Maternal-Fetal Distribution of Calcium,Iron, Copper,and Zinc in Pregnant Teenagers and Adults

Adolescence is marked by intensive growth and development. When pregnancy occurs during this period of the mother’s growth, there is an increase in her nutritional needs. The aim of this study was to determine the levels of calcium, iron, copper, and zinc in maternal plasma, the placenta, and in the cord plasma of pregnant teenagers and adults. A total of 80 sets of maternal plasma, placentas, and cord plasma (40 from teenagers and 40 from adults) were analyzed using synchrotron radiation total reflection X-ray fluorescence. The levels of calcium, copper, and zinc in the maternal and cord plasma from teenagers were not significantly different than those from adults. Iron levels in the teenagers maternal and cord plasma were higher than in the adults. All of the minerals analyzed were present at higher levels in the placentas from adults than those from teenagers. However, the low quantities of placental calcium, iron, copper, and zinc in the teenagers do not compromise the levels of these minerals in the cord plasma. Future research regarding the placental transport of these minerals is recommended to investigate the efficiency of mechanisms of transfer of these minerals in pregnant teenagers.     

Effect of Electroconvulsive Shock on Mitochondrial Respiratory Chain in Rat Brain

It is well described that impairment of energy production has been implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of diseases. Although several advances have occurred over the past 20 years concerning the use and administration of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) to minimize its side effects, little progress has been made in understanding its mechanism of action. In this work, our aim was to measure the activities of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes II and IV and succinate dehydrogenase from rat brain after acute and chronic electroconvulsive shock (ECS). Our results showed that mitochondrial respiratory chain enzymes activities were increased after acute ECS in hippocampus, striatum and cortex of rats. Besides, we also demonstrated that complex II activity was increased after chronic ECS in cortex, while hippocampus and striatum were not affected. Succinate dehydrogenase, however, was inhibited after chronic ECS in striatum, activated in cortex and not affected in hippocampus. Finally, complex IV was not affected by chronic ECS in hippocampus, striatum and cortex. Our findings demonstrated that brain metabolism is altered by ECS.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichomonas vaginalis</Emphasis> metalloproteinase TvMP50 is a monomeric Aminopeptidase P-like enzyme

Previously, metalloproteinase was isolated and identified from Trichomonas vaginalis, belonging to the aminopeptidase P-like metalloproteinase subfamily A/B, family M24 of clan MG, named TvMP50. The native and recombinant TvMP50 showed proteolytic activity, determined by gelatin zymogram, and a 50 kDa band, suggesting that TvMP50 is a monomeric active enzyme. This was an unexpected finding since other Xaa-Pro aminopeptidases/prolidases are active as a biological unit formed by dimers/tetramers. In this study, the evolutionary history of TvMP50 and the preliminary crystal structure of the recombinant enzyme determined at 3.4 Å resolution is reported. TvMP50 was shown to be a type of putative, eukaryotic, monomeric aminopeptidase P, and the crystallographic coordinates showed a monomer on a “pseudo-homodimer” array on the asymmetric unit that resembles the quaternary structure of the M24B dimeric family and suggests a homodimeric aminopeptidase P-like enzyme as a likely ancestor. Interestingly, TvMP50 had a modified N-terminal region compared with other Xaa-Pro aminopeptidases/prolidases with three-dimensional structures; however, the formation of the standard dimer is structurally unstable in aqueous solution, and a comparably reduced number of hydrogen bridges and lack of saline bridges were found between subunits A/B, which could explain why TvMP50 portrays monomeric functionality. Additionally, we found that the Parabasalia group contains two protein lineages with a “pita bread” fold; the ancestral monomeric group 1 was probably derived from an ancestral dimeric aminopeptidase P-type enzyme, and group 2 has a probable dimeric kind of ancestral eukaryotic prolidase lineage. The implications of such hypotheses are also presented.     

Decadal weakening of the wind-induced upwelling reduces the impact of nutrient pollution in the Bay of Málaga (western Mediterranean Sea)

The hypothesis that nitrate versus phosphate regulates the coastal primary production has been assessed at different time scales in the northwest Alboran Sea. Time series of temperature, salinity, nutrients and chlorophyll a obtained at three stations located off Málaga city (the greatest coastal urban core along the Alboran Sea shoreline) from 1992 to 2006 have been analysed. At the decadal scale, temperature increased linearly while salinity decreased. These changes were related to a shift in the wind regime suggesting that coastal upwelling became steadily weaker. In contrast to phosphate, nitrate was positively correlated with salinity at the seasonal scale and decreased linearly from 1992 to 2006. Seasonal and decadal changes in chlorophyll a were correlated with nitrate (and uncorrelated with phosphate). However, non-regular variability in chlorophyll a was correlated with phosphate. Consequently, the results demonstrate that nitrate controls the phytoplankton biomass at the inter-annual scale while both nitrate and phosphate do so at a shorter time scale. The Bay of Málaga receives elevated entries of domestic waste waters that release high loads of phosphate compared to nitrate. Our analysis indicates that the expected impact of this pollution on chlorophyll a at the inter-annual scale is reduced in comparison with the effects of atmospheric forcing.     

Pyrenean Pastoralists’ Ecological Knowledge: Documentation and Application to Natural Resource Management and Adaptation

Pastoral production systems in the Spanish Pyrenees have changed dramatically in recent decades, leading to the loss of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK). We documented TEK of pastoralists from two valleys in the western Central Pyrenees of Aragón and explored its potential applications to resource management and adaptation. Pyrenean pastoralists possess extensive knowledge of relationships between terrain, climate, vegetation and animal nutrition and behavior. TEK could contribute to sustainable stewardship and facilitate adaptation by informing pasture monitoring; providing traditional practices to manage mountain vegetation; and preserving knowledge of extensive livestock production strategies, such as transhumance. Institutional barriers to applying TEK include weak economic cooperation among stockmen, their dependence on EU subsidies, and lack of voice in regional government decisions about local resources. A more collaborative, place-based stewardship of the Central Pyrenees might begin with direct involvement of pastoralists in designing monitoring of pasture conditions and vegetation type changes.     

