Meeting report on the 12th International Congress of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry (ICHC)

The International Congress of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry (ICHC) promoted in San Diego La Jolla (CA, USA), the 12th meeting where researchers of all over the world presented their work and the most innovative methods in histochemical disciplines. A summary of the last meeting is reported.     

BMRI-2, Rossendorf/Dresden, Germany (30 August - 1 September 2000)

Clearly, there is much left to be understood about microbial processes and interactions with metals, but much progress has been made, and the multidisciplinary approach of groups who are studying both the microbial populations and the chemistry of biotransformations of metals by bacteria will ensure rapid progress in our understanding of these issues. Several major points from different speakers summarize this meeting and are usefully reiterated at this point: Toxic metal ions, unlike organic pollutants, are immutable, and their bioavailability is a critical feature of their toxicity. The mobility, transport and fate of toxic metals and radionuclides in the environment are dependent on chemical and geochemical processes in which micro-organisms are intimately involved. Metals can be mobilized as well as immobilized by microorganisms. Metal/radionuclide valencies and chemical properties are critical to their environmental mobility. Bacterial- or fungal-metal interactions will be complicated by the presence of other pollutants. The identification of bacteria from environmental samples should not rely on one methodology, as these have been shown to be biased. Sonja Selenska-Pobell organized both BMRI-1 in 1998 and BMRI-2, which had well over 100 participants from Europe, Russia, USA and Japan in attendance. Thirty-one oral presentations were given, and over 30 posters were displayed over two poster sessions. BMRI-3 is provisionally planned for 2002 at GBF, Braunschweig, Germany.     

Meeting report: Guanosines and quadruplexes (London, September 15-17, 2010)

The meeting entitled “Guanosines and quadruplexes” was held in London on September 2010. It attracted over 80 participants from all over the world, combining researchers interested in nucleoside/nucleotide self-assembly and nucleic acids structures, working in fields ranging from chemistry, biology, physics, theory to material sciences and nanotechnology.     

The initiative on Model Organism Proteomes (iMOP) Session September 6, 2011, Geneva, Switzerland

iMOP--the Initiative on Model Organism Proteomes--was accepted as a new HUPO initiative at the Ninth HUPO meeting in Sydney in 2010. A goal of iMOP is to integrate research groups working on a great diversity of species into a model organism community. At the Tenth HUPO meeting in Geneva this variety was reflected in the iMOP session on Tuesday September 6, 2011. The presentations covered the quantitative proteome database PaxDb, proteomics projects studying farm animals, Arabidopsis thaliana, as well as host-pathogen interactions.     

Density and population structure of owl monkeys (Aotus azarai) in the Argentinean Chaco

Owl monkeys are small monogamous primates ranging over a wide area extending from Panama to the Chaco region of northern Argentina. The Chaco, an alluvial plain covering over one million km2 of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay, consists of a mosaic of grasslands, savannas, xeric thorn forests, and gallery forests. The region shows significant seasonal variation in climate, rainfall, and food availability. The goal of this study was to determine the density, size, and structure of a population of Aotus azarai in the seasonal gallery forests of the eastern Argentinean Chaco. Reported population density, as well as group size and composition are based on data collected from 11 groups contacted on approximately 900 occasions, and observed for over 2,000 hours during a three-year period. Group and individual densities were 16 groups/km2 and 64 individuals/km2, respectively. Approximately half of the groups (n = 5) were small groups which had three individuals most of the time and never more than four, whereas the remaining groups were large groups composed of four or five individuals, and sometimes even six or seven individuals. This is the first study of A. azarai based on monitoring of a relatively large number of distinct groups. Our data suggest that owl monkeys in the seasonal subtropical forests of Formosa live at a density as high as those reported for owl monkey populations observed in tropical forests. The data also show that the social groups in the owl monkey population are of comparable size and composition to those characteristic of populations in the tropics.     

Properties of the reaction of cis-dichlorodiammineplatinum(II) with metallothionein.

