Experiences of self-conscious emotions in temporal lobe epilepsy.

Self-conscious emotions (SCEs) with a negative valence (such as shame and guilt) or a positive valence (such as pride) are moral emotions that emerge from self-reflection and self-evaluation processes in social contexts. In some neurologic and psychiatric disorders, experiences of SCEs are dysregulated. The objectives of the present study were to (i) evaluate whether patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) experience SCEs in the same way as nonclinical (control) participants and (ii) probe the relationships between experiences of SCEs on the one hand and the psychological symptoms frequently diagnosed in patients with TLE (anxiety and depression), the patients' clinical characteristics, and their functional outcomes in everyday life on the other. Sixty-one patients with TLE and 61 matched controls completed a self-questionnaire (the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS)) that enabled us to evaluate the extent to which they experienced shame, guilt, and pride. Demographic data, cognitive data, the severity of anxiety symptoms, and the severity of depressive symptoms were recorded for all participants. In patients with TLE, data of clinical characteristics and quality of life were also evaluated. Relative to controls, patients with TLE were more likely to experience negative-valence SCEs to a higher extent and positive SCEs to a lesser extent. The patients who experienced negative-valence SCEs to a higher extent (rather than to a lesser extent) had a higher frequency of seizures, more severe anxiety and depressive symptoms, and a greater prevalence of anxiety and depressive disorders. Furthermore, patients who experienced positive-valence SCEs to a lesser extent (rather than to a higher extent) displayed a higher level of anxiety. Lastly, differences in experiences of SCEs by patients with TLE were associated with a lower quality of life. In conclusion, experiences of SCEs can be dysregulated in patients with TLE. This dysregulation is linked to the patients' clinical and psychological symptoms and quality of life. In this context, SCEs might be a target of interest in the management of epilepsy.

Development of Fourier transform mid-infrared calibrations to predict acetone, ß-hydroxybutyrate, and citrate contents in bovine milk through a European dairy network.

To manage negative energy balance and ketosis in dairy farms, rapid and cost-effective detection is needed. Among the milk biomarkers that could be useful for this purpose, acetone and ß-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) have been proved as molecules of interest regarding ketosis and citrate was recently identified as an early indicator of negative energy balance. Because Fourier transform mid-infrared spectrometry can provide rapid and cost-effective predictions of milk composition, the objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of this technology to predict these biomarkers in milk. Milk samples were collected in commercial and experimental farms in Luxembourg, France, and Germany. Acetone, BHB, and citrate contents were determined by flow injection analysis. Milk mid-infrared spectra were recorded and standardized for all samples. After edits, a total of 548 samples were used in the calibration and validation data sets for acetone, 558 for BHB, and 506 for citrate. Acetone content ranged from 0.020 to 3.355mmol/L with an average of 0.103mmol/L; BHB content ranged from 0.045 to 1.596mmol/L with an average of 0.215mmol/L; and citrate content ranged from 3.88 to 16.12mmol/L with an average of 9.04mmol/L. Acetone and BHB contents were log-transformed and a part of the samples with low values was randomly excluded to approach a normal distribution. The 3 edited data sets were then randomly divided into a calibration data set (3/4 of the samples) and a validation data set (1/4 of the samples). Prediction equations were developed using partial least square regression. The coefficient of determination (R(2)) of cross-validation was 0.73 for acetone, 0.71 for BHB, and 0.90 for citrate with root mean square error of 0.248, 0.109, and 0.70mmol/L, respectively. Finally, the external validation was performed and R(2) obtained were 0.67 for acetone, 0.63 for BHB, and 0.86 for citrate, with respective root mean square error of validation of 0.196, 0.083, and 0.76mmol/L. Although the practical usefulness of the equations developed should be further verified with other field data, results from this study demonstrated the potential of Fourier transform mid-infrared spectrometry to predict citrate content with good accuracy and to supply indicative contents of BHB and acetone in milk, thereby providing rapid and cost-effective tools to manage ketosis and negative energy balance in dairy farms.

Potential role of transposable elements in the rapid reorganization of the Fusarium oxysporum genome.

