Safety and Efficacy upon Infection in Sheep with Rift Valley Fever Virus ZH548-rA2, a Triple Mutant Rescued Virus

The introduction of three single nucleotide mutations into the genome of the virulent RVFV ZH548 strain allows for the rescue of a fully attenuated virus in mice (ZH548-rA2). These mutations are located in the viral genes encoding the RdRp and the non-structural protein NSs. This paper shows the results obtained after the subcutaneous inoculation of ZH548-rA2 in adult sheep and the subsequent challenge with the parental virus (ZH548-rC1). Inoculation with the ZH548-rA2 virus caused no detectable clinical or pathological effect in sheep, whereas inoculation of the parental rC1 virus caused lesions compatible with viral infection characterised by the presence of scattered hepatic necrosis. Viral infection was confirmed via immunohistochemistry, with hepatocytes within the necrotic foci appearing as the main cells immunolabelled against viral antigen. Furthermore, the inoculation of sheep with the rA2 virus prevented the liver damage expected after rC1 virus inoculation, suggesting a protective efficacy in sheep which correlated with the induction of both humoral and cell-mediated immune responses.

Differential Effect of Targeted Temperature Management Between 32 °C and 36 °C Following Cardiac Arrest According to Initial Severity of Illness: Insights From Two International Data Sets

BACKGROUND

Recent guidelines have emphasized actively avoiding fever to improve outcomes in patients who are comatose following resuscitation from cardiac arrest (ie, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest). However, whether targeted temperature management between 32 °C and 36 °C (TTM32-36) can improve neurologic outcome in some patients remains debated.

RESEARCH QUESTION

Is there an association between the use of TTM32-36 and outcome according to severity assessed at ICU admission using a previously derived risk score?

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Data prospectively collected in the Sudden Death Expertise Center (SDEC) registry (France) between May 2011 and December 2017 and in the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium Continuous Chest Compressions (ROC-CCC) trial (United States and Canada) between June 2011 and May 2015 were used for this study. Severity at ICU admission was assessed through a modified version of the Cardiac Arrest Hospital Prognosis (mCAHP) score, divided into tertiles of severity. The study explored associations between TTM32-36 and favorable neurologic status at hospital discharge by using multiple logistic regression as well as in tertiles of severity for each data set.

RESULTS

A total of 2,723 patients were analyzed in the SDEC data set and 4,202 patients in the ROC-CCC data set. A favorable neurologic status at hospital discharge occurred in 728 (27%) patients in the French data set and in 1,239 (29%) patients in the North American data set. Among the French data set, TTM32-36 was independently associated with better neurologic outcome in the tertile of patients with low (adjusted OR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.15-2.30; P = .006) and high (adjusted OR, 1.94; 95% CI, 1.06-3.54; P = .030) severity according to mCAHP at ICU admission. Similar results were observed in the North American data set (adjusted ORs of 1.36 [95% CI, 1.05-1.75; P = .020] and 2.42 [95% CI, 1.38-4.24; P = .002], respectively). No association was observed between TTM32-36 and outcome in the moderate groups of the two data sets.

INTERPRETATION

TTM32-36 was significantly associated with a better outcome in patients with low and high severity at ICU admission assessed according to the mCAHP score. Further studies are needed to evaluate individualized temperature control following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Helios negative Regulatory T-cells as a key factor of immune tolerance in non-allergic beekeepers

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Background: Although exposure to stings has been identified as the leading risk factor for anaphylaxis due to Hymenoptera venom allergy, professional beekeepers receive hundreds yearly without developing systemic reactions. Objective: This study aims to analyse the mechanisms underlying bee venom tolerance in beekeepers.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted. Participants were recruited and classified into three groups: allergic patients (AP) experiencing systemic reactions after bee stings, with a positive intradermal test and specific IgE (sIgE) to Apis mellifera venom (AmV); tolerant beekeepers (TBK) receiving ≥50 stings/year; and healthy non-exposed controls (HC). Serum levels of sIgE and specific IgG4 (sIgG4) to AmV, rApi m 1, rApi m 2, rApi m 3, Api m 4, rApi m 5 and rApi m10, as well as AmV-induced basophil degranulation, percentage of T-cell subsets, regulatory T-cells (Treg cells) and IL-10 production, were measured.

