Phenotypic Variation and Systemic Cancer in the FAMMM Syndrome

Familial atypical multiple mole melanoma (FAMMM) syndrome, a cancer-associated genodermatosis, is a dominantly inherited heterogeneous disorder with variable expressivity of both its cutaneous and cancer phenotypes. By using a verified historical review technique of cancer documentation (idout patient health records, pathology reports/slides, autopsy reports/slides, and death certificates) of all anatomic sites in all members of a modified nuclear pedigree (first-degree relatives plus maternal and paternal grandparents, aunts, and uncles) over several generations, we showed that the FAMMM syndrome is similar to the majority of autosomal dominant inherited cancer-associated genodermatoses and has excessive risk for cancer of multiple anatomic sites. With respect to the FAMMM syndrome, these cancers involved the breast, respiratory tract, gastrointestinal system, the eye (intraocular melanoma), and the lymphatic system. These FAMMM pedigrees showed some of the following distinctive characteristics of hereditary cancer: 1) integral patterns of cancer within and between pedigrees; 2) early age of onset of cancer; 3) prolonged survival of some pedigree members with cancer; and 4) an excess of multiple primary melanomas and cancers of variable anatomic sites. The presence of these features indicates that these cancers of variable anatomic sites may be etiologically associated with the FAMMM syndrome. Heterogeneity should be investigated in FAMMM pedigrees with attention to consistent differences in size and distribution of atypical lesions, age at cancer onset, and pattern of tumor occurrences. The occurrence of FAMMM pedigrees in the general population or among pedigrees of probands with atypical nevi is not known. The occurrence of systemic cancers in these FAMMM pedigrees requires the development of cancer surveillance programs that are specifically modified to the particular cancer pattern of each pedigree.     

Movement and phenology of bees in a subtropical Australian agricultural landscape

Bees are mobile organisms that seek food and nesting opportunities from a range of habitats. It is important to understand the way they move in agricultural landscapes if we are to conserve them and benefit from their activity as pollinators. We surveyed bees using directional flight interception (Malaise) traps over a 1‐year period in two agricultural landscapes in south‐east Queensland, Australia. We placed traps at the ecotone between crops and remnant vegetation to establish the pattern of movement between these habitats. Species richness in these landscapes (70) was high relative to that in comparable studies. Some bees were active year round, but most were caught in the period September to March. Across the whole assemblage there was a significant pattern where more species were detected leaving rather than entering remnant vegetation. The same bias was true for the number of individuals of the two most abundant species (Homalictus urbanus and Apis mellifera). Species exclusively found in crops were smaller on average (and therefore have smaller foraging range) than their non‐crop counterparts. Together, these patterns indicate that while bees are abundant in crop habitat, the remnant vegetation is important as the point of origin for bee movements, and the riparian remnant in particular is richer than the dry native remnant. Compositional similarity among samples was significantly explained by landscape but also movement direction (i.e. to or from the riparian remnant) because different species showed different patterns of response. The landscape with greater native vegetation cover supported more species in and around crops than the landscape with less native vegetation.     

Temperature-induced Changes in the Synthesis of Unsaturated Fatty Acids by Acanthamoeba castellanii

ABSTRACT. Major fatty acid components of Acanthamoeba castellanii lipids extracted after growth at 30°C include myristate, palmitate, stearate and the polyunsaturates linoleate, eicosadienoate, eicosatrienoate and arachidonate, with oleate as the sole major monounsaturated fatty acid. By comparison, growth at 15°C gave increased linoleate, eicosatrienoate and arachidonate, but decreased oleate and palmitate. When the growth temperature was shifted downwards from 30°C to 15°C, increased lipid unsaturation occurred over a period of 24 h; thus decreases of oleate and eicosadienoate were accompanied by increases in linoleate, eicosatrienoate, arachidonate and eicosapentaenoate. An upwards shift from 15°C to 30°C gave negligible alterations in fatty acid composition over a similar period. At 15°C organisms rapidly use [1-¹⁴C] acetate for de novo fatty acid synthesis; stearate is converted via oleate to further desaturation and chain elongation products. Similar short term experiments at 30°C indicate only de novo synthesis and Δ9-desaturation; synthesis of polyunsaturates was a much slower process. Rapid incorporation of [1-¹⁴C] oleate at 30°C was not accompanied by metabolic conversion over two hours, whereas at 15°C n-6 desaturation to linoleate was observed. Temperature shift of organisms from 15°C to 30°C in the presence of [1-¹⁴C] acetate revealed that over half of the fatty acids in newly-synthesised lipids were saturated, but the proportions of unsaturated fatty acids increased with time until the total polyenoate components reached 17% after 22 h. A shift of temperature in the reverse direction gave a corresponding figure of 60% for polyunsaturated fatty acids. These results emphasize the importance of n-6 desaturation in the low temperature adaptation of Acanthamoeba castellanii .