The role of lateral and vertical herkogamy in the divergence of the blue- and red-flowered lineages of Lysimachia arvensis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Herkogamy, or anther-stigma separation, is known to reduce self-pollen deposition, but little is known about the relative efficacy of different modes or conformations of herkogamy. We assessed the effectiveness of vertical versus lateral herkogamy in preventing or promoting self-pollen deposition in the annual herb Lysimachia arvensis, a plant with lineages that differ in flower colour, and in which flowers first display lateral and then vertical herkogamy. Because mating between the two lineages compromises fitness through the production of low-quality hybrid offspring, we tested the prediction that individuals sampled from sites occupied by both lineages should have flowers that promote autonomous self-pollen deposition and self-fertilization as a result of selection to reduce deleterious reproductive interference. METHODS: We characterized variation in herkogamy within and among 25 pure and mixed populations of L. arvensis in its European range and assessed the effectiveness of lateral versus vertical herkogamy in avoiding self-pollen deposition. RESULTS: Lateral herkogamy was more effective than vertical herkogamy in limiting self-pollen deposition. In the case of vertical herkogamy, only approach herkogamy was effective. Lineages showed consistent differences in herkogamy traits. In general, angles were smaller for blue than red flowers in most populations, and blue flowers showed approach herkogamy, while red flowers showed predominantly reverse herkogamy. In sympatry, the red lineage showed a reduction of both herkogamy traits while for the blue lineage only lateral herkogamy was reduced. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate that pollen deposition is affected not only by the degree but also the spatial conformation of herkogamy. They also highlight reduced herkogamy as a potential mechanism for promoting reproductive assurance under pollen limitation, as well as for avoiding reproductive interference between genetically divergent lineages.

The transversus abdominis plane block reduces the cumulative need of analgesic medication following inguinal hernia repair in TAPP technique: a retrospective single center analysis among 838 patients.

PURPOSE: Laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair (IHR) may lead to early postoperative pain. Therefore, opioid and non-opioid analgesic agents are often administered in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). To reduce the postoperative cumulative need of analgesic medication, as well as to accelerate the physical recovery time, the transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block has recently been studied. The TAP block is a regional anesthesia technique. Even though there is evidence about the efficacy of the block used in procedure such as an open inguinal hernia repair, the evidence regarding its use for the TAPP (transabdominal preperitoneal) technique remains low. We aim to provide more sufficient evidence regarding this topic. METHODS: A monocentric retrospective observational study investigating the effect of the TAP block prior to primary IHR in TAPP technique was conducted. The data of 838 patients who were operated on using this technique from June 2007 to February 2019 were observed. 72 patients were excluded because of insufficient information regarding their analgesic medication protocol. The patients' data were taken from their files. RESULTS: The patients in the TAP block group (n = 364) did not differ statistically significantly compared to the control group (n = 402) in terms of gender, BMI and age. Individuals of the TAP block group experienced less postoperative pain in the PACU (p < 0.001) and received less analgesic medication (morphine, oxycodone, piritramide, acetaminophen; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: We assume that the TAP block is a sufficient approach to reduce postoperative pain and analgesic medication administration for IHR in TAPP technique.

Efficacy and safety of bexarotene combined with psoralen-ultraviolet A (PUVA) compared with PUVA treatment alone in stage IB-IIA mycosis fungoides: final results from the EORTC Cutaneous Lymphoma Task Force phase III randomized clinical trial (NCT00056056).

