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Biofortification of major crop plants with iron and zinc - achievements and future directions
Get PDFBiofortification is a long-term strategy of delivering more iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) to those most in need. Plant breeding programs within the CGIAR and NARS have made major advances in Fe- and Zn-dense variety development and there have been successful releases of new biofortified varieties. Recent research effort has led to a substantial improvement in our knowledge of Fe and Zn homeostasis and gene regulation, resulting in the identification of candidate genes for marker assisted selection. International cooperation between the agricultural and nutrition community has been strengthened, with numerous implementation and partnership strategies developed and employed over the years. The evidence on the effectiveness of Fe and Zn biofortified crops is slowly building up and the results are encouraging. Biofortification continues to be scaled out and further work is required to reach the general aim of eradicating the hidden hunger of Fe and Zn deficiency in the world’s population and ensuring nutritional security
A comparative study on culture-specific and cross-cultural aspects of intercultural relations in Hungary, Serbia, Czech Republic, and Germany
Get PDFThe ability, will, and belief that it is possible to deal effectively with members of other cultural/ethnic groups are still gaining importance all over the world. However, the majority of studies on intercultural relations focus on Western Europe and the USA, applying constructs and theories that replicate a western-centered worldview. As a consequence, it is unclear whether established measures for intergroup attitudes and intercultural competence may be applied in Eastern European countries and to what extent they display comparable ideas, thoughts, and feelings. The current study thus explores cross-cultural commonalities and differences in established measures of ethnic identity, prejudice, acculturation strategies, intercultural intelligence, and multicultural personality. Therefore, we compare the scale structure, difficulty, and sensitivity in samples from Germany and the Eastern European countries Hungary, Serbia, and the Czech Republic (etic-perspective), as well as the culture-specific conceptions of said concepts (emic-perspective). Results show that the investigated scales do not work comparably across German and Eastern European samples. Differences might be rooted in variations of underlying thinking patterns and connotations of single expressions. Those variations are likely to be related to the constant individual societal and historical developments of cultures, shaping the way individuals think and talk about cultural diversity. Future studies are encouraged to consider culture-specific and generalizable aspects of constructs when conducting cross-cultural research on intercultural relations
Selectivity of polyclonal repertoire of anti‐microbial IgA and its subclasses in saliva and serum in humans
No full textIncreased interest in microbiota calls for the thorough analysis of antibody reactivity to different microorganisms. As salivary IgA represents the first line of defence against microorganisms contacting mucosal surfaces, we explored the binding and specificity of salivary IgA by testing the binding of purified, FITC-labelled salivary IgA to different microorganisms in flow cytometry and conclude that this kind of analysis enables the differentiation of species/strains with high IgA binding capacity, which should be corroborated on a larger sample size. Further we compare, with in-house ELISA, the binding of polyclonal salivary IgA with the binding of polyclonal serum IgA from the same individuals to whole microbial cells and to purified microbial components. High correlations were obtained in total salivary IgA binding to Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Escherichia coli, very distant bacterial species, as well as to isolated bacterial components (r =.70–.97). The binding of total salivary IgA resembled the binding of both salivary IgA1 and IgA2, with IgA2 predominating. For serum polyclonal IgA repertoire, substantially higher specificity was obtained. Serum IgA binding to E. coli correlated best with serum IgA binding to lipopolysaccharide (r =.86), and serum IgA against L. rhamnosus correlated best with the anti-peptidoglycan IgA levels (r =.88). We have also detected that total serum IgA response is governed by either IgA1 or IgA2 response, depending on the nature of the antigen/s. We conclude that steady state salivary IgA repertoire, unlike serum IgA repertoire, consists of polyreactive antibodies with innate specificity, questioning its capacity to select resident microbiota