The activity of several families of transposable elements (TEs) in the genome of Fusarium oxysporum represents a potential source of karyotypic instability. We investigated transposon-mediated chromosome rearrangements by analyzing the karyotypes of a set of strains in which transposition events had occurred. We uncovered exceptional electrophoretic karyotype (EK) variability, in both number and size of chromosomal bands. We showed that EK differences result from chromosomal translocations, large deletions, and even more complex rearrangements. We also revealed many duplicated chromosomal regions. By following transposition of two elements and analyzing the distribution of different families of TEs on whole chromosomes, we find (i) no evidence of chromosomal breakages induced by transposition, (ii) a clustering of TEs in some regions, and (iii) a correlation between the high level of chromosomal polymorphism and the concentration of TEs. These results suggest that chromosome length polymorphisms likely result from ectopic recombination between TEs that can serve as substrates for these changes.

Genome organization in Fusarium oxysporum: clusters of class II transposons.

Several families of transposable elements (TEs) are present in the genome of the phytopathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum. They are present in copy numbers ranging from just a few elements to tens or hundreds per genome. Sequence analysis of contiguous stretches of genomic DNA surrounding insertion sites of one family revealed that they are packed with repeated sequences. We have carried out a detailed study of the composition and arrangement of these repeats in three chromosomal regions. We found that they are essentially mixtures of several types of TEs, most of them being DNA transposons, different from those previously characterized. Some repeats are frequently reiterated and many of them are inserted into other elements. Parts of these regions are also duplications. These regions appear prone to rearrangement and transposition and are subject to rapid reorganization.

Recovery of Mutants Impaired in Pathogenicity After Transposition of Impala in Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. melonis.

ABSTRACT The ability of transposon impala to inactivate genes involved in pathogenicity was tested in Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. melonis. Somatic excision of an impala copy inserted in the nitrate reductase-encoding niaD gene was positively selected through a phenotypic assay based on the restoration of nitrate reductase activity. Independent excision events were analyzed molecularly and shown to carry reinsertedimpala in more than 70% of the cases. Mapping of reinserted impala elements on large NotI-restriction fragments showed that impala transposes randomly. By screening 746 revertants on plants, a high proportion (3.5%) of mutants impaired in their pathogenic potential was recovered. According to the kinetics of wilt symptom development, the strains that were impaired in pathogenicity were clustered in three classes: class 1 grouped two strains that never induced Fusarium wilt symptoms on the host plant; class 2 and class 3 grouped 15 and 9 revertants which caused symptoms more than 50 and 30 days after inoculation, respectively. The first results demonstrate the efficiency of transposition in generating mutants affected in pathogenicity, which are usually difficult to obtain by classical mutagenesis, and open the possibility to clone the altered genes with impala as a tag.

Transposition of the autonomous Fot1 element in the filamentous fungus Fusarium oxysporum.

Autonomous mobility of different copies of the Fot1 element was determined for several strains of the fungal plant pathogen Fusarium oxysporum to develop a transposon tagging system. Two Fot1 copies inserted into the third intron of the nitrate reductase structural gene (niaD) were separately introduced into two genetic backgrounds devoid of endogenous Fot1 elements. Mobility of these copies was observed through a phenotypic assay for excision based on the restoration of nitrate reductase activity. Inactivation of the Fot1 transposase open reading frame (frameshift, deletion, or disruption) prevented excision in strains free of Fot1 elements. Molecular analysis of the Nia+ revertant strains showed that the Fot1 element reintegrated frequently into new genomic sites after excision and that it can transpose from the introduced niaD gene into a different chromosome. Sequence analysis of several Fot1 excision sites revealed the so-called footprint left by this transposable element. Three reinserted Fot1 elements were cloned and the DNA sequences flanking the transposon were determined using inverse polymerase chain reaction. In all cases, the transposon was inserted into a TA dinucleotide and created the characteristic TA target site duplication. The availability of autonomous Fot1 copies will now permit the development of an efficient two-component transposon tagging system comprising a trans-activator element supplying transposase and a cis-responsive marked element.