BACKGROUND: Psoralen plus ultraviolet A (PUVA) is the standard treatment for early stages of mycosis fungoides. There have been no adequate randomized controlled trials with sufficient power comparing this modality with other therapies. OBJECTIVE: To assess disease response and to compare the response rates of patients treated with PUVA alone or PUVA and bexarotene. METHODS: EORTC 21011 (NCT 00056056) was a randomized phase III study comparing combined bexarotene (Targretin(®) ) and PUVA vs. PUVA alone in patients with stage IB and IIA mycosis fungoides (MF). The primary endpoint was the overall response rate [complete clinical response (CCR) plus partial response (PR)]. RESULTS: The study was prematurely closed due to low accrual after 93 of 145 required patients (65%) were randomized. Of the 93 randomized patients, 87 started treatment, 41 received PUVA and 46 received PUVA + bexarotene. Total UVA doses received were 107 J cm(-2) (range 1·4-489·9) in the PUVA arm vs. 101·7 J cm(-2) (0·2-529·9) in the combination arm. The safety profile was acceptable with few grade 3-4 toxicities observed in either arm. More drop-outs due to toxicity were observed in the combination arm compared with the PUVA-alone arm. The best overall response (CCR + PR) rate was 71% for PUVA alone and 77% for the combination arm (P = 0·57). The median duration of response was 9·7 months for PUVA vs. 5·8 months for the combination arm (P = 0·33). CCR was seen in 25 patients of whom 10 received PUVA alone (CCR 22%) and 15 received combination therapy (CCR 31%) (P = 0·45). CCR was sustained in 25% of patients regardless of therapy. There was a trend towards fewer PUVA sessions needed to achieve CCR in the combination arm (median 22) compared with the PUVA arm (median 27·5) (P = 0·11). Similarly, a trend towards lower UVA dose required to achieve CCR in the combination arm (median 55·8 J cm(-2) ) compared with the PUVA arm alone (median 117·5 J cm(-2) ) (P = 0·5) was observed. CONCLUSIONS: No significant difference in response rate or response duration was observed in this study. However, there was a trend towards fewer PUVA sessions and lower UVA dose required to achieve CCR in the combination arm (PUVA + bexarotene) but this did not achieve statistical significance due to insufficient power.

Persistently low fruiting success in the Mediterranean pipevine Aristolochia baetica (Aristolochiaceae): a multi-year study.

Low fruit set is common in many plant species and may be caused by a variety of factors, such as predation, resource limitation or deficient pollination, or it may be an evolutionary strategy. In this paper, we investigate factors that affect fruit set in Aristolochia baetica (Aristolochiaceae), a Mediterranean pipevine found in southwest Spain. Fruit production was monitored in two populations over 4 years (2002-2005), and the causes of flower or fruit loss were determined. Experimental hand-pollinations were performed, and germinated pollen grains on the stigmas of open-pollinated flowers were quantified. Fruit set was always very low (4-14%). Floral abscission initially reduced reproductive output by more than 50%; then herbivory (6-12%) and fruit abortion (8-26%) caused further reductions. Given that the number of efficiently pollinated flowers was always higher than that of ripe fruits, and that xenogamous hand-pollination did not increase fruit set in relation to open-pollination, the final fruit production of A. baetica seems not to be pollen-limited. Fruit abortion of effectively pollinated flowers supports the idea that resource availability limits fruit set. In A. baetica, fruit abortion could lead to mate selection of the best quality fruits. Moreover, the initiated fruits that finally abort could also satiate predators, contributing to increase progeny fitness.

Prurito / Pruritus

El prurito es la causa más común de consulta en Dermatología. En el presente articulo se hace una revisión de los estudios más relevantes sobre el prurito y se revisan la fisiopatogenia y la relación con enfermedades de distinto tipo. Es importante recalcar la relación entre el prurito y la respuesta del SNC, en lo que se ha llamado la inflamación neurobiológica. Establecemos una forma racional de enfrentar el prurito tanto desde el punto de vista de laboratorio como de terapéutica.

Pruritus is the most common symptom in dermatology. We present a review of the most relevant studies of pruritus its physiopathology and relations with other types of diseases. It is important to emphasize the relation between pruritus the CNS in what is known as neurobiological. Additionally we. Additionally we propase a rational means of facing pruritus from both laboratory and therapeutic perspectives.

