoilage yeasts in fuel ethanol production

Summary A selective process has been developed to control contaminant wild yeasts in industrial ethanol production. A genetically improved yeast resistant to nystatin is essential and the economic use of this antibiotic is described. The process strain starts at the stage of pure culture development and if necessary, after cycles of continuous cultures or fed batches, with no need of special equipment or operational process modifications. The principle can be adopted in other fermentations.     

Epilepsy,Behavioral Abnormalities,and Physiological Comorbidities in Syntaxin-Binding Protein 1 (STXBP1) Mutant Zebrafish

Mutations in the synaptic machinery gene syntaxin-binding protein 1, STXBP1 (also known as MUNC18-1), are linked to childhood epilepsies and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Zebrafish STXBP1 homologs (stxbp1a and stxbp1b) have highly conserved sequence and are prominently expressed in the larval zebrafish brain. To understand the functions of stxbp1a and stxbp1b, we generated loss-of-function mutations using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing and studied brain electrical activity, behavior, development, heart physiology, metabolism, and survival in larval zebrafish. Homozygous stxbp1a mutants exhibited a profound lack of movement, low electrical brain activity, low heart rate, decreased glucose and mitochondrial metabolism, and early fatality compared to controls. On the other hand, homozygous stxbp1b mutants had spontaneous electrographic seizures, and reduced locomotor activity response to a movement-inducing “dark-flash” visual stimulus, despite showing normal metabolism, heart rate, survival, and baseline locomotor activity. Our findings in these newly generated mutant lines of zebrafish suggest that zebrafish recapitulate clinical phenotypes associated with human syntaxin-binding protein 1 mutations.     

Characterization of tricarbonyl-chromium(0), -molybdenum(0) and -tungsten(0) complexes with 2,2-para-cyclophane

Complexes of the type M(CO)₃(22cy), where M = Cr, Mo, W and 22cy = 2,2-para-cyclophane were prepared and characterised. The i.r., p.m.r., mass spectrography spectra are discussed. The Mo derivative decomposes in solution giving 22cy, Mo(CO)₆ and Mo, according to a first order mechanism.     

The urban vascular flora of Palermo (Sicily,Italy)

Abstract

This article presents a comprehensive inventory of the urban vascular flora of the town of Palermo. The data were gathered from extensive field collections, from specimens kept in different herbaria, and publications of the last 30?years. The floristic catalogue includes all the vascular plants that occur spontaneously within the urban area. Thirteen taxa are endemic to Sicily and one of these, Clinopodium raimondoi, is exclusive to Palermo’s area. The inventory comprises 1052 taxa belonging to 119 families and 225 genera, and contains 170 taxa non-native to the Italian flora.     

Sequential Soil Transport and Its Influence on the Spatial Organisation of Collective Digging in Leaf-Cutting Ants

The Chaco leaf-cutting ant Atta vollenweideri (Forel) inhabits large and deep subterranean nests composed of a large number of fungus and refuse chambers. The ants dispose of the excavated soil by forming small pellets that are carried to the surface. For ants in general, the organisation of underground soil transport during nest building remains completely unknown. In the laboratory, we investigated how soil pellets are formed and transported, and whether their occurrence influences the spatial organisation of collective digging. Similar to leaf transport, we discovered size matching between soil pellet mass and carrier mass. Workers observed while digging excavated pellets at a rate of 26 per hour. Each excavator deposited its pellets in an individual cluster, independently of the preferred deposition sites of other excavators. Soil pellets were transported sequentially over 2 m, and the transport involved up to 12 workers belonging to three functionally distinct groups: excavators, several short-distance carriers that dropped the collected pellets after a few centimetres, and long-distance, last carriers that reached the final deposition site. When initiating a new excavation, the proportion of long-distance carriers increased from 18% to 45% within the first five hours, and remained unchanged over more than 20 hours. Accumulated, freshly-excavated pellets significantly influenced the workers'' decision where to start digging in a choice experiment. Thus, pellets temporarily accumulated as a result of their sequential transport provide cues that spatially organise collective nest excavation.     

Quantitative Molecular Analysis of Sentinel Lymph Node May Be Predictive of Axillary Node Status in Breast Cancer Classified by Molecular Subtypes

To determine the performance of intraoperative one-step nucleic acid amplification (OSNA) assay in detecting sentinel lymph node metastases compared to postoperative histology taking into account breast cancer molecular classification and to evaluate whether the level of cytokeratin 19 mRNA copy number may be useful in predicting the likelihood of a positive axillary lymph node dissection. OSNA assay was performed in a prospective series of 903 consecutive sentinel lymph nodes from 709 breast cancer patients using 2 alternate slices of each sentinel lymph node. The remaining 2 slices were investigated by histology. Cytokeratin 19 mRNA copy number, which distinguishes negative cases (<250 copies), micrometastases (+, ≥250≤5000 copies) and macrometastases (++, >5000 copies), was compared to axillary lymph node dissection status and to the biological tumor profile. Concordance between OSNA and histopathology was 95%, specificity 95% and sensitivity 93%. Multiple Corresponce Analysis and logistic regression evidenced that positive axillary lymph node dissection was significantly associated with a higher cytokeratin 19 mRNA copy number (>5000; p<0.0001), HER2 subtype (p = 0.007) and lymphovascular invasion (p<0.0001). Conversely, breast cancer patients with cytokeratin 19 mRNA copy number <2000 mostly presented a luminal subtype and a negative axillary lymph node dissection. We confirmed that OSNA assay can provide standardized and reproducible results and that it represents a fast and quantitative tool for intraoperative evaluation of sentinel lymph node. Omission of axillary lymph node dissection could be proposed in patients presenting a sentinel lymph node with a cytokeratin 19 mRNA copy number <2000 and a Luminal tumor phenotype.     

Effects of 8-week strength training with two models of chest press machines on muscular activity pattern and strength.

The purposes of this study were to assess: (i) the effects of 8-week training programs with constrained-path and unconstrained-path chest press machines on 1-RM; (ii) the different activity patterns of selected arm and shoulder girdle muscles during push movement performed on the different machines; (iii) the transfer of the training effects from one machine to the other. Twenty healthy, sedentary women (mean+/-SD age, 24.8+/-1.0yrs), randomized to either the FM or CM strength training protocols were evaluated before and after the strength training program. Muscular activity signals were recorded by surface electromyography (sEMG) from eight muscles while each subject performed the exercise on each machine. Muscle strength was defined by a 1 repetition maximum (1-RM) test for each subject on each machine. Both machines were effective in improving 1-RM, but the 1-RM increased more in the FM than the CM. Adaptive change in the sEMG was observed in all muscles after training on the FM machine, but not within the stabilizers when training on the CM machine. The results suggest that training in an unconstrained condition provides a more effective method for improving inter-muscular coordination via adaptation of the motor strategy aimed at optimising muscular efforts.