scholarly journals Mātauranga Māori and anti-microbials: Searching for new tools to control the spread of Kauri Dieback

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Te Amohaere Ngata-Aerengamate
Keyword(s):  
Root Rot ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Conifer Species ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Promising Solution ◽  
Cretaceous Period ◽  
Potato Famine ◽  
Irish Potato Famine

<p>Phytophthora are plant pathogens, well known for devastating thousands of ecologically, culturally and economically significant plant crops worldwide. In greek Phytophthora translates directly to ‘plant destroyer’. Though it is ‘fungus-like’, Phytophthora are eukaryotic oomycetes, more closely related to brown algae and diatoms. Phytophthora have three key lifecycle stages: oospores, zoospores, and mycelia. Kauri are ancient conifer species dating back to the Cretaceous period (145 mya) and are now rapidly declining due to Kauri dieback caused by Phytophthora agathidicida. P.agathadicida causes root rot in Kauri trees and was first misidentified as P. hevave on Great Barrier Island in the early 1970s. Its origin is unknown however research argues it may have evolved from P. infestans, the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine in 1845. For Te Āo Māori, Kauri are highly regarded tīpuna (ancestors) and Kauri Dieback is alarming to many Northern Iwi. Kauri wood and resin are highly sought and economically valuable resources. The Waipoua forest is the largest Kauri forest and the most impacted by Kauri Dieback. Over 25% of Kauri in the Waitākere ranges are either infected with P. agathadicida or are symptomatic, a percentage that is steadily increasing. A rāhui (temporary ban) was placed on the Waitākere ranges by local iwi Te Kawerau a Maki in 2018 as a preventative measure to reduce movement of P. agathadicida in soil. Apart from track closures, scrubbing and spraying equipment - before and after entering the forest - is the only tool of management. Sterigene disinfectant is the only treatment to reduce the spread of Kauri Dieback. Sterigene kills zoospores, mycelia and sporangium but is ineffective against P. agathidicida oospoores. Sexually produced oospores are responsible for the long-term survival of Phytophthora as they have a thick cell wall. The first part of this thesis examines a range of commercially available disinfectants and their efficacy against P. agathidicida oospores. These results confirm that Sterigene and/or Trigene are not effective against P. agathidicida oospores. My results also show that 2% bleach, 1% Virkon, and 70% ethanol all reduce oospore viability. Napisan also reduced oospore viability, but also interacted with the viability stains, therefore further investigations are needed. Napisan is an oxygen bleach, commercially affordable and easily accessible in supermarkets. Unlike sterigene and bleach, Napisan is safe to use on clothes, wool and soft textiles. If effective against oospores and the other lifecycle stages, Napisan could be a promising solution to help reduce the spread of Kauri Dieback.</p>

scholarly journals Mātauranga Māori and anti-microbials: Searching for new tools to control the spread of Kauri Dieback

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Te Amohaere Ngata-Aerengamate
Keyword(s):  
Root Rot ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Conifer Species ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Promising Solution ◽  
Cretaceous Period ◽  
Potato Famine ◽  
Irish Potato Famine

<p>Phytophthora are plant pathogens, well known for devastating thousands of ecologically, culturally and economically significant plant crops worldwide. In greek Phytophthora translates directly to ‘plant destroyer’. Though it is ‘fungus-like’, Phytophthora are eukaryotic oomycetes, more closely related to brown algae and diatoms. Phytophthora have three key lifecycle stages: oospores, zoospores, and mycelia. Kauri are ancient conifer species dating back to the Cretaceous period (145 mya) and are now rapidly declining due to Kauri dieback caused by Phytophthora agathidicida. P.agathadicida causes root rot in Kauri trees and was first misidentified as P. hevave on Great Barrier Island in the early 1970s. Its origin is unknown however research argues it may have evolved from P. infestans, the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine in 1845. For Te Āo Māori, Kauri are highly regarded tīpuna (ancestors) and Kauri Dieback is alarming to many Northern Iwi. Kauri wood and resin are highly sought and economically valuable resources. The Waipoua forest is the largest Kauri forest and the most impacted by Kauri Dieback. Over 25% of Kauri in the Waitākere ranges are either infected with P. agathadicida or are symptomatic, a percentage that is steadily increasing. A rāhui (temporary ban) was placed on the Waitākere ranges by local iwi Te Kawerau a Maki in 2018 as a preventative measure to reduce movement of P. agathadicida in soil. Apart from track closures, scrubbing and spraying equipment - before and after entering the forest - is the only tool of management. Sterigene disinfectant is the only treatment to reduce the spread of Kauri Dieback. Sterigene kills zoospores, mycelia and sporangium but is ineffective against P. agathidicida oospoores. Sexually produced oospores are responsible for the long-term survival of Phytophthora as they have a thick cell wall. The first part of this thesis examines a range of commercially available disinfectants and their efficacy against P. agathidicida oospores. These results confirm that Sterigene and/or Trigene are not effective against P. agathidicida oospores. My results also show that 2% bleach, 1% Virkon, and 70% ethanol all reduce oospore viability. Napisan also reduced oospore viability, but also interacted with the viability stains, therefore further investigations are needed. Napisan is an oxygen bleach, commercially affordable and easily accessible in supermarkets. Unlike sterigene and bleach, Napisan is safe to use on clothes, wool and soft textiles. If effective against oospores and the other lifecycle stages, Napisan could be a promising solution to help reduce the spread of Kauri Dieback.</p>

