Erratum to: Ozpolat B,Akar U,Mehta K,Lopez-Berenstein G. PKCδ and tissue transglutaminase are novel inhibitors of autophagy in pancreatic cancer cells. Autophagy 2007; 3:480-3

Ozpolat B, Akar U, Mehta K, Lopez-Berenstein G. PKCδ and tissue transglutaminase are novel inhibitors of autophagy in pancreatic cancer cells. Autophagy 2007; 3:480-3. This addendum included figures from a previously published paper but omitted the proper attribution to Akar U, Ozpolat B, Mehta K, Fok J, Kondo Y, Lopez-Berestein G. Tissue transglutaminase inhibits autophagy in pancreatic cancer cells. Mol Cancer Res 2007; 5:241-9. Fig. 1A and B were modified from Fig. 1A and B, Fig. 1C was taken from Fig. 4D, and Fig. 1D was from Fig. 3D. Fig. 2A and B were from Fig. 4A and Fig. 6, respectively. Finally, part of Fig. 3A was from Fig. 7A.     

饥饿小鼠卵母细胞中自噬和凋亡的电镜研究

小鼠(Mus musculus domesticus)原始卵泡形成在出生后3 d内进行得最剧烈,此时有大量卵母细胞丢失。出生后不久原始卵泡库就建立起来,新生鼠都会经历一段时间饥饿再摄入母乳营养,对出生后的子鼠饥饿处理时,出现了自噬和凋亡的动态变化,自噬和凋亡都可以影响细胞的存活,这很可能与卵母细胞的大量丢失有关。在本项研究中,将对照组子鼠正常母乳喂养,处理组子鼠与母鼠分开,完全不给予母乳。分别收取饥饿1.5 d与2 d子鼠的卵巢制作电镜切片,每组3只子鼠,每只子鼠3张电镜切片,每组共统计9张切片。在电镜下观察其形态变化。通过观察发现,饥饿1.5 d的子鼠卵巢与正常1.5d的子鼠卵巢相比,卵母细胞中的自噬小体数量显著增加。这表明,饥饿处理1.5d促进了卵母细胞的自噬,这可能有助于维持卵母细胞的形态及存活。饥饿处理2 d的子鼠卵巢显示出不同的结果。饥饿2 d的子鼠处于生命的临界阶段,已出现小部分个体死亡。存活子鼠卵巢的电镜形态学观察发现,与正常哺乳2 d的子鼠卵母细胞相比,饥饿2 d子鼠卵母细胞中自噬小体的数量显著减少,并出现了多数卵母细胞凋亡的现象,出现许多凋亡小体。本实验研究结果显示,...     

The 4th annual European League Against Rheumatism congress in Lisbon: a personal perspective

The 4th annual European League Against Rheumatism congress, held in Lisbon, 18–21 June 2003, had a record turnout of more than 8600 delegates and the abstract submissions increased to 2600. A heat wave and a somewhat substandard venue hampered some of the activities, notably the poster sessions. The scientific program was comprehensive and of a high class, and it was organized in 10–12 parallel sessions. The European League Against Rheumatism standing committees are expanding their activities and stimulating European cooperation (e.g. by creating databases and guidelines, and by starting research programs). The standing committees presented several areas where European cooperative work is in progress. Advances in drug therapy were a prominent theme and were well presented. Commercialism remains a problem for this meeting as for other similar large meetings, where satellite symposia surround the scientific program of the congress and often duplicate this.     

Superoxide Dismutase (SOD)Zymogram Patterns and Their Geographical Distribution of Wild (Glycine soja) and Cultivated Soybean (G. max) in China

The purpose of this study was to examine the superoxide dismutase (SOD) zymogram patterns, their frequency and geographical distribution of wild (Glycine soja) and cultivated soybean (G. max) in China. Seeds of 226 wild soybean germplasms and 104 cultivated soybean cultivars (land races) were collected from all provinces and autonomous regions in China except Taiwan, Xinjiang and Qinghai provinces About 50 embryos per wild soybean germplasm and I0 embryos per cultivated soybean cultivars were used for test. Vertical polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and a stainning system modified after Luo (1984)were used. The Japanese GS- 930 Scanner was used in gel-plate scanning. In program scanning the maximum and minimum absorption wavelength were 700 and 550 nm respectively. The results showed that: 1. Six zymogram patterns were found in soybean (Fig. 1, 2). Wild soybean displayed five patterns (Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅳ Ⅴ, Ⅵ), while the cultivated soybean displayed only two patterns (Ⅱ, Ⅲ). 2. Fourty six percent of wild germplasms gave an 7-band zymogram (Table Ⅰ) (pattern Ⅰ), fourty nine percent had a 6th and 7th band with faster mobility (pattern Ⅱ), about two percent produced a 6-band zymogram which lacked the SODc4 band (pattern Ⅳ), about two percent had a 5-band pattern which lacked the SODc,c4 bands (pattern Ⅴ), and only one germptasm displayed a 5-band zymogram which lacked SODb2b3 bands (pattern Ⅵ). 3. More than ninty eight percent of cultivated cultivars belonged to pattern Ⅱ, only about two percent belonged to pattern Ⅲ. 4. The geographical distribution of frequency of pattern Ⅱ between wild and cultivated soybean was most close in 36–51º N area. The difference of zymograms between G. soja and G. max, and the problems of the origional area and evolution of soybean were discussed.     