Properties of the reactions of cis-dichlorodiammine Pt(II) and related complexes with zinc metallothionein or apometallothionein have been investigated. During these reactions, platinum binds stoichiometrically to protein sulfhydryl groups and zinc, if present, is displaced. The ammine ligands are also lost in the process, suggesting that Pt(II) has tetrathiolate coordination in metallothionein. This conclusion is supported by extended x-ray absorption-fine structure studies which indicate that there are 4 sulfurs in the first coordination sphere of the platinum centers. The product contains 10 +/- 2 Pt(II) per mol of protein and migrates over Sephadex G-75 as a structure of similar size to zinc metallothionein. The kinetics of reaction are biphasic as monitored by the formation of Pt-thiolate bonds or by the release of zinc from the protein. Both methods yield identical rate laws for the reaction. The first step is independent of Pt(II) concentration but involves the binding of as many as four platinum atoms to the protein with little Pt-sulfhydryl bond formation and without much loss of zinc. The second rate process is first order in both zinc or sulfhydryl binding sites and Pt(II). Neither kinetic step is sensitive to the chloride ion concentration over the range 0-0.5 M. However, the reaction is sensitive to pH between 5.5 and 8.0. trans-Dichlorodiammineplatinum(II) reacts with zinc metallothionein with similar kinetics.     

3D cell culture systems--towards primary drug discovery platforms: an interview with Heinz Ruffner (Novartis) and Jan Lichtenberg (InSphero)

Advanced cell culture systems for regenerative medicine, drug efficacy and toxicity testing, enabling technologies to create and analyze 3D cell culture systems were the topics of the 3D cell culture meeting taking place in March 14-16, 2012 at the Technopark in Zurich, Switzerland. At this meeting Biotechnology Journal had the pleasure to talk to Dr. Heinz Ruffner, Novartis AG, and Dr. Jan Lichtenberg, co-founder and CEO of InSphero AG, about challenges and perspectives in using 3D cell culture systems as primary drug discovery platforms.     

The International Research Society of Spinal Deformities (IRSSD) and its contribution to science

From the time of its initial, informal meetings starting in 1980 to its formal creation in 1990, the IRSSD has met on a bi-annual basis to discuss all aspects of the spine and associated deformities. It has encouraged open discussion on all topics and, in particular, has tried to be the seed-bed for new ideas. The members are spread around the world and include people from all areas of academia as well as the most important people, the patients themselves. Most notably, application of the ideas and results of the research has always been at the forefront of the discussions. This paper was conceived with the idea of evaluating the impact made by the IRSSD over the last 30 years in the various areas and is intended to create discussion for the upcoming meeting in Montreal regarding future focus: " We are lost over the Atlantic Ocean but we are making good time."     

1(st) Central and Eastern European Proteomic Conference & 3(rd) Czech Proteomic Conference 29 - 31 October 2007, Prague, Czech Republic

More than 130 delegates from all over the world attended the 1(st) Central and Eastern European Proteomic Conference organized together with the 3(rd) Czech Proteomic Conference in the TOP Hotel, Prague in the Czech Republic from 29(th) to 31(st) October, 2007. The autumn nostalgia of the historical city of Prague provided the stage for a fascinating meeting that reviewed rapidly emerging proteomic research in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and focused on proteomics driven discovery and applications.     

Alpine forest genomics network (AForGeN): a report of the first annual meeting

The Alpine Forest Genomics Network was formed in 2011 and held its first annual meeting on June 24–26, 2012, in the Natural Park Adamello Brenta in Trentino Region, Italy. The meeting was attended by 30 researchers from the alpine region of Europe and had two primary goals: (1) for researchers to introduce each other to current and planned research activities in forest landscape genomics and (2) to develop a strategic vision for the network. A steering committee was elected and will develop a white paper over the next year. The next annual meeting will be held in Austria in June 2013.     

