Avances en tecnologías de propagación y domesticación de plantas de interés económico y ambiental en Argentina

En el Laboratorio de Estudios de la Madera de la Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina, se implementa el proyecto de desarrollo tecnológico denominado Métodos y tecnologías de propagación y domesticación de plantas para el desarrollo de una bioeconomía local basada en la biodiversidad. El objetivo del mismo es desarrollar, optimizar y adaptar nuevas metodologías y tecnologías de propagación y conservación de recursos genéticos vegetales para la producción de plantas en nuevo escenario de la bioeconomía nacional. La diversidad está en la base de la bioeconomía, y muchas veces el material vegetal para plantar para diferentes fines es escaso. Las especies contempladas en éste proyecto son: Quercus sp.; Polylepis tarapacana; Prosopis alpataco, Eranthemun pulchelum y Heteropteris angustifolia Griseb . En este trabajo se comunican algunos de los avances alcanzados aplicando diferentes enfoques para la producción de plantas de calidad (semillas, cultivo de tejidos in vitro, macropropagación y plantines en contenedores)

Caracterización química y nutricional de harina de chañar de diferente distribución geográfica

El chañar (Geoffroea decorticans) es una planta nativa que se distribuye en regiones áridas y semiáridas de sudamérica, cuyos frutos constituyen un recurso alimenticio para las comunidades rurales y originarias. El conocimiento sobre la biodiversidad no solo permite poner en valor estas especies, sino también generar alternativas de uso y consumo de nuevos recursos bio-basados. Los metabolitos secundarios constituyen una fuente importante de aditivos alimenticios, productos farmacéuticos e industriales cuya síntesis y composición está influenciada por las características ambientales de donde crecen las plantas. Dada a su amplia distribución geográfica, la caracterización fitoquímica de los frutos de chañar podría presentar diferencias de acuerdo a su procedencia. Por lo tanto, el objetivo del presente trabajo fue estudiar la composición química y nutricional de los frutos de G. decorticans procedente de dos ecorregiones argentinas: el Chaco árido y Monte Oriental o de transición. Se determinó la composición nutricional de harinas integrales de ambas procedencias y se evaluó el contenido total de polifenoles (CTP), de antocianinas y la actividad antioxidante in vitro, tanto de harinas integrales como de harinas de mesocarpio. La composición nutricional no presentó diferencias significativas entre las muestras evaluadas. El CTP varió entre 87-124 mg GAE/100g de harina base seca, y fue mayor en los extractos de las harinas integrales. El contenido de antocianinas en las muestras de Rio Negro fue un 70% mayor que en las de Catamarca. Los extractos de harina de mesocarpio de Río Negro presentaron un 20% menos de CTP que de las de Catamarca, sin embargo, la actividad antioxidante obtenida por ABTS fue comparable entre ellas. En conclusión, los resultados sugieren que la harina integral de G. decorticans podría utilizarse como una fuente de antioxidantes naturales de uso alimentario.

Evaluation of Quality of Life in Patients with Malignant Dysphagia

Background

In the last 10 years of clinical research there has been increasing interest in the evaluation of quality of life. Several generic and specific instruments have been developed for this purpose. EORTC QLQ C-30 is a cancer-specific questionnaire translated into various languages and validated in several European countries including Italy, where the impact of malignant disease on different areas of quality of life is poorly documented.

Methods

The EORTC QLQ C-30 was administered to 109 patients referred to the endoscopy division of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, for endoscopic palliative treatment of malignant dysphagia to test its characteristics in terms of acceptability and clinical validity.

Results

In this group of patients the impact of advanced esophageal cancer was highly evident for Emotional and Physical Functioning, Fatigue and Global QoL scales. Dysphagia is a serious problem for many patients; there is a correlation between grade of dysphagia and four QoL dimensions.

Conclusions

QoL assessment is an important tool to evaluate the adequate management of patients with esophageal cancer. The EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire proved to be valid and reliable also in this population.

Assessment of hospitalised cancer patients' needs by the Needs Evaluation Questionnaire

BACKGROUND

Cancer disease modifies the order and the nature of needs connected with the state of health. The aim of this study was to evaluate the informative, psychological, social and practical needs of hospitalised cancer patients by means of the Needs Evaluation Questionnaire (NEQ), an instrument designed concisely for the convenience of patients and medical staff.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Different samples of consecutive hospitalised cancer patients were involved in the various phases of designing the instrument: 30 patients for items identification, 101 patients for completeness and acceptability evaluation, 423 patients for construct validity and prevalence of needs; content and reliability analysis were performed on 2 subsamples of, respectively, 60 and 88 of the patients from the last sample.

RESULTS

The validation analysis showed rather good reliability, structure validity and internal consistency of the questionnaire. The prevalence analysis showed that the most common needs were: 'more information about my future conditions' (74%); 'more information about my diagnosis' (56%); 'more information about the exams I am undergoing' (52%); 'more explanations on treatments' (51%); 'to have a better dialogue with clinicians' (57%); 'better services from the hospital' (bathrooms, meals, cleaning) (56%).

CONCLUSIONS

The NEQ, self-completed by patients, has proven to be a useful clinical tool for obtaining a systematic and undistorted overview of the principal needs with respect to the state of health of patients. This instrument, which can also be administered by persons not belonging to the health care system such as volunteers, and inserted into the patients' hospital charts, could be used by the medical staff to identify the real needs of patients at an early stage.

Bioactivity of flurithromycin and other macrolides against intracellular susceptible staphylococci

The intracellular activity of flurithromycin, erythromycin, roxithromycin and miocamycin against susceptible clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus, phagocytosed by human monocytes, was investigated. Intracellular bioactivity was studied in a 24-hour assay, using experimental conditions which allowed the intracellular growth of bacteria. A colony counting method was used to differentiate between intracellular bacteriostatic and bactericidal activity of antibiotics. Moreover, the effect of macrolides against extracellular staphylococci was assessed. All agents showed higher intracellular than extracellular activity against staphylococci. At low concentration (0.1 mg/l) they had intracellular bacteriostatic activity. At concentrations higher than the minimal inhibitory ones (1 and 5 mg/l), miocamycin only still produced a bacteriostatic effect while flurithromycin, erythromycin and roxithromycin also showed intracellular bactericidal activity.

Uptake of flurithromycin by human polymorphonuclear phagocytes: partial characterization of the entry mechanism

The ability of flurithromycin and erythromycin to enter human polymorphonuclear phagocytes were studied and compared by a velocity centrifugation gradient technique. Both macrolides were markedly concentrated by human cells and attained cellular to extracellular concentration ratios (C/E) > or = 10. The incorporation was rapid and essentially complete after 60 min incubation. When PMNs were pretreated with formaldehyde, or incubated at low temperatures (4-25 degrees C) or at low pH, the transport ratios of both molecules were reduced. Sodium fluoride and 2,4-dinitrophenol, which decreased erythromycin uptake, did not affect flurithromycin penetration. Perturbation of cell membrane by phorbol myristate acetate, but not by formyl methionyl leucyl peptide, affected C/E ratios of both antibiotics. The addition of amino acids or nucleosides did not influence their transfer into PMNs.