| 1. |
- Bernal, Ximena E., et al.
(author)
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Empowering Latina scientists
- 2019
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In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 363:6429, s. 825-826
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)
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| 2. |
- Antonelli, Alexandre, 1978, et al.
(author)
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Madagascar's extraordinary biodiversity : Evolution, distribution, and use
- 2022
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In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 378:6623, s. 962-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Madagascar's biota is hyperdiverse and includes exceptional levels of endemicity. We review the current state of knowledge on Madagascar's past and current terrestrial and freshwater biodiversity by compiling and presenting comprehensive data on species diversity, endemism, and rates of species description and human uses, in addition to presenting an updated and simplified map of vegetation types. We report a substantial increase of records and species new to science in recent years; however, the diversity and evolution of many groups remain practically unknown (e.g., fungi and most invertebrates). Digitization efforts are increasing the resolution of species richness patterns and we highlight the crucial role of field- and collections-based research for advancing biodiversity knowledge and identifying gaps in our understanding, particularly as species richness corresponds closely to collection effort. Phylogenetic diversity patterns mirror that of species richness and endemism in most of the analyzed groups. We highlight humid forests as centers of diversity and endemism because of their role as refugia and centers of recent and rapid radiations. However, the distinct endemism of other areas, such as the grassland-woodland mosaic of the Central Highlands and the spiny forest of the southwest, is also biologically important despite lower species richness. The documented uses of Malagasy biodiversity are manifold, with much potential for the uncovering of new useful traits for food, medicine, and climate mitigation. The data presented here showcase Madagascar as a unique " living laboratory" for our understanding of evolution and the complex interactions between people and nature. The gathering and analysis of biodiversity data must continue and accelerate if we are to fully understand and safeguard this unique subset of Earth's biodiversity.
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| 3. |
- Atun, Rifat, et al.
(author)
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Sustainable care for children with cancer : a Lancet Oncology Commission
- 2020
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In: The Lancet Oncology. - 1470-2045. ; 21:4, s. 185-224
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We estimate that there will be 13·7 million new cases of childhood cancer globally between 2020 and 2050. At current levels of health system performance (including access and referral), 6·1 million (44·9%) of these children will be undiagnosed. Between 2020 and 2050, 11·1 million children will die from cancer if no additional investments are made to improve access to health-care services or childhood cancer treatment. Of this total, 9·3 million children (84·1%) will be in low-income and lower-middle-income countries. This burden could be vastly reduced with new funding to scale up cost-effective interventions. Simultaneous comprehensive scale-up of interventions could avert 6·2 million deaths in children with cancer in this period, more than half (56·1%) of the total number of deaths otherwise projected. Taking excess mortality risk into consideration, this reduction in the number of deaths is projected to produce a gain of 318 million life-years. In addition, the global lifetime productivity gains of US$2580 billion in 2020–50 would be four times greater than the cumulative treatment costs of $594 billion, producing a net benefit of $1986 billion on the global investment: a net return of $3 for every $1 invested. In sum, the burden of childhood cancer, which has been grossly underestimated in the past, can be effectively diminished to realise massive health and economic benefits and to avert millions of needless deaths.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Bizzetto, Renata, et al.
(author)
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Outcomes after related and unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation for hereditary bone marrow failure syndromes other than Fanconi anemia
- 2011
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In: Haematologica. - : Ferrata Storti Foundation (Haematologica). - 0390-6078 .- 1592-8721. ; 96:1, s. 134-141
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation is the only curative option for patients with hereditary bone marrow failure syndromes. Umbilical cord blood is an alternative source of stem cells for allogeneic transplantation. DESIGN AND METHODS: This multicenter, retrospective study is based on data reported to the Eurocord Registry about patients with hereditary bone marrow failure syndrome who underwent umbilical cord blood transplantation. RESULTS: Sixty-four patients with hereditary bone marrow failure syndromes were transplanted from related (n = 20) or unrelated donors (n = 44). Diagnoses were Diamond-Blackfan anemia (21 patients), congenital amegakaryocytic thrombocytopenia (16 patients), dyskeratosis congenita (8 patients), Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (2 patients), severe congenital neutropenia (16 patients) and unclassified (1 patient). In the group of patients who received grafts from related donors, all patients but one received an HLA-matched sibling transplant. The median number of total nucleated cells infused was 5 × 10⁷/kg. The cumulative incidence of neutrophil recovery at 60 days was 95%. Two patients had grade II-IV acute graft-versus-host disease, while the 2-year cumulative incidence of chronic graft-versus-host disease was 11%. The 3-year overall survival rate was 95%. In the group of patients who received grafts from unrelated donors, 86% had HLA-mismatched grafts and three received two umbilical cord blood units. The median number of total nucleated cells infused was 6.1 × 10⁷/kg. The cumulative incidence of neutrophil recovery at day 60 in this group was 55%. The 100-day cumulative incidence of grade II-IV acute graft-versus-host disease was 24%, while the 2-year cumulative incidence of chronic graft-versus-host disease was 53%. The 3-year overall survival rate was 61%; better overall survival was associated with age less than 5 years (P = 0.01) and 6.1 × 10⁷/kg or more total nucleated cells infused (P = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with hereditary bone marrow failure syndromes, related umbilical cord blood transplantation is associated with excellent outcomes while increasing cell dose and better HLA matching might provide better results in unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation.