The 4th annual European League Against Rheumatism congress in Lisbon: a personal perspective

The 4th annual European League Against Rheumatism congress, held in Lisbon, 18-21 June 2003, had a record turnout of more than 8600 delegates and the abstract submissions increased to 2600. A heat wave and a somewhat substandard venue hampered some of the activities, notably the poster sessions. The scientific program was comprehensive and of a high class, and it was organized in 10-12 parallel sessions. The European League Against Rheumatism standing committees are expanding their activities and stimulating European cooperation (e.g. by creating databases and guidelines, and by starting research programs). The standing committees presented several areas where European cooperative work is in progress. Advances in drug therapy were a prominent theme and were well presented. Commercialism remains a problem for this meeting as for other similar large meetings, where satellite symposia surround the scientific program of the congress and often duplicate this.     

中华绒螯蟹一龄早熟和二龄成熟家系生长规律的比较研究

中华绒螯蟹(Eridcheir sinensis)1龄性早熟是扣蟹养殖过程中的一个重要问题,尚不清楚1龄性早熟和2龄正常性成熟后代的生长发育规律是否存在差异,本研究通过构建1龄性早熟和正常性成熟中华绒螯蟹家系,综合比较了单养条件下两种家系子一代(以下简称早熟F1和正常F1)在扣蟹和成蟹阶段的生长蜕壳规律、雌蟹腹脐覆盖腹甲宽度比例、成熟后的性腺指数(GSI)和肝胰腺指数(HSI)。结果显示:(1)早熟F1雄体在第1、2次和第7、8次蜕壳后的体重显著大于正常F1雄体(P0.05);而早熟F1雌体在第1~5次和第7次蜕壳后的体重显著大于正常F1雌体(P0.05);(2)第1和2次蜕壳后早熟F1的增重率较高,正常F1在第3~8次蜕壳后的增重率略高于早熟F1,两群体在扣蟹阶段的特定生长率均呈下降趋势,且正常F1高于早熟F1,其中雌雄个体在第3~4次蜕壳后的特定生长率均存在显著差异(P0.05);(3)早熟F1在第1~5次蜕壳间隔较长,而第6~8次蜕壳间隔较短;两种家系在扣蟹养殖阶段蜕壳4~6次,成蟹养殖阶段蜕壳2~4次,其中早熟F1在扣蟹阶段的平均蜕壳次数低于正常F1,而在成蟹阶段的平均蜕壳次数高于正常F1;(4)早熟F1腹脐覆盖腹甲宽度比例一直高于正常F1,但二者无显著差异(P0.05);(5)无论雌体还是雄体,早熟F1和正常F1的性腺指数和肝胰腺指数均无显著差异,单养条件下性腺均可发育成熟(P0.05)。综上,单养条件下,中华绒螯蟹早熟F1和正常F1的生长模式存在显著差异,两者都可以完成生殖蜕壳和性腺发育成熟,这为今后深入研究中华绒螯蟹个体生物学提供了理论依据和参考资料。     

IBC’s 23rd Annual Antibody Engineering, 10th Annual Antibody Therapeutics International Conferences and the 2012 Annual Meeting of The Antibody Society