Effects of supplementation with plant extract product containing carvacrol,cinnamaldehyde and capsaicin on serum metabolites and enzymes during the finishing phase of feedlot-fed bull calves

This study investigated the in vivo effects of a commercial blend of plant extracts (carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde and capsaicin) on serum metabolic parameters closely connected with energy and protein metabolism (glucose; l-lactate; non-esterified fatty acids, NEFA; urea nitrogen, SUN; creatinine; total protein, TSP) and enzymes associated with hepatic function (aspartate-aminotransferase, AST and gamma-glutamyl transferase, GGT) in finishing-stage Belgian Blue bull calves maintained in a commercial feedlot. Monitoring was performed over 86 days in 24 animals randomly allotted to two groups: (1) a control group (CTR, no supplementation; n = 10), and (2) a group receiving dietary supplementation with a commercial blend of plant extracts (PEX, 100 mg/kg DM of concentrate; n = 14). Under the conditions of our study, supplementation with the commercial blend did not give detrimental effects, but the opposite: the decrease in serum l-lactate, NEFA and creatinine levels and the increase in SUN concentrations; suggests an improvement in the energy status and protein turnover of the supplemented animals.     

Individual predisposition, household clustering and risk factors for human infection with Ascaris lumbricoides: new epidemiological insights

Background

Much of our current understanding of the epidemiology of Ascaris lumbricoides infections in humans has been acquired by analyzing worm count data. These data are collected by treating infected individuals with anthelmintics so that worms are expelled intact from the gastrointestinal tract. Analysis of such data established that individuals are predisposed to infection with few or many worms and members of the same household tend to harbor similar numbers of worms. These effects, known respectively as individual predisposition and household clustering, are considered characteristic of the epidemiology of ascariasis. The mechanisms behind these phenomena, however, remain unclear. In particular, the impact of heterogeneous individual exposures to infectious stages has not been thoroughly explored.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Bayesian methods were used to fit a three-level hierarchical statistical model to A. lumbricoides worm counts derived from a three-round chemo-expulsion study carried out in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The effects of individual predisposition, household clustering and household covariates of the numbers of worms per host (worm burden) were considered simultaneously. Individual predisposition was found to be of limited epidemiological significance once household clustering had been accounted for. The degree of intra-household variability among worm burdens was found to be reduced by approximately 58% when household covariates were included in the model. Covariates relating to decreased affluence and quality of housing construction were associated with a statistically significant increase in worm burden.

Conclusions/Significance

Heterogeneities in the exposure of individuals to infectious eggs have an important role in the epidemiology of A. lumbricoides infection. The household covariates identified as being associated with worm burden provide valuable insights into the source of these heterogeneities although above all emphasize and reiterate that infection with A. lumbricoides is inextricably associated with acute poverty.     

Anti-inflammatory and redox-protective activities of citronellal

The anti-inflammatory and redox protective effects of the citronellal (CT) were evaluated using in vivo and in vitro tests. Intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration of CT (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg) inhibited (p < 0.05) the carrageenan-induced leukocyte migration to the peritoneal cavity. Additionally, the carrageenan- and arachidonic acid-induced rat hind paw edema was significantly inhibited (p < 0.05) by i.p. administration of 100 and 200 mg/kg of the compound. When the redox activity was evaluated, CT (200 mg/kg) significantly reduced hepatic lipoperoxidation (p < 0.001), as well as oxidation of plasmatic (p < 0.05) and hepatic (p < 0.01) proteins. The results of the present study support the hypothesis that CT possesses anti-inflammatory and redox protective activities. It is suggested that its effects are associated with the inhibition of the enzymes in the arachidonic acid pathway, which prevent cell migration by inhibiting leukotriene production, edema formation and the increase of reactive oxygen species in tissues. Therefore, CT is of potential benefit to manage inflammatory disorders and correlated damages caused by oxidant agents.     

Hybridization-based antibody cDNA recovery for the production of recombinant antibodies identified by repertoire sequencing

High-throughput sequencing of the antibody repertoire is enabling a thorough analysis of B cell diversity and clonal selection, which may improve the novel antibody discovery process. Theoretically, an adequate bioinformatic analysis could allow identification of candidate antigen-specific antibodies, requiring their recombinant production for experimental validation of their specificity. Gene synthesis is commonly used for the generation of recombinant antibodies identified in silico. Novel strategies that bypass gene synthesis could offer more accessible antibody identification and validation alternatives. We developed a hybridization-based recovery strategy that targets the complementarity-determining region 3 (CDRH3) for the enrichment of cDNA of candidate antigen-specific antibody sequences. Ten clonal groups of interest were identified through bioinformatic analysis of the heavy chain antibody repertoire of mice immunized with hen egg white lysozyme (HEL). cDNA from eight of the targeted clonal groups was recovered efficiently, leading to the generation of recombinant antibodies. One representative heavy chain sequence from each clonal group recovered was paired with previously reported anti-HEL light chains to generate full antibodies, later tested for HEL-binding capacity. The recovery process proposed represents a simple and scalable molecular strategy that could enhance antibody identification and specificity assessment, enabling a more cost-efficient generation of recombinant antibodies.