A new species of Campylanthus (Scrophulariaceae) from Somalia

Campylanthus reconditus sp. nov., from limestone hills in north-eastern Somalia, is described and illustrated.     

Tephrosia anomala sp. nov. (Leguminosae) from Somalia

The new species Tephrosia anomala from SW Somalia is described and illustrated. Its possible affinity with a group of American species is pointed out.     

A new species of Waltheria (Sterculiaceae) from Somalia

Waltheria laxa , sp. nov., is described from near Mogadishu in south-central Somalia. The species seems to be unique in the mainly neotropical genus Waltheria in its free stamens. It is also unusual in its comparatively long-pedicelled flowers with a distinctly stipitate ovary.     

Thamnosma (Rutaceae) in Africa

The African members of the remarkably disjunct Afro-American genus Thamnosma are revised. Six species are recognized, T africana, T. rhodesica and T. crenata in southern Africa, and T. somalensis, T. socotrana and T. hirschii in the Horn of Africa region, including the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula and Socotra. T. somalensis , sp. nov., is described from north-eastern Somalia. T. crenata , comb, nov., is based on T. africana var. crenata . A key to the species is given and two lectotypes and one neotype are selected.     

A new species of Atriplex (Chenopodiaceae) from Somalia

Atriplex erigavoensis , a new species from gypsum silt in northern Somalia, is described and illustrated. It is distinctive particularly by the dorsal appendages of the female bracteoles that look like an extra pair of small bracteoles.     

New species of Boswellia and Commiphora (Burseraceae) from Somalia

The new species Boswellia globosa, from the foothills of the limestone escarpment along the Gulf of Aden in northern Somalia, and Commiphora lacerata, from a rocky limestone slope near the coast of the Indian Ocean in north‐eastern Somalia, are described and illustrated.     

Influence of Diet on the Proteome of Drosophila Melanogaster as Assessed by Two-Dimensional Gel Electrophoresis and Capillary Liquid Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry: The Hamburger Effect Revisited

Proteomic biomarker discovery has been called into question. Diamandis hypothesized that seemingly trivial factors, such as eating a hamburger, may cause sufficient proteomic change as to confound proteomic differences. This has been termed the hamburger effect. Little is known about the variability of complex proteomes in response to the environment. Two methods—two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DGE) and capillary liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LCMS)—were used to study the hamburger effect in two cross-sections of the soluble fruit fly proteome. 2DGE measured abundant proteins, whereas LCMS measured small proteins and peptides. Proteomic differences between males and females were first evaluated to assess the discriminatory capability of the methods. Likewise, wild-type and white-eyed flies were analyzed as a further demonstration that genetically based proteomic differences could be observed above the background analytical variation. Then dietary interventions were imposed. Ethanol was added to the diet of some populations without significant proteomic effect. However, after a 24-h fast, proteomic differences were found using LCMS but not 2DGE. Even so, only three of ~1000 molecular species were altered significantly, suggesting that the influence of even an extreme diet change produced only modest proteomic variability, and that much of the fruit fly proteome remains relatively constant in response to diet. These experiments suggest that proteomics can be a viable approach to biomarker discovery.     

Cibirhiza spiculata (Apocynaceae), a remarkable new species from eastern Ethiopia

Summary  The new species Cibirhiza spiculata Thulin & Goyder, from Acacia-Commiphora bushland on sand in the Somali National Regional State (Ogaden) of Ethiopia, is described and illustrated. Its conservation status has been assessed. A molecular phylogenetic analysis confirms its placement in the tribe Fockeeae and indicates a position of the new species as sister to C. albersiana. The almost obsolete anther appendages, the outer corona with spreading lobes, as well as the pollinia with apparently single pollen grains, also support its placement in Cibirhiza. However, C. spiculata differs markedly from both previously known species of this genus (C. dhofarensis in Oman and Yemen and C. albersiana in Tanzania and Zambia) by its narrowly linear, subsessile leaves and by the inner corona lobes that are curved inwards over the gynostegium and each ending in a spinulose head.     

A longitudinal assessment of miR-122 and GLDH as biomarkers of drug-induced liver injury in the rat

Context: There is an ongoing search for specific and translational biomarkers of drug-induced liver injury (DILI). MicroRNA-122 (miR-122) has previously shown potential as a sensitive, specific, and translational biomarker of DILI in both rodent, and human studies.

Objective: To build on previous work within the field, we examined biomarker kinetics in a rat model of acetaminophen (APAP)-induced liver injury to confirm the sensitivity, and specificity of miR-122 and glutamate dehydrogenase (GLDH).

Materials and methods: qRT-PCR and a standard enzymatic assay were used for biomarker analysis.

Results: Both miR-122 and GLDH were demonstrated to be more readily-detectable biomarkers of APAP-DILI than alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Peak levels for all biomarkers were detected at 2 days after APAP. At day 3, miR-122 had returned to baseline; however, other biomarkers remained elevated between 3 and 4 days. We were also able to demonstrate that, although miR-122 is present in greater quantities in exosome-free form, both exosome-bound and non-vesicle bound miR-122 are released in a similar profile throughout the course of DILI.

Discussion and conclusions: Together, this study demonstrates that both GLDH and miR-122 could be used during preclinical drug-development as complementary biomarkers to ALT to increase the chance of early detection of hepatotoxicity.     

Analysis of low-abundance, low-molecular-weight serum proteins using mass spectrometry.

To detect diseases early in the general population, new diagnostic approaches are needed that have adequate sensitivity and specificity. Recent studies have used mass spectrometry to identify a serum proteomic pattern for breast and ovarian cancer. Serum contains 60-80 mg/mL protein, but 57-71% of this is serum albumin, and 8-26% are gamma-globulins. These large proteins must be depleted before smaller, less-abundant proteins can be detected using mass spectrometry, but because serum albumin is known to act as a carrier for smaller proteins, removal of these molecules using columns or filtration may result in the loss of molecules of interest. The objective of this study was to develop a reproducible method to deplete serum samples of high-abundance proteins in order to analyze the less-abundant proteins present in serum. We used organic solvents to precipitate the large proteins out of solution. We also predicted that this would cause many smaller proteins to dissociate from their carrier molecules, allowing for detection of a larger number of peptides and small proteins. These treated samples were analyzed using capillary liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. Analysis demonstrated reproducible results. Acetonitrile treatment clearly released many carrier-bound molecular species and was superior to ultrafiltration alone for serum proteomic analysis.