RESULTS

APs had high levels of sIgE to AmV and all its allergic components (p<0.001) together with a high basophil activation rate (p<0.001) compared to TBKs. Conversely, compared to APs, TBKs showed higher levels of sIgG4 (p<0.001) and IL-10 (p<0.001) as well as an enhanced CTLA-4+ Treg population (p=0.001), expanded Helios- Treg (p<0.003), and reduced T-helper 1 (p=0.008), T-helper 2 (p=0.004) and T-helper 17 (p=0.007) subsets.

CONCLUSIONS

A different profile, strongly marked by Treg activity, was found in TBKs. This natural tolerance would be led by the expansion of inducible Helios-Treg cells at a peripheral level. Helios-Treg population could be a novel candidate biomarker useful for monitoring tolerance.

131 In&nbsp;vitro nuclear maturation and blastocyst developmental rates after intracytoplasmic sperm injection of equine oocytes held for 24&thinsp;h at room temperature in Tyrode&rsquo;s albumin lactate pyruvate-Hepes (TALP-h) or in a commercial embryo holding medium

The interest in equine intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) for commercial and research applications has rapidly increased. Shipping immature oocytes at room temperature has been proven successful, and to identify the optimal conditions for holding oocytes, several mediums are being tested. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of holding equine oocytes in Tyrode’s albumin lactate pyruvate-Hepes (TALP-h, Bavister and Yanagimachi 1977 Biol. Reprod. 16, 228-237) medium or in commercial embryo holding medium (EHM, Syngro® Holding) on invitro nuclear maturation rates and pre-implantation embryo development after ICSI. Cumulus–oocyte complexes (COCs) were recovered from ovaries of slaughtered mares and assigned randomly in 2-mL cryovials with TALP-h or EHM, with a maximum of 30 oocytes per cryovial. COCs were shipped to the ICSI laboratory at 20 to 25°C for 24 to 28h followed by IVM for 24h in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 in air at 38.5°C. Maturation medium was TCM-199 with 10% fetal bovine serum, 1μL mL−1 insulin-transferrin-selenium, 1mM sodium pyruvate, 100mM cysteamine, and 0.1mg mL−1 FSH. After mechanical cumulus cell removal, nuclear maturation rate was assessed using a stereomicroscope. Oocytes with an intact oolemma and extrusion of the first polar body (PB) were classified as mature, oocytes without a visible PB were considered immature, and oocytes without an intact oolemma were considered degenerate. Matured oocytes were subjected to ICSI without piezo-drill system (one proved stallion) in 20-μL droplets of TALP-h with a 7-μm glass sharp micropipette in an inverted microscope (Nikon Eclipse TE-300 microscope) using hydraulic micromanipulators (Narishige, Medical Systems). Presumptive ICSI zygotes were cultured in DMEM F12/Global Total® with 6% fetal bovine serum for 9 days at 38.5°C in a humidified atmosphere of 5% O2 and 5% CO2 in air. On Day 5 of culture, cleavage was recorded and medium was refreshed. Blastocysts rates were recorded on Day 7 and 9 of culture. Invitro nuclear maturation rates are shown in Table 1. We observed a significantly higher proportion of immature oocytes in the EHM group compared with the TALP-h group. After ICSI of some matured oocytes of each group, no significant differences were observed in cleavage or blastocyst rate (Table 1). Our results suggest that either TALP-h or commercial embryo holding medium are suitable for oocyte shipping and to support blastocyst development after ICSI. Table 1. Invitro nuclear maturation rates and pre-implantation embryo development after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) Maturation rates Medium Oocytes Mature [n (%)] Immature [n (%)] Degenerate [n (%)] TALP-h 315 173 (54.9) 26 (8.3)a 116 (36.8) EHM 273 132 (48.4) 55 (20.1)b 86 (31.5) Total 588 305 (51.9) 81 (13.8) 202 (34.4) Embryo development ICSI (n) Cleaved [n (%)] Day 7 Blastocyst [n (%)] Day 9 Blastocyst [n (%)] TALP-h 35 23 (65.7) 7 (20) 9 (25.7) EHM 26 19 (73.1) 3 (11.5) 5 (19.2) Total 61 42 (68.9) 10 (16.4) 14 (23) a,bDifferent superscript letters indicate statistical significance (Fisher’s exact test, P&lt;0.05).