Use and commercialization of Podocnemis expansa (Schweiger 1812) (Testudines: Podocnemididae) for medicinal purposes in two communities in North of Brazil

The emergence of alternative medicines for AIDS in Asia and Africa was discussed at a satellite symposium and the parallel session on alternative and traditional treatments of the AIDSImpact meeting, held in Marseille, in July 2007. These medicines are heterogeneous, both in their presentation and in their geographic and cultural origin. The sessions focused on the role of these medications in selected resource poor settings in Africa and Asia now that access to anti-retroviral therapy is increasing. The aims of the sessions were to (1) identify the actors involved in the diffusion of these alternative medicines for HIV/AIDS, (2) explore uses and forms, and the way these medicines are given legitimacy, (3) reflect on underlying processes of globalisation and cultural differentiation, and (4) define priority questions for future research in this area. This article presents the insights generated at the meeting, illustrated with some findings from the case studies (Uganda, Senegal, Benin, Burkina Faso, China and Indonesia) that were presented. These case studies reveal the wide range of actors who are involved in the marketing and supply of alternative medicines. Regulatory mechanisms are weak. The efficacy claims of alternative medicines often reinforce a biomedical paradigm for HIV/AIDS, and fit with a healthy living ideology promoted by AIDS care programs and support groups. The AIDSImpact session concluded that more interdisciplinary research is needed on the experience of people living with HIV/AIDS with these alternative medicines, and on the ways in which these products interact (or not) with anti-retroviral therapy at pharmacological as well as psychosocial levels.     

Isolation of a Mycoplasma sp. (Group 7) Previously Associated with Cattle from Guinea Pigs'Genital Tracts

The incidence and persistence of genital mycoplasmas of 25 normal guinea pigs were investigated by culturing swabs collected over a 63-day period. Mycoplasmas were consistently isolated from two of the five males, but only once each from three of the 20 females. The 16 strains isolated were divided into four groups. Representative strains of one group were identified as Mycoplasma sp. (group 7 of Leach 1973), by growth inhibition, growth precipitation and fluorescent antibody tests. The other groups were provisionally classified as Mycoplasma spp. and an Acholeplasma sp.     

The 2011 Human Liver Proteome Project (HLPP) Workshop September 5, 2011, Geneva, Switzerland

During the 10th HUPO Annual World Congress held in Geneva (Switzerland) from 4th to 7th September, a workshop on Human Liver Proteome Project (HLPP) Initiative took place. Four research groups presented their latest results from different ongoing projects. Later on, during the HLPP executive members' meeting, the status of current projects and the next possible steps to be taken were discussed.     

Social Organization and Foraging Behaviour of the Fishing Bat,Noctilio leporinus (Chiroptera:Noctilionidae)

Female Noctilio leporinus roost in groups that remain together, associated with the same individuals and in the same location, for several years regardless of turnover in resident males and movements of the group to alternate roosts. Females scent marked themselves with the sub-axial secretions of other females by rubbing their heads beneath other bats' wings. Males residing with female groups retain their tenure for two or more reproductive seasons. Bachelor males roost solitarily or in small groups apart from females. Together, these characteristics appear to form the basis of a polygynous social organization. Female N. leporinus foraged solitarily or in small groups with other females from the same roost group. Stable female roost groups forage together and return to the same foraging areas over long periods of time. Bats assembled into small groups outside of the roost and flew together to foraging areas. Females from one roost group were monitored using the same foraging area for over a year. Bats foraged close enough to each other to communicate the location of prey either passively or actively. Roosts were not used as information centres, as bats rarely followed each other from the roost to forage. Males foraged solitarily, utilizing areas that were different from, and larger than, those of the females.     

姜花属SRAP分子标记连锁图谱构建

采用拟测交作图策略,利用白姜花×圆瓣姜花的F1群体87个单株,分别构建了父母本的基于SRAP标记的连锁图谱。通过筛选,414对引物中,92对引物可以检测到拟测交位点。在检测到的398个拟测交位点中,237个来自于父本圆瓣姜花,161个来自于母本。经过卡方（x^2）测验及连锁分析,父本中,203个标记进入23个连锁群,覆盖了1386．8cm;母本中,139个标记进入18个连锁群,覆盖了917．1cm。     

Occurrence patterns of Afrotropical ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) in the climate space are not correlated with their taxonomic relationships

