Genetically engineered eucalyptus expressing pesticidal proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis for insect resistance: a risk assessment evaluation perspective

Eucalyptus covers approximately 7.5 million hectares in Brazil and serves as the primary woody species cultivated for commercial purposes. However, native insects and invasive pests pose a significant threat to eucalyptus trees, resulting in substantial economic losses and reduced forest productivity. One of the primary lepidopteran pests affecting eucalyptus is Thyrinteina arnobia (Stoll, 1782) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae), commonly referred to as the brown looper caterpillar. To address this issue, FuturaGene, the biotech division of Suzano S.A., has developed an insect-resistant (IR) eucalyptus variety, which expresses Cry pesticidal proteins (Cry1Ab, Cry1Bb, and Cry2Aa), derived from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Following extensive safety assessments, including field trials across various biomes in Brazil, the Brazilian National Technical Commission of Biosafety (CTNBio) recently approved the commercialization of IR eucalyptus. The biosafety assessments involved the analysis of molecular genomics, digestibility, thermostability, non-target organism exposure, degradability in the field, and effects on soil microbial communities and arthropod communities. In addition, in silico studies were conducted to evaluate allergenicity and toxicity. Results from both laboratory and field studies indicated that Bt eucalyptus is as safe as the conventional eucalyptus clone for humans, animals, and the environment, ensuring the secure use of this insect-resistant trait in wood production.

Phenomenology of religious obsessive – compulsive disorder

Introduction

The occurrence of religious symptoms in obsessive compulsive disorder OCD patients ranges from 0% up to 93%. Although, frequent and influential nature of these symptoms, the explanations of its complexity and phenomenology are deficient in the literature.

Objectives

Determine the most frequent OC religious symptoms among OCD patients. Assess relation between the frequent symptoms of religious OCD and depression.

Methods

Cross-sectional study was conducted among 115 consented patients diagnosed as OCD according to DSM-IV. Patients were recruited in one year from Psychiatric clinics, Zagazig University, Egypt. Psychiatric interview and psychometric assessment using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and OC religious symptom scale [1] were done.

Results

The majority of patients (57.4%) had various religious OC symptoms. About 44% had doubts in religion in general (e.g. existence of God) and 11.3% had Blasphemous ideas. More than one third reported doubts about performing prayers and ablution perfectly; 34.8% repeatedly claimed they forgot to declare intention to pray, 36.5% had doubts about violating their ablution and 29.6% were skeptical about doing all ablution duties. Moreover, 23.5% reported slow or repeated readings in prayers, 25.2% had suspicions of breaking their fasting. A strong correlation between religious OC symptoms and total score of OC symptoms scale was confirmed. Most of our patients showed positive correlation between degree of depression and total score OC symptoms scale.

Conclusions

Muslim patient present with specific phenomenology of religious OC symptoms. These symptoms are very frequent and negatively influencing their mood.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Stem Cell Factor and Interleukin-31 Expression: Association with IgE among Egyptian Patients with Atopic and Nonatopic Bronchial Asthma

Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder which remains a significant cause of morbidity. Recently, it has been reported that the stem cell factor (SCF) and interleukin-31 (IL-31) may play a major role in bronchial asthma. The aim of the current study was to study the association of the stem cell factor and interleukin-31 expression with serum immunoglobulin E among Egyptian patients with atopic and nonatopic bronchial asthma. After measuring serum IgE using total enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Ribonucleic acid (RNA) was isolated to determine gene expression of SCF and IL-31 by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The levels of SCF mRNAs in atopic asthmatic patients' PBMCs were significantly higher than those in controls (p = 0.0001**) and nonatopic asthmatics (p = 0.0001**). There was a high statistical significant difference also with regard to IL-31 between atopic asthmatics and controls (p = 0.0001**) and between them and nonatopic patients (p = 0.014*). There was a strong significant direct correlation between SCF, IL-31 (r = 0.827 and p = 0.0001**) and between both of them and IgE in asthmatics (r = 0.543 and p = 0.0001**) (r = 0.443 and p = 0.0001**), respectively. A direct correlation between SCF, IL-31 and FEV-1/ FVC %, CRP and wheezing existed. These findings suggest that both SCF and IL-31 play an important role in mediating inflammation and enhancing severity of atopic asthma. Augmented inhaled glucocorticoid therapy was associated with significant reductions in SCF and IL-31 mRNA expression as well as improvements in lung function, symptom scores and bronchial hyperresponsiveness to methacholine (PD20) in atopic and nonatopic asthmatics.

