Screening of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) accessions against Phytophthora palmivora induced tuber rot of cassava

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), is an important tropical tuber crop with global importance and plays a significant role in the food, nutritional and livelihood security of around 500 million people. In India, the low productivity of cassava attributes to the soil borne disease, particularly tuber rot caused by Phytophthora palmivora (Butl.) which is destructive and the attack is spreading in alarming rate in all the cassava growing regions causing heavy yield loss of more than 50%. Introduction of disease resistant varieties may alleviate the problem to a certain extent. This paper describes the screening procedures and findings on the disease resistant variety of cassava accession against tuber rot. Variety Sree Padmanabha imparted high resistance against tuber rot, while Sree Sahya was moderately resistant and all other accessions studied were found to be susceptible in in vitro and in field trials. In screening studies, a reproducible positive correlation was obtained between attached tubers in live plant with detached tubers which showed that detached tuber part can be used for the prediction of resistance in attached live plants of cassava for cultivar resistance. The procedure described here could be used as a simple, rapid and efficient method for screening of cassava accessions against tuber rot of cassava.     

A method for laboratory-scale mass cultivation ofMetarhizium anisopliae

Metarhizium anisopliae was mass cultured on tapioca chips and rice bran, supplemented with waste fish meal extract or urea, in specially designed large aluminium vessels.     

Critical density for protein-protein monoconjugation on a polysaccharide matrix.

The galactose binding toxin (RCAII) from Ricinus communis was affinity-immobilised at varying densities on a polysaccharide matrix and reacted with glutaraldehyde. The critical density below which inter-molecular cross-links were not formed was determined. At this density RCAII was monoconjugated to lysozyme. This approach could serve as a prototype for enzyme-lectin and enzyme-antipolysaccharide antibody monoconjugation.     

Evaluation of the indigenous parasitoid Encarsia transvena (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) for biological control of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in greenhouses in India

The efficiency of the native parasitoid, Encarsia transvena Timberlake for the management of greenhouse whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) was studied in cages and a greenhouse in India. Parasitism by Enc. transvena of B. tabaci on Lycopersicon esculentum L. (tomato), Solanum melongena L. (eggplant) and Nicotiana tabacum L. (tobacco) was evaluated in cages to compare the utility of each species as potential banker plants. B. tabaci populations were consistently present on all three host plant species for almost two months providing sufficient hosts for parasitoid multiplication. Significantly more B. tabaci nymphs/unit leaf area were found on N. tabacum (77.7) and on S. melongena (76.5) than L. esculentum (45.9) in the initial growing period of the plants, that increased more on L. esculentum as the crops grew older. A greater proportion of B. tabaci were parasitised by Enc. transvena on L. esculentum than on N. tabacum and S. melongena. Rate of parasitism on L. esculentum was 25.19 and on N. tabacum was 24.70 in greenhouse. Parasitism, although occurring throughout greenhouses, was greatest on plants within 3 metres of introduced banker plants. The results suggest the utility of the three plant species as potential banker plants for the management of whiteflies in greenhouses.     

Early Detection,Curative Treatment,and Survival Rates for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Surveillance in Patients with Cirrhosis: A Meta-analysis

Background

Surveillance for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has level I evidence among patients with hepatitis B but only level II evidence in patients with cirrhosis. This lack of randomized data has spurred questions regarding the utility of HCC surveillance in this patient population; however, lack of randomized data does not equate to a lack of data supporting the efficacy of surveillance. The aim of our study was to determine the effect of HCC surveillance on early stage tumor detection, receipt of curative therapy, and overall survival in patients with cirrhosis.

Methods and Findings

We performed a systematic literature review using Medline from January 1990 through January 2014 and a search of national meeting abstracts from 2009–2012. Two investigators identified studies that reported rates of early stage tumor detection, curative treatment receipt, or survival, stratified by HCC surveillance status, among patients with cirrhosis. Both investigators independently extracted data on patient populations, study methods, and results using standardized forms. Pooled odds ratios, according to HCC surveillance status, were calculated for each outcome using the DerSimonian and Laird method for a random effects model.We identified 47 studies with 15,158 patients, of whom 6,284 (41.4%) had HCC detected by surveillance. HCC surveillance was associated with improved early stage detection (odds ratio [OR] 2.08, 95% CI 1.80–2.37) and curative treatment rates (OR 2.24, 95% CI 1.99–2.52). HCC surveillance was associated with significantly prolonged survival (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.67–2.17), which remained significant in the subset of studies adjusting for lead-time bias. Limitations of current data included many studies having insufficient duration of follow-up to assess survival and the majority not adjusting for liver function or lead-time bias.

Conclusions

HCC surveillance is associated with significant improvements in early tumor detection, receipt of curative therapy, and overall survival in patients with cirrhosis. Please see later in the article for the Editors'' Summary     

A high-throughput image-based screen for the identification of Bax/Bak-independent caspase activators against drug-resistant cancer cells

Despite the use of new generation target specific drugs or combination treatments, drug-resistance caused by defective apoptosis signaling remains a major challenge in cancer treatment. A common apoptotic defect in drug-resistant tumor is the failure of cancer cells to undergo Bax/Bak-dependent mitochondrial permeabilization due to impaired signaling of Bcl-2 family proteins. Therefore, Bax and Bak-independent caspase-activating compounds appear to be effective in killing such tumor cells. An image-based cellular platform of caspase sensors in Bax and Bak deficient background allowed us to identify several potential Bax/Bak-independent caspase-activating compounds from a limited high-throughput compound screening. FRET-based caspase sensor probe targeted at the nucleus enabled accurate and automated segmentation, yielding a Z-value of 0.72. Some of the positive hits showed promising activity against drug-resistant human cancer cells expressing high levels of Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL. Using this approach, we describe thiolutin, CD437 and TPEN as the most potentially valuable drug candidates for addressing drug-resistance caused by aberrant expression of Bcl-2 family proteins in tumor cells. The screen also enables the quantification of multiparameter apoptotic events along with caspase activation in HTS manner in live mode, allowing characterization of non-classical apoptosis signaling.