Aspirin inhibits arachidonic acid metabolism via lipoxygenase and cyclo-oxygenase in hamster isolated lungs

The effect of aspirin on the fate of exogenous arachidonic acid (AA) was investigated in isolated perfused lungs of female hamsters. During pulmonary infusion of aspirin (10 μM, 100 μM or 1 mM) 45 nmol of ¹⁴C-AA was infused in two minutes into the pulmonary circulation. The nonrecirculating perfusion effluent was collected for 6 minutes after the beginning of the AA infusion. Arachidonate infusion increased the perfusion pressure. This pressor response was completely abolished by 1 mM aspirin. When aspirin was infused into the pulmonary circulation, the amount of radioactivity was increased in the perfused lungs and decreased dose dependently in the nonrecirculating perfusion effluent. The amount of unmetabolized free arachidonate was not changed significantly by aspirin in the perfused lungs or in the perfusion effluent. In the effluent the amounts of all arachidonate metabolites, which were extracted with ethyl acetate first at pH 7.4 and then at pH 3.5 and analysed by thin layer chromatography, were decreased quite similarly by aspirin. The formation of arachidonate metabolites was completely inhibited by 1 mM aspirin. In the perfused lung tissue the amount of ¹⁴C-AA was increased by aspirin in phospholipids and neutral lipids. The present study indicates that the metabolism of arachidonic acid is inhibited by aspirin in hamster lungs not only via cyclo-oxygenase but also via other lipoxygenases.     

Cellulose structure and lignin distribution in normal and compression wood of the Maidenhair tree(Ginkgo biloba L.)

We studied in detail the mean micro fibril angle and the width of cellulose crystals from the pith to the bark of a 15-year-old Maidenhair tree(Ginkgo biloba L.). The orientation of cellulose micro fibrils with respect to the cell axis and the width and length of cellulose crystallites were determined using Xray diffraction. Raman microscopy was used to compare the lignin distribution in the cell wall of normal/opposite and compression wood, which was found near the pith. Ginkgo biloba showed a relatively large mean micro fibril angle,varying between 19° and 39° in the S2 layer, and the average width of cellulose crystallites was 3.1–3.2 nm. Mild compression wood without any intercellular spaces or helical cavities was observed near the pith. Slit-like bordered pit openings and a heavily lignified S2 L layer con firmed the presence of compression wood. Ginkgo biloba showed typical features present in the juvenile wood of conifers. The micro fibril angle remained large over the 14 annual rings. The entire stem disc,with a diameter of 18 cm, was considered to consist of juvenile wood. The properties of juvenile and compression wood as well as the cellulose orientation and crystalline width indicate that the wood formation of G. biloba is similar to that of modern conifers.     

[18F]FDG Accumulation in Early Coronary Atherosclerotic Lesions in Pigs

Objective

Inflammation is an important contributor to atherosclerosis progression. A glucose analogue ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose ([¹⁸F]FDG) has been used to detect atherosclerotic inflammation. However, it is not known to what extent [¹⁸F]FDG is taken up in different stages of atherosclerosis. We aimed to study the uptake of [¹⁸F]FDG to various stages of coronary plaques in a pig model.

Methods

First, diabetes was caused by streptozotocin injections (50 mg/kg for 3 days) in farm pigs (n = 10). After 6 months on high-fat diet, pigs underwent dual-gated cardiac PET/CT to measure [¹⁸F]FDG uptake in coronary arteries. Coronary segments (n = 33) were harvested for ex vivo measurement of radioactivity and autoradiography (ARG).

Results

Intimal thickening was observed in 16 segments and atheroma type plaques in 10 segments. Compared with the normal vessel wall, ARG showed 1.7±0.7 times higher [¹⁸F]FDG accumulation in the intimal thickening and 4.1±2.3 times higher in the atheromas (P = 0.004 and P = 0.003, respectively). Ex vivo mean vessel-to-blood ratio was higher in segments with atheroma than those without atherosclerosis (2.6±1.2 vs. 1.3±0.7, P = 0.04). In vivo PET imaging showed the highest target-to-background ratio (TBR) of 2.7. However, maximum TBR was not significantly different in segments without atherosclerosis (1.1±0.5) and either intimal thickening (1.2±0.4, P = 1.0) or atheroma (1.6±0.6, P = 0.4).