Antiviral drugs targeting endosomal membrane proteins inhibit distant animal and human pathogenic viruses

The endocytic pathway is a common strategy that several highly pathogenic viruses use to enter into the cell. To demonstrate the usefulness of this pathway as a common target for the development of broad-spectrum antivirals, the inhibitory effect of drug compounds targeting endosomal membrane proteins were investigated. This study entailed direct comparison of drug effectiveness against animal and human pathogenic viruses, namely Ebola (EBOV), African swine fever virus (ASFV), and the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

A panel of experimental and FDA-approved compounds targeting calcium channels and PIKfyve at the endosomal membrane caused potent reductions of entry up to 90% in SARS-CoV-2 S-protein pseudotyped retrovirus. Similar inhibition was observed against transduced EBOV glycoprotein pseudovirus and ASFV. SARS-CoV-2 infection was potently inhibited by selective estrogen receptor modulators in cells transduced with pseudovirus, among them Raloxifen inhibited ASFV with very low 50% inhibitory concentration. Finally, the mechanism of the inhibition caused by the latter in ASFV infection was analyzed.

Overall, this work shows that cellular proteins related to the endocytic pathway can constitute suitable cellular targets for broad range antiviral compounds.

Inhibition of Orbivirus Replication by Aurintricarboxylic Acid

Bluetongue virus (BTV) and African horse sickness virus (AHSV) are vector-borne viruses belonging to the Orbivirus genus, which are transmitted between hosts primarily by biting midges of the genus Culicoides. With recent BTV and AHSV outbreaks causing epidemics and important economy losses, there is a pressing need for efficacious drugs to treat and control the spread of these infections. The polyanionic aromatic compound aurintricarboxylic acid (ATA) has been shown to have a broad-spectrum antiviral activity. Here, we evaluated ATA as a potential antiviral compound against Orbivirus infections in both mammalian and insect cells. Notably, ATA was able to prevent the replication of BTV and AHSV in both cell types in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. In addition, we evaluated the effect of ATA in vivo using a mouse model of infection. ATA did not protect mice against a lethal challenge with BTV or AHSV, most probably due to the in vivo effect of ATA on immune system regulation. Overall, these results demonstrate that ATA has inhibitory activity against Orbivirus replication in vitro, but further in vivo analysis will be required before considering it as a potential therapy for future clinical evaluation.

Rheological fingerprinting as an effective tool to guide development of personal care formulations

OBJECTIVE

Conventional rheological techniques in the linear viscoelastic region provide insights about the spatial configuration of the microstructural components of personal care formulations in their 'at-rest' state. However, they fail to describe the textural experience associated with large and fast deformations during daily consumer application. In this study we present a non-conventional rheological technique-large amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS)-for probing the transformation of a material during its application. This technique is proposed a practical tool for formulators in their efforts to design products with desired textural attributes.

METHODS

A non-linear rheological technique termed LAOS was utilized to capture the textural expression perceived by consumers. Lissajous plots (stress vs. strain or strain rate) provide a fingerprint of the formula and are utilized to both analyse the thickening mechanism and monitor the influence of various parameters, such as the chemistry, molecular properties, colloidal parameters and processing conditions.

RESULTS

In this study, we showcased several approaches for modifying the texture of personal care formulations and show the influence of various parameters on the characteristics of the Lissajous curves and their relation to sensorial perception. This fingerprinting technique shows that increasing the molecular weight or hydrophobic modification boosts the elasticity and thickening efficiency of a given polymer. Differences in the chemistry of rheological ingredients also influence the characteristic Lissajous fingerprint. In high concentration surfactant systems, which tend to form worm-like micelles, their unique Lissajous fingerprints indicate structure rebuild because of fast kinetics at large but slow deformations. Analysis of lamellar gel-based hair conditioner formulations demonstrates the unique high yield stress of these types of materials, accompanied by the fast breakdown transition from a solid to viscous structure because of their crystalline lamellar gel structure.

CONCLUSION

The LAOS technique presented in this article is intended to better capture the textural expression perceived by consumers. Lissajous plots-generated from the LAOS experimental data-provide a fingerprint of the tested formula and are utilized to both analyse the thickening mechanism and monitor the influence of various parameters, such as the chemistry and molecular weight of the thickener, pH of the formula medium and influence of other ingredients in the formula (surfactants, emulsifiers, etc.).

