Increased tolerance to humans among disturbed wildlife.

Human disturbance drives the decline of many species, both directly and indirectly. Nonetheless, some species do particularly well around humans. One mechanism that may explain coexistence is the degree to which a species tolerates human disturbance. Here we provide a comprehensive meta-analysis of birds, mammals and lizards to investigate species tolerance of human disturbance and explore the drivers of this tolerance in birds. We find that, overall, disturbed populations of the three major taxa are more tolerant of human disturbance than less disturbed populations. The best predictors of the direction and magnitude of bird tolerance of human disturbance are the type of disturbed area (urbanized birds are more tolerant than rural or suburban populations) and body mass (large birds are more tolerant than small birds). By identifying specific features associated with tolerance, these results guide evidence-based conservation strategies to predict and manage the impacts of increasing human disturbance on birds

CXCL12 retargeting of an adenovirus vector to cancer cells using a bispecific adapter

Ad vectors are promising delivery vehicles for cancer therapeutic interventions. However, their application is limited by promiscuous tissue tropism and hepatotoxicity. This limitation can be avoided by altering the native tropism of Ads so that they can be redirected to the target cells through alternate cellular receptors. The CXCR4 chemokine receptor belongs to a large superfamily of G-protein-coupled receptors and is known to be upregulated in a wide variety of cancers, including breast cancer and melanoma. These receptors have been associated with cancer cell survival, progression, and metastasis. In the current study, an Ad to cancer cells overexpressing CXCR4 by using a bispecific adapter, sCAR-CXCL12, was retargeted. The sCAR-CXCL12 adapter contained the soluble ectodomain form of the native Ad5 receptor (sCAR), which was fused to a mature human chemokine ligand, CXCL12, through a short peptide linker. A dramatic increase in the infectivity of cancer cells using a targeted Ad vector compared with an untargeted vector was observed. Furthermore, sCAR-CXCL12 attenuated Ad infection of liver ex vivo and in vivo and enhanced Ad vector infection of xenograft tumors implanted in immunodeficient SCID-bg mice. Thus, the sCAR-CXCL12 adapter could be used to retarget Ad vectors to chemokine receptor-positive tumors

International effort toward a SSR-based linkage map for C. clementina : [P128]

Following the difficulties encountered for assembling a 1.2 x sequencing of the highly heterozygous sweet orange genome, the International Citrus Genomic Consortium (ICOC) decided to estab1ish the first reference sequence of a whole nuclear citrus genome from a haploid Clementine. A saturated genetic linkage map of Clementine based on sequence-characterized markers was considered by the ICGC as an important too1 for genome sequence assemb1y. In this framework, CIRAD proposed to use an interspecific population C. maxima x C. clementina to implement the reference Clementine genetic map. A population of 250 hybrids of Chandler pummelo x Clementine was established in Corsica and 190 hybrids were used in this first phase of mapping. Collaboration was established between two French organizations (CIRAD and INRA), two groups from United States (UF-CREC and UCR), one Spanish institute (IVIA), INRA Morocco and Cukurova University from Turkey. Forty markers were found heterozygous in Clementine among a previous set of 90 SSR markers developed by CIRAD from microsatellite-enriched genomic libraries. With the objective to integrate the physical and genetic maps of Clementine, CIRAD and IVIA have developed new SSR markers from microsatellite sequences identified in BAC End Sequences (BES) of diploid Clementine. On hundred and 10 of these new markers were found heterozygous for Clementine or Chandler pummelo and were used for genotyping. INRA France deve1oped 500 SSR markers from ESTs databases and found 170 markers heterozygous for Clementine. INRA Morocco contributed to the genotyping of 112 SSR markers developed from EST databases and genomic libraries, while 50 ESTs SSR were analysed by Cukurova University. SSR markers mainly developed from EST databases and already mapped for sweet orange were genotyped by UF-CREC (70 markers) and UCR (60 markers) to allow comparisons among the C. sinensis. C. maxima and C. c1ementina maps. lndeed, taking advantage of the important allelic differentiation between Clementine and Chandler, two parallel linkage maps can be developed from this population. As perspective, in the framework of the global haploid Clementine sequencing project, a collaboration between the French and Spanish groups plans: (i) to extend the population size to 380 hybrids between Clementine and pummelo. and (ii) to develop an array from SNPs identified in Clementine BES for High- Throughput Genotyping. All genotyping data will be stored in the online TropGene database (http://tropgenedb.cirad.fr/). Additional international groups are very welcome to join the project, using these progenies for genotyping their own markers. This should contribute to a very high density map of Clementine and to comparative mapping studies between citrus species. (Texte intégral

Anti-Allergic Cromones Inhibit Histamine and Eicosanoid Release from Activated Human and Murine Mast Cells by Releasing Annexin A1

PMCID: PMC3601088This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Breast MRI and tumour biology predict axillary lymph node response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer

Background: In patients who have had axillary nodal metastasis diagnosed prior to neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer, there is little consensus on how to manage the axilla subsequently. The aim of this study was to explore whether a combination of breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) assessed response and primary tumour pathology factors could identify a subset of patients that might be spared axillary node clearance.Methods: A retrospective data analysis was performed of patients with core biopsy-proven axillary nodal metastasis prior to commencement of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) who had subsequent axillary node clearance (ANC) at definitive breast surgery. Breast tumour and axillary response at MRI before, during and on completion of NAC, core biopsy tumour grade, tumour type and immunophenotype were correlated with pathological response in the breast and the number of metastatic nodes in the ANC specimens.Results: Of 87 consecutive patients with MRI at baseline, interim and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy who underwent ANC at time of breast surgery, 33 (38%) had no residual macrometastatic axillary disease, 28 (32%) had 1–2 metastatic nodes and 26 (30%) had more than 2 metastatic nodes. Factors that predicted axillary nodal complete response were MRI complete response in the breast (p < 0.0001), HER2 positivity (p = 0.02) and non-lobular tumour type (p = 0.015).Conclusion: MRI assessment of breast tumour response to NAC and core biopsy factors are predictive of response in axillary nodes, and can be used to guide decision making regarding appropriate axillary surgery

Cómo tomar decisiones justas en el camino hacia la cobertura universal de salud

La cobertura universal de salud está en el centro de la acción actual para fortalecer los sistemas de salud y mejorar el nivel y la distribución de la salud y los servicios de salud. Este documento es el informe fi nal del Grupo Consultivo de la OMS sobre la Equidad y Cobertura Universal de Salud. Aquí se abordan los temas clave de la justicia (fairness) y la equidad que surgen en el camino hacia la cobertura universal de salud. Por lo tanto, el informe es pertinente para cada agente que infl uye en ese camino y en particular para los gobiernos, ya que se encargan de supervisar y guiar el progreso hacia la cobertura universal de salud

Faire Des Choix Justes Pour Une Couverture Sanitaire Universelle

This report from the WHO Consultative Group on Equity and Universal Health Coverage offers advice on how to make progress fairly towards universal health coverage