The 23rd Annual Antibody Engineering, 10th Annual Antibody Therapeutics international conferences, and the 2012 Annual Meeting of The Antibody Society, organized by IBC Life Sciences with contributions from The Antibody Society and two Scientific Advisory Boards, were held December 3–6, 2012 in San Diego, CA. The meeting drew over 800 participants who attended sessions on a wide variety of topics relevant to antibody research and development. As a prelude to the main events, a pre-conference workshop held on December 2, 2012 focused on intellectual property issues that impact antibody engineering. The Antibody Engineering Conference was composed of six sessions held December 3–5, 2012: (1) From Receptor Biology to Therapy; (2) Antibodies in a Complex Environment; (3) Antibody Targeted CNS Therapy: Beyond the Blood Brain Barrier; (4) Deep Sequencing in B Cell Biology and Antibody Libraries; (5) Systems Medicine in the Development of Antibody Therapies/Systematic Validation of Novel Antibody Targets; and (6) Antibody Activity and Animal Models. The Antibody Therapeutics conference comprised four sessions held December 4–5, 2012: (1) Clinical and Preclinical Updates of Antibody-Drug Conjugates; (2) Multifunctional Antibodies and Antibody Combinations: Clinical Focus; (3) Development Status of Immunomodulatory Therapeutic Antibodies; and (4) Modulating the Half-Life of Antibody Therapeutics. The Antibody Society’s special session on applications for recording and sharing data based on GIATE was held on December 5, 2012, and the conferences concluded with two combined sessions on December 5–6, 2012: (1) Development Status of Early Stage Therapeutic Antibodies; and (2) Immunomodulatory Antibodies for Cancer Therapy.     

Erratum to: The discovery of potent immunostimulatory CpG-ODNs widely distributed in bacterial genomes

In the article by Liu et al. published in Journal of Microbiology 2020; 58, 153–162, 1# The Supplementary data’s consecutive numbers (Supplementary data Fig. S2) on 9th line of 4th paragraph in the section of ‘Discussion.’ on page 160 should be corrected in (Supplementary data Fig. S1). The sentence should have read: The results showed that the nonspecific internalization of T03 had only a slight competition with CpG-ODNs (Supplementary data Fig. S1). 2# The Supplementary data’s consecutive numbers (Supplementary data Fig. S3) on 13th line of 6th paragraph in the section of ‘Discussion.’ on page 161 should be corrected in (Supplementary data Fig. S2). The sentence should have read: Although the CpG-ODNs screened in this study had no or weak stimulation effect on human PBMCs (Supplementary data Fig. S2), it once again indicated that CpG-ODNs can be species-specific. And the Electronic Supplementary Material should be corrected as below. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused.     

镉诱导的茶树苗膜脂过氧化和细胞程序性死亡

在含镉的营养液中,茶树幼苗生长受到抑制。随培养时间延长,膜脂过氧化产物丙二醛含量持续升高;超氧物岐化酶（SOD）和过氧化氢酶（CAT）活性初期升高,而后分别在第4天和第2天开始下降。镉胁迫的第5-7天,一部分细胞陆续发生程序性死亡。其特征是：线粒体聚集于核周围,个数增加,嵴发达,而后衰亡。核仁消失,染色质凝结在核膜边缘,核萎缩,外层核膜局部扩张,形成胀泡。核以外溢、出芽和崩裂三种方式溃解。核是最后消亡的细胞器。程序性死亡的细胞局限于某些区域。镉胁迫下,幼苗膜脂过氧化可能是诱发PCD的主要原因。     

增强UV-B辐射对蚕豆叶片微粒体膜一些性质的影响

温室条件下,用0（Control）、8．65kJm－2d－1（TI）及11．2KJm－2d－1（t2）不同剂量的UV－B辐射处理蚕豆幼苗。Ca2 ．ATPase及Mg2 －ATPase的活性在辐射处理期间下降。在处理21d,T1和T2微粒体膜的MDA含量明显高于对照,同时IUFA急剧下降,且呈明显的剂量效应。14及21d时,膜磷脂的含量也明显下降。脂氧合酶（Lox）活性在第7及14天与对照相比都显著升高,而21d后迅速下降。结果表明,增强UV－B对微粒体膜的伤害可能是一方面导致正常酶合成与分解之间的平衡失调,另一方面导致了膜脂过氧化作用。     