P959Influence of complex reentrant atrial circuits on tachycardia cycle length

Funding Acknowledgements

NA

OnBehalf

NA

Background

Ablation of left atrial reentrant tachycardias (ART) is challenging since they usually occur in the setting of complex diseased atrial tissue either in patients with structural heart disease or after ablation of atrial fibrillation. In these cases, scarred tissue or previous ablation lines make the circuits more complex. We have developed a mapping approach in which an activation map that only contains the active circuit is generated from entrainment maneuvers.

Purpose

To describe the electrophysiological characteristics of the circuits in patients with structural heart disease and previous left atrial ablation.

Methods

Consecutive patients with documented atypical flutter were included. A high density activation map was generated during the index arrhythmia and subsequently, entrainment maneuvers were performed to delineate the active circuit.

Results

Seventeen patients (82% males, average age 62+-7 years, 59% structural heart disease and 53% with a previous left atrial ablation) underwent 20 procedures. Twenty-one circuits were identified (20 in the left atrium and 1 in the right atrium).  Of all LA circuits, 15 were macroreentrant (8 roof dependent, 4 perimitral and 3 related to a gap after AF ablation. Four out of 5 microreentrant circuits were related to the left atrial appendage and 1 was identified in the septum. Overall, procedural duration and fluoroscopy time was 176 ± 55 minutes and 27 ± 13 minutes, respectively. Roof-dependent ARTs and gap-related ARTs after AF ablation exhibited a significantly longer TCL (359 ± 99 ms and 331 ± 47 ms, respectively, p &lt; 0,05) than perimitral, microreentrant and RA circuits (279 ± 50 ms; 277 ± 36 ms; and 260 ms, respectively). Extensive areas of low voltage (&lt;0.3 mV) were identified in all patients with LA circuits.

Conclusions

The cycle length of complex atrial reentrant tachycardias is apparently related to the location and characteristics of the circuits. This feature can be of help at the time of approaching the mapping and ablation of this tachycardias.

1321From high-density mapping to low-density mapping: an approach to delineate the active circuit in complex atrial reentrant tachycardias

Funding Acknowledgements

NA

OnBehalf

NA

Background

High-density activation maps during complex atrial reentrant tachycardias are challenging to interpret as they include the activation patterns of active and passive circuits. Entrainment mapping provides the identification of the active tachycardia circuit. However, current electroanatomic mapping systems are not capable to color-coded the information obtained from entrainment maneuvers.

Objectives

 We sought to describe a mapping approach for ablation of complex atrial reentrant tachycardias in which high-density activation maps are transformed into low-density activation maps only displaying the active part of the tachycardia circuit.

Methods

We included consecutive patients with atypical atrial flutter. A high-density activation map was acquired during the index tachycardia. Subsequently, entrainment maneuvers were performed to generate a low-density activation map in which only the activation of the atria directly involved in the flutter circuit was displayed.

Results

 Seventeen patients were included 82%  male, mean age was 62 ± 7 years. Structural heart disease was present in 59% and 53% had a prior left atrial ablation procedure. Low-density activation maps were successfully generated from an average of  14 ± 3 entrainment points. Twenty circuits (95%) were identified in the left atrium and 1 (5%) in the right atrium. Ablation guided by low-density mapping successfully terminated all ARTs in 267 ± 353 seconds of radiofrequency application.

Conclusion

Low-density mapping based on entrainment maneuvers provides a precise delineation of the active circuit during complex ARTs and resulted in successful arrhythmia termination. This approach can be easily incorporated into clinical practice.

Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: a registry study

Aims

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) without return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) despite conventional resuscitation is common and has poor outcomes. Adding extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (extracorporeal-CPR) is increasingly used in an attempt to improve outcomes.

Methods and results

We analysed a prospective registry of 13 191 OHCAs in the Paris region from May 2011 to January 2018. We compared survival at hospital discharge with and without extracorporeal-CPR and identified factors associated with survival in patients given extracorporeal-CPR. Survival was 8% in 525 patients given extracorporeal-CPR and 9% in 12 666 patients given conventional-CPR (P = 0.91). By adjusted multivariate analysis, extracorporeal-CPR was not associated with hospital survival [odds ratio (OR), 1.3; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 0.8–2.1; P = 0.24]. By conditional logistic regression with matching on a propensity score (including age, sex, occurrence at home, bystander CPR, initial rhythm, collapse-to-CPR time, duration of resuscitation, and ROSC), similar results were found (OR, 0.8; 95% CI, 0.5–1.3; P = 0.41). In the extracorporeal-CPR group, factors associated with hospital survival were initial shockable rhythm (OR, 3.9; 95% CI, 1.5–10.3; P = 0.005), transient ROSC before ECMO (OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.1–4.7; P = 0.03), and prehospital ECMO implantation (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.5–5.9; P = 0.002).