Características del consumo y aporte de energía y nutrientes de una papilla a la dieta de niños de 6 a 36 meses de edad beneficiarios de un programa de complementación alimentaria / Characteristics of energy and nutrient intake and supply with the addition of papilla to diet in 6 to 36 month old children who participate in a complementary feeding program

Objetivo: Describir las características del consumo y aporte de energía y nutrientes de una papilla en la dieta de niños de 6 a 36 meses de edad beneficiarios de un Programa de Complementación Alimentaria. Materiales y Métodos: El diseño fue descriptivo y transversal. Se aplicó el método retrospectivo de recordatorio del consumo de alimentos de 24 horas. La muestra estuvo conformada por 432 niños beneficiarios del programa. Los requerimientos y recomendaciones de energía y nutrientes fueron determinados a partir de lo establecido por FAO/OMS/ONU para energía y proteínas, y por RDA para hierro y vitamina A. Resultados: El 42,1 por ciento de los beneficiarios de 6 a 11 meses cubrieron en promedio menos de 90 por ciento de sus requerimientos energéticos, esta proporción fue 47 por ciento entre los beneficiarios de 12 a 23 meses y 64,4 por ciento entre los beneficiarios de 24 a 36 meses. La brecha calórica fue directamente proporcional a la edad de los beneficiarios. La mediana del consumo de la papilla osciló entre 30 y 90 g en el grupo de 6 a 11 meses, 45 y 69 g en el grupo de 12 a 23 meses y de 34 a 90 g en el grupo de 24 a 36 meses. Conclusiones: Se evidenció que la papilla mejoró el aporte de energía, vitamina A y hierro en la dieta del niño, llegando a cubrir los requerimientos en la mayoría de los grupos etáreos.

Objectives: To describe the characteristics of energy and nutrients intake and supply with the addition of «papilla¼to diet in 6 to 36 month old children who participate in a complementary feeding program. Materials and Methods:The study design was descriptive and cross-sectional. The retrospective method of the 24 hours food intake recallsurvey was used. The sample included all 432 children participating in the program. Energy and nutrient requirementsand recommendations were determined according to FAO/WHO/UN parameters for energy and protein intake; andaccording to RDA for iron and vitamin A. Results: 42,1% of 6 to 11 month old participating children had their 90% andless of their energy requirements fulfilled. This rate was 47% in 12 to 23 month old participants and 64,4% in 24 to 36month old participants. The calorie gap was directly proportional to the participants’ age. Median of «papilla¼ intakefluctuated between 30 and 90 g in the 6 to 11 month old group, 45 to 69 g in the 12 to 23 month old group, and 34 to90 g in the 24 to 36 month old group. Conclusions: It was evidenced that the «papilla¼ improved energy, vitamin A,and iron supply in children’s diet, complying with nutritional requirements in most age groups studied.

[Oral itraconazole for treatment of a candida parapsilosis endophthalmitis case]. / Itraconazol oral en el tratamiento de un caso de endoftalmitis por candida parapsilosis.

CLINICAL CASE: A case of exogenous Candida parapsilosis endophthalmitis was treated first with oral fluconazol and later with intravenous Anfotericin without success. A subsequent therapy using topical fluconazole and oral itraconazole appeared to be effective in controlled the infection. DISCUSSION: Current elective treatment for fungal endophthalmitis is Anfotericine B i.v. An alternative therapy are the azoles. In the reported case itraconazole was used, although its intraocular penetration and effectiveness have not yet been satisfactorily demonstrated. The clinical response in this case leads to the possibility that intraocular oral itraconazole penetration can be sufficient to control infection in cases where the causal fungi is sensitive.

Functional andromonoecy in Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae).

The occurrence of cyathia containing staminate flowers but lacking a pistillate flower was studied in 17 species of Euphorbia. Male cyathia were found in the majority of species studied (88.2%) giving functional andromonoecy. In the male cyathia, the pistillate flower is generally totally absent, but sometimes a vestigial pistillate flower with a non-functional ovary is present. The proportion of male cyathia varied at both the population and species level. The position of male cyathia within the inflorescence showed a constant pattern among species: the proportion of male cyathia decreased from the first to the last levels of the pleiochasia. In general, perennial species had significantly higher proportions of male cyathia than annual species (mean 20 and 2.3%, respectively). In annual species there was a trend for production of male cyathia only in the first level of the inflorescence, whereas in perennials production up to the fourth level of the inflorescence was usual. Functional andromonoecy is common in Euphorbia and represents a new sex segregation in the genus. The selective forces causing this secondary sex segregation in Euphorbia, such as improved pollination or increased outcrossing, are discussed.