A Chromosomal Study of Eight Species in Allium Sect. Rhiziridium G. Don in China

The present paper reports the chromosome numbers and karyotypes of eight species of Sect. Rhiziridium in Allium (Liaceae). The materials were all collected from their natural populations in east Inner Mongolia, China. The karyotype analysis is made on the basis of Li et al. (1985).The results are as follows (for chromosomes parameters, voucher specimens and localities, see Table 1 and Plate 1--2 the idiograms of the eight species in Fig. 1): (1) Auium leucocephalum Turcz. The somatic chromosome number and karyotype of this species is 2n=16=12m=2sm+2st (2SAT), in Stebbinsl(1971) kayotype classification, which belongs to 2A (Plate 1: 1; Fig. 1: 1). The range of chromosome relative length varies between 8.90--15.55%. Two small satellites are attached to the short arms of the 8th pair of chromosomes. (2) A. strictum Schrader has 2n (4x) =32=16m+4sm+12st, belonging to 2B (Plate 1: 2 & Fig. 1: 2). Satellites were not observed., and the range of chromosome relative length is between 3. 67-11.00%. (3) A. ramosum L. 2n=16=14m+ 2st (2SAT), belonging to 2A (Plate 1: 3 & Fig. 1: 3), Two small satellies are attached to the short arms of the 8th pair of chromosomes. The range of chromosome relative length is between 9.17-16.39%. The chromosome number and karyotype of this species are in accordancewith those reported by Li et al. (1982) with the material from Jinshan, Beijing. (4) A. bidentatum Fisch. ex Prokh. 2n (4x) =32=24m+4sm+4T, belonging to 2B (Plate 1: 4 & Fig. 1: 4). Satellites were not observed. A small median B-chromosome was found in root-tip cells of the population growing in sandy soil, and it is the first discovery (Plate 2: 9). The species has terminal chromosomes, which are seldom seen in Sect. Rhiziridium. The range of chromosome relative length is between 3.32—9.06%. (5) A. tenuissimu L. 2n=16= 10m+4sm+2st(2SAT), belonging to 2B(Plate 1:5 & Fig. 1:5). Two large satellites are attached to the short arms of the 8th pair of chromosome. The range of chromosome relative length is between 8.27--17.56%. (6)A. anisopodium Ledeb. 2n = 16 = l2m +2sm + 2st (2SAT), belonging to 2A (Plate 2:7 & Fig. 1: 7). Two large satellites are attached to the short arms of the 8th pair of chromosomes. In somatic cells of some plants of this species, a small submedian B-chromosome was found (Plate 2: 10, 11). The range of chromosome relative length is between 8.05-17.08 %. (7) A. anisopodium Ledeb. var. zimmermannianum (Gilg) Wang et Tang 2n (4x)=32=24m+4sm+4st( 4SAT), belonging to 2A (Plate 1: 6 & Fig. 1: 6). Four large satellites are attached to the short arms of the 15 and 16th pairs of chromosomes. The range of chromosome relative length is between 4.45--8.35%. This variety is similar to A. anisopodium Ledeb. in morphological characters, and their karyotype formulas are also very similar. The present authors consider that the variety is an allotetraploid derived from A. anisopodium Ledeb. (8) A. condensatum Turcz. 2n=16=14m+2st (2SAT), belonging to 2B (Plate 2:8 & Fig. 1:8). Two. small satellites are attached to the short arms of the 6th pair of chromosomes. In a few individuals of this species median (M) B-chromosome was discovered, and the number is stable (Plate 2: 12). The range of chromosome relative length is between 7.64--17.07%. In short, the chromosome numbers of the species studied in the present work are found to be 2n=16 or 32, and the karyotypes belong to 2A or 2B, highly symmetrical. The karyotypes of Chinese materials of these species are mostly reported for the first time. Threespecies have B-chromosomes.     

大鹰鹃鸣声的日节律

鸟类的鸣唱具有吸引配偶和保卫领域的功能,多为雀形目雄性鸟类发出,在其婚配、繁殖中起重要作用。非雀形目鸟类缺乏内鸣肌,发出的声音较为单调。但杜鹃科(Cuculidae)等少数非雀形目鸟类,利用鸣叫来吸引异性和宣示领域,功能上类似雀形目鸟类的鸣唱。鸟类在繁殖期面临觅食等基本生理活动与求偶行为的时间权衡。而鸣唱是雄性鸟类在繁殖期耗能较多的求偶行为,鸣唱的活跃程度受到外界环境和鸟类自身习性的影响。通过研究鸟类鸣声的日节律,有助于了解鸟类对生活史策略的响应。本研究于2016年和2017年鸟类繁殖季在北京小龙门森林公园(40°00′N,115°26′E)进行。2016年和2017年在大鹰鹃(Hierococcyx sparverioides)活动区利用录音机(美国Wildlife Acoustics公司,型号SM4)分别录制了3 d和43 d的录音。通过Kaleidoscope Pro 4.0.3软件(美国Wildlife Acoustics公司),量化录音并提取反应大鹰鹃鸣声特征的参数,进而自动识别出录音中大鹰鹃的鸣声。在优化识别条件后,对大鹰鹃鸣声识别的正确率可以达到60.26%,探测率可以达到44.71%。发现大鹰鹃有两个鸣叫的高峰,一个在3:00时,另一个在19:00时。与同域分布的其他鸟类相比,大鹰鹃鸣声的高峰时段持续的时间更长,且具有夜间鸣叫的特点。结合大鹰鹃的生活史,我们对其鸣声日节律进行了讨论。     