Advances in inflammatory bowel diseases in children

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic gastrointestinal condition that burdens the lives of many children around the world. It is characterized by chronic gastrointestinal inflammation. Crohn's disease (CD), ulcerative colitis and IBD-unknown are the three types of this disease. The management of children with inflammatory bowel disease is complex and requires skill, knowledge and experience with current advances in the field. Over the past several years, there have been a number of achievements and progress made in the care and management of this disorder. The diagnostic tools have greatly improved. The therapeutic armamentarium has expanded. The genetics of IBD has become more detailed and the role of the gut microbiome has been better defined. The evolution of biological agents has revolutionized the way we approach this disease. This review highlights the recent advances in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease and provides an overview for clinicians caring for children with this disorder.

Registry of the clinical characteristics of spondyloarthritis in a cohort of Egyptian population

The aim of this study was to characterize the socioeconomic features, as well as disease activity and functional status, treatment use, and quality of life in a cohort of Egyptian population. All are measured by standard instruments. This is a descriptive multicenter; cross-sectional study included consecutive patients with spondyloarthritis (SpAs) diagnosed according to the European spondyloarthritis study group criteria. Four Egyptian centers participated (one from the Upper Egypt, one from the Delta, and two from the West Coast), all adopted the same criteria for patient assessment, and data were collected in the same data base over a 12-month duration. A total of 75 patients were included in the study. The series consisted of 34 ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients (64%), 23 patients with psoriatic arthritis (45.3%), 15 patients with Juvenile onset AS (18.7%), 2 patients with reactive arthritis (2.7%), and one with inflammatory bowel disease-related arthritis (1.3%). There was predominance of male patients (84%). All were Caucasians; 13% from the Upper Egypt, and 87% from the Delta and West coast Egypt. Their mean age was 37.44 ± 12.8 years; mean disease duration was 11.85 ± 9.27 years. Pure axial disease was reported by 24% of the patients, and pure peripheral involvement was observed in 4%, while the mixed pattern (axial, peripheral, and entheseal) was observed in 34%. Dactylitis was detected in 9.3%, tarsitis in 8%, and enthesitis in 29.3%. The most common extra-articular manifestation was anterior uveitis, reported by 5.3% of patients. Human leukocytic antigen B27 (HLA-B27) was positive in 58.7% of the tested patients (n = 29). Mean Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease activity Index (BASDAI) score was 4.16 ± 2.12, of which 22 patients had a score more than 4; mean Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index 5.12 ± 2.40, mean BASMI 4.17 ± 2.95, mean BAS-GI 5.92 ± 2.00, and mean Health assessment questionnaire 1.10 ± 0.65. In addition, patients with AS showed a higher incapacity for work, felt more pain and presented more axial affection than others. The most utilized treatments were the conventional drugs including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, followed by sulfasalazine (50%), methotrexate (14%), and steroids (6%). Tumor necrosis factor-alpha inhibitors were received by 7 patients (14%), mostly in the form of Infliximab (85.7%) and were used by only 38.7% of patients with BASDAI of 4 or more. This registry provides the first clinical and demographic data of SpA patients in Egypt upon which a large-scale database registration can be initiated. The most frequently diagnosed SpA in Egyptian patients was AS, with mainly combined axial and peripheral involvement. The clinical spectrum of SpAs seen among Egyptians is similar to most other registries; however, Egyptian AS patients showed some differences in the clinical manifestations. The low frequency of HLA-B27 and the clinical variations in AS may be due to different genetic and/or environmental factors in Egypt.

