Immune gene variability influences roe deer natal dispersal

Dispersal is a key life‐history trait governing the response of individuals, populations and species to changing environmental conditions. In the context of global change, it is therefore essential to better understand the respective role of condition‐, phenotype‐ and genetic‐dependent drivers of dispersal behaviour. Although the importance of immune function and pathogen infestation in determining patterns of dispersal is increasingly recognised, no study to our knowledge has yet investigated the influence of immune gene variability on dispersal behaviour. Here, we filled this knowledge gap by assessing whether individual heterozygosity at five immune gene loci (one from the Major histocompatibility complex and four from encoding Toll‐like receptors) influences roe deer natal dispersal. We found that dispersal propensity was affected by immune gene diversity, suggesting potential pathogen‐mediated selection through over‐dominance. However, the direction of this effect differed between high and low quality individuals, suggesting that dispersal propensity is driven by two different mechanisms. In support of the condition‐dependent dispersal hypothesis, dispersal propensity increased with increasing body mass and, among high quality individuals only (standardized body mass > 18 kg), with increasing immune gene diversity. However, among poor quality individuals, we observed the opposite pattern such that dispersal propensity was higher for individuals with lower immune gene diversity. We suggest that these poor quality individuals expressed an emergency dispersal tactic in an attempt to escape a heavily infested environment associated with poor fitness prospects. Our results have potentially important consequences in terms of population genetics and demography, as well as host–pathogen evolution.     

Adenosine A2A receptor deficiency attenuates the somnogenic effect of prostaglandin D2

Sleep and Biological Rhythms -     

Transition dynamics and selection of the distinct S-DNA and strand unpeeling modes of double helix overstretching

Recent studies have revealed two distinct pathways for the DNA overstretching transition near 65 pN: 'unpeeling' of one strand from the other, and a transition from B-DNA to an elongated double-stranded 'S-DNA' form. However, basic questions concerning the dynamics of these transitions, relative stability of the two competing overstretched states, and effects of nicks and free DNA ends on overstretching, remain open. In this study we report that: (i) stepwise extension changes caused by sequence-defined barriers occur during the strand-unpeeling transition, whereas rapid, sequence-independent extension fluctuations occur during the B to S transition; (ii) the secondary transition that often occurs following the overstretching transition is strand-unpeeling, during which the extension increases by 0.01-0.02 nm per base pair of S-DNA converted to single-stranded DNA at forces between 75 and 110 pN; (iii) even in the presence of nicks or free ends, S-DNA can be stable under physiological solution conditions; (iv) distribution of small GC-rich islands in a large DNA plays a key role in determining the transition pathways; and (v) in the absence of nicks or free ends, torsion-unconstrained DNA undergoes the overstretching transition via creation of S-DNA. Our study provides a new, high-resolution understanding of the competition between unpeeling and formation of S-DNA.     

甘蓝型油菜秦优10号杂交种纯度鉴定的SSR引物筛选

为了建立一套快速可靠的油菜杂交种纯度的鉴定方法,本文以秦优10号及其亲本、杂种ZZH2为试验材料,对前人开发的2对SSR引物(7号引物, 9号引物)进行了再次筛选.结果显示,7号引物不但能很好地区别出混入杂交种中的亲本,还能将杂交种子的同母异父组合种子从杂交种中分离出来,能够用于鉴别秦优10号杂交种子的真伪;9号引物能区分出杂交种和母本,但不能区分开杂交种和父本.同时,本试验利用人工制成的秦优10号杂交种标准样(纯度为100%)以及7份大田鉴定不同纯度梯度的杂交种子对7号引物鉴定结果的准确性进行了验证,鉴定结果与大田鉴定结果基本一致.本文结果将为鉴定秦优10号杂交种纯度提供更准确的技术资料.     

Isolation and characterization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Paenibacillus polymyxa</Emphasis> LY214, a camptothecin-producing endophytic bacterium from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Camptotheca acuminata</Emphasis>

Camptothecin (CPT) is mainly produced and extracted from Camptotheca acuminata and Nothapodytes foetida for pharmaceutical use, i.e., the starting material for chemical conversion to the clinical CPT-type drugs. As the third largest plant anticancer drug, the heavy demand on CPT from global market leads to many research efforts to identify new sources for CPT production. Herein we report the isolation and characterization of a CPT-producing endophytic bacterium Paenibacillus polymyxa LY214 from Camptotheca acuminata. A 10.7 μg l^?1 of CPT was presented in the fermentation broth of P. polymyxa LY214. Its CPT production decreased sharply when the strain of the 2nd generation of P. polymyxa LY214 was cultured and fermented. However, the CPT production remained relatively constant from 2.8 μg l^?1 of the 2nd generation to 0.8 μg l^?1 of the 8th generation of P. polymyxa LY214 under optimized fermentation conditions. A 15- to 30-fold increase of CPT yield was observed when the optimized fermentation conditions, together with the addition of putative biosynthetic precursors of CPT and adsorbent resin XAD16, were applied to ferment the strains of the 7th and 8th generation of P. polymyxa LY214. Bioinformatics analysis of the relative species of P. polymyxa LY214 indicates its potential to produce CPT, which will be helpful to decipher the mysteries of CPT biosynthesis.     

