Flowering of allergenically important plant species in relation to the North Atlantic Oscillation system and thermal time in the Czech Republic

This paper analyses long-term (1960–2015) onset of flowering in 16 native terrestrial plants (11 of them produce important allergens) recorded in different parts of the Czech Republic (southern, central and northern part) in relation to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index of the preceding winter and thermal data—growing degree-days (GDD) and soil temperature. Flowering occurred significantly earlier following positive winter NAO phases (causing spring to be warmer than normal in Central Europe) in nearly all early-flowering (February, March, April) species; high Pearson correlation values were recorded in, e.g. wood anemone, common snowdrop, goat willow, common hazel and common alder. There was found a difference between the southern and northern part of the country, e.g. in silver birch and pedunculate oak. Out of the later-flowering (May–July) plant species, black elder and meadow foxtail also significantly correlated with the winter NAO index, lime tree correlated less markedly. The best results of a threshold for calculation of GDD to onset of beginning of flowering were found in lime tree—it was 5 °C at all three stations. Results of other taxa were more variable (e.g. 4–7 °C in goat willow; 6–10 °C in silver birch). Pearson correlation coefficients between NAO index and GDD were negative in lime tree at all thresholds (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 °C), while goat willow and silver birch were not so uniform (both positive and negative values). Correlation coefficients between phenophase onset and soil temperature (10 cm depth) had the highest values in silver birch, European larch and wood anemone. Stations situated at higher elevation showed negative correlation coefficient with soil temperature in common snowdrop, pedunculate oak, meadow foxtail and lime tree; other values were positive.     

Protein palmitoylation and cancer

Protein S‐palmitoylation is a reversible post‐translational modification that alters the localization, stability, and function of hundreds of proteins in the cell. S‐palmitoylation is essential for the function of both oncogenes (e.g., NRAS and EGFR) and tumor suppressors (e.g., SCRIB, melanocortin 1 receptor). In mammalian cells, the thioesterification of palmitate to internal cysteine residues is catalyzed by 23 Asp‐His‐His‐Cys (DHHC)‐family palmitoyl S‐acyltransferases while the removal of palmitate is catalyzed by serine hydrolases, including acyl‐protein thioesterases (APTs). These enzymes modulate the function of important oncogenes and tumor suppressors and often display altered expression patterns in cancer. Targeting S‐palmitoylation or the enzymes responsible for palmitoylation dynamics may therefore represent a candidate therapeutic strategy for certain cancers.     

Cardiac arrest associated with pneumorrhachis and pneumocephalus after epidural analgesia: two case reports

Background

Epidural analgesia has become a common procedure to provide excellent pain relief with few complications. Pneumorrhachis and pneumocephalus are rare complications of unintentional dural puncture and injection of air into the subarachnoid or subdural space. No cases of cardiac arrest associated with these complications have been reported in the literature previously.

Case presentation

We report cases of pneumorrhachis and pneumocephalus in two Korean women who previously visited a local pain clinic and underwent epidural analgesia. Thereafter, they were admitted to the emergency department with cardiac arrest. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed on these patients, and return of spontaneous circulation was achieved. The brain and spine computed tomographic scans showed pneumorrhachis and pneumocephalus, respectively. These cases demonstrate that pneumorrhachis and pneumocephalus may occur after epidural analgesia, which may be associated with cardiac arrest in patients.

Conclusions

If cardiac arrest occurs after epidural analgesia, pneumocephalus and pneumorrhachis should be considered as its cause. Although epidural analgesia is a common procedure, caution is warranted during this procedure.

     

Rapid Turnover of Cortical NCAM1 Regulates Synaptic Reorganization after Peripheral Nerve Injury

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Up-Regulation of PI 3-Kinases and the Activation of PI3K-Akt Signaling Pathway in Cancer Stem-Like Cells Through DNA Hypomethylation Mediated by the Cancer Microenvironment

Previously, we have succeeded in converting induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into cancer stem cells (CSCs) by treating the iPSCs with conditioned medium of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells. The converted CSCs, named miPS-LLCcm cells, exhibited the self-renewal, differentiation potential, and potential to form malignant tumors with metastasis. In this study, we further characterized miPS-LLCcm cells both in vivo and in vitro. The tumors formed by subcutaneous injection showed the structures with pathophysiological features consisting of undifferentiated and malignant phenotypes generally found in adenocarcinoma. Metastasis in the lung was also observed as nodule structures. Excising from the tumors, primary cultured cells from the tumor and the nodule showed self-renewal, differentiation potential as well as tumor forming ability, which are the essential characters of CSCs. We then characterized the epigenetic regulation occurring in the CSCs. By comparing the DNA methylation level of CG rich regions, the differentially methylated regions (DMRs) were evaluated in all stages of CSCs when compared with the parental iPSCs. In DMRs, hypomethylation was found superior to hypermethylation in the miPS-LLCcm cells and its derivatives. The hypo- and hypermethylated genes were used to nominate KEGG pathways related with CSC. As a result, several categories were defined in the KEGG pathways from which most related with cancers, significant and high expression of components was PI3K-AKT signaling pathway. Simultaneously, the AKT activation was also confirmed in the CSCs. The PI3K-Akt signaling pathway should be an important pathway for the CSCs established by the treatment with conditioned medium of LLC cells.