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Estrategias de asociaciones entre plantas con hongos micorrícicos arbusculares (HMA) podrían ser utilizadas para garantizar una eficiente nutrición de fósforo (P). Sin embargo, se desconoce si prácticas usuales de largo plazo destinadas a la producción de soja en nuestro país, han deprimido el potencial de colonización y de promoción de crecimiento vegetal por las comunidades de HMA nativos. Nuestro objetivo fue cuantificar el aporte en crecimiento, absorción de P y partición de fotoasimilados en soja aportados por HMA nativos de monocultivo de soja de larga duración ante oferta diferencial de P. Se instaló un ensayo en invernáculo durante 60 días con 4 tratamientos (con "+" y sin "-" HMA nativos de un monocultivo de soja de larga duración instalado en Córdoba; con "+" y sin "-" fertilización con P por aplicación semanal de 15,5 mgP maceta-1). Los HMA nativos colonizaron las raíces de soja y favorecieron su crecimiento aun cuando la oferta de P no fue limitante. La colonización micorrícica intra y extra-radical, así como la oferta de P, favorecieron el crecimiento, la acumulación de P y el contenido y la partición de azúcares en las plantas de soja. Las plantas crecidas en presencia de micorrizas (+HMA) sin oferta de P (-P) mostraron mayor acumulación de materia seca y P. Aunque no se evidenció incremento significativo en la absorción de P por las micorrizas, las plantas en la condición +HMA y +P mostraron respuesta positiva a la micorrización en el crecimiento aéreo. Las plantas que crecieron ante +P y -HMA no fueron las de mayor crecimiento. Esto resalta la importancia de favorecer prácticas de manejo que, combinadas con la fertilización moderada destinada a la reposición de nutrientes, favorezca el mantenimiento de poblaciones de HMA nativas que pueden contribuir a un uso más eficiente de la fertilidad del suelo y favorecer el crecimiento del cultivo de soja.

Background: Exposure to hyperoxia is an important factor in the development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in preterm newborns. MicroRNAs (miRs) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of BPD and provide a potential therapeutic target. Methods: This study was conducted utilizing a postnatal animal model of experimental hyperoxia-induced murine BPD to investigate the expression and function of miR-195 as well as its molecular signaling targets within developing mouse lung tissue. Results: miR-195 expression levels increased in response to hyperoxia in male and female lungs, with the most significant elevation occurring in 40% O 2 (mild) and 60% O 2 (moderate) BPD. The inhibition of miR-195 improved pulmonary morphology in the hyperoxia-induced BPD model in male and female mice with females showing more resistance to injury and better recovery of alveolar chord length, septal thickness, and radial alveolar count. Additionally, we reveal miR-195-dependent signaling pathways involved in BPD and identify PH domain leucine-rich repeat protein phosphatase 2 (PHLPP2) as a novel specific target protein of miR-195. Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that high levels of miR-195 in neonatal lungs cause the exacerbation of hyperoxia-induced experimental BPD while its inhibition results in amelioration. This finding suggests a therapeutic potential of miR-195 inhibition in preventing BPD.

