Marine microalgae as a potential source of single cell protein (SCP)

Summary The marine microalgaeTetraselmis suecica, Isochrysis galbana, Dunaliella tertiolecta andChlorella stigmatophora are good biological sources of single cell protein (SCP). Protein content accounts for 39.12%–54.20% of the dry matter,D. tertiolecta having the highest. Lysine values are between 3.67 and 4.52 g/100 g of protein, and thus are higher than those for freshwater species. The total nucleic acid content is less than 7% of the dry matter; this value is definitely lower than that for yeasts or bacteria, commonly used as SCP sources. Amino acid profiles of the four species are very similar and comparable to the FAO reference protein, buth with a low content of methionine and cystine and a high content of lysine. The MEAA indices are between 81 and 84.98, without significant differences among the four species. Marine microalgae can be used as a potential SCP source.     

Clinical Value of Teichoic Acid Antibody Titers in the Diagnosis and Management of the Staphylococcemias

Differentiation of endocarditic from nonendocarditic Staphylococcus aureus (SA) septicemia is prognostically and therapeutically important. A study of 68 cases of either SA or streptococcal sepsis, including 50 cases of SA sepsis of both cardiac and noncardiac origin, was done to determine the presence and titer of serum teichoic acid antibodies (TAA''s) by double immunodiffusion. Thirty-seven uninfected controls were also examined. There was no statistical difference in either incidence or peak TAA titers in endocardial versus deepseated, extracardiac SA sepsis. However, in both of these groups, incidence and peak titers were significantly higher than in intravascular catheter-related SA sepsis, streptococcal endocarditis and controls (P<0.05). Peak TAA titers in SA sepsis develop on admission or shortly thereafter (6 to 11 days) and permit early decisions on degree of tissue infection, likelihood of metastatic seeding and necessity for higher-dose, longer-term antibiotic therapy.Cases of catheter-related SA sepsis with no clinical evidence of metastatic SA seeding and with negative or low-titered (1:1) TAA''s were classified as superficial sepsis. Treatment consisted of short-term, low-dose antistaphylococcal regimens and catheter removal. In posttherapy follow-up after 6 to 12 weeks, all of the patients were cured and no signs of endocarditis or deepseated SA infection developed.     

Pathogenesis-related proteins and polyamines in a developmental mutant of tomato, epinastic

The polyamine level and the accumulation of pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins were studied in the ethylene overproducing Epinastic (Epi) tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) mutant, as compared with its parent, cv VFN8. Neither a decreased putrescine level nor an enhanced production of PR proteins were detected in Epi, contrary to what could be expected from our previous studies (JM Bellés, J Carbonell, V Conejero [1991] Plant Physiol 96: 1053-1059). However, treatment with the ethylene-releasing compound 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid (ethephon) or silver nitrate at high doses induced a decrease in putrescine content and an enhancing of the synthesis of PR proteins in Epi as ascertained by immunoblot analysis using antisera raised against Rutgers tomato PR proteins.     

Neuroactive diol and acyloin metabolites from cone snail-associated bacteria

The bacterium Gordonia sp. 647 W.R.1a.05 was cultivated from the venom duct of the cone snail, Conus circumcisus. The Gordonia sp. organic extract modulated the action potential of mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons. Assay-guided fractionation led to the identification of the new compound circumcin A (1) and 11 known analogs (2–12). Two of these compounds, kurasoin B (7) and soraphinol A (8), were active in a human norepinephrine transporter assay with K_i values of 2575 and 867 nM, respectively. No neuroactivity had previously been reported for compounds in this structural class. Gordonia species have been reproducibly isolated from four different cone snail species, indicating a consistent association between these organisms.     