Conclusions

In a population-based registry, 4% of OHCAs were treated with extracorporeal-CPR, which was not associated with increased hospital survival. Early ECMO implantation may improve outcomes. The initial rhythm and ROSC may help select patients for extracorporeal-CPR.

Randomised clinical trial: a leucine-metformin-sildenafil combination (NS-0200) vs placebo in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

BACKGROUND

Sirtuin 1 (Sirt1) is suppressed in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), while its' stimulation or overexpression results in reduced disease severity in pre-clinical NAFLD models. Leucine allosterically activates Sirt1 and synergise with other Sirt/AMPK/NO pathway activators. We developed a triple combination of leucine, metformin and sildenafil (NS-0200), which was effective in a mouse model of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

AIM

To report the results from a Phase 2, randomised clinical trial of of NS-0200 in 91 subjects with NAFLD (liver fat ≥15% by magnetic resonance imaging-proton-density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF)).

METHODS

Subjects were randomised to placebo, low-dose (1.1 g leucine/0.5 g metformin/0.5 mg sildenafil) or high-dose NS-0200 (1.1 g leucine/0.5 g metformin/1.0 mg sildenafil) b.d. for 16 weeks; change in hepatic fat was assessed via MRI-PDFF, and lipid metabolism was assessed via changes in the lipidomic signature. Seventy subjects completed the trial and met a priori compliance criteria. Analyses were conducted on the full cohort and on those with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) values above median (50 U/L; n = 35).

RESULTS

In the full cohort, active treatments did not separate from placebo. High dose NS-0200 reduced hepatic fat by 15.7% (relative change from baseline) in the high ALT group (P < 0.005) while low dose NS-0200 and placebo did not significantly change hepatic fat. Lipidomic analysis showed dose-responsive treatment effects in both overall and high ALT cohorts, with significant decreases in metabolically active lipids and up-regulation of fatty acid oxidation.

CONCLUSION

These data support further evaluation of high-dose NS-0200 for treating NASH, especially in those with elevated ALT (NCT 02546609).

Uncovering the contribution of epigenetics to plant phenotypic variation in Mediterranean ecosystems

Epigenetic signals can affect plant phenotype and fitness and be stably inherited across multiple generations. Epigenetic regulation plays a key role in the mechanisms of plant response to the environment, without altering DNA sequence. As plants cannot adapt behaviourally or migrate instantly, such dynamic epigenetic responses may be particularly crucial for survival of plants within changing and challenging environments, such as the Mediterranean-Type Ecosystems (MTEs). These ecosystems suffer recurrent stressful events (warm and dry summers with associated fire regimes) that have selected for plants with similar phenotypic complex traits, resulting in similar vegetation growth forms. However, the potential role of epigenetics in plant adaptation to recurrent stressful environments such as the MTEs has generally been ignored. To understand the full spectrum of adaptive processes in such contexts, it is imperative to prompt study of the causes and consequences of epigenetic variation in natural populations. With this purpose, we review here current knowledge on epigenetic variation in natural populations and the genetic and epigenetic basis of some key traits for plants in the MTEs, namely those traits involved in adaptation to drought, fire and oligotrophic soils. We conclude there is still much to be learned about 'plant epigenetics in the wild' and, thus, we propose future research steps in the study of natural epigenetic variation of key traits in the MTEs at different scales.

Patterns and sources of variation in pollen deposition and pollen tube formation in flowers of the endemic monoecious shrub Cnidoscolus souzae (Euphorbiaceae)