Analysis of the immunomodulatory effect of human amniotic membrane preparations on M0, M1 and M2 subtypes of THP-1 cells
No full textWe have previously demonstrated the potent anticancer activity of human amniotic membrane (hAM) against urothelial cancer cells [1]. However, to successfully translate scientific findings from bench to bedside, it is crucial to thoroughly investigate the effect of a potential drug on the entire tumour microenvironment. Since immune cells and especially macrophages are a very important part of the tumour microenvironment and the interactions between various cell types in the tumour microenvironment affect the success of the treatment, it is essential to determine the effect of hAM-derived preparations (homogenate and extract) on different subtypes of human macrophages. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to determine the effect of hAM-derived preparations on different subtypes of human THP-1 cells. By optimising the culture and differentiation conditions, we obtained THP-1 cells that differentiated towards M0, M1 and M2 phenotypes, which was confirmed by cell marker analysis using flow cytometry. Next, we treated THP-1 cells with hAM extract during and/or after differentiation towards the M0, M1 and M2 phenotypes. While the treatment did not significantly affect the differentiation of THP-1 cells towards the M0 phenotype, it did affect M1 differentiation, as the expression of costimulatory molecules CD80 and CD86 and the expression of CD64 (which increased after M1 differentiation) was suppressed. Furthermore, the effect of hAM extract was greatest when added for the entire duration of differentiation, although shorter incubation times also resulted in decreased expression of CD80 and CD86. Finally, we present the optimised protocol for THP-1 cell differentiation, which forms the basis for further analysis of the effects of hAM-derived preparations on M0, M1 and M2 macrophages. The potential effects of hAM-derived preparations on macrophages are of immense importance when considering their use in anti-cancer treatment
Regulation of S100As Expression by Inflammatory Cytokines in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Get PDFThe calcium-binding proteins S100A4, S100A8, and S100A9 are upregulated in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), while the S100A9 promotes NF-κB activity during disease progression. The S100-protein family has been involved in several malignancies as mediators of inflammation and proliferation. The hypothesis of our study is that S100A proteins are mediators in signaling pathways associated with inflammation-induced proliferation, such as NF-κB, PI3K/AKT, and JAK/STAT. The mononuclear cells (MNCs) of CLL were treated with proinflammatory IL-6, anti-inflammatory IL-10 cytokines, inhibitors of JAK1/2, NF-κB, and PI3K signaling pathways, to evaluate S100A4, S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 expression as well as NF-κB activation by qRT-PCR, immunocytochemistry, and immunoblotting. The quantity of S100A4, S100A8, and S100A9 positive cells (p < 0.05) and their protein expression (p < 0.01) were significantly decreased in MNCs of CLL patients compared to healthy controls. The S100A levels were generally increased in CD19+ cells compared to MNCs of CLL. The S100A4 gene expression was significantly stimulated (p < 0.05) by the inhibition of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway in MNCs. IL-6 stimulated S100A4 and S100A8 protein expression, prevented by the NF-κB and JAK1/2 inhibitors. In contrast, IL-10 reduced S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 protein expressions in MNCs of CLL. Moreover, IL-10 inhibited activation of NF-κB signaling (4-fold, p < 0.05). In conclusion, inflammation stimulated the S100A protein expression mediated via the proliferation-related signaling and balanced by the cytokines in CLL
Correlations of fatty acids profiles in erythrocyte phospholipids and estimated desaturases activities with cadiometabolic risk indicators in non-diabetic women
Get PDFUticaj vitamina D3 na regenerativni potencijal mezenhimskih matičnih ćelija kostne srži
