Susceptibility assessment of bell pepper genotypes to crown and root rot disease

Bell Pepper (Capsicum annuum) is one of the important vegetable crops with valuable food sources, which is used almost around the world. Crown and root rot disease caused by Phytophthora capsici is one of the most important diseases of bell pepper in Iran. The present study was conducted to evaluate the susceptibility of different varieties of bell pepper to crown and root rot disease under glasshouse condition. Fourteen commonly planted genotypes of bell pepper in Iran were evaluated for their susceptibility to infection with the pathogen. For this purpose, disease severity of the chosen genotypes in different growth stages was evaluated. The results indicated that the bell pepper genotypes respond differently to pathogenicity tests. Based on cluster analyses confirmed by the results of SAS analyses, bell pepper cultivars were categorised in five distinct groups.     

Evaluation of DNA/DNA and prime-boost vaccination using LPG3 against Leishmania major infection in susceptible BALB/c mice and its antigenic properties in human leishmaniasis

One of the main issues in vaccine development is implementation of new adjuvants to improve the antigen presentation and eliciting the protective immune response. Heat shock protein (HSP) molecules are known as natural adjuvants. They can stimulate the innate and adaptive immune response against infectious diseases and cancer. Lipophosphoglycan 3 (LPG3), the Leishmania homologous with GRP94 (glucose regulated protein 94), a member of HSP90 family, is involved in assembly of LPG as the most abundant macromolecule on the surface of Leishmania promastigotes. In the present study as a primary step, we tested LPG3 as a vaccine candidate in two regimens, DNA/DNA and prime-boost (DNA/Protein), against Leishmania major infection in BALB/c mice model. Our results showed that LPG3 and its fragment (rNT-LPG3) are highly immunogenic in BALB/c mice and can stimulate the production of both IgG1 and IgG2a. In prime-boost immunization strategy, the level of antibody response was higher compared with DNA/DNA immunization. The levels of IFN-γ in the supernatant of splenocytes from mice immunized with DNA/DNA and prime-boost regimens were significantly higher when compared to control groups. In fact, immunization with prime-boost vaccination has higher ratio of IFN-γ/IL-5, suggesting a shift towards a Th1 response.In addition, sera reactivity against LPG3 in visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients was significantly higher in comparison with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) patients. Therefore, we recommend further investigations on the usage of LPG3 co-delivery with candidate antigens for vaccine development against leishmaniasis.     

Human Neutrophil Peptide-1 (HNP-1): A New Anti-Leishmanial Drug Candidate

The toxicity of available drugs for treatment of leishmaniasis, coupled with emerging drug resistance, make it urgent to find new therapies. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have a strong broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity with distinctive modes of action and are considered as promising therapeutic agents. The defensins, members of the large family of AMPs, are immunomodulatory molecules and important components of innate immune system. Human neutrophil peptide-1 (HNP-1), which is produced by neutrophils, is one of the most potent defensins. In this study, we described anti-parasitic activity of recombinant HNP-1 (rHNP-1) against Leishmania major promastigotes and amastigotes. Furthermore, we evaluated the immunomodulatory effect of rHNP-1 on parasite-infected neutrophils and how neutrophil apoptosis was affected. Our result showed that neutrophils isolated from healthy individuals were significantly delayed in the onset of apoptosis following rHNP-1 treatment. Moreover, there was a noteworthy increase in dying cells in rHNP-1- and/or CpG–treated neutrophils in comparison with untreated cells. There is a considerable increase in TNF-α production from rHNP-1-treated neutrophils and decreased level of TGF-β concentration, a response that should potentiate the immune system against parasite invasion. In addition, by using real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR), we showed that in vitro infectivity of Leishmania into neutrophils is significantly reduced following rHNP-1 treatment compared to untreated cells.     

Effect of Topical Tranexamic Acid on Bleeding and Quality of Surgical Field during Functional Endoscopic Sinus Surgery in Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A Triple Blind Randomized Clinical Trial

Background

The effect of tranexamic acid (TXA) on bleeding and improvement of surgical field during functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) is not clear yet. This study was conducted to answer this question.

Methods

This trial was conducted on 60 patients with chronic sinusitis at Beasat Hospital, Hamadan, Iran, from April to November 2013. Thirty patients in the intervention group received three pledgets soaked with TXA 5% and phenylephrine 0.5% for 10 minutes in each nasal cavity before surgery. Thirty patients in the control group received phenylephrine 0.5% with the same way. The amount of bleeding and the quality of surgical field were evaluated at 15, 30, and 45 minutes after the start of surgery using Boezaart grading.

Results

The quality of the surgical field in the intervention group compared to the control group was significantly better in the first quarter (P = 0.002) and the second quarter (P = 0.003) but not in the third quarter (P = 0.163). Furthermore, the amount of bleeding was much less during all periods in the intervention group than in the control group (P = 0.001).