A role for diacylglycerol in antibacterial autophagy

Antibacterial autophagy is understood to be a key cellular immune response to invading microbes. However, the mechanism(s) by which bacteria are selected as targets of autophagy remain unclear. We recently identified diacylglycerol as a novel signaling molecule that targets bacteria to the autophagy pathway, and show that it acts via protein kinase C activation. We also found that Pkc1 is required for autophagy in yeast, indicating that this kinase plays a conserved role in autophagy regulation.Key words: bacteria, Salmonella, innate immunity, adaptor, lipid second messenger, diacylglycerol, ubiquitin, NDP52, p62, SQSTM1The mechanism by which bacteria and other subcellular targets are identified and degraded by the autophagy pathway is an area of intense research. Ubiquitin has been recently found to act as an essential signal required for the autophagy of bacteria and proteins. We have previously observed ubiquitin on autophagy-targeted Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) but were surprised to see that only 50% of these bacteria were positive for ubiquitin. This indicated the possibility that an alternate signal was required for efficient autophagic targeting of the nonubiquitinated population of these bacteria.We initially performed a screen quantifying the colocalization of different lipid second messengers (diacylglycerol (DAG), PtdIns(3)P, PtdIns(4,5)P₂, PtdIns(3,4) P₂, and PtdIns(3,4,5)P₃) with autophagytargeted (i.e., LC3⁺) S. Typhimurium. We observed that DAG preferentially localizes with LC3⁺ bacteria. A kinetic analysis revealed that maximal DAG colocalization with bacteria (45 min post-infection) precedes maximal autophagy of the bacteria (60 min post-infection). Using pharmacological agents, siRNA and dominant negative constructs we were able to determine that DAG localization to the bacteria requires the action of phospholipase D (PLD; phosphatidylcholine to phosphatidic acid conversion) and phosphatidic acid phosphatase (PAP; phosphatidic acid to DAG conversion). We observed that inhibition of these pathways significantly reduces DAG localization to bacteria as well as concomitant autophagy of the bacteria, indicating a role for this lipid second messenger in the regulation of this process.Having determined that DAG is necessary for autophagy of bacteria we subsequently wanted to identify the effector through which it was signaling. Conventional and novel isoforms of the protein kinase C (PKC) family contain DAG-binding C1 domains. Accordingly, we targeted PKC isoforms using pharmacological agents, siRNA and knockout cell lines and were able to determine that DAG is signaling through the δ isoform of PKC. Inhibition of this serine/threonine kinase results in significant inhibition of antibacterial autophagy. Furthermore, bacterial replication in PKCδ knockout mouse embryonic fibroblasts is significantly higher compared to control fibroblasts, consistent with previous observations demonstrating that autophagy impairs intracellular replication of S. Typhimurium (Birmingham et al. 2006).We addressed the possibility that DAG and ubiquitin are functioning in a cooperative manner to target Salmonella for degradation by autophagy. We simultaneously inhibited both pathways using siRNA or pharmacological agents and observed additive inhibitory effects on autophagy of the bacteria. While this is indicative of two independent pathways, we cannot discount the possibility that there is still cooperation between the two pathways, especially as we did observe a small population of bacteria that were positive for both DAG and ubiquitin (Fig. 1). There are also a number of technical limitations in the methods we used, such as detection levels of the probes and antibodies that warrant caution in concluding that the two pathways are completely independent. Nonetheless, our studies clearly demonstrate a role for both DAG (Shahnazari et al. 2010) and ubiquitin (Zheng et al. 2009) in autophagy of S. Typhimurium. Future studies are required to further examine how these signals contribute to regulation of antibacterial autophagy.Open in a separate windowFigure 1Autophagic targeting of Salmonella Typhimurium. Invading S. Typhimurium can be targeted to the autophagy pathway by two independent signaling mechanisms. The first requires ubiquitin and the autophagy adaptors p62 and NDP52. The second requires DAG generation and PKCδ function. DAG generation on the SCV may occur through interaction of the SCV with DAG-positive endocytic vesicles (pathway 1) or through direct DAG production on the SCV (pathway 2). SCV, Salmonella-containing vacuole; PA, phosphatidic acid; DAG, diacylglycerol; PAP, phosphatidic acid phosphatase; PKCδ, protein kinase C delta; Ub, ubiquitin.Having characterized this pathway in antibacterial autophagy we were interested in determining whether these components were required for general autophagy. We therefore tested whether DAG localizes with rapamycin-induced autophagosomes. We observed DAG on these compartments and also found a requirement for PAP and PKCδ in this process. Other PKC isoforms are involved in alternate types of autophagy including ER stress-induced autophagy (Sakaki et al. 2008) as well as hypoxia-induced autophagy (Chen et al. 2009). As a result, we were interested in determining whether PKC function in autophagy was evolutionarily conserved. We therefore tested a role for the yeast ortholog, Pkc1, in this process and observed that it is required for starvation-induced autophagy in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.Having identified and characterized a novel signal and effector for antibacterial autophagy, further work still remains to be done in order to obtain a complete picture of this process. This includes additional study of the mechanism by which DAG is generated and the subcellular localization of PLD and PAP during this process. It is possible that DAG⁺ endocytic vesicles fuse with the Salmonella-containing vacuole (SCV) coating this compartment with DAG (pathway 1, see Fig. 1). It is also possible that both PLD and PAP function directly on the SCV, converting phosphatidylcholine to DAG via the phosphatidic acid intermediate (pathway 2, Fig. 1).More work also needs to be done to dissect DAG and ubiquitin signaling contributions to this pathway. Questions to be answered include the identification of the ubiquitinated protein(s) on the SCV, which may be host or bacterial proteins. Additionally, while we know that DAG is present on the SCV we do not yet know the signal that induces its generation. One intriguing possibility is that DAG generation occurs in response to bacterial-induced damage to the SCV during invasion. To date, PKC has been implicated in at least three different types of autophagy, and the possibility exists that other PKC isoforms (DAG responsive or not) are also involved in this process.     