Conclusions

We found increased uptake of [¹⁸F]FDG in coronary atherosclerotic lesions in a pig model. However, uptake in these early stage lesions was not detectable with in vivo PET imaging. Further studies are needed to clarify whether visible [¹⁸F]FDG uptake in coronary arteries represents more advanced, highly inflamed plaques.     

Independent hybrid populations of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Formica polyctena X</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">rufa</Emphasis> wood ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) abound under conditions of forest fragmentation

Combined genetic and morphological data indicate frequent hybridisation between the wood ants Formica polyctena Förster 1850 and F. rufa Linnaeus 1761 in Central Europe. The genetic and morphological traits give a concordant picture of hybridisation with a strong correlation between the genotypic admixture proportions at 19 microsatellite loci and the first vectors of a principal component analysis (P < 0.001) and of a 3-class discriminant analysis (P < 0.001) of 15 quantitative morphological characters. This integrative approach enabled a grouping into F. polyctena, the hybrid and rufa. Genetic differentiation between the hybrid and F. rufa is significantly larger than between the hybrid and polyctena, indicating gene flow mainly between the latter entities. A suggested gene flow bias towards F. polyctena agrees with differential queen acceptance and mating behaviour. Both genetic and phenotypic colony parameters indicate predominance of monogyny in F. rufa but of polygyny in polyctena and the hybrid. Hybrids are intermediate between the parental species in body size, diagnostic morphological characters, monogyny frequency, size of nest population, nest diameter and infestation rate with epizootic fungi. The three entities respond differently to woodland fragmentation. Hybrids are significantly more abundant in forests with a coherent area <300 ha than in woodland above this size. Regions with high hybrid frequency in Germany—the Eastern Oberlausitz (23%) and the Baltic Sea islands Darss, Hiddensee and Rügen (28%)—are characterised by a fragmented woodland structure whereas regions with low hybrid frequency—Brandenburg and the lower Erzgebirge (3.4%)—have clearly larger and more coherent forest systems. Data from other European countries indicate habitat fragmentation to be a facilitating factor but no essential precondition for interspecific hybridisation in these ants. Hybrids are hypothesised to have selective advantage in fragmented systems because of combining the main reproductive and dispersal strategies of the parental species.     

The impact of generic substitution on the activities of pharmaceutical companies - a survey from the companies' perspective one year and five years after the introduction of generic substitution in finland

Background  

Mandatory generic substitution (GS) was introduced in Finland on 1 April 2003. The aim of this study was to explore and compare the impacts of GS on the activities of pharmaceutical companies representing mainly original or generic pharmaceutical products in Finland. The self-reported impact of GS from pharmaceutical companies' perspective was explored with a focus on the number of employees, the range of sales packages on the market, the marketing activities, the research and development of new pharmaceutical products and storage of pharmaceuticals.     

Climate‐induced warming imposes a threat to north European spring ecosystems

Interest in climate change effects on groundwater has increased dramatically during the last decade. The mechanisms of climate‐related groundwater depletion have been thoroughly reviewed, but the influence of global warming on groundwater‐dependent ecosystems (GDEs) remains poorly known. Here we report long‐term water temperature trends in 66 northern European cold‐water springs. A vast majority of the springs (82%) exhibited a significant increase in water temperature during 1968–2012. Mean spring water temperatures were closely related to regional air temperature and global radiative forcing of the corresponding year. Based on three alternative climate scenarios representing low (RCP2.6), intermediate (RCP6) and high‐emission scenarios (RCP8.5), we estimate that increase in mean spring water temperature in the region is likely to range from 0.67 °C (RCP2.6) to 5.94 °C (RCP8.5) by 2086. According to the worst‐case scenario, water temperature of these originally cold‐water ecosystems (regional mean in the late 1970s: 4.7 °C) may exceed 12 °C by the end of this century. We used bryophyte and macroinvertebrate species data from Finnish springs and spring‐fed streams to assess ecological impacts of the predicted warming. An increase in spring water temperature by several degrees will likely have substantial biodiversity impacts, causing regional extinction of native, cold‐stenothermal spring specialists, whereas species diversity of headwater generalists is likely to increase. Even a slight (by 1 °C) increase in water temperature may eliminate endemic spring species, thus altering bryophyte and macroinvertebrate assemblages of spring‐fed streams. Climate change‐induced warming of northern regions may thus alter species composition of the spring biota and cause regional homogenization of biodiversity in headwater ecosystems.     

