Pradosia restingae sp. nov. from the Atlantic forest,Brazil

Pradosia restingae Terra‐Araujo, a new species of Sapotaceae (Chrysophylloideae) from the Brazilian Atlantic forest is described and illustrated. It is only known from the southern coast of the State Rio Grande do Norte and is likely restricted to the coastal sand dune ecosystem, locally known as the restinga forest, from which the epithet is derived. The species is naturally common, but due the low number of known subpopulations we assign P. restingae a preliminary conservation status of ‘Endangered’ (EN).     

Serial measurement of the circulating levels of tumour necrosis factor and its soluble receptors 1 and 2 for monitoring leprosy patients during multidrug treatment

Leprosy is an infectious and contagious spectral disease accompanied by a series of immunological events triggered by the host response to the aetiologic agent, Mycobacterium leprae . The induction and maintenance of the immune/inflammatory response in leprosy are linked to multiple cell interactions and soluble factors, primarily through the action of cytokines. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the serum levels of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α and its soluble receptors (sTNF-R1 and sTNF-R2) in leprosy patients at different stages of multidrug treatment (MDT) in comparison with non-infected individuals and to determine their role as putative biomarkers of the severity of leprosy or the treatment response. ELISA was used to measure the levels of these molecules in 30 healthy controls and 37 leprosy patients at the time of diagnosis and during and after MDT. Our results showed increases in the serum levels of TNF-α and sTNF-R2 in infected individuals in comparison with controls. The levels of TNF-α, but not sTNF-R2, decreased with treatment. The current results corroborate previous reports of elevated serum levels of TNF-α in leprosy and suggest a role for sTNF-R2 in the control of this cytokine during MDT.     

Culture medium influence on growth,fatty acid,and pigment composition of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Choricystis minor</Emphasis> var. <Emphasis Type="Italic">minor</Emphasis>: a suitable microalga for biodiesel production

The purposes of this study were to assess the influence of culture medium on biomass production, fatty acid, and pigment composition of Choricystis minor var. minor and to evaluate the use of this microalga as a source of fatty raw material for biodiesel production. Cultures of C. minor var. minor were grown using WC (Wright’s cryptophyte) and BBM (Bold’s Basal medium) media. BBM medium produced more biomass (984.3 mg L^?1) compared to the WC medium (525.7 mg L^?1). Despite this result, WC medium produced a higher methyl ester yield for biodiesel production than the BBM medium (170.0 and 90.2 mg g^?1 of biomass, respectively). The average percentage of fatty acids obtained using the WC medium (17.0 %) was similar to soybean (18.0 %) and with similar biomass fatty acid profile. However, for pigment production, carotenoids and chlorophyll concentrations were twice as high when using the BBM medium.     

Sampling multiple life stages significantly increases estimates of marine biodiversity

Biodiversity assessments are critical for setting conservation priorities, understanding ecosystem function and establishing a baseline to monitor change. Surveys of marine biodiversity that rely almost entirely on sampling adult organisms underestimate diversity because they tend to be limited to habitat types and individuals that can be easily surveyed. Many marine animals have planktonic larvae that can be sampled from the water column at shallow depths. This life stage often is overlooked in surveys but can be used to relatively rapidly document diversity, especially for the many species that are rare or live cryptically as adults. Using DNA barcode data from samples of nemertean worms collected in three biogeographical regions—Northeastern Pacific, the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Tropical Pacific—we found that most species were collected as either benthic adults or planktonic larvae but seldom in both stages. Randomization tests show that this deficit of operational taxonomic units collected as both adults and larvae is extremely unlikely if larvae and adults were drawn from the same pool of species. This effect persists even in well-studied faunas. These results suggest that sampling planktonic larvae offers access to a different subset of species and thus significantly increases estimates of biodiversity compared to sampling adults alone. Spanish abstract is available in the electronic supplementary material.     

(-)Epigallocatechin-3-gallate inhibits gelatinase activity of some bacterial isolates from ocular infection,and limits their invasion through gelatine

The objective of this paper is to assess the gelatinase production by some ocular pathogenic bacterial strains, and evaluate the ability of (-)epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCg) to inhibit this gelatinase activity and thus limit bacterial invasion. The effect of EGCg on bacterial gelatinase activity was tested by classic zymography methods, while its effect on bacterial invasion was evaluated through the ability of growing bacteria to liquefy and thus penetrate a semisolid gelatine substrate. It was found that EGCg inhibits bacterial gelatinases with an IC(50) of about 0.2 mM, and limits invasion of gelatinase-positive bacteria at concentrations above 2 mM. These results show for the first time that EGCg, as well as having direct antibacterial activity, can also inhibit bacterial gelatinases, thus limiting their invasion on gelatine. Possible use of EGCg is thus suggested as an adjuvant in antibacterial chemotherapy.     