The methylerythritol 4‐phosphate pathway as a metabolic crossroad for microbial and plant volatile organic compounds

This article comments on: Volatile compounds emitted by diverse phytopathogenic microorganisms promote plant growth and flowering through cytokinin action     

Patient-level interventions to reduce alcohol-related harms in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-summary

BackgroundDisease and disability from alcohol use disproportionately impact people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). While varied interventions have been shown to reduce alcohol use in high-income countries, their efficacy in LMICs has not been assessed. This systematic review describes current published literature on patient-level alcohol interventions in LMICs and specifically describes clinical trials evaluating interventions to reduce alcohol use in LMICs.Methods and findingsIn accordance with PRISMA, we performed a systematic review using an electronic search strategy from January 1, 1995 to December 1, 2020. Title, abstract, as well as full-text screening and extraction were performed in duplicate. A meta-summary was performed on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated alcohol-related outcomes. We searched the following electronic databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane, WHO Global Health Library, and PsycINFO. Articles that evaluated patient-level interventions targeting alcohol use and alcohol-related harm in LMICs were eligible for inclusion. No studies were excluded based on language.After screening 5,036 articles, 117 articles fit our inclusion criteria, 75 of which were RCTs. Of these RCTs, 93% were performed in 13 middle-income countries, while 7% were from 2 low-income countries. These RCTs evaluated brief interventions (24, defined as any intervention ranging from advice to counseling, lasting less than 1 hour per session up to 4 sessions), psychotherapy or counseling (15, defined as an interaction with a counselor longer than a brief intervention or that included a psychotherapeutic component), health promotion and education (20, defined as an intervention encouraged individuals’ agency of taking care of their health), or biologic treatments (19, defined as interventions where the biological function of alcohol use disorder (AUD) as the main nexus of intervention) with 3 mixing categories of intervention types. Due to high heterogeneity of intervention types, outcome measures, and follow-up times, we did not conduct meta-analysis to compare and contrast studies, but created a meta-summary of all 75 RCT studies. The most commonly evaluated intervention with the most consistent positive effect was a brief intervention; similarly, motivational interviewing (MI) techniques were most commonly utilized among the diverse array of interventions evaluated.ConclusionsOur review demonstrated numerous patient-level interventions that have the potential to be effective in LMICs, but further research to standardize interventions, populations, and outcome measures is necessary to accurately assess their effectiveness. Brief interventions and MI techniques were the most commonly evaluated and had the most consistent positive effect on alcohol-related outcomes.Trial registrationProtocol Registry: PROSPERO CRD42017055549

Catherine Staton and co-workers report on evidence about interventions against harmful alcohol use in low- and middle-income countries.     

Correlation between Ornithine Decarboxylase and Putrescine in Tomato Plants Infected by Citrus Exocortis Viroid or Treated with Ethephon

We have investigated the arginine decarboxylase (ADC, EC 4.1.1.19) and ornithine decarboxylase (ODC, EC 4.1.1.17) activities and the levels of conjugated polyamines to explain the decrease of free putrescine level caused by citrus exocortis viroid (CEVd) and ethephon treatment in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv Rutgers) plants (J.M. Belles, J. Carbonell, V. Conejero [1991] Plant Physiol 96: 1053-1059). This decrease correlates with a decrease in ODC activity in CEVd-infected or ethephon-treated plants; ADC activity was not altered. CEVd infection had no effect on polyamine conjugates, and ethephon produced a decrease in putrescine conjugates. Interference with ethylene action by silver ions prevented the decrease in ODC activity and in free and conjugated putrescine. It is suggested that changes in putrescine level after CEVd infection and ethephon treatment are regulated via ODC activity and that conjugation is not involved.     

The promise of human induced pluripotent stem cells for research and therapy

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are human somatic cells that have been reprogrammed to a pluripotent state. There are several hurdles to be overcome before iPS cells can be considered as a potential patient-specific cell therapy, and it will be crucial to characterize the developmental potential of human iPS cell lines. As a research tool, iPS-cell technology provides opportunities to study normal development and to understand reprogramming. iPS cells can have an immediate impact as models for human diseases, including cancer