New insights from short and long reads sequencing to explore cytochrome b variants in Plasmopara viticola populations collected from vineyards and related to resistance to complex III inhibitors.

Downy mildew is caused by Plasmopara viticola, an obligate oomycete plant pathogen, a devasting disease of grapevine. To protect plants from the disease, complex III inhibitors are among the fungicides widely used. They specifically target the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) of the pathogen to block cellular respiration mechanisms.

Leg length and bristle density, both necessary for water surface locomotion, are genetically correlated in water striders.

Access to hitherto unexploited ecological opportunities is associated with phenotypic evolution and often results in significant lineage diversification. Yet our understanding of the mechanisms underlying such adaptive traits remains limited. Water striders have been able to exploit the water-air interface, primarily facilitated by changes in the density of hydrophobic bristles and a significant increase in leg length.

The genome sequence of the grape phylloxera provides insights into the evolution, adaptation, and invasion routes of an iconic pest.

Background: Although native to North America, the invasion of the aphid-like grape phylloxera Daktulosphaira vitifoliae across the globe altered the course of grape cultivation. For the past 150 years, viticulture relied on grafting-resistant North American Vitis species as rootstocks, thereby limiting genetic stocks tolerant to other stressors such as pathogens and climate change. Limited understanding of the insect genetics resulted in successive outbreaks across the globe when rootstocks failed.

Modulation of Hexadecyl-LPA-Mediated Activation of Mast Cells and Microglia by a Chemical Probe for LPA5.

Mast cells and microglia play a critical role in innate immunity and inflammation and can be activated by a wide range of endogenous and exogenous stimuli. Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) has recently been reported to activate mast cells and microglia. Using the human mast cell line HMC-1 and the mouse microglia cell line BV-2, we show that LPA-mediated activation can be prevented by blockade of the LPA receptor 5 (LPA5) in both cell lines.

De novo radiologic placement of button gastrostomy: a feasibility study in children with cancer.

Background: Primary placement of percutaneous radiologic button gastrostomy has been successfully performed in adults but research is lacking as to its success in children during cancer treatment.

Objective: To assess the safety and effectiveness of such treatment at a single center.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a 3-year retrospective feasibility study reporting on placement procedure, feeding plan, acute complications and effectiveness of this technique based on the evolution of the weight and weight-to-height during a period of 3 months.

Vitamin A status regulates glucocorticoid availability in Wistar rats: consequences on cognitive functions and hippocampal neurogenesis?

A disruption of the vitamin A signaling pathway has been involved in age-related memory decline and hippocampal plasticity alterations. Using vitamin A deficiency (VAD), a nutritional model leading to a hyposignaling of the retinoid pathway, we have recently demonstrated that retinoic acid (RA), the active metabolite of vitamin A, is efficient to reverse VAD-induced spatial memory deficits and adult hippocampal neurogenesis alterations. Besides, excess of glucocorticoids (GCs) occurring with aging is known to strongly inhibit hippocampal plasticity and functions and few studies report on the counteracting effects of RA signaling pathway on GCs action.

Mechanisms involved in dual vasopressin/apelin neuron dysfunction during aging.

Normal aging is associated with vasopressin neuron adaptation, but little is known about its effects on the release of apelin, an aquaretic peptide colocalized with vasopressin. We found that plasma vasopressin concentrations were higher and plasma apelin concentrations lower in aged rats than in younger adults. The response of AVP/apelin neurons to osmotic challenge was impaired in aged rats.

Synthesis and preliminary evaluation of a new fluorine-18 labelled triazine derivative for PET imaging of cannabinoid CB2 receptor.

Cannabinoid CB2 PET tracers are considered as a promising alternative to PBR/TSPO tracers for the in-vivo imaging of neuroinflammation. We describe here the synthesis and characterization of compound 3, a new potent and brain penetrating CB2 ligand based on an original triazine template. The PET tracer [(18)F]-dideutero-3 was prepared in a three steps radiosynthesis, and demonstrated significant uptake in rhesus macaque and baboon brain with a maximum SUV of about 0.

A mid-life vitamin A supplementation prevents age-related spatial memory deficits and hippocampal neurogenesis alterations through CRABP-I.

Age-related memory decline including spatial reference memory is considered to begin at middle-age and coincides with reduced adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Moreover, a dysfunction of vitamin A hippocampal signalling pathway has been involved in the appearance of age-related memory deficits but also in adult hippocampal neurogenesis alterations. The present study aims at testing the hypothesis that a mid-life vitamin A supplementation would be a successful strategy to prevent age-related memory deficits.

Hormonal, hypothalamic and striatal responses to reduced body weight gain are attenuated in anorectic rats bearing small tumors.

Lack of compensatory or even reduced food intake is frequently observed in weight-losing cancer patients and contributes to increased morbidity and mortality. Our previous work has shown increased transcription factor expression in the hypothalamus and ventral striatum of anorectic rats bearing small tumors. mRNA expression of molecules known to be involved in pathways regulating appetite in these structures was therefore assessed in this study.

Body weight change in women receiving adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer: a French prospective study.

Background & Aims: Adjuvant chemotherapy has frequently been associated with weight gain after breast cancer diagnosis. We aimed to prospectively evaluate body weight variations in French patients with early breast cancer.

Methods: This prospective observational study included 272 breast cancer patients who were candidates for adjuvant chemotherapy.

Suppressor of cytokine signalling (SOCS) genes are expressed in the endometrium and regulated by conceptus signals during early pregnancy in the ewe.

It is established that the conceptus-endometrium dialogue involves cytokines, growth factors and hormones. Given the crucial functions of the suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS) family proteins in cytokine signalling, we analyzed the expression and the regulation of CIS and SOCSs 1-3 transcripts during early pregnancy in the ovine endometrium. An overall stimulation of the SOCS transcripts was described in the pregnant ewes with two specific patterns.

Direct measurement of multiple mRNAs in nerve growth factor-induced PC12 cells using electrophoretic tags to monitor biomarkers of neuronal differentiation in 96-well format.

Pheochromocytoma-12 (PC12) cells recapitulate the program of neuronal differentiation by developing neurites after about 12 days of nerve growth factor (NGF) treatment. This model can be used to evaluate the neuroprotective/neurotrophic effect of compounds. Specific mRNAs such as cfos and c-jun are early biomarkers of the irreversible commitment into the differentiation program as they appear after only 30-40 min of NGF treatment.

Role of individual disulfide bonds in hen lysozyme early folding steps.

To probe the role of individual disulfide bonds in the folding kinetics of hen lysozyme, the variants with two mutations, C30A,C115A, C64A,C80A, and C76A,C94A, were constructed. The corresponding proteins, each lacking one disulfide bond, were produced in Escherichia coli as inclusion bodies and solubilized, purified, and renatured/oxidized using original protocols. Their enzymatic, spectral, and hydrodynamic characteristics confirmed that their conformations were very similar to that of native wild-type (WT) lysozyme.