Pollen deposition and pollen tube formation are key components of angiosperm reproduction but intraspecific variation in these has rarely been quantified. Documenting and partitioning (populations, plants and flowers) natural variation in these two aspects of plant reproduction can help uncover spatial mosaics of reproductive success and underlying causes. In this study, we assess variation in pollen deposition and pollen tube formation for the endemic monoecious shrub Cnidoscolus souzae throughout its distribution range in Mexico, and determine how this variation is structured among populations, plants and flowers. We also infer the relative importance of pollen quantity and quality in determining pollination success in this species. While we found no evidence suggesting that pollen receipt limits C. souzae reproduction across 19 populations, we did find extensive variation in pollen load size and pollen tube number per flower. Total variation in pollen receipt and pollen tube number was mostly explained by intra-individual and among-population variance. Furthermore, pollen load size had a stronger effect on the number of pollen tubes at the base of the style than pollen germination rate, suggesting that pollen quantity may be more important than quality for pollen tube success in C. souzae. Our results suggest that both small within-plant flower differences and broad-scale differences in community attributes can play an important role in determining pollination success. We emphasise the need to evaluate patterns and sources of variation in pollen deposition and pollen tube formation as a first step in understanding the causes of variation in pollination success over broad spatial scales.

Skin penetration and antioxidant effect of cosmeto-textiles with gallic acid

In this work, the antioxidant gallic acid (GA) has been encapsulated in microspheres prepared with poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL) and incorporated into polyamide (PA) obtaining the cosmeto-textile. The topical application of the cosmeto-textile provides a reservoir effect in the skin delivery of GA. The close contact of the cosmeto-textile, containing microsphere-encapsulated GA (ME-GA), with the skin and their corresponding occlusion, may be the main reasons that explain the crossing of active principle (GA) through the skin barrier, located in the stratum corneum, and its penetration into the different compartments of the skin, epidermis and dermis. An ex vivo assessment was performed to evaluate the antioxidant effect of the ME-GA on the stratum corneum (SC) using the thiobarbituric acid-reactive species (TBARS) test. The test is based on a non-invasive ex vivo methodology that evaluates lipid peroxides formed in the outermost layers of the SC from human volunteers after UV radiation to determine the effectiveness of an antioxidant. In this case, a ME-GA cosmeto-textile or ME-GA formulation were applied to the skin in vivo and lipid peroxidation (LPO) in the horny layer were determined after UV irradiation. This methodology may be used as a quality control tool to determine ex vivo the percentage of LPO inhibition on human SC for a variety of antioxidants that are topically applied, in this case GA. Results show that LPO formation was inhibited in human SC when GA was applied directly or embedded in the cosmeto-textile, demonstrating the effectiveness of both applications. The percentage of LPO inhibition obtained after both topical applications was approximately 10% for the cosmeto-textile and 41% for the direct application of microspheres containing GA. This methodology could be used to determine the effectiveness of topically applied antioxidants encapsulated in cosmeto-textiles on human SC.

Influence of vehicles on antioxidant efficacy in hair

Microspheres are the best vehicle to increase the antioxidant efficacy of gallic acid in hair.

Sex-specific phenotypic selection and geographic variation in gender divergence in a gynodioecious shrub

In sexually polymorphic plant species the extent of gender divergence in floral morphology and phenology may be influenced by gender-specific selection patterns imposed by pollinators, which may change geographically. Distribution margins are areas where changes in the pollinator fauna, and thus variation in gender divergence of floral traits, are expected. We tested for pollination-driven geographic variation in the gender divergence in floral and phenological traits in the gynodioecious shrub Daphne laureola, in core and marginal areas differing in the identity of the main pollinator. Pollinators selected for longer corolla tubes in hermaphrodite individuals only in core populations, which in turn recorded higher fruit set. Consistent with these phenotypic selection patterns, gender divergence in flower corolla length was higher in core populations. Moreover, pollinators selected towards delayed flowering on hermaphrodite individuals only in marginal populations, where the two sexes differed more in flowering time. Our results support that a shift in main pollinators is able to contribute to geographic variation in the gender divergence of sexually polymorphic plant species.

A179L, a new viral Bcl2 homolog targeting Beclin 1 autophagy related protein

Autophagy is a relevant cellular defense mechanism that directly eliminates intracellular pathogens and has a crucial role for innate and adaptive immune responses. Some viruses have developed tools to counteract this cellular response. A179L, the viral Bcl2 homolog of African swine fever virus, interacts with proapoptotic Bcl2 family proteins to inhibit apoptosis. Here we report that this gene manipulates autophagy by interacting with Beclin 1 through its BH3 homology domain. At subcellular level, A179L colocalized with Beclin 1 at mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum. Virus infection inhibited autophagosome formation in cells; however, when autophagy was induced prior to or at the time of infection the number of infected cells was severely decreased.