Conclusion

Topical TXA can efficiently reduce bleeding and improve the surgical field in FESS in patients with rhinosinusitis. Based on these findings, topical TXA may be a useful method for providing a suitable surgical field during the first 30 minutes after use.

Trial Registration

Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials IRCT201212139014N15     

Enhanced Protective Efficacy of Nonpathogenic Recombinant Leishmania tarentolae Expressing Cysteine Proteinases Combined with a Sand Fly Salivary Antigen

Background

Novel vaccination approaches are needed to prevent leishmaniasis. Live attenuated vaccines are the gold standard for protection against intracellular pathogens such as Leishmania and there have been new developments in this field. The nonpathogenic to humans lizard protozoan parasite, Leishmania (L) tarentolae, has been used effectively as a vaccine platform against visceral leishmaniasis in experimental animal models. Correspondingly, pre-exposure to sand fly saliva or immunization with a salivary protein has been shown to protect mice against cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Here, we tested the efficacy of a novel combination of established protective parasite antigens expressed by L. tarentolae together with a sand fly salivary antigen as a vaccine strategy against L. major infection. The immunogenicity and protective efficacy of different DNA/Live and Live/Live prime-boost vaccination modalities with live recombinant L. tarentolae stably expressing cysteine proteinases (type I and II, CPA/CPB) and PpSP15, an immunogenic salivary protein from Phlebotomus papatasi, a natural vector of L. major, were tested both in susceptible BALB/c and resistant C57BL/6 mice. Both humoral and cellular immune responses were assessed before challenge and at 3 and 10 weeks after Leishmania infection. In both strains of mice, the strongest protective effect was observed when priming with PpSP15 DNA and boosting with PpSP15 DNA and live recombinant L. tarentolae stably expressing cysteine proteinase genes.

Conclusion/Significance

The present study is the first to use a combination of recombinant L. tarentolae with a sand fly salivary antigen (PpSP15) and represents a novel promising vaccination approach against leishmaniasis.     

Inhibition of mesothelin as a novel strategy for targeting cancer cells

Mesothelin, a differentiation antigen present in a series of malignancies such as mesothelioma, ovarian, lung and pancreatic cancer, has been studied as a marker for diagnosis and a target for immunotherapy. We, however, were interested in evaluating the effects of direct targeting of Mesothelin on the viability of cancer cells as the first step towards developing a novel therapeutic strategy. We report here that gene specific silencing for Mesothelin by distinct methods (siRNA and microRNA) decreased viability of cancer cells from different origins such as mesothelioma (H2373), ovarian cancer (Skov3 and Ovcar-5) and pancreatic cancer (Miapaca2 and Panc-1). Additionally, the invasiveness of cancer cells was also significantly decreased upon such treatment. We then investigated pro-oncogenic signaling characteristics of cells upon mesothelin-silencing which revealed a significant decrease in phospho-ERK1 and PI3K/AKT activity. The molecular mechanism of reduced invasiveness was connected to the reduced expression of β-Catenin, an important marker of EMT (epithelial-mesenchymal transition). Ero1, a protein involved in clearing unfolded proteins and a member of the ER-Stress (endoplasmic reticulum-stress) pathway was also markedly reduced. Furthermore, Mesothelin silencing caused a significant increase in fraction of cancer cells in S-phase. In next step, treatment of ovarian cancer cells (OVca429) with a lentivirus expressing anti-mesothelin microRNA resulted in significant loss of viability, invasiveness, and morphological alterations. Therefore, we propose the inhibition of Mesothelin as a potential novel strategy for targeting human malignancies.     

Mixing characteristics and liquid circulation in a new multi-environment bioreactor

The theoretical and experimental aspects of the hydrodynamics and mixing in a new multi-environment bioreactor that uses the air-lift design were investigated. This study focused on the mixing characteristics, residence time distribution, liquid circulation between three zones of aerobic, microaerophilic and anoxic, and liquid displacement in the bioreactor at influent flow rates of 720–1,450 L/day and air flow rates of 15–45 L/min. The theoretical analysis of liquid displacement led to the estimation of the specific rate of liquid discharge from the bioreactor at any given influent flow rate, and the number of liquid circulations between various bioreactor zones before the discharge of a given quantity of wastewater. The ratio of mean residence time to the overall hydraulic retention time (t _m/HRT) decreased with the increase of air flow rate at any given influent flow rate, and approached unity at higher air flow rates. Mixing was characterized in terms of the axial dispersion coefficient and Bodenstein number, demonstrating a linear relationship with the superficial gas velocity. A correlation was developed between the Bodenstein number and the Froude number. The study of liquid circulation between the zones showed that less than 1.5 % of the circulating liquid escapes circulation at each cycle and flows towards the outer clarifier, while the percentage of escaped liquid decreases with increasing air flow rate at a given influent flow rate. The specific rate of liquid discharge from the bioreactor increased from 0.19 to 0.69 h^?1 with the increase of air and influent flow rates from 15 to 45 L/min and 500 to 1,450 L/day, respectively. Under the examined operating conditions, mixed liquor circulates between 364 and 1,698 times between the aerobic, microaerophilic and anoxic zones before 99 % of its original volume is replaced by the influent wastewater.     