Foci of tick species occur at large spatial scales. They are intrinsically difficult to detect because the effect of geographical factors affecting conceptual influence of climate gradients. Here we use a large dataset of occurrences of ticks in the Afrotropical region to outline the main associations of those tick species with the climate space. Using a principal components reduction of monthly temperature and rainfall values over the Afrotropical region, we describe and compare the climate spaces of ticks in a gridded climate space. The dendrogram of distances among taxa according to occurrences in the climate niche is used to draw functional groups, or clusters of species with similar occurrences in the climate space, as different from morphologically derived (taxonomical) groups. We aim to further define the drivers of species richness and endemism at such a grid as well as niche similarities (climate space overlap) among species. Groups of species, as defined from morphological traits alone, are uncorrelated with functional clusters. Taxonomically related species occur separately in the climate gradients. Species belonging to the same functional group share more niche among them than with species in other functional groups. However, niche equivalency is also low for species within the same taxonomic cluster. Thus, taxa evolving from the same lineage tend to maximize the occupancy of the climate space and avoid overlaps with other species of the same taxonomic group. Richness values are drawn across the gradient of seasonal variation of temperature, higher values observed in a portion of the climate space with low thermal seasonality. Richness and endemism values are weakly correlated with mean values of temperature and rainfall. The most parsimonious explanation for the different taxonomic groups that exhibit common patterns of climate space subdivision is that they have a shared biogeographic history acting over a group of ancestrally co-distributed organisms.     

Report of the 17th International Congress of the European Association of Tissue Banks (EATB) held jointly with the 17th Annual Congress of the British Association for Tissue Banking (BATB) including EATB/BATB/American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB) Cardiovascular Symposium

The 17th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Tissue Banks (EATB) was held in Edinburgh in November 2008 together with the British Association for Tissue Banking (BATB) and received excellent evaluation by its participants. The meeting included, for the first time, a cardiovascular symposium co-organised by EATB and BATB together with the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB). This was a first in terms of collaboration for the three associations. The many professionals involved in organising the meeting created an excellent clinical and scientific programme including regulatory issues and featured, also for the first time three interactive workshops about clinical donor cases, quality management and cardiovascular allografts.     

Seeing the Light in Washington Chronobiology at the 3rd Annual Meeting of the Association of Professional Sleep Societies (Apss)

Chronobiology at the 3rd Annual Meeting of the APSS was, no doubt in the “Sign of Light”. Chronobiological research has certainly moved from DD to BL (bright light). Several factors contributed to the great interest and excitement regarding the effects of light on human beings. The Science publication of Czeisler et al., “Bright light induction of strong (type 0) resetting of the human circadian pacemaker”, which attracted the attention of the media, coincided with the scheduled APSS meeting. Also, a very well-attended one-day workshop in Bethesda, Maryland, on the biologic effects of light was organized by the Society for Light Therapy and Biological Rhythms the day before, and succeeded in raising interest and excitement over the subject. The presentations on the biologic effects of light on the circadian system focused on the phase resetting-response to light of the human circadian system, and on the practical implications of this resetting on seasonal affective disorders (SAD), in sleep-phase-delay and sleep-phase-advance syndromes as well as sleep disturbances associated with jet lag.     

The snail (Biomphalaria glabrata) genome project

In 2001, ideas for a snail genome project were discussed at the American Society of Parasitologists meeting (New Mexico) and a snail genome consortium was subsequently established (the first consortium meeting was held in 2005). A proposal for sequencing the snail genome was submitted to the National Human Genome Research Institute, and Biomphalaria glabrata was prioritized as a non-mammalian sequencing target in 2004. The sequencing of the genome of this medically important snail is now underway.     

Distribution of forest dwelling carabids (Coleoptera): spatial scale and the concept of communities

Associations between spatial distribution of ground-beetles (Carabidae) and environmental variables were studied over three hierarchical scales in deciduous forest in central Alberta, Canada We also examined the relationship between species abundance and distribution on several scales ranging from the local scale of our study to that of the North American temperate deciduous forest Understorey plant cover, tree cover, and occurrence of other carabids were associated with distribution of particular species at the smallest ecological scales within populations However, great differences in population sues of carabid species among five distinct sites several kilometres apart were not correlated with variation in the same environmental variables In central Alberta, abundance and extent of distribution were correlated positively among the 30 carabid species collected, and distributions of the ten species classified as 'core' species were generally aggregated at all spatial scales On the continental scale, there was a significant positive correlation between abundance and distribution for the 114 species of the entire data set, and the six species meeting the criteria of 'core' taxa on this scale, were also 'core' elements in central Alberta Further analysis of covariance of core elements of species assemblages across different taxa provides a sound empirical approach for understanding community organization