Thymic and extrathymic T cell development pathways follow different rules

Separation between primary and secondary lymphoid organs is a universal feature in jawed vertebrates. Strikingly, oncostatin M (OM)-transgenic mice present massive extrathymic T cell development, localized exclusively in the lymph nodes (LN). According to the prevailing paradigm, the thymus is the main source of T lymphocytes in gnathostomes mainly because thymic epithelial cells have a unique ability to support early steps in T cell development. It is therefore remarkable that productive T cell development occurs in the OM(+) LN, despite the absence of epithelial cells. The present study shows that in the OM(+) LN: 1) MHC class I expression strictly on hemopoietic cells is sufficient to support the development of a diversified repertoire of CD8 T cells; 2) the efficiency of positive selection of specific TCR-transgenic T cells is not the same as in the thymus; 3) negative selection is very effective, despite the lack of an organized thymic-like medulla. Furthermore, our data suggest that extrathymic T lymphocytes developing in the OM(+) LN undergo extensive postselection expansion because they live in the microenvironment in which they were positively selected. This work illustrates how the division of labor between primary and secondary lymphoid organs influences the repertoire and homeostasis of T lymphocytes.     

A Genome Scale Screen for Mutants with Delayed Exit from Mitosis: Ire1-Independent Induction of Autophagy Integrates ER Homeostasis into Mitotic Lifespan

Proliferating eukaryotic cells undergo a finite number of cell divisions before irreversibly exiting mitosis. Yet pathways that normally limit the number of cell divisions remain poorly characterized. Here we describe a screen of a collection of 3762 single gene mutants in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, accounting for 2/3 of annotated yeast ORFs, to search for mutants that undergo an atypically high number of cell divisions. Many of the potential longevity genes map to cellular processes not previously implicated in mitotic senescence, suggesting that regulatory mechanisms governing mitotic exit may be broader than currently anticipated. We focused on an ER-Golgi gene cluster isolated in this screen to determine how these ubiquitous organelles integrate into mitotic longevity. We report that a chronic increase in ER protein load signals an expansion in the assembly of autophagosomes in an Ire1-independent manner, accelerates trafficking of high molecular weight protein aggregates from the cytoplasm to the vacuoles, and leads to a profound enhancement of daughter cell production. We demonstrate that this catabolic network is evolutionarily conserved, as it also extends reproductive lifespan in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Our data provide evidence that catabolism of protein aggregates, a natural byproduct of high protein synthesis and turn over in dividing cells, is among the drivers of mitotic longevity in eukaryotes.     

The bamboo Merostachys fischeriana (Bambusoideae: Bambuseae) as a canopy habitat for ants of Neotropical Montane Forest

Although Merostachys fischeriana is very abundant in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest, little attention has been paid to the biological interactions with other animals. The present study describes some of the interactions between ants and this bamboo species. The experiment was carried out in a fragment of a montane tropical forest in the Parque Estadual do Itacolomi, near Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil. Thirty culms of bamboo were randomly collected. The ants were obtained by direct collection from nodes and internodes. Morphometric variables of the bamboo were recorded for characterization of potential ant habitat. Merostachys fischeriana grows in rosettes as a thin bamboo (average = 1,0 cm; se = 0,27; n = 20) and is tall enough to reach the upper canopy of this low forest (average = 9,1 m; se = 2,72; n = 20). Fifteen ant species were sampled. Brachymyrmex heeri Forel was the most abundant in the nodes, while Camponotus crassus Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) was the most abundant in the internodes. The composition of the species that inhabit the internodes was different from the composition in the node (Q-test: Q = 3,76; P = 0,05). The level of occupation was defined by the number of holes (F = 10,33; P < 0,01), the number of internodes in the canopy (F = 6,84; P = 0,01) and the length of the culm (F = 7,52; P = 0,01). The plant's morphology allowed the occurrence of additional species of ants in the canopy and influenced the composition of the entire ant assemblage.     

Identification of midgut microvillar proteins from Tenebrio molitor and Spodoptera frugiperda by cDNA library screenings with antibodies

The objective of this study was to identify midgut microvillar proteins in insects appearing earlier (Coleoptera) and later (Lepidoptera) in evolution. For this, cytoskeleton-free midgut microvillar membrane from Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera) and Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera) were used to raise antibodies. These were used for screening midgut cDNA expression libraries. Positive clones were sequenced, assembled and searched for similarities with gene/protein databases. The predicted midgut microvillar proteins from T. molitor were: cockroach allergens (unknown function), peritrophins (peritrophic membrane proteins), digestive enzymes (aminopeptidase, alpha-mannosidase) and unknown proteins. Predicted S. frugiperda midgut proteins may be grouped into six classes: (a) proteins involved in protection of midgut (thioredoxin peroxidase, aldehyde dehydrogenase, serpin and juvenile hormone epoxide hydrolase); (b) digestive enzymes (astacin, transporter-like amylase, aminopeptidase, and carboxypeptidase); (c) peritrophins; (d) proteins associated with microapocrine secretion (gelsolin, annexin); (e) membrane-tightly bound-cytoskeleton proteins (fimbrin, calmodulin) and (f) unidentified proteins. The novel approach is compared with others and microvillar function is discussed in the light of the predicted proteins.