No full textUloga vitamina D3 u regulaciji metabolizma kalcijuma i fosfora i posledično održavanju homeostaze i čvrstine kostiju je do danas dobro izučena. Poznato je da vitamin D3 ostvaruje efekte na različite tipove ćelija, uključujući i mezenhimske matične ćelije (MMĆ). Međutim, s obzirom da potencijal holekalciferola (VD3), prekursora vitamina D3, nije razjašnjen cilj naših istraživanja je bio ispitivanje uticaja VD3 na funkcionalna svojstva MMĆ kosne srži (KS-MMĆ). Pored toga, u cilju utvrđivanja potencijalnih mehanizama delovanja VD3, analizirana je aktivnost sirtuina 1 (SIRT1), enzima koji ima značajnu ulogu u regulaciji samoobnove i diferencijacije MMĆ. Dobijeni rezultati pokazaju da nakon 5 dana tretmana VD3 stimuliše proliferaciju, ekspresiju markera pluripotentnosti (NANOG, SOX2 i Oct4), kao i osteogenu diferencijaciju, dok inhibira senescenciju KS-MMĆ. Pored toga, pokazano je da VD3 dovodi do povećane ekspresije SIRT1 enzima koji posreduje u VD3-stimulisanoj osteogenezi i delimično u regulaciji matičnosti ovih ćelija, kroz stimulaciju NANOG i SOX2 markera. Suprotno, efekti VD3 na proliferaciju, ekspresiju Oct4 i senescencu nisu bili posredovani SIRT1 signalinim putem. Ovi rezultati ukazuju na snažan doprinos VD3 poboljšanju regenerativnog potencijala KS-MMĆ, ali i na neophodna dodatna istraživanja ekspresije VD3 receptora, 25-hidroksilaze i 1α- hidroksilaze u KS-MMĆ kako bi se VD3 mogao potencijalno primeniti kao faktor pretretmana KS-MMĆ u transplantaciji
Serološko ispitivanje leptospirospiroze pasa na teritoriji grada Beograda, Srbija
Get PDFCanine leptospirosis is a zoonosis caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Leptospira. Dogs are one of the animal species involved in the cycle of preservation and transmission of leptospirosis in urban areas. Serological testing for the presence of specific antibodies against Leptospira spp. in dogs was continuously performed between 2010 and 2020 in the city of Belgrade. At the request of the owners themselves, other veterinary laboratories or laboratory clinics, 179 blood sera from 179 dogs were examined in the Laboratory for Immunology, Scientific Institute of Veterinary Medicine of Serbia. Blood sera samples from dogs were examined using the standard microscopic agglutination test (MAT) for the presence of specific antibodies against seven different serovars of Leptospira: Pomona, Icterohaemorrhagiae, Grippotyphosa, Sejroe, Canicola, Bataviae, and Australis. The number of seropositive dogs was 17/179 (9.5%). Among all examined sera, the highest titre of seropositive samples was to serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae (10/17, 58.8%), followed by Pomona (4/17, 23.5%), and serovar Canicola (3/17, 17.6%). Specific antibodies for serovars Grippotyphosa, Sejroe, Bataviae and Australis were not detected in any of the dog sera. Cross-reaction (the presence of two or three titres with different values where one of them was higher than others) between different serovars was diagnosed in a low number of sera (n=4), with the following serovars: Icterohaemorrhagiae and Pomona (n=3) and Pomona and Canicola (n=1). The confirmed specific antibody titres for Leptospira spp. were between 1:100 to 1:3000 (5 sera had titres of 1:100, 7 had titres of 1:300, 4 had titres of 1:1000, and 1 serum had a titre 1:3000). Monitoring canine leptospirosis is a useful tool in preventing leptospirosis in Belgrade
Targeting Histone Deacetylases: Opportunities for Cancer Treatment and Chemoprevention
Get PDFThe dysregulation of gene expression is a critical event involved in all steps of tumorigenesis. Aberrant histone and non-histone acetylation modifications of gene expression due to the abnormal activation of histone deacetylases (HDAC) have been reported in hematologic and solid types of cancer. In this sense, the cancer-associated epigenetic alterations are promising targets for anticancer therapy and chemoprevention. HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) induce histone hyperacetylation within target proteins, altering cell cycle and proliferation, cell differentiation, and the regulation of cell death programs. Over the last three decades, an increasing number of synthetic and naturally derived compounds, such as dietary-derived products, have been demonstrated to act as HDACi and have provided biological and molecular insights with regard to the role of HDAC in cancer. The first part of this review is focused on the biological roles of the Zinc-dependent HDAC family in malignant diseases. Accordingly, the small-molecules and natural products such as HDACi are described in terms of cancer therapy and chemoprevention. Furthermore, structural considerations are included to improve the HDACi selectivity and combinatory potential with other specific targeting agents in bifunctional inhibitors and proteolysis targeting chimeras. Additionally, clinical trials that combine HDACi with current therapies are discussed, which may open new avenues in terms of the feasibility of HDACi’s future clinical applications in precision cancer therapies