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| 6. |
- Carlini, Valeria P., et al.
(author)
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Ghrelin induced memory facilitation implicates nitric oxide synthase activation and decrease in the threshold to promote LTP in hippocampal dentate gyrus
- 2010
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In: Physiology and Behavior. - : Elsevier BV. - 0031-9384 .- 1873-507X. ; 101:1, s. 117-123
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Although the hypothalamus has been long considered the main ghrelin (Ghr) target organ mediating orexigenic effects, recently it has been shown that in-vivo Ghr hippocampus administration improves learning and memory in the inhibitory avoidance paradigm. However, the possible mechanisms underlying this memory facilitation effect have not been clarified. Given that the biochemical memory cascade into the hippocampus involves nitric oxide (NO) synthesis via NO synthase (NOS) activation, we investigated 1) if Ghr administration modulated NOS activity in the hippocampus; and 2) if hippocampal NOS inhibition influenced Ghr-induced memory facilitation, using a behavioral paradigm, biochemical determinations and an electrophysiological model. Our results showed that intra-hippocampal Ghr administration increased the NOS activity in a dose dependent manner, and reduced the threshold for LTP generation in dentate gyrus of rat hippocampus. Moreover, pre-administration of NG-nitro-l-arginine (l-NOArg) in the hippocampus partially prevented the Ghr-induced memory improvement, abolished the increase in NOS activity, and prevented the decreased threshold to generate LTP induced by Ghr. These findings suggest that activation of the NOS/NO pathway in hippocampus participates in the effects of Ghr on memory consolidation and is related with plastic properties of the hippocampal three-synaptic loop.
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| 7. |
- Cusack, Daniela Francis, et al.
(author)
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Tradeoffs and Synergies in Tropical Forest Root Traits and Dynamics for Nutrient and Water Acquisition : Field and Modeling Advances
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in Forests and Global Change. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 2624-893X. ; 4
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Vegetation processes are fundamentally limited by nutrient and water availability, the uptake of which is mediated by plant roots in terrestrial ecosystems. While tropical forests play a central role in global water, carbon, and nutrient cycling, we know very little about tradeoffs and synergies in root traits that respond to resource scarcity. Tropical trees face a unique set of resource limitations, with rock-derived nutrients and moisture seasonality governing many ecosystem functions, and nutrient versus water availability often separated spatially and temporally. Root traits that characterize biomass, depth distributions, production and phenology, morphology, physiology, chemistry, and symbiotic relationships can be predictive of plants’ capacities to access and acquire nutrients and water, with links to aboveground processes like transpiration, wood productivity, and leaf phenology. In this review, we identify an emerging trend in the literature that tropical fine root biomass and production in surface soils are greatest in infertile or sufficiently moist soils. We also identify interesting paradoxes in tropical forest root responses to changing resources that merit further exploration. For example, specific root length, which typically increases under resource scarcity to expand the volume of soil explored, instead can increase with greater base cation availability, both across natural tropical forest gradients and in fertilization experiments. Also, nutrient additions, rather than reducing mycorrhizal colonization of fine roots as might be expected, increased colonization rates under scenarios of water scarcity in some forests. Efforts to include fine root traits and functions in vegetation models have grown more sophisticated over time, yet there is a disconnect between the emphasis in models characterizing nutrient and water uptake rates and carbon costs versus the emphasis in field experiments on measuring root biomass, production, and morphology in response to changes in resource availability. Closer integration of field and modeling efforts could connect mechanistic investigation of fine-root dynamics to ecosystem-scale understanding of nutrient and water cycling, allowing us to better predict tropical forest-climate feedbacks.