Along the Italian coasts, toxins of algal origin in wild and cultivated shellfish have been reported since the 1970s. In this study, we used data gathered by the Veterinary Public Health Institutes (IZS) and the Italian Environmental Health Protection Agencies (ARPA) from 2006 to 2019 to investigate toxicity events along the Italian coasts and relate them to the distribution of potentially toxic species. Among the detected toxins (OA and analogs, YTXs, PTXs, STXs, DAs, AZAs), OA and YTX were those most frequently reported. Levels exceeding regulatory limits in the case of OA (≤2,448 μg equivalent kg -1 ) were associated with high abundances of Dinophysis spp., and in the case of YTXs (≤22 mg equivalent kg -1 ) with blooms of Gonyaulax spinifera, Lingulodinium polyedra, and Protoceratium reticulatum. Seasonal blooms of Pseudo-nitzschia spp. occur all along the Italian coast, but DA has only occasionally been detected in shellfish at concentrations always below the regulatory limit (≤18 mg kg -1 ). Alexandrium spp. were recorded in several areas, although STXs (≤13,782 µg equivalent kg -1 ) rarely and only in few sites exceeded the regulatory limit in shellfish. Azadinium spp. have been sporadically recorded, and AZAs have been sometimes detected but always in low concentrations (≤7 µg equivalent kg -1 ). Among the emerging toxins, PLTX-like toxins (≤971 μg kg -1 OVTX-a) have often been detected mainly in wild mussels and sea urchins from rocky shores due to the presence of Ostreopsis cf. ovata. Overall, Italian coastal waters harbour a high number of potentially toxic species, with a few HAB hotspots mainly related to DSP toxins. Nevertheless, rare cases of intoxications have occurred so far, reflecting the whole Mediterranean Sea conditions., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Shellfish sanitary controls are very important to guarantee consumer health because bivalve molluscs (BVM) are filter-feeders so they can accumulate pathogens, environmental contaminants and biotoxins produced by some algae, causing infections and food poisoning in humans after ingestion. The purpose of this work was to analyse with chemometric methods the historical data relating to routine analyses carried out by the competent authority (Liguria Local Health Unit, National Health Service) on the BVM reared in a shellfish farm located in the Gulf of La Spezia (Italy). Chemometric analysis was aimed at identifying any correlations between the variables, as well as any seasonal trends and similarities between the stations, in order to be able to provide further material for a more accurate risk assessment and to improve the monitoring organization for example by reducing sampling stations and/or sampling frequency. The dataset used included 31 variables classified as biotoxicological, microbiological and chemical variables, measured twice a week, monthly or half yearly respectively, for a total of 6 years (from 2015 to 2021), on samples of Mytilus galloprovincialis coming from 7 monitoring stations. The results obtained by the application of principal component analysis have shown positive alga-biotoxin correlations, as well as seasonal trends linked to algae growth, with a greater algal biomass and their toxins during the spring months. In addition, periods characterised by low rainfall were found to affect algal development, promoting especially species such as Dinophysis spp. Considering the microbiological and biotoxicological variables, significant differences between the monitoring stations were not found. However, stations could be distinguished on the basis of the nature of the predominant chemical pollutants., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests:Valentina Ciccotelli reports article publishing charges was provided by Zooprophylactic Institute of Piemonte Liguria and Valle d’Aosta., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Human embryonic stem (hES) cells are highly sensitive to apoptotic stimuli such as DNA damage, which allows for the rapid elimination of mutated cells during development. However, the mechanisms that maintain hES cells in the primed apoptotic state are not completely known. Key activators of apoptosis, the BH3-only proteins, are present at low levels in most cell types. In contrast, hES cells have constitutive high levels of the BH3-only protein, NOXA. We examined the importance of NOXA for enabling apoptosis in hES cells. hES cells deleted for NOXA showed remarkable protection against multiple apoptotic stimuli. NOXA was constitutively localized to the mitochondria, where it interacted with MCL1. Strikingly, inhibition of MCL1 in NOXA knockout cells was sufficient to sensitize these cells to DNA damage-induced cell death. Our study demonstrates that an essential function of constitutive high levels of NOXA in hES cells is to effectively antagonize MCL1 to permit rapid apoptosis., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