Proteomics Analysis Reveals Distinct Corona Composition on Magnetic Nanoparticles with Different Surface Coatings: Implications for Interactions with Primary Human Macrophages

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) have emerged as promising contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. The influence of different surface coatings on the biocompatibility of SPIONs has been addressed, but the potential impact of the so-called corona of adsorbed proteins on the surface of SPIONs on their biological behavior is less well studied. Here, we determined the composition of the plasma protein corona on silica-coated versus dextran-coated SPIONs using mass spectrometry-based proteomics approaches. Notably, gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis revealed distinct protein corona compositions for the two different SPIONs. Relaxivity of silica-coated SPIONs was modulated by the presence of a protein corona. Moreover, the viability of primary human monocyte-derived macrophages was influenced by the protein corona on silica-coated, but not dextran-coated SPIONs, and the protein corona promoted cellular uptake of silica-coated SPIONs, but did not affect internalization of dextran-coated SPIONs.     

Knowledge based diagnosis of inoculum properties and sterilization time in lactic acid fermentation

Summary A knowledge based system has been shown to be a powerful tool for diagnosing microbial activities during a fermentation process. Knowledge about lactic acid fermentation was collected by an experimental study ofLactobacillus casei. The effects of the inoculum properties and sterilization time on the cultivation were expressed in a form of a fuzzy rule-based knowledge network. The system was able to detect abnormal inoculum or sterilization conditions which caused malfunctions in the cultivations.     

The Potential Role of Stream Habitat Restoration in Facilitating Salmonid Invasions: A Habitat‐Hydraulic Modeling Approach

Many successful invasions have taken place in systems where harmful disturbance has changed habitat conditions. However, less attention has been paid to the role of habitat restoration, which modifies habitats and thus also has the potential to facilitate invasions. We examined whether in‐stream habitat restorations have the potential to either facilitate or resist invasion by two widely introduced non‐native stream salmonids, Salvelinus fontinalis Mitchill and Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum, in Finland. A physical habitat simulation system was used to calculate whether the habitat area for the target species increased or decreased following the restorations. For comparison, we also reported results for four native stream fish species. The simulations showed that the restored streams provided the highest amount of usable habitat area for the native species, particularly for Salmo salar L. and Gottus gobio L. However, it was interesting to note that the restorations significantly increased habitat quality for the two non‐native species, especially at low flows. Nevertheless, the non‐native species had the lowest amount of usable habitat area overall. The modeling results indicated that not only habitat destruction but also habitat restoration could contribute to the spread of non‐native species. Fisheries and wildlife managers should be aware of the possibility, when restoring habitats in order to preserve native ecosystems, that non‐native species could manage to gain a foothold in restored habitats and use them as population sources for further spread. Knowing the widespread negative effect of non‐native species, this risk should not be underestimated.     

Cervical cancer screening programme in Finland with an example on implementing alternative screening methods

In Finland (population 5 million) the organised Pap screening programme for preventing cervical cancer has been in action already for 45 years. Women aged 30 to 64 are targeted (N 1.25 million) and the screening interval is five years. The programme invites women seven times in a lifetime; the attendance rate per one screening invitational round is 73%. The programme has affected markedly the cervical cancer rates in our country. During the decennia of its action there has been about 80% decrease in the age-adjusted cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates. The current age-standardised incidence rate is 4 and mortality rate 1 per 100,000 woman-years. In the current article we describe the organisational aspects of the programme; and pay attention to renovation of the programme taken place during the last decade when novel technological alternatives have been started to be used as the screening tests. By expanding the coverage and compliance of screening we still expect to increase the impact of the programme. Same time, efforts are needed to avoid overuse of services due to spontaneous screening, in order to decrease potential adverse effects and improve overall cost-effectiveness. A large-scale public health policy trial on Human papillomavirus (HPV) screening is on-going. Cross-sectional information available thus far suggests promising results. Follow-up of cancer rates after screening episodes are still required to evaluate optimal screening policies (e.g., screening intervals by age groups, and starting and stopping ages). We propose speeding up the use of modern technological alternatives in organised screening programmes.