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| 8. |
- Escott-Price, Valentina, et al.
(author)
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Gene-Wide Analysis Detects Two New Susceptibility Genes for Alzheimer's Disease
- 2014
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In: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 9:6, s. e94661-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Alzheimer's disease is a common debilitating dementia with known heritability, for which 20 late onset susceptibility loci have been identified, but more remain to be discovered. This study sought to identify new susceptibility genes, using an alternative gene-wide analytical approach which tests for patterns of association within genes, in the powerful genome-wide association dataset of the International Genomics of Alzheimer's Project Consortium, comprising over 7 m genotypes from 25,580 Alzheimer's cases and 48,466 controls. Principal Findings: In addition to earlier reported genes, we detected genome-wide significant loci on chromosomes 8 (TP53INP1, p = 1.4x10(-6)) and 14 (IGHV1-67 p = 7.9x10(-8)) which indexed novel susceptibility loci. Significance: The additional genes identified in this study, have an array of functions previously implicated in Alzheimer's disease, including aspects of energy metabolism, protein degradation and the immune system and add further weight to these pathways as potential therapeutic targets in Alzheimer's disease.
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| 9. |
- Fonseca-Bermúdez, Óscar Javier, et al.
(author)
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Cashew nut shell biomass: A source for high-performance CO 2 /CH 4 adsorption in activated carbon
- 2024
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In: Journal of CO2 Utilization. - 2212-9820. ; 83
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study embarks on the synthesis of activated carbon (AC) from cashew nut shells using a potassium carbonate (K2CO3) activation process, with a specific focus on its practical application in high-pressure gas adsorption. Among the synthesized samples, MCAK85 emerged as the most efficient, demonstrating a specific surface area of 1693 m2/g and total and micropore volumes of 0.839 cm3/g and 0.641 cm3/g, respectively. Importantly, this bioorganic activated carbon exhibited high sorption capacities for CO2 and CH4, with uptake values of 11.0 mmol/g and 5.5 mmol/g at 10 bar at 25°C, and a CO2/CH4 selectivity range between 9.1 and 1.8. A comprehensive range of characterization techniques were employed to analyze the structural and chemical properties of the synthesized AC, providing valuable insights into the functional groups and molecular structure. The morphology of the AC was examined using SEM, while the point of zero charge was determined to understand the surface charge characteristics. Additionally, TGA was utilized to assess the thermal stability and composition of the AC. This study underscores the potential of utilizing agricultural waste, specifically cashew nut shells, in the creation of effective materials for gas storage and purification applications. The high-pressure adsorption capacity of the produced AC, coupled with its sustainable and eco-friendly nature, underscores its suitability for environmental and industrial applications, particularly in areas focusing on greenhouse gas capture and air purification, thereby inspiring further research and development in this field.
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| 10. |
- Jones, Lesley, et al.
(author)
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Convergent genetic and expression data implicate immunity in Alzheimer's disease
- 2015
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In: Alzheimer's & Dementia. - : Wiley. - 1552-5260 .- 1552-5279. ; 11:6, s. 658-671
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) is heritable with 20 genes showing genome-wide association in the International Genomics of Alzheimer's Project (IGAP). To identify the biology underlying the disease, we extended these genetic data in a pathway analysis. Methods: The ALIGATOR and GSEA algorithms were used in the IGAP data to identify associated functional pathways and correlated gene expression networks in human brain. Results: ALIGATOR identified an excess of curated biological pathways showing enrichment of association. Enriched areas of biology included the immune response (P = 3.27 X 10(-12) after multiple testing correction for pathways), regulation of endocytosis (P = 1.31 X 10(-11)), cholesterol transport (P = 2.96 X 10(-9)), and proteasome-ubiquitin activity (P = 1.34 X 10(-6)). Correlated gene expression analysis identified four significant network modules, all related to the immune response (corrected P = .002-.05). Conclusions: The immime response, regulation of endocytosis, cholesterol transport, and protein ubiquitination represent prime targets for AD therapeutics.
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