A QTL on chromosome 17 identified by Genome-Wide Association Mapping controls postharvest cold tolerance of Cucurbita pepo L.

The worldwide cultivated Cucurbita pepo L. is one of the most diverse species in the plant kingdom. In this study, chilling tolerance over a wide range of cultivars was characterized to discover the allelic variants to improving the postharvest quality of the immature fruit during cold storage.

Production and characterization of the lipopeptide with anti-adhesion for oral biofilm on the surface of titanium for dental implants.

Titanium implants are subject to bacterial adhesion and peri-implantitis induction, and biosurfactants bring a new alternative to the fight against infections. This work aimed to produce and characterize the biosurfactant from Bacillus subtilis ATCC 19,659, its anti-adhesion and antimicrobial activity, and cell viability. Anti-adhesion studies were carried out against Streptococcus sanguinis, Staphylococcus aureus, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Proteus mirabilis as the minimum inhibitory concentration and the minimum bactericidal concentration.

Jasmonate-insensitive mutant jar1b prevents petal elongation and flower opening coupling with parthenocarpic fruit development in Cucurbita pepo.

Jasmonates are growth regulators that play a key role in flower development, fruit ripening, root growth, and plant defence. The study explores the coordination of floral organ maturation to ensure proper flower opening for pollination and fertilization. A new mutant (jar1b) was discovered, lacking petal elongation and flower opening but showing normal pistil and stamen development, leading to parthenocarpic fruit development.

The transcription factor CpMYB62 controls the genetic network that leads to the determination of female flowers in .

In monoecious species, female flowering constitutes the developmental process that determines the onset and production of fruit and is therefore closely related to crop yield. This article presents the identification and phenotypic and molecular characterization of , an ethylmethane sulfonate loss-of-function mutation that completely blocks the female floral transition, converting all female flowers into male flowers. BSA-seq analysis coupled with WGS showed that corresponds to a C>T transition in the coding region of the gene , generating a premature stop codon and a truncated transcription factor without its N-terminal effector domain.

Structural and functional characterization of genes PYL-PP2C-SnRK2s in the ABA signalling pathway of Cucurbita pepo.

Background: The core regulation of the abscisic acid (ABA) signalling pathway comprises the multigenic families PYL, PP2C, and SnRK2. In this work, we conducted a genome-wide study of the components of these families in Cucurbita pepo.

Results: The bioinformatic analysis of the C.

Comparative RNA-Seq Analysis between Monoecious and Androecious Plants Reveals Regulatory Mechanisms Controlling Female Flowering in .

In the monoecious , the transition to female flowering is the time at which the plant starts the production of female flowers after an initial male phase of development. Ethylene plays an essential role in this process since some ethylene deficient and ethylene-insensitive mutants are androecious and only produce male flowers. To gain insight into the molecular mechanisms regulating the specification and early development of female flowers, we have compared the transcriptomic changes occurring in the shoot apices of WT and androecious ethylene-insensitive mutant plants upon female flowering transition.

An miR164-resistant mutation in the transcription factor gene CpCUC2B enhances carpel arrest and ectopic boundary specification in Cucurbita pepo flower development.

The sex determination process in cucurbits involves the control of stamen or carpel development during the specification of male or female flowers from a bisexual floral meristem, a function coordinated by ethylene. A gain-of-function mutation in the miR164-binding site of CpCUC2B, ortholog of the Arabidopsis transcription factor gene CUC2, not only produced ectopic floral meristems and organs, but also suppressed the development of carpels and promoted the development of stamens. The cuc2b mutation induced the transcription of CpCUC2B in the apical shoots of plants after female flowering but repressed other CUC genes regulated by miR164, suggesting a conserved functional redundancy of these genes in the development of squash flowers.

The Alarm Fatigue Challenge in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A "before" and "after" Study.

Objective: Alarm fatigue (AF) happens when professionals are exposed to many alarms and they become desensitized to them. It is related to proliferation of devices, not standardized alarm limits, and high prevalence of "nonactionable alarms," i.e.

How to Design Successful Participatory Design Workshops for Digital Health Solutions?

Participatory design (PD) is increasingly used to support design and development of digital health solutions. The involves representatives of future user groups and experts to collect their needs and preferences and ensure easy to use and useful solutions. However, reflections and experiences with PD in designing digital health solutions are rarely reported.

An engineered HIV-1 Gag-based VLP displaying high antigen density induces strong antibody-dependent functional immune responses.

Antigen display on the surface of Virus-Like Particles (VLPs) improves immunogenicity compared to soluble proteins. We hypothesised that immune responses can be further improved by increasing the antigen density on the surface of VLPs. In this work, we report an HIV-1 Gag-based VLP platform engineered to maximise the presence of antigen on the VLP surface.

Increases in group A streptococcal infections in the pediatric population in Houston, TX, 2022.

Beginning in October 2022, we observed a substantial increase in the total number of cases of invasive GAS disease (iGAS) in the pediatric population in Houston, TX. Emm12 GAS strains were disproportionately represented but the overall proportion of iGAS infections observed during the current spike was similar to pre-pandemic years.

Jasmonate-deficient mutant lox3a reveals crosstalk between jasmonate and ethylene in the differential regulation of male and female flower opening and early fruit development in Cucurbita pepo.