2007 Keystone Symposium on Autophagy in Health and Disease

The first Keystone Symposium on Autophagy in Health and Disease was held in Monterey, a scenic city on the Pacific coast in central California, April 15-20, 2007. The symposium brought together approximately 280 participants, from basic researchers to physicians and journalists. The meeting was composed of a joint keynote session with the meeting “Apoptotic and Non-Apoptotic Cell Death Pathways”, and eight plenary sessions, covering the molecular mechanisms of autophagy and many emerging concepts and functions of autophagy in organelle degradation, physiological regulation, cell death and survival, and disease. Three afternoon workshops focused on short talks selected from the posters, and a special discussion session led by experts dealt with techniques and concerns regarding experimental detection of autophagy. The symposium highlighted autophagy as a potential therapeutic target in a wide range of diseases, including cancer, microbial infection, myopathies and neurodegenerative disorders.     

2007 Keystone Symposium on Autophagy in Health and Disease

The first Keystone Symposium on Autophagy in Health and Disease was held in Monterey, a scenic city on the Pacific coast in central California, April 15-20, 2007. The symposium brought together approximately 280 participants, from basic researchers to physicians and journalists. The meeting was composed of a joint keynote session with the meeting "Apoptotic and Non-Apoptotic Cell Death Pathways" and eight plenary sessions, covering the molecular mechanisms of autophagy and many emerging concepts and functions of autophagy in organelle degradation, physiological regulation, cell death and survival, and disease. Three afternoon workshops focused on short talks selected from the posters, and a special discussion session led by experts dealt with techniques and concerns regarding experimental detection of autophagy. The symposium highlighted autophagy as a potential therapeutic target in a wide range of diseases, including cancer, microbial infection, myopathies and neurodegenerative disorders.     

The 2nd US–Japan DNA Repair Meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii, June 4–8, 2004

The 2nd US–Japan DNA Repair Meeting convened at the JW Marriott Ihilani Hotel, outside Honolulu, Hawaii, from June 4–8, 2004. In keeping with the tradition of US–Japan conferences the meeting was modest in size comprising 25 participants from each country. The program featured platform presentations from each participant, with lots of time devoted to discussion of groups of related talks. A novel feature of the meeting was the absence of formally designated and previously announced titles for sessions and talks, providing a level of informality that promoted relaxed interactions. Discussion was gratifyingly brisk and informative throughout and was considered to be a highlight of the meeting. All sessions were chaired by the program planners Errol Friedberg and Sam Wilson, who did not present formal talks. The following pages comprise summations of the talks presented, organized into primary topic themes.     

