Macrophage-based therapy for intervertebral disc herniation: preclinical proof-of-concept.

Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration and herniation is a leading cause of disability globally and a large unmet clinical need. No efficient non-surgical therapy is available, and there is an urgency for minimally invasive therapies capable of restoring tissue function. IVD spontaneous hernia regression following conservative treatment is a clinically relevant phenomenon that has been linked to an inflammatory response.

species associated with twig blight and dieback of in Portugal, with description of four new species.

Blueberry, an increasingly cultivated fruit crop in Portugal, is known to be susceptible to twig blight and dieback caused by species of . The diversity of species associated with symptomatic and asymptomatic plants in Portugal was assessed. A multilocus sequence analysis of the rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the translation elongation factor 1-alpha (), β-tubulin (), calmodulin (), and histone 3 () genes revealed the presence of , and four new species, which are described as , and .