Does measuring early basal serum follicular lutinising hormone assist in predicting In vitro fertilization (IVF)/Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) outcome?

Background  

The aim was to examine the correlation of early follicular serum lutinising hormone (LH) and the clinical outcome of assisted reproduction technique (ART).     

The Senescence Process in Oat Leaves and its Regulation by Oxygen Concentration and Light Irradiance

The regulation of senescence by oxygen-concentration, lightirradiance and H₂O₂ has been studied in leaf segments of Avenasativa L. cv. Suregrain. The development of the components of the senescence process,for example chlorophyll breakdown, proteolysis (as soluble aminoacids), hydroperoxides (as malondi-aldehyde) and permeability(as conductivity) is accelerated in light as the O₂-tensionincreases. In darkness, 0.3% O₂ accelerates increases in hydroperoxides,permeability and proteolysis and delays the chlorophyll break-down,but 0.0005% O₂ delays all the components studied. In every casethe hydroperoxide content, permeability and proteolysis areclosely related. Any treatment inducing an increase in membranepermeability causes chlorophyll bleaching (photo-oxidation)if leaf segments are then treated with light in an atmospherecontaining oxygen. Light has a modulating effect on the senescenceprocess. An irradiance lower or higher than 40 W m^–2 hasan accelerating effect on the senescence process. (Received September 7, 1985; Accepted July 30, 1985)     

Effects of Prisma® Skin dermal regeneration device containing glycosaminoglycans on human keratinocytes and fibroblasts

Prisma® Skin is a new pharmaceutical device developed by Mediolanum Farmaceutici S.p.a. It includes alginates, hyaluronic acid and mainly mesoglycan. The latter is a natural glycosaminoglycan preparation containing chondroitin sulfate, dermatan sulfate, heparan sulfate and heparin and it is used in the treatment of vascular disease. Glycosaminoglycans may contribute to the re-epithelialization in the skin wound healing, as components of the extracellular matrix. Here we describe, for the first time, the effects of Prisma® Skin in in vitro cultures of adult epidermal keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts. Once confirmed the lack of cytotoxicity by mesoglycan and Prisma® Skin, we have shown the increase of S and G2 phases of fibroblasts cell cycle distribution. We further report the strong induction of cell migration rate and invasion capability on both cell lines, two key processes of wound repair. In support of these results, we found significant cytoskeletal reorganization, following the treatments with mesoglycan and Prisma® Skin, as confirmed by the formation of F-actin stress fibers. Additionally, together with a significant reduction of E-cadherin, keratinocytes showed an increase of CD44 expression and the translocation of ezrin to the plasma membrane, suggesting the involvement of CD44/ERM (ezrin-radixin-moesin) pathway in the induction of the analyzed processes. Furthermore, as showed by immunofluorescence assay, fibroblasts treated with mesoglycan and Prisma® Skin exhibited the increase of Fibroblast Activated Protein α and a remarkable change in shape and orientation, two common features of reactive stromal fibroblasts. In all experiments Prisma® Skin was slightly more potent than mesoglycan. In conclusion, based on these findings we suggest that Prisma® Skin may be able to accelerate the healing process in venous skin ulcers, principally enhancing re-epithelialization and granulation processes.     

Dobzhansky–Muller incompatibilities,dominance drive,and sex‐chromosome introgression at secondary contact zones: A simulation study

Dobzhansky–Muller (DM) incompatibilities involving sex chromosomes have been proposed to account for Haldane's rule (lowered fitness among hybrid offspring of the heterogametic sex) as well as Darwin's corollary (asymmetric fitness costs with respect to the direction of the cross). We performed simulation studies of a hybrid zone to investigate the effects of different types of DM incompatibilities on cline widths and positions of sex‐linked markers. From our simulations, X‐Y incompatibilities generate steep clines for both X‐linked and Y‐linked markers; random effects may produce strong noise in cline center positions when migration is high relative to fitness costs, but X‐ and Y‐centers always coincide strictly. X‐autosome and Y‐autosome incompatibilities also generate steep clines, but systematic shifts in cline centers occur when migration is high relative to selection, as a result of a dominance drive linked to Darwin's corollary. Interestingly, sex‐linked genes always show farther introgression than the associated autosomal genes. We discuss ways of disentangling the potentially confounding effects of sex biases in migration, we compare our results to those of a few documented contact zones, and we stress the need to study independent replicates of the same contact zone.     

Rhinocerotidae (Mammalia,Perissodactyla) from the middle Pleistocene levels of Grotta Romanelli (Lecce,southern Italy)

The rhinoceros remains collected during the past century in the lower levels XII (= K) and XI (= I) of the famous Pleistocene locality of Grotta Romanelli (Lecce, southern Italy) are described and compared in detail for the first time. Some remains are referred to Stephanorhinus sp. and others are assigned here to the late early-middle Pleistocene European species Stephanorhinus hundsheimensis based on several morphological characters. Based on its olivine-bearing texture, the volcanoclastic ash sampled from some rhinoceros bones can be referred to the first phase of the Monte Vulture activity (around 630 ka). The results of the stable isotope analyses suggest that the climate in the lowest levels of Grotta Romanelli could have been more arid than it was at the time of the upper level IX, which is generally referred to the late Pleistocene. In addition, both recent day δ¹⁸O_ppt values and MAT are very similar to values calculated for levels X and XII, suggesting that the climate at those times may have been close to the Present one, whereas climate in level IX may have been somewhat cooler. The presence of Stephanorhinus hundsheimensis suggests a middle Pleistocene age for the lower levels of Grotta Romanelli, in agreement with the results obtained from the volcanoclastic material.