Cytotaxonomical Studies on Liliaceae (s.l.): (2) Report on Chromosome Numbers and Karyotypes of 8 Species of 8 Genera from Zhejiang,China

Eight species in eight genera of Liliaceae from Zhejiang were cytotaxonomically studied in this work. The karyotypes of Chinese materials of these species are mostly reported for the first time. The results are shown as follows (see Table 2-4 for chromosome parameters of them): 1. Disporum sessile D. Don Sixteen chromosomes are counted at metaphase of roottip cells.The Karyotype formula is 2n=16=2lm+2sm+4st+2sm+3sm+ 1sm(SAT)+2st (Plate 1: 2-3, see Fig. 1:1 for its idiogram). The Karyotype belongs to 3B in Stebbins’ (1971) karyotype classification, and consists of four pairs of larger chromosomes (1-4) and four pairs of smaller chromosomes (5-8). One SAT-chromosome is situated at the sixth pair. The chromosomes range between 4.85-16.63μm. The karyotypic constitution is similar to that of Japanese material reported by Noguchi (1974). Chang and Hsu (1974) reported 2n=14=13st+1sm and 2n= 16=2m + 13st + 1sm for the material from Taiwan under the name of D. shimadai Hay. (=D. sessile D. Don). Compared with our result of D. sessile, the differences are obvious. 2. Polygonatum odoratum (Mill.) Druce PMCs diakinesis shows eleven bivalents, n = 11, 5 large and 6 small (Plate 2:5). The meiosis is normal. The majority of reports of this species are 2n=20, with a few 2n=22 and 30 (see Table 1). The materials from southen Siberia and the Far East in USSR are all of 2n= 20. Our result is the same as recorded by Jinno (1966) in the Japanese material and by Li (1980) from Beijing. Ge (1987) reported 2n=20 in the cultivated individuals of Shandong, China, showing that both 2n=20 and 22 exist in China. 3. Scilla scilloides (Lindl.) Druce This species has the somatic chromosome number 2n=18 (Plate 1: 4-6, see Fig. 1:2 for its idiogram), of which two groups of chromosomes can be recognized, i.e. the 1 st -5 th pairs of large and the 6 th-9th pairs of small chromosomes. A distinct character of the karyotype is that two satellites are attached to the short arms of the 1st pair of chromosomes. The degree of asymmetry is of 3C. The karyotype formula is 2n = 18 = 2sm (SAT) + 6st + 2t+ 6m + 2sm. The chromosomes range from 2.02 to 11.93 μm. The Previous counts on the species are 2n = 16, 18, 26, 34, 35, 36 and 43 (see Table 1). The present investigation confirms Noda’s and Haga’s results. The species is considered to be of two genomes, namely A(x = 8) and B(x = 9). Our result shows a genome composition of BB, having a pair of large SAT-chromosomes. Chang and Hsu (1974) reported 2n = 34 from a population of Taiwan, an amphidiploid (AABB), Karyotypes of other Chinese populations are worth further researches. 4. Tricyrtis macropoda Miq. The chromosome number of somatic cells is 2n= 26, and PMCs MII shows 13 bivalents (n= 13) (Plate 3:1-3, see Fig. 1:3 for its idiogram). The karyotype formula is 2n= 26= 6m + 10sm + 6st + 4st (or t), which is composed of chromosomes: 4L + 22S in size. The degree of asymmetry is of 3B. No centromeres of the 12th and 13th pairs of chromosomes were observed at metaphase, and the chromosomes may be of st or t. Nakamura (1968) reported 2n= 26(4L+ 22S)= 2sm+ 2sm-st+ 14st-sm+ 8st for T. macropoda Miq. and 2n= 26(4L+ 22S)= 8m+ 2sm+2sm-st+ 2st-sm+ 12st for its ssp. affinis, both from Japan. It is clear that the major character of their karyotypes, i. e. 4L + 22S, is consistent with that reported here. Based on the previous and present reports, all Tricyrtis species studied are remarkably uniform in the basic karyotype, i. e. 4L + 22S. 5. Allium macrostemon Bunge. The present observation on the root-tip cells of the species shows 2n = 32 (Plate 3: 4-5, see Fig. 1:4 for its idiogram). The karyotype formula is 2n (4x)= 32= 26m + 6sm, which belongs to 2B, being of high symmetry. Except the 6th, 10th and 13th pairs of chromosomes all the are metacentric. Chromosomes of this species are large, ranging from 5.94 to 18.06 μm. Our result agrees with Kawano’s (1975) report under the name of A. grayi Regel ( = A. macrostemon, Wang and Tang 1980). 6. Asparagus cochinchinensis (Lour.) Merr. Ten bivalents were observed in PMCs MI, n=10 (Plate 1: 1). The present result confirms the number of a population of Taiwan recorded by Hsu (1971). 7. Ophiopogon japonicus (L. f.) Ker-Gawl. The species from Mt. Taogui, Hangzhou, is found to have 2n (2x)=36=22m + 14sm (Plate 2: 1,5, see Fig. 1:5 for its idiogram) which belongs to 2B. The karyotype is composed of 2 medium-sized chromosomes with metacentric centromeres and 34 small chromosomes, ranging from 1.34 to 4.92 μm. The populations from Mt. Tianzhu and Mt. Yuling, Zhejiang, are found to be aneuploids at tetraploid level (2n=64-70). It is interesting that Nagamatsu (1971) found the karyotypes of Japanese materials to be 2n= 67 and 68, also showing unsteady 4x karyotypes of this species. In the previous. reports (see Table 1), the chromosome numbers of this species are mainly 2n = 72, besides 2n = 36 recorded by Sato (1942) from Japan. 8. Liriope platyphylla Wang et Tang The somatic complement of the species collected from Mt. Tianzhu, Hangzhou, is 2n = 36 (Plate 2: 3-4, see Fig. 1:6 for its idiogram). The karyotype is 2n(2x) = 36 = 16m + 20sm, belonging to 2B type. The chromosomes are small except the medium-sized, 1st pair and the range is from 1.27 to 5.19μm. The material from Mt. Yuling, Zhejiang, is found to have a variety of chromosome numbers (2n= 60-71), as observed in Ophiopogon japonicus. Hasegawa (1968) reported the karyotype of 2n = 72 (4x) from Japan The 2x karyotype is first recorded. This genus is closely related to Ophiopogon. Based on the Hasegawa’s and present studies, all the species in these two genera are remarkably uniform in karyo-type. Therefore, the taxonomy of the two genera is worth further researches.     