In vivo regulation of chromogranin A messenger ribonucleic acid in the parathyroid by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D: studies in normal rats and in chronic renal insufficiency

Chromogranin-A (CgA) and PTH are the two major secretory products of the parathyroid gland. In vitro, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3] increases CgA, but decreases PTH messenger RNA (mRNA) levels. We investigated the physiological significance of the induced changes in CgA expression by examining the effects of 1,25-(OH)2D3 on parathyroid CgA mRNA levels in vivo. Normal rats were injected with 1,25-(OH)2D3 at 48 and 24 h before blood sampling and isolation of both parathyroid glands. Parathyroid total RNA was extracted and CgA and PTH mRNA quantified by Northern blot analysis. CgA mRNA levels increased 1.6-, 3.2- and 5.6-fold, whereas PTH mRNA levels decreased by 37, 63 and 97%, respectively, with 1,25-(OH)2D3 doses of 10, 50, and 250 pmol/100 g BW. Parathyroid gland CgA expression also was examined in rats with mild chronic renal insufficiency, induced by a 5/6 nephrectomy 5 weeks earlier. Chronic renal insufficiency rats, fed normal chow, had elevated serum urea, creatinine, and PTH levels and reduced 1,25-(OH)2D3 but normal serum levels of calcium and phosphate. PTH mRNA levels were elevated 4-fold and CgA mRNA levels were 50% lower in the uremic animals. This indicates that the regulation of CgA expression in normocalcemic rats occurs at physiological 1,25-(OH)2D3 concentrations. In summary, increases and decreases in serum 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels are associated with corresponding increases and decreases in CgA mRNA levels in the parathyroid glands of rats. Therefore, this study is the first to demonstrate the physiological relevance of the earlier in vitro observations.

Role of the RET proto-oncogene in sporadic hyperparathyroidism and in hyperparathyroidism of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2

Parathyroid tumors occur either sporadically or as part of inherited syndromes such as multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) types 2A and 2B. The development of both of these familial syndromes has been related to specific germline gain-of-function mutations predominantly in exons 10 and 11 (MEN 2A) and 16 (MEN 2B) of the RET proto-oncogene. The same mutations have also been implicated in the pathogenesis of sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma and sporadic pheochromocytoma. The RET mutations are thought to have a transforming effect only in cells of neural crest origin such as thyroid parafollicular (C-cells) and adrenal chromaffin cells, which normally express the RET proto-oncogene. Expression of RET messenger RNA has not yet been studied in the parathyroid, however, we demonstrate in this study by a sensitive, semiquantitative RT-PCR technique and in situ hybridization, that RET is expressed in MEN 2A parathyroid tumors and in sporadic adenomas. Although DNA from a parathyroid tumor of a MEN 2A patient displayed an expected mutation, none of the previously described MEN 2A or 2B mutations were found in DNA of 34 sporadic adenomas. Our data suggest that parathyroid disease is an integral part of the MEN 2A syndrome, but that MEN 2 mutations in RET rarely play a part in the pathogenesis of sporadic parathyroid tumors.

Mapping of the calcium-sensing receptor gene (CASR) to human chromosome 3q13.3-21 by fluorescence in situ hybridization, and localization to rat chromosome 11 and mouse chromosome 16

The calcium-sensing receptor (CASR), a member of the G-protein coupled receptor family, is expressed in both parathyroid and kidney, and aids these organs in sensing extracellular calcium levels. Inactivating mutations in the CASR gene have been described in familial hypocalciuric hypercalcemia (FHH) and neonatal severe hyperparathyroidism (NSHPT). Activating mutations in the CASR gene have been described in autosomal dominant hypoparathyroidism and familial hypocalcemia. The human CASR gene was mapped to Chromosome (Chr) 3q13.3-21 by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). By somatic cell hybrid analysis, the gene was localized to human Chr 3 (hybridization to other chromosomes was not observed) and rat Chr 11. By interspecific backcross analysis, the Casr gene segregated with D16Mit4 on mouse Chr 16. These findings extend our knowledge of the synteny conservation of human Chr 3, rat Chr 11, and mouse Chr 16.

Biochemical changes induced in human plasma by its lipoprotein lipase

1. Incubation of human citrated plasma with a concentrate of lipoprotein lipase (separated from the same plasma pool), for 6 hr at 37 degree C and pH 7.0, caused a marked decrease in the concentrations of calcium, triglycerides, total phosphorus, lipid phosphorus and total fatty acids. 2. There was a concomitant increase in the concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids and inorganic phosphorus which were presumably formed by enzymatic hydrolysis of triglycerides and lipid phosphorus. 3. These changes in human plasma, induced by its lipoprotein lipase, were quantitatively comparable to the same changes which have been previously reported in liquid plasma between the 1st and 2nd months of storage at room temperature.