Two successful pregnancies in a woman with chronic myeloid leukemia exposed to nilotinib during the first trimester of her second pregnancy: case study

Multicentric Castleman's disease (MCD) is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder of unknown etiology and characterized by various clinical manifestations and multiple organ involvement. It has been reported in association with POEMS syndrome and can progress to Kaposi's sarcoma or malignant lymphoma. The disease runs a more aggressive course and a poor prognosis. Optimal therapies have not been well established up to now. We here reported a case of rare MCD complicated with multiple myeloma who received bortezomib and achieved very good remission. To our knowledge, this is the first report on MCD in the setting of multiple myeloma with good response to bortezomib.     

Host-associated speciation in the coral barnacle Wanella milleporae (Cirripedia: Pyrgomatidae) inhabiting the Millepora coral

Speciation by host shift is a common phenomenon observed in many symbiotic animals. The symbiont–host interaction is highly dynamic, but it is poorly documented in the marine realm. In the present study, we examined the genetic and morphological differentiation of the coral barnacle Wanella milleporae (obligate to fire corals) collected from four different Millepora host species in Taiwan to investigate the host specificity of this barnacle. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial COI gene for 241 individuals of Wanella revealed five distinct clades, whose sequence divergences are comparable to values between other cogeneric barnacle species. The five clades also differ in shell and opercular plate morphology and colour. Genetic and morphological differentiations together strongly suggest the presence of cryptic species. Although the five clades do not display species-level host specificity, they showed a significant difference in preference on host growth form. Clades 1 and 2 were predominantly found on encrusting Millepora exaesa and Millepora platyphylla , while clades 3, 4 and 5 live exclusively on branching-form fire corals Millepora dichotoma and Millepora tenella . Phylogeny inferred from the combined mitochondrial COI, 16S and 12S (2182 bp) analysis suggests the division of the five clades into two major lineages congruent with the morphology of the host coral. Multiple independent invasions to the same form of host and subsequent speciation are evident in the Red Sea and Taiwan. Our results indicate that ecological/sympatric speciation could occur in marine symbiotic invertebrates through host shift and specialization. It appears that, as in their terrestrial counterparts, host–symbiont radiations in the marine realm are more prevalent than we expected and thus warrant further investigation.     

First morphogenetic identification of <i>Fusarium solani</i> isolated from orange fruit in Egypt

Losses due to postharvest decay may occur at any time during postharvest handling, from harvest to consumption affecting the produce quality and quantity. Accurate identification of the pathogen causing postharvest disease is essential to the selection of an appropriate disease control approach. Nine isolates of Fusarium recovered from orange fruit were identified as Fusarium solani. The fungus is involved with fruit decay. The obtained cultures were purified and grown on potato-dextrose agar (PDA), malt yeast agar (MYA), and Czapek's nutrient media (CNM) under light for identification. A pathogenicity test was carried out to fulfil Koch's postulates. The pathogen could only enter ripe orange fruit through wounds and cracks causing the rot disease. The identification of the fungal isolates was confirmed to be F. solani by DNA sequencing, which was 99 to 100% homologous to those deposited in the Gen- Bank. The identity of nine fungal isolates was confirmed to be F. solani by DNA sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA region (GenBank Accession Nos. DQ486874 to DQ486881 and KC758879). To our knowledge, this is the first morphogenetic identification of F. solani isolated from orange fruit in Egypt.     

Identification of putative biomarkers for leptomeningeal invasion in B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma by NMR metabolomics

Introduction

B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) is the most common hematological malignancy and different genetic alterations are frequently detected in transformed B lymphocytes. Within this heterogeneous disease, certain aggressive subgroups have an increased risk of central nervous system (CNS) involvement at diagnosis and/or relapse, resulting in parenchymal or leptomeningeal infiltration (LI) in 5–15% of cases. The current sensitivity limitations of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cytology and contrast-enhanced MRI for CNS involvement, mainly at early stages, motivates the search for alternative diagnostic methods.

Objectives

Here we aim at using untargeted ¹H-NMR metabolomics to identify putative biomarkers for LI in B-NHL patients.

Methods

CSF and peripheral blood samples were obtained from B-NHL patients with a positive (n?=?7, LI group) or negative LI diagnostic (n?=?13, control group). For seven patients, CSF samples were collected during the course of intrathecal chemotherapy, making it possible to assess the patient´s response to treatment. ¹H-NMR spectra were acquired and statistical multivariate and univariate analysis were performed to identify significant alterations.