Immunocytochemical study of the maturation of the hypothalamo-neuro-hypophysial axes in the human fetus (author's transl)]

1. The development of the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system was studied using immunocytochemistry with various antisera : anti-neurophysin, anti-oxytocin, anti-vasopressin, anti-vasotocin and anti-somatostatin. 2. Immunocytochemical investigation shows that anti-vasopressin and anti-vasotocin sera react with both vasopressin and vasotocin, whereas the anti-oxytocin serum specifically reveals the oxytocin-containing structures (Fig. 1g, h, i). 3. Perikarya stained with anti-neurophysin, anti-vasopressin and anti-vasotocin sera can be seen from the 11th week of fetal life (Fig. 1a) first in the supra-optic nucleus (SON), then in the para-ventricular nucleus (PVN). Their axons reach the neural lobe as early as the 11th week (Fig. 1b, c). 4. Oxytocin-containing perikarya appear simultaneously in the PVN (Fig. 1e) and SON during the 13th week. 5. From the 16th week, neurons stained with the anti-somatostatin serum can be seen among the neurophysin-positive cell-bodies of the SON and PVN. 6. The various populations of magnocellular neurons show a significant increase in number, especially up to the 19th week, and an increase in their hormonal content up to birth.     

Cancer Immunotherapy 2005: Mainz, Germany, 12–13 May 2005

Cancer Immunotherapy 2005 was the third international meeting organized by the Association for Immunotherapy of Cancer (AIC). About 200 participants were attracted by the excellent scientific program that consisted of overview lectures from 25 international speakers in the plenary auditorium and four guided poster sessions during both days of the meeting. The first day of the symposium mainly focused on experience with, and new perspectives in, antibody therapy. On the second day of the meeting, organized as a joint conference together with the Combined Research Grant “Mechanisms of Tumor Defense and Therapeutic Intervention” funded by the German Research Council, the participants had the chance to gain deeper insights into the principles of antigen processing and the regulation of immune responses. Further topics that were discussed mainly in the poster sessions and in the special lecture given by M. Nishimura (Chicago, USA), were “cellular therapies” and “vaccination against cancer”. The lectures selected for this report aim to provide an overview of the complete scientific program and give an impression of the lively atmosphere that could be felt from the first until the last session of CIMT 2005. C.M. Britten and C. Gouttefangeas contributed equally to this report.