scholarly journals Tumor size may influence the prognosis of solitary hepatocellular carcinoma patients with cirrhosis and without macrovascular invasion after hepatectomy

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin-yong Liang ◽  
Jin Gu ◽  
Min Xiong ◽  
Er-lei Zhang ◽  
Zun-yi Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽  
Tumor Size ◽  
Staging System ◽  
Prognostic Impact ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Long Term Survival ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Cirrhotic Patients ◽  
Curative Hepatectomy

AbstractHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is usually associated with varying degrees of cirrhosis. Among cirrhotic patients with solitary HCC in the absence of macro-vascular invasion, whether tumor size drives prognosis or not after hepatectomy remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic impact of tumor size on long-term outcomes after hepatectomy for solitary HCC patients with cirrhosis and without macrovascular invasion. A total of 813 cirrhotic patients who underwent curative hepatectomy for solitary HCC and without macrovascular invasion between 2001 and 2014 were retrospectively studied. We set 5 cm as the tumor cut-off value. Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed to minimize the influence of potential confounders including cirrhotic severity that was histologically assessed according to the Laennec staging system. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared between the two groups before and after PSM. Overall, 464 patients had tumor size ≤ 5 cm, and 349 had tumor size > 5 cm. The 5-year RFS and OS rates were 38.3% and 61.5% in the  ≤ 5 cm group, compared with 25.1% and 59.9% in the > 5 cm group. Long-term survival outcomes were significantly worse as tumor size increased. Multivariate analysis indicated that tumor size > 5 cm was an independent risk factor for tumor recurrence and long-term survival. These results were further confirmed in the PSM cohort of 235 pairs of patients. In cirrhotic patients with solitary HCC and without macrovascular invasion, tumor size may significantly affect the prognosis after curative hepatectomy.

Significance of Peri-Transplant Dynamics of Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in Adults with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) in Morphological Remission Undergoing Myeloablative Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

Blood ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 126 (23) ◽  
pp. 173-173
Author(s):  
Yi Zhou ◽  
Daisuke Araki ◽  
Megan Othus ◽  
Jerald P. Radich ◽  
Anna B. Halpern ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bone Marrow ◽  
Myeloid Leukemia ◽  
Research Funding ◽  
Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽  
Residual Disease ◽  
Long Term Outcomes ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Minimal Residual