Results

Significant metabolite differences were found between LI and control groups in CSF, but not in serum. A predictive PLS-DA cross-validated model identified significant pool changes in glycine, alanine, pyruvate, acetylcarnitine, carnitine, and phenylalanine. Additionally, increments in protein signals were detected in the LI group. Significantly, the PLS-DA model predicted correctly all samples obtained from the group of patients in remission during LI treatment.

Conclusions

The results show that the CSF NMR-metabolomics approach is a promising complementary method in clinical diagnosis and treatment follow-up of LI in B-NHL patients.

     

Genetic differentiation,hybridization and adaptive divergence in two subspecies of the acorn barnacle Tetraclita japonica in the northwestern Pacific

Two acorn barnacles, Tetraclita japonica japonica and Tetraclita japonica formosana, have been recently reclassified as two subspecies, because they are morphologically similar and genetically indistinguishable in mitochondrial DNA sequences. The two barnacles are distinguishable by parietes colour and exhibit parapatric distributions, coexisting in Japan, where T. j. formosana is very low in abundance. Here we investigated the genetic differentiation between the subspecies using 209 polymorphic amplified fragment length polymorphism markers and 341 individuals from 12 locations. The subspecies are genetically highly differentiated (Φ_CT = 0.267). Bayesian analysis and principal component analysis indicate the presence of hybrids in T. j. formosana samples from Japan. Strong differentiation between the northern and southern populations of T. j. japonica was revealed, and a break between Taiwan and Okinawa was also found in T. j. formosana. The differentiation between the two taxa at individual loci does not deviate from neutral expectation, suggesting that the oceanographic pattern which restricts larval dispersal is a more important factor than divergent selection in maintaining genetic and phenotypic differentiation. The T. j. formosana in Japan are probably recent migrants from Okinawa, and their presence in Japan may represent a poleward range shift driven by global warming. This promotes hybridization and might lead to a breakdown of the boundary between the subspecies. However, both local adaptation and larval dispersal are crucial in determining the population structure within each subspecies. Our study provides new insights into the interplay of local adaptation and dispersal in determining the distribution and genetic structure of intertidal biota and the biogeography of the northwestern Pacific.     

Congruent population genetic structure but differing depths of divergence for three alpine stoneflies with similar ecology and geographic distributions

相似文献   

Scl binds to primed enhancers in mesoderm to regulate hematopoietic and cardiac fate divergence

Scl/Tal1 confers hemogenic competence and prevents ectopic cardiomyogenesis in embryonic endothelium by unknown mechanisms. We discovered that Scl binds to hematopoietic and cardiac enhancers that become epigenetically primed in multipotent cardiovascular mesoderm, to regulate the divergence of hematopoietic and cardiac lineages. Scl does not act as a pioneer factor but rather exploits a pre‐established epigenetic landscape. As the blood lineage emerges, Scl binding and active epigenetic modifications are sustained in hematopoietic enhancers, whereas cardiac enhancers are decommissioned by removal of active epigenetic marks. Our data suggest that, rather than recruiting corepressors to enhancers, Scl prevents ectopic cardiogenesis by occupying enhancers that cardiac factors, such as Gata4 and Hand1, use for gene activation. Although hematopoietic Gata factors bind with Scl to both activated and repressed genes, they are dispensable for cardiac repression, but necessary for activating genes that enable hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell development. These results suggest that a unique subset of enhancers in lineage‐specific genes that are accessible for regulators of opposing fates during the time of the fate decision provide a platform where the divergence of mutually exclusive fates is orchestrated.     

Expression, purification and biochemical characterization of a single-stranded DNA binding protein from Herbaspirillum seropedicae

An open reading frame encoding a protein similar in size and sequence to the Escherichia coli single-stranded DNA binding protein (SSB protein) was identified in the Herbaspirillum seropedicae genome. This open reading frame was cloned into the expression plasmid pET14b. The SSB protein from H. seropedicae, named Hs_SSB, was overexpressed in E. coli strain BL21(DE3) and purified to homogeneity. Mass spectrometry data confirmed the identity of this protein. The apparent molecular mass of the native Hs_SSB was estimated by gel filtration, suggesting that the native protein is a tetramer made up of four similar subunits. The purified protein binds to single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) in a similar manner to other SSB proteins. The production of this recombinant protein in good yield opens up the possibility of obtaining its 3D-structure and will help further investigations into DNA metabolism.