Surgical Complications of Primary Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment: A Meta-Analysis

Background

To investigate the surgical complications of scleral buckling (SB) and pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) performed on primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) and to discover which surgical procedures bring fewer complications.

Methods

An electronic literature search using the PubMed database, ISI Web of Knowledge and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials to identify randomized controlled trials and observational studies comparing SB with PPV on primary RRD. Outcome measures included intra-operative complications and early and late post-operative complications.

Results

During the operation, significantly less subretinal hemorrhage occurred in the PPV group than in the SB group (OR = 4.71; 95%CI, 1.33–16.64; p = 0.02) and the hypotony incidence was significantly higher in the SB group (OR = 18.24; 95%CI, 2.37–140.44; p = 0.005); however, the occurrence of iatrogenic breaks was significantly lower in the SB group (OR = 0.05; 95%CI, 0.01–0.21; p<0.0001). In the early stage of post-operation, significantly higher incidence of choroidal detachment was identified in the SB group than in the PPV group (OR = 10.19; 95%CI, 2.36–44.09; p = 0.002); patients undergoing SB had significantly higher odds of residual subretinal fluid (OR = 14.71; 95%CI, 1.84–117.32; p = 0.01); the occurrence of high intraocular pressure was significantly lower in the SB group (OR = 0.46; 95%CI, 0.23–0.89; p = 0.02); and no significant difference was shown in the incidence of epithelia defect (p = 0.37) between the two groups. In the late stage of post-operation, the incidence of diplopia/extraocular muscle dysfunction was significantly higher in the SB group (OR = 4.04; 95%CI, 1.30–12.52; p = 0.02); and significantly less cataract was observed in the SB group (OR = 0.20; 95%CI, 0.14–0.30; p<0.00001); no significant difference was found in the incidences of cystoid macular edema (p = 0.65), macular pucker (p = 0.52), post-operative proliferative vitreoretinopathy (p = 0.73) and epiretinal membrane (p = 0.47) in other late post-operative complications.

Conclusions

This meta-analysis suggests that PPV could be considered as potential surgical management on primary RRD.     

Adverse Events of Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor α Therapy in Ankylosing Spondylitis

Objective

This study aims to investigate the prevalence of short-term and long-term adverse events associated with tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) blocker treatment in Chinese Han patients suffering from ankylosing spondylitis (AS).

Methods

The study included 402 Chinese Han AS patients treated with TNF-α blockers. Baseline data was collected. All patients were monitored for adverse events 2 hours following administration. Long-term treatment was evaluated at 8, 12, 52 and 104 weeks follow-up for 172 patients treated with TNF-α blockers.

Results

Short-term adverse events occurred in 20.15% (81/402), including rash (3.5%; 14/402), pruritus (1.2%; 5/402), nausea (2.2%; 9/402), headache (0.7%; 3/402), skin allergies (4.0%; 16/402), fever (0.5%; 2/402), palpitations (3.0%; 12/402), dyspnea (0.5%; 2/402), chest pain (0.2%; 2/402), abdominal pain (1.0%; 4/402), hypertension (2.2%; 9/402), papilledema (0.5%; 2/402), laryngeal edema (0.2%; 1/402) and premature ventricular contraction (0.2%; 1/402). Long-term adverse events occurred in 59 (34.3%; 59/172) patients, including pneumonia (7.6%; 13/172), urinary tract infections (9.9%; 17/172), otitis media (4.7%; 8/172), tuberculosis (3.5%; 17/172), abscess (1.2%; 2/172), oral candidiasis (0.6%; 1/172), elevation of transaminase (1.7%; 3/172), anemia (1.2%; 2/172), hematuresis (0.6%; 1/172), constipation (2.3%; 4/172), weight loss (0.6%; 1/172), exfoliative dermatitis (0.6%; 1/172). CRP, ESR and disease duration were found to be associated with an increased risk of immediate and long-term adverse events (P<0.05). Long-term treatment with Infliximab was associated with more adverse events than rhTNFR-Fc (P<0.01).

Conclusion

This study reports on the prevalence of adverse events in short-term and long-term treatment with TNF-α blocker monotherapy in Chinese Han AS patients. Duration of disease, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and c-reactive protein serum levels were found to be associated with increased adverse events with anti-TNF-α therapy. Long-term treatment with Infliximab was associated with more adverse events than rhTNFR-Fc.