Abstract Background: Numerous studies from others and our institution have demonstrated that the presence of minimal residual disease (MRD), detected at the time of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), is strongly and independently associated with increased relapse risk and short survival in adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) undergoing myeloablative allogeneic HCT in morphologic complete remission (CR). In contrast, very little information is available regarding the prognostic significance of peri-transplant MRD dynamics in these patients. Since bone marrow staging studies with multiparameter flow cytometric (MFC) assessment for MRD are routinely obtained not only before but also at approximately day +28 following transplantation at our institution, we here retrospectively studied the relationship between peri-HCT MRD dynamics and post-transplant outcomes in a large patient cohort. We asked whether persistence or disappearance of MRD might identify cohorts of patients in whom post-transplant therapy was particularly indicated or unnecessary. Patients and Methods: AML patients ³18 years of age were eligible for this retrospective analysis if they were in first or second morphologic CR or CR with incomplete blood count recovery (CRi) irrespective of the presence of MRD, underwent allogeneic HCT with myeloablative conditioning between 2006 and 2014, received peripheral blood or bone marrow as stem cell source, and had pre-HCT bone marrow staging studies available that included 10-color MFC assessments for MRD. MRD was identified as a cell population showing deviation from normal antigen expression patterns compared with normal or regenerating marrow; any level of residual disease was considered MRDpos. We considered post-HCT MRD assessments in patients in whom bone marrow re-staging with MFC MRD analysis were obtained 28±7 days after transplantation. For this analysis, the primary endpoint of interest was overall survival, which was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: 311 patients were identified and included in this study. Consistent with our previous analyses, patients with MRD at the time of HCT (MRDpos; n=76) had significantly shorter survival than MRDneg patients (n=234; estimated 3 year post-HCT survival: 26% [95% confidence interval: 17-37%) vs. 73% [66-78%], P <0.001). 310 patients survived at least 21 days following transplantation; for 279 of these (89.7%), post-HCT MRD assessments were obtained at day +28±7 and available for analysis. 214 patients (76.7%) had no MFC evidence of MRD before and after HCT (MRDneg/MRDneg), 2 (0.7%) were MRDneg/MRDpos, 49 (17.6%) were MRDpos/MRDneg, and 14 (5.0%) were MRDpos/MRDpos. Of the 65 patients who had detectable MRD either before and/or after transplantation, 58 had decreasing levels of MRD (MRDdecr) over the peri-HCT period, whereas 7 patients had increasing MRD levels (MRDincr) around the time of transplantation. As depicted in Figure 1, MRDneg/MRDneg patients had excellent long-term outcomes (survival at 3 years after day +28 MRD assessment: 76% [69-82%]), whereas both MRDneg/MRDpos patients died within 70 days after the day +28 MRD assessment. Interestingly, for patients who were MRDpos before transplantation, outcomes were relatively poor regardless of whether or not they had persistent MRD around day +28 after transplantation (MRDpos/MRDneg patients: 23% [12-36%]; for MRDpos/MRDpos patients: 19% [4-44%]). However, long-term survival was only observed among MRDdecr patients (at 3 years after day +28 MRD assessment: 24% [14-37%]), whereas all MRDincr patients died a median of 97 (range: 15-808) days following the post-HCT MRD assessment (Figure 2). Conclusion: Patients who have no evidence of MRD before and after HCT have excellent long-term outcomes. In contrast, patients who are MRDpos before transplantation have poor survival expectations regardless of whether or not they clear MRD within the first 28 days after transplantation, but long-term survival is only found among some patients with decreasing MRD levels over the peri-transplant period. This finding suggests that patients who are MRDpos at the time of HCT should be considered for pre-emptive therapeutic strategies given their high risk of disease recurrence regardless of the day +28 MRD information. Figure 1. Figure 1. Figure 2. Figure 2. Disclosures Radich: Incyte: Consultancy; Ariad: Consultancy; Gilliad: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy, Research Funding. Walter:Amphivena Therapeutics, Inc.: Consultancy, Research Funding; Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Research Funding; Covagen AG: Consultancy; AstraZeneca, Inc.: Consultancy; Pfizer, Inc.: Consultancy; Amgen, Inc.: Research Funding.

Genetic Manipulation of Broad Host-Range Fungi for Biological Control of Weeds

1990 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 471-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Sands ◽  
Eugene J. Ford ◽  
R. Vincent Miller
Keyword(s):  
Host Range ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Genetic Manipulation ◽  
Broad Host Range ◽  
Biological Control Of Weeds ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Induced Mutants ◽  
Highly Virulent ◽  
Exogenous Source

Few plant pathogens are both lethal and specific enough to be effective weed control agents. In short, highly specific organisms seldom kill. Two genetic approaches to overcome this problem are to delimit the host range of lethal pathogens or to enhance the efficacy of host-specific ones. Narrowing the virulence or survival of a deadly pathogen seems more plausible than imparting new characters to a nonlethal organism. Our approach has been to genetically restrict the host range or to decrease the survival and/or spread ofSclerotinia sclerotiorum(Lib.) de Bary, a highly virulent and aggressive pathogen of several weeds. Working with this fungus, three classes of induced mutants which meet criteria for delimitation were obtained: auxotrophic mutants that only attack plants when applied concomitantly with an exogenous source of the required nutrient; mutants unable to form sclerotia, structures required for long-term survival and precursors to fruiting bodies; and mutants with reduced virulence and/or host ranges. These studies demonstrate the validity of genetically improving bioherbicides and greatly expanding the number of fungi that may be useful as bioherbicides.

scholarly journals Ornamental Cherry Tolerance of Flooding and Phytophthora Root Rot