The host environment regulates the function of CD8+ graft-versus-host-reactive effector cells

We have examined how the host environment influences the graft-vs-leukemia (GVL) response following transfer of donor T cells to allogeneic chimeras. Donor T cells induce significant GVL when administered in large numbers to established mixed chimeras (MC). However, when using limiting numbers of T cells, we found that late transfer to MC induced less GVL than did early transfer to freshly irradiated allogeneic recipients. Late donor T cell transfer to MC was associated with marked accumulation of anti-host CD8 cells within the spleen, but delayed kinetics of differentiation, reduced expression of effector molecules including IFN-gamma, impaired cytotoxicity, and higher rates of sustained apoptosis. Furthermore, in contrast to the spleen, we observed a significant delay in donor CD8 cell recruitment to the bone marrow, a key location for hematopoietic tumors. Increasing the numbers of T cells transferred to MC led to the enhancement of CTL activity and detectable increases in absolute numbers of IFN-gamma(+) cells without inducing graft-vs-host disease (GVHD). TLR-induced systemic inflammation accelerated differentiation of functional CTL in MC but was associated with severe GVHD. In the absence of inflammation, both recipient T and non-T cell populations impeded the full development of GVHD-inducing effector function. We conclude that per-cell deficits in the function of donor CD8 cells activated in MC may be overcome by transferring larger numbers of T cells without inducing GVHD.     

Low-dose photons modify liver response to simulated solar particle event protons

The health consequences of exposure to low-dose radiation combined with a solar particle event during space travel remain unresolved. The goal of this study was to determine whether protracted radiation exposure alters gene expression and oxidative burst capacity in the liver, an organ vital in many biological processes. C57BL/6 mice were whole-body irradiated with 2 Gy simulated solar particle event (SPE) protons over 36 h, both with and without pre-exposure to low-dose/low-dose-rate photons ((57)Co, 0.049 Gy total at 0.024 cGy/h). Livers were excised immediately after irradiation (day 0) or on day 21 thereafter for analysis of 84 oxidative stress-related genes using RT-PCR; genes up or down-regulated by more than twofold were noted. On day 0, genes with increased expression were: photons, none; simulated SPE, Id1; photons + simulated SPE, Bax, Id1, Snrp70. Down-regulated genes at this same time were: photons, Igfbp1; simulated SPE, Arnt2, Igfbp1, Il6, Lct, Mybl2, Ptx3. By day 21, a much greater effect was noted than on day 0. Exposure to photons + simulated SPE up-regulated completely different genes than those up-regulated after either photons or the simulated SPE alone (photons, Cstb; simulated SPE, Dctn2, Khsrp, Man2b1, Snrp70; photons + simulated SPE, Casp1, Col1a1, Hspcb, Il6st, Rpl28, Spnb2). There were many down-regulated genes in all irradiated groups on day 21 (photons, 13; simulated SPE, 16; photons + simulated SPE, 16), with very little overlap among groups. Oxygen radical production by liver phagocytes was significantly enhanced by photons on day 21. The results demonstrate that whole-body irradiation with low-dose-rate photons, as well as time after exposure, had a great impact on liver response to a simulated solar particle event.     

Delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol disrupts mitochondrial function and cell energetics

We have observed rapid and extensive depletion of cellular energy stores by Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the pulmonary transformed cell line A549. ATP levels declined dose dependently with an IC(50) of 7.5 microg/ml of THC after 24-h exposure. Cell death was observed only at concentrations >10 microg/ml. Studies using JC-1, a fluorescent probe for mitochondrial membrane potential, revealed diminished mitochondrial function at THC concentrations as low as 0.5 microg/ml. At concentrations of 2.5 or 10 microg/ml of THC, a decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential was observed as early as 1 h after THC exposure. Mitochondrial function remained diminished for at least 30 h after THC exposure. Flow cytometry studies on cells exposed to particulate smoke extracts indicate that JC-1 red fluorescence was fivefold lower in cells exposed to marijuana smoke extract relative to cells exposed to tobacco smoke extract. Comparison with a variety of mitochondrial inhibitors demonstrates that THC produced effects similar to that of carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone, suggesting uncoupling of electron transport. Loss of red JC-1 fluorescence by THC was suppressed by cyclosporin A, suggesting mediation by the mitochondrial permeability transition pore. This disruption of mitochondrial function was sustained for at least 24 h after removal of THC by extensive washing. These results suggest that exposure of the bronchopulmonary epithelium to THC may have important health and physiological consequences.