Jasmonate (JA) has been found to be a relevant hormone in floral development in numerous species, but its function in cucurbit floral development and sex determination is unknown. Crosstalk between JA and ethylene (ET) in the differential regulation of male and female floral development was investigated by using the novel JA-deficient mutant lox3a, and the ET-deficient and -insensitive mutants, aco1a and etr2b, respectively, of Cucurbita pepo. The lox3a mutation suppresses male and female flower opening and induces the development of parthenocarpic fruit.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection with an SB Knife® for the treatment of subcardial gastric leiomyoma.

Surgery has been considered the main treatment for submucosal tumors (SMTs). However, endoscopic resection is currently accepted for gastric SMTs smaller than 3 cm. Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is considered the technique of choice, and submucosal tunneling endoscopic resection has successful results with low complication rates according to the recent meta-analysis by Cao et al.

Bempegaldesleukin (BEMPEG; NKTR-214) efficacy as a single agent and in combination with checkpoint-inhibitor therapy in mouse models of osteosarcoma.

Survival of patients with relapsed/refractory osteosarcoma has not improved in the last 30 years. Several immunotherapeutic approaches have shown benefit in murine osteosarcoma models, including the anti-programmed death-1 (anti-PD-1) and anti-cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 (anti-CTLA-4) immune checkpoint inhibitors. Treatment with the T-cell growth factor interleukin-2 (IL-2) has shown some clinical benefit but has limitations due to poor tolerability.

An assessment of Pleurotus ostreatus to remove sulfonamides, and its role as a biofilter based on its own spent mushroom substrate.

A double strategy based on the removal of sulfonamide antibiotics by Pleurotus ostreatus and adsorption on spent mushroom substrate was assessed to reclaim contaminated wastewater. P. ostreatus was firstly tested in a liquid medium fortified with five sulfonamides: sulfamethoxazole, sulfadiazine, sulfathiazole, sulfapyridine and sulfamethazine, to evaluate its capacity to remove them and to test for any adverse effects on fungal growth and for any reduction in residual antibiotic activity.

Off-label use of inhaled bronchodilators in hospitalised patients in Spain: a multicentre observational study.

Background: Off-label prescription of inhaled bronchodilators (IB) is frequent, despite the fact that they can be ineffective and increase avoidable healthcare costs.

Objective: To analyse the frequency of off-label prescription of IB in hospitalised patients. Indications and level of evidence, involved drugs, medical specialties prescribing off-label IB and patients' adherence to IBs were also evaluated.

[Alerted but not panicked. The role of the media during the pandemic.].

Este artículo analiza la cobertura mediática del avance de la pandemia de Covid-19 en Argentina y la medida de aislamiento social preventivo y obligatorio decretada por el gobierno nacional. Destaca tendencias problemáticas y buenas prácticas según un enfoque teórico-normativo, y las vincula con las características históricas del sistema de medios en el país. Utiliza una perspectiva teórico-metodológica que concibe a la comunicación como un derecho humano fundamental, esencial en una sociedad democrática y a los medios de comunicación de masas como vehículo fundamental para su ejercicio, y se apoya en las recomendaciones formuladas por organismos internacionales, organizaciones de la sociedad civil e instituciones nacionales.

The Effect of Maternal Obesity on Breast Milk Fatty Acids and Its Association with Infant Growth and Cognition-The PREOBE Follow-Up.

This study analyzed how maternal obesity affected fatty acids (FAs) in breast milk and their association with infant growth and cognition to raise awareness about the programming effect of maternal health and to promote a healthy prenatal weight. Mother-child pairs ( = 78) were grouped per maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI): normal-weight (BMI = 18.5-24.

Three-Dimensional Stable Alginate-Nanocellulose Gels for Biomedical Applications: Towards Tunable Mechanical Properties and Cell Growing.

Hydrogels have been studied as promising materials in different biomedical applications such as cell culture in tissue engineering or in wound healing. In this work, we synthesized different nanocellulose-alginate hydrogels containing cellulose nanocrystals, TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanocrystals (CNCTs), cellulose nanofibers or TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanofibers (CNFTs). The hydrogels were freeze-dried and named as gels.

The Impact of Maternal Pre-Pregnancy Body Weight and Gestational Diabetes on Markers of Folate Metabolism in the Placenta.

Dietary methyl donors, including folate, may modify the placenta and size at birth but the influence of maternal body weight has not been widely investigated. We therefore examined whether maternal or fetal folate status, together with indices of placental folate transport, were modulated by either maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI i.e.

Maternal BMI and gestational diabetes alter placental lipid transporters and fatty acid composition.

Introduction: Placental fatty acid (FA) uptake and metabolism depend on maternal supply which may be altered when women have a high pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) or develop gestational diabetes (GDM). Consequently, an impaired FA transport to the fetus may negatively affect fetal development. While placental adaptation of maternal-fetal glucose transfer in mild GDM has been described, knowledge on placental FA acid metabolism and possible adaptations in response to maternal obesity or GDM is lacking.

Intracellular characterization of Gag VLP production by transient transfection of HEK 293 cells.

Transient transfection is a fast, flexible, and cost-effective approach to produce biological products. Despite the continued interest in transient transfection, little is known regarding the transfection process at the intracellular level, particularly for complex products, such as virus-like particles (VLPs). The kinetics of PEI-mediated transfection following an established in-house protocol is reported in this work with the aim of characterizing and understanding the complete process leading to VLP generation and identifying important events driving process improvement.

Maternal Pre-Pregnancy Obesity Is Associated with Altered Placental Transcriptome.

Maternal obesity has a major impact on pregnancy outcomes. There is growing evidence that maternal obesity has a negative influence on placental development and function, thereby adversely influencing offspring programming and health outcomes. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes are poorly understood.