HortScience ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 988-991 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.A. Jacobs ◽  
G.R. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Survival Rate ◽  
Root Rot ◽  
Net Photosynthesis ◽  
Severity Index ◽  
Individual Treatment ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Phytophthora Root Rot ◽  
Long Term Survival

Seedlings of eight Prunus taxa were evaluated for variation in susceptibility to a single, 4- or 5-day flooding period and root rot caused by Phytophthora cryptogea Pethybr. & Lafferty. Survival, plant defoliation, disease severity index, root necrosis, and net photosynthesis indicated that the combination of flooding and pathogen was significantly more severe to all taxa than either individual treatment. Most response variables reflected early plant dysfunction but were not correlated with long-term survival. Long-term survival was 70% in the combination treatment compared to 99% in the control group. Flooding injured seedlings more than the pathogen in most taxa. Taxa differed only slightly in tolerance to the treatments, as measured by survival rate. Prunus takesimensis Nakai had the highest survival rate of 100% and along with P. mahaleb L. and P. yedoensis Matsum. showed some tolerance to flooding and the pathogen. Prunus sargentii Rehd. had the lowest survival rate of 81% and appeared to be least tolerant to the pathogen.

scholarly journals The impact of surgery on long-term survival of patients with primary intestinal non-Hodgkin lymphomas based on SEER database

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cuifen Zhang ◽  
Xiaohong Zhang ◽  
Zeyu Liu ◽  
Jiahao Tao ◽  
Lizhu Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multivariate Regression Analysis ◽  
Confounding Factors ◽  
Seer Database ◽  
Cancer Specific Survival ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Non Hodgkin Lymphoma ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Specific Impact

AbstractEvidence regarding the need for surgery for primary intestinal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (PINHL) patients with chemotherapy is limited and controversial. We aimed to investigate the specific impact of surgery on survival of PINHL patients. Data from PINHL patients (aged > 18 years) with chemotherapy between 1983 and 2015 were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. We concerned about overall survival (OS) and improved cancer-specific survival (CSS). Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was also used to explore the reliability of the results to further control for confounding factors. Finally, we screened 3537 patients. Multivariate regression analysis showed that patients with surgery and chemotherapy had better OS (hazard ratio [HR] 0.83; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.75–0.93; p = 0.0009) and CSS (HR 0.87; 95% CI 0.77–0.99; p = 0.0404) compared with the non-operation group after adjusting for confounding factors. After PSM analysis, compared with non-surgery, surgery remained associated with improved OS (HR 0.77; 95% CI 0.68–0.87; p < 0.0001) and improved CSS (HR 0.82; 95% CI 0.72–0.95; p = 0.008) adjusted for baseline differences. In the large cohort of PINHL patients with chemotherapy older than 18 years, surgery was associated with significantly improved OS and CSS before and after PSM analysis.

scholarly journals Outcomes of pancreas transplantation in older diabetic patients

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. e000916 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Montagud-Marrahi ◽  
Alicia Molina-Andújar ◽  
Adriana Pané ◽  
Maria José Ramírez-Bajo ◽  
Antonio Amor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Kidney Transplantation ◽  
Pancreas Transplantation ◽  
Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events ◽  
Diabetic Patients ◽  
Delayed Presentation ◽  
Post Transplantation ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Post Transplant ◽  
Before And After

ObjectiveImprovement in insulin alternatives is leading to a delayed presentation of microvascular and macrovascular complications of diabetes. The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term outcomes of older (≥50 years) diabetic patients who receive a pancreas transplantation (PT).Research design and methodsWe retrospectively evaluated all 338 PTs performed at our center between 2000 and 2016 (mean follow-up 9.4±4.9 years). Recipient and graft survivals were estimated for up to 10 years after PT. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) before and after PT were included in the analysis.ResultsThirty-nine patients (12%) were ≥50 years old (52.7±2.3 years) at the day of PT, of which 29 received a simultaneous pancreas–kidney transplantation (SPK) and 10 a pancreas after kidney transplantation (PAK). SPK recipients were first transplants, whereas in the PAK up to 50% were pancreas re-transplantations. Recipient and pancreas graft survivals at 10 years were similar between the group <50 years old and the older group for both SPK and PAK (log-rank p>0.05). The prevalence of MACE prior to PT was similar between both groups (31% vs 29%). Following PT, older recipients presented inferior post-transplant MACE-free survival. In a multivariate regression model, diabetes vintage (HR 1.054, p=0.03) and pre-transplantation MACE (HR 1.98, p=0.011), but not recipient age (HR 1.45, p=0.339), were associated with post-transplant MACE.ConclusionsLong-term survival of older pancreas transplant recipients are similar to younger counterparts. Diabetes vintage, but not age, increased the risk of post-transplantation MACE. These results suggest pancreas transplantation is a valuable treatment alternative to older diabetic patients.

