Cyclin D1 splice variant and risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma

To investigate the role of cell cycle gene variations in lymphomagenesis, we evaluated associations (odds ratios [OR] and 95% confidence intervals [CI]) in polymorphisms from seven candidate genes in 1,172 non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) cases and 982 population-based controls. The cyclin D1 (CCND1) splice variant G870A (rs603965) increased NHL risk (OR_AA = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.1–1.8, P-trend = 0.021), which was consistent for four B-cell subtypes. As CCND1 expression indicates poor NHL prognosis, our results, if true, would support its potentially dual importance in NHL etiology and survival.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available to authorised users in the online version of this article at .     

Cytokine gene polymorphisms and atopic disease in two European cohorts. (ECRHS-Basel and SAPALDIA)

Background

Avoidance of allergens is still recommended as the first and best way to prevent allergic illnesses and their comorbid diseases. Despite a variety of attempts there has been very limited success in the area of environmental control of allergic disease. Our objective was to identify a non-invasive, non-pharmacological method to reduce indoor allergen loads in atopic persons' homes and public environments. We employed a novel in vivo approach to examine the possibility of using aluminum sulfate to control environmental allergens.

Methods

Fifty skin test reactive patients were simultaneously skin tested with conventional test materials and the actions of the protein/glycoprotein modifier, aluminum sulfate. Common allergens, dog, cat, dust mite, Alternaria, and cockroach were used in the study.

Results

Skin test reactivity was significantly reduced by the modifier aluminum sulfate. Our studies demonstrate that the effects of histamine were not affected by the presence of aluminum sulfate. In fact, skin test reactivity was reduced independent of whether aluminum sulfate was present in the allergen test material or removed prior to testing, indicating that the allergens had in some way been inactivated.

Conclusion

Aluminum sulfate was found to reduce the in vivo allergic reaction cascade induced by skin testing with common allergens. The exact mechanism is not clear but appears to involve the alteration of IgE-binding epitopes on the allergen. Our results indicate that it may be possible to diminish the allergenicity of an environment by application of the active agent aluminum sulfate, thus producing environmental control without complete removal of the allergen.     

Is there In Vivo Evidence for Amino Acid Shuttles Carrying Ammonia from Neurons to Astrocytes?

Neurochemical Research - The high in vivo flux of the glutamate/glutamine cycle puts a strong demand on the return of ammonia released by phosphate activated glutaminase from the neurons to the...     

Methods in Primate Nutritional Ecology: A User’s Guide

An important goal of primatology is to identify the ecological factors that affect primate abundance, diversity, demography, and social behavior. Understanding the nutritional needs of primates is central to understanding primate ecology because adequate nutrition is a prerequisite for successful reproduction. Here, we review nutritional methods and provide practical guidelines to measure nutrient intake by primates in field settings. We begin with an assessment of how to estimate food intake by primates using behavioral observations. We then describe how to collect, prepare, and preserve food samples. Finally, we suggest appropriate nutritional assays for estimating diet nutritional quality and point to the merits and limitations of each. We hope this review will inspire primatologists to use nutritional ecology to answer many unresolved questions in primatology.     

Protozoan parasites in group-living primates: testing the biological island hypothesis

A series of articles by W.J. Freeland published in the 1970s proposed that social organization and behavioral processes were heavily influenced by parasitic infections, which led to a number of intriguing hypotheses concerning how natural selection might act on social factors because of the benefits of avoiding parasite infections. For example, Freeland [1979] showed that all individuals within a given group harbored identical gastrointestinal protozoan faunas, which led him to postulate that social groups were akin to "biological islands" and suggest how this isolation could select specific types of ranging and dispersal patterns. Here, we reexamine the biological island hypothesis by quantifying the protozoan faunas of the same primate species examined by Freeland in the same location; our results do not support this hypothesis. In contrast, we quantified two general changes in protozoan parasite community of primates in the study area of Kibale National Park, Uganda, over the nearly 35 years between sample collections: (1) the colobines found free of parasites in the early 1970s are now infected with numerous intestinal protozoan parasites and (2) groups are no longer biological islands in terms of their protozoan parasites. Whatever the ultimate explanation for these changes, our findings have implications for studies proposing selective forces shaping primate behavior and social organization.     

Estrogenic plant foods of red colobus monkeys and mountain gorillas in Uganda

Phytoestrogens, or naturally occurring estrogen-mimicking compounds, are found in many human plant foods, such as soybeans (Glycine max) and other legumes. Because the consumption of phytoestrogens may result in both health benefits of protecting against estrogen-dependent cancers and reproductive costs of disrupting the developing endocrine system, considerable biomedical research has been focused on the physiological and behavioral effects of these compounds. Despite this interest, little is known about the occurrence of phytoestrogens in the diets of wild primates, nor their likely evolutionary importance. We investigated the prevalence of estrogenic plant foods in the diets of two folivorous primate species, the red colobus monkey (Procolobus rufomitratus) of Kibale National Park and mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei) of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, both in Uganda. To examine plant foods for estrogenic activity, we screened 44 plant items (species and part) comprising 78.4% of the diet of red colobus monkeys and 53 plant items comprising 85.2% of the diet of mountain gorillas using transient transfection assays. At least 10.6% of the red colobus diet and 8.8% of the gorilla diet had estrogenic activity. This was mainly the result of the red colobus eating three estrogenic staple foods and the gorillas eating one estrogenic staple food. All estrogenic plants exhibited estrogen receptor (ER) subtype selectivity, as their phytoestrogens activated ERβ, but not ERα. These results demonstrate that estrogenic plant foods are routinely consumed by two folivorous primate species. Phytoestrogens in the wild plant foods of these two species and many other wild primates may have important implications for understanding primate reproductive ecology.     

Unusual growth pattern in the Frasnian alveolitids (Tabulata) from the Holy Cross Mountains (Poland)

Abstract: Growth periodicity is a phenomenon occurring in fossil and modern corals. The most apparent feature is growth banding, and environmental changes are broadly accepted as controls on this phenomenon. If environment controls the growth, then all corallites within a colony should repeat the same growth pattern, as individuals are clones and must have shared the same environment. A study on several species of Alveolitidae (Anthozoa, Tabulata) from the Late Devonian (Early Frasnian) of the Holy Cross Mountains (Poland) shows that the growth pattern varies between neighbouring individuals within the same corallum. This contradicts observations of closely related Favositida as demonstrated on Pachyfavosites sp. from the Givetian of Avesnois, France, where neighbouring individuals repeat the same pattern. Therefore, environmental control on growth rhythm in Alveolitidae can be excluded; the causes of differences between individuals remain unknown.