A series of 10 intra-laboratory bioassays and an inter-laboratory assay involving nine laboratories, were performed to validate the use of Amphibalanus amphitrite larvae as test organisms for ecotoxicological studies. The standardization protocol utilized Cadmium Nitrate as a reference toxicant and larval immobilization (after 24 and 48 h) as the end-point. The statistical data analysis showed high homogeneity in intra-laboratory EC(50) values among bioassay repetitions (coefficient of variation (CV)=15.8% after 24 h and 16.9% after 48 h); also CV values obtained in inter laboratory comparison exercise were not higher than the 50%, variation coefficient mentioned in the ISO standards for the precision of inter-laboratory assays. The results demonstrated that the protocol implemented for the balanus larval bioassay comply with the international standards both for intra- and inter-laboratory precision., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To test five hypotheses on Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): 1) Is PTSD the most prevalent disorder after trauma? 2) Is the proximity to the disaster related to the risk of PTSD? 3) Is PTSD associated with child mourning or separation, previous stress, or familiarity for psychiatric disorders? 4) Does the exposition to trauma increase substance abuse or somatization? 5) Can episodic trauma cause long-lasting psychiatric morbidity?, Methods: Clinical assessment of subjects exposed to an explosion in a building caused by a gas-leak. Best estimate clinical diagnoses were made according to DSM-IV-TR criteria. The Zung Depression Rating Scale, the Zung Anxiety Rating Scale, and the Clinician Administered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Scale were used in the clinical assessment. Statistical analysis was performed by means of t-test with Bonferroni's correction on continuous variables and chi2 or Fisher test on categorical variables., Results: PTSD was the most prevalent disorder after trauma, diagnosed in 32 (36.8%) subjects. The subjects who had not seen dead or injured people were more likely to receive no psychiatric diagnosis. Civil status, parenthood, death of relatives in the disaster, personal injuries, history of child mourning or separation, of previous stress, as well as familiarity for any psychiatric disorder or substance use disorder were not related with the rate of ascertained psychiatric diagnoses. Nearly two years after trauma, most of patients who had suffered PTSD still met PTSD criteria., Conclusion: The 1st and the 5th hypotheses were corroborated, the 3rd and the 4th hypotheses were not confirmed. The 2nd hypothesis was partially confirmed.

A cytolytic assay that could detect palytoxin and its congeners has been developed by the use of an established cell line grown as monolayer to replace the current hemolytic method. We used MCF-7 cells and cytolysis was measured by the release of cytosolic lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the buffer added to treated cells (culture supernatant). A dose-dependent increase in LDH activity in culture supernatants was detected when MCF-7 cells were exposed to palytoxin and its analogue ostreocin D. The cytolytic response induced by palytoxin and ostreocin D was specific for this group of compounds, acting on Na+/K+-ATPase, as it was prevented when cells were preincubated with ouabain. The specificity of our assay for palytoxin and its congeners was confirmed by the finding that cytolysis was not detected when MCF-7 cells were exposed to unrelated toxins such as maitotoxin, tetrodotoxin, okadaic acid, and yessotoxin, even in the case of compounds that elicit cytotoxic responses under our experimental conditions. Using extracts from biological materials after spiking with the palytoxin standard, we found a good correlation between palytoxin levels measured by our cytolytic assay and the expected values. Our cytolytic assay detected palytoxin in naturally contaminated materials, but estimates were significantly higher than the palytoxin contents determined by LC-MS, indicating that naturally contaminated materials contain biologically active palytoxin congeners. We conclude that our cytolytic assay based on the use of MCF-7 cell monolayers is a viable alternative to animal-based methods for the determination of palytoxin and its congeners in contaminated materials.

In this article we report on the liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS) investigation of plankton samples collected in the summer of 2006 along the Ligurian coasts, coinciding with a massive bloom of the tropical microalga Ostreopsis ovata. LC-MS analyses indicated the occurrence of putative palytoxin along with a much more abundant palytoxin-like compound never reported so far, which we named ovatoxin-a. On the basis of molecular formula, fragmentation pattern, and chromatographic behavior, the structure of ovatoxin-a appeared to be strictly related to that of palytoxin. We report also on the analysis of cultured O. ovata, which was necessary to unequivocally demonstrate that putative palytoxin and ovatoxin-a contained in field samples were actually produced by O. ovata itself.

A new method for sensitive, specific, and direct determination of palytoxin is proposed herein. It is based on combination of reversed-phase liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The new method was set up on a turbo ion spray-triple quadrupole MS instrument operating in selected ion monitoring (SIM) and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) acquisition modes (positive ions). The minimum detection levels for matrix-free toxin on column were thus estimated from the data to be 200 and 125 pg in SIM and MRM modes, respectively. Spiking experiments before and after extraction allowed us to assess limits of detection and quantitation for palytoxin in matrix, accuracy, and intraday and interday reproducibility of the method. The developed method was decisive for the analysis of a plankton sample collected along Genoa coasts in July 2005 when respiratory illness in people exposed to marine aerosols occurred. It is suggested that putative palytoxin was the causative agent responsible for patients' symptoms and demonstrated for the first time the presence of such a toxin in Italian waters.