BODE Index before and after LVRS is associated with long term survival in a post-NETT cohort

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Bulman ◽  
Patricia Jellen ◽  
Beth Whippo ◽  
Cody Chiuzan ◽  
Yuan Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Term Survival ◽  
Long Term Survival ◽  
Bode Index ◽  
Before And After

RA07.01: CHANGE OF METABOLIC TUMOR VOLUME PREDICTS LONG-TERM SURVIVAL AND HISTOLOGICAL RESPONSE TO PREOPERATIVE CHEMOTHERAPY IN LOCALLY-ADVANCED ESOPHAGEAL CANCER

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 34-34
Author(s):  
Tomoki Makino ◽  
Makoto Yamasaki ◽  
Koji Tanaka ◽  
Yasunori Masuike ◽  
Masaki Mori ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Preoperative Chemotherapy ◽  
Tumor Volume ◽  
Locally Advanced ◽  
Reduction Rate ◽  
Metabolic Tumor Volume ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Cutoff Value ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Locally Advanced Esophageal Cancer

Abstract Background The present study was aimed to assess the value of metabolic tumor volume (MTV) measured by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose to evaluate response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally-advanced esophageal cancer (EC). Methods A total of 102 EC patients without distant metastasis who underwent 18-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) both before and after the series of preoperative chemotherapy were analyzed. Results The median value of MTV in primary tumor before and after preoperative chemotherapy were 22.55 (range: 0.4 -183.1) and 2.75 (0–52.9), respectively and the median reduction rate of MTV was 86.5%. The most significant difference in survival between PET responders and non-responders was at 60% of MTV reduction as a cutoff value based on every 10% stepwise cutoff analysis (2-year progression-free survival [PFS]: 79.2 vs 44.4%; hazard ratio [HR] = 3.397; P < 0.0001). With this cutoff value, histological complete response (P = 0.0091) in addition to tumor location (P = 0.0102), pT (P = 0.0011), and pN (P = 0.0110) were significantly associated with PET response. Univariate analysis of PFS indicated a correlation between PFS and tumor size, cT, decrease of primary lesion by CT, SUVmax reduction rate, MTV reduction rate, pT, pN, pM. Multivariate analysis further identified MTV reduction rate (HR = 2.471; P = 0.0263) but not decrease of primary lesion by CT or SUVmax reduction rate to be independent prognostic predictors along with pM (HR = 3.063; P = 0.0279). Conclusion By determining the optimal cutoff value based on survival analysis, change of MTV was shown to be clinically useful in predicting both long-term survival and histological response to preoperative chemotherapy in EC patients. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

scholarly journals Liver resection versus transarterial chemoembolization for huge hepatocellular carcinoma: a propensity score matched analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bogdanovic ◽  
P. Bulajic ◽  
D. Masulovic ◽  
N. Bidzic ◽  
M. Zivanovic ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽  
Overall Survival ◽  
Liver Resection ◽  
Propensity Score ◽  
Transarterial Chemoembolization ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Long Term Survival ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Tace Group

AbstractTo date, it is unclear which treatment modality, liver resection (LR) or transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is the more appropriate for patients with huge (≥ 10 cm) hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The study aim was to compare, using propensity score matching, short- and long-term outcomes of patients with huge HCC who underwent potentially curative LR or TACE. Patients with huge HCC who had been managed at the Clinical Center by curative-intent LR or by palliative TACE between November 2001 and December 2018 were retrospectively identified. The morbidity and mortality rates and overall survival were compared between the groups before and after the propensity score matching. Independent predictors of long-term survival were determined by multivariate analysis. A total of 103 patients with huge HCC were included; 68 were assigned to the LR group and 35 to the TACE group. The overall morbidity rate was higher in the LR group than in the TACE group before matching (64.7% vs. 37.1%, p = 0.012), while there was no difference after matching (60% vs. 30%, p = 0.055). The major morbidity and 30-days mortality were similar between the groups before and after matching. The LR group was associated with longer overall survival than the TACE group before matching (p = 0.032) and after matching (p = 0.023). Total bilirubin and TACE treatment were independent prognostic factors associated with long-term survival. In patients with huge HCC, liver resection provides better long-term survival than TACE and should be considered as the initial treatment whenever possible.

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