Der Baobab (Adansonia digitata L.): Wildobst aus Afrika für Deutschland und Europa?!

In Germany and Europe exotic fruits from distant places are becoming more and more important. In the tropics and subtropics an enormous variety of edible fruits exists. In 2008 the dry fruit pulp of the baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) was approved as novel food for the EU and thus entered the formal food market. Hence, an increasing number of products became available in Europe. The baobab is an impressive tree in the savannas of Africa. Due to its dense and wide spreading root system and its enormous water storing capacity in the stem, the tree can grow under very dry environmental conditions. In many regions of Africa it is a multipurpose indigenous fruit tree species which offers shelter and provides food, fodder and medicine as well as raw material for many purposes. However, even in Europe a wide range of products is now available as shown in the present study, which identified more than 300 baobab products or products with baobab as an ingredient. In Germany, not only the natural baobab pulp but also ready-made foodstuffs such as soft drinks, sandwich spreads, cereal bars, sweets and chocolates are available. Furthermore, a diverse range of pharmaceutical and cosmetic products with extracts from the baobab is available in the market. The products range from after shave and perfume to shampoo and shower gel to leg lotion and foot spray. In Germany baobab saplings and seeds are offered for planting and cultivation as an indoor pot plant. Commercially marketed baobab bonsai seedlings for the European market are produced in Senegal. In Africa the baobab fruits are mainly harvested from wild stands. However, the commercial production of baobab fruits in orchards could be an important future opportunity for income generation to many local households. More research on baobab, including the domestication of this wild fruit tree species, and the conservation of its natural stands as important genetic resource are prerequisites for sustainably increased fruit production.     

DanTox—a novel joint research project using zebrafish (Danio rerio) to identify specific toxicity and molecular modes of action of sediment-bound pollutants

Introduction

The European Water Framework Directive aims to achieve a good ecological and chemical status in surface water of European rivers by the year 2015. Since sediments and particulate matter act as secondary sources for pollutants, applied sediment toxicology is perceived to play a major role for obtaining new knowledge that can contribute to successful attainment of the goal. However, the existing bioassays for sediment toxicity analyses do not provide sufficient data concerning bioavailability of environmental pollutants. In this regard, there is an urgent need to combine sediment contact assays with gene expression analysis to investigate mechanism-specific sediment toxicity.

Purpose

The aim of the novel joint research project is to develop a eukaryotic test system, which can be used to investigate the ecotoxicological effects of contaminated sediments on gene expression level (DNA-array and RT-PCR). Current ecotoxicological research customarily involves a battery of bioassays to cover different toxicological endpoints (e.g., teratogenicity, genotoxicity, mutagenicity, Ah-receptor-mediated toxicity, neurotoxicity). In contrast, methods that detect alterations in gene expression offer deeper insight by elucidating how chemical exposure and/or environmental challenge affect multiple metabolic pathways leading to these particular kinds of toxic response. Gene expression profiles reflect the way cells and organisms adapt or respond to a changing environment.

Conclusion

The present project aspires to increase the fundamental molecular and physiological knowledge concerning the mode of action of environmental toxicants in zebrafish (Danio rerio). By working with partners from the academic and research institutions as well as from industry and waterway regulations, the success of this basic research-driven joint project in terms of development and implementation of novel sediment toxicity methods will be realized.     

Mesenchymal tumor in a female chamois. A case report

A free-living 15-year old female chamois was shot because of illness and emaciation. The examination of the internal organs revealed numerous firm whitish tumour nodules in liver,spleen, mesenterium and peritoneum. Histologically the nature of tumour cells was identified as a metastasizing malignoma of mesenchymal origin. In addition to the blastoma, the parasite burden of the gastrointestinal tract and lungs did very likely contribute to the bad bodily condition of the chamois.     

Measurement of the entanglement of two superconducting qubits via state tomography

Demonstration of quantum entanglement, a key resource in quantum computation arising from a nonclassical correlation of states, requires complete measurement of all states in varying bases. By using simultaneous measurement and state tomography, we demonstrated entanglement between two solid-state qubits. Single qubit operations and capacitive coupling between two super-conducting phase qubits were used to generate a Bell-type state. Full two-qubit tomography yielded a density matrix showing an entangled state with fidelity up to 87%. Our results demonstrate a high degree of unitary control of the system, indicating that larger implementations are within reach.     

Megacity emissions and lifetimes of nitrogen oxides probed from space

Megacities are immense sources of air pollutants, with large impacts on air quality and climate. However, emission inventories in many of them still are highly uncertain, particularly in developing countries. Satellite observations allow top-down estimates of emissions to be made for nitrogen oxides (NO(x) = NO + NO(2)), but require poorly quantified a priori information on the NO(x) lifetime. We present a method for the simultaneous determination of megacity NO(x) emissions and lifetimes from satellite measurements by analyzing the downwind patterns of NO(2) separately for different wind conditions. Daytime lifetimes are ~4 hours at low and mid-latitudes, but ~8 hours in wintertime for Moscow. The derived NO(x) emissions are generally in good agreement with existing emission inventories, but are higher by a factor of 3 for the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh.     

The global carbon cycle: a test of our knowledge of earth as a system

Motivated by the rapid increase in atmospheric CO2 due to human activities since the Industrial Revolution, several international scientific research programs have analyzed the role of individual components of the Earth system in the global carbon cycle. Our knowledge of the carbon cycle within the oceans, terrestrial ecosystems, and the atmosphere is sufficiently extensive to permit us to conclude that although natural processes can potentially slow the rate of increase in atmospheric CO2, there is no natural "savior" waiting to assimilate all the anthropogenically produced CO2 in the coming century. Our knowledge is insufficient to describe the interactions between the components of the Earth system and the relationship between the carbon cycle and other biogeochemical and climatological processes. Overcoming this limitation requires a systems approach.     

BRCA1 tumor suppression depends on BRCT phosphoprotein binding, but not its E3 ligase activity

Germline mutations of the breast cancer 1 (BRCA1) gene are a major cause of familial breast and ovarian cancer. The BRCA1 protein displays E3 ubiquitin ligase activity, and this enzymatic function is thought to be required for tumor suppression. To test this hypothesis, we generated mice that express an enzymatically defective Brca1. We found that this mutant Brca1 prevents tumor formation to the same degree as does wild-type Brca1 in three different genetically engineered mouse (GEM) models of cancer. In contrast, a mutation that ablates phosphoprotein recognition by the BRCA C terminus (BRCT) domains of BRCA1 elicits tumors in each of the three GEM models. Thus, BRCT phosphoprotein recognition, but not the E3 ligase activity, is required for BRCA1 tumor suppression.     

Surface melt-induced acceleration of Greenland ice-sheet flow

Ice flow at a location in the equilibrium zone of the west-central Greenland Ice Sheet accelerates above the midwinter average rate during periods of summer melting. The near coincidence of the ice acceleration with the duration of surface melting, followed by deceleration after the melting ceases, indicates that glacial sliding is enhanced by rapid migration of surface meltwater to the ice-bedrock interface. Interannual variations in the ice acceleration are correlated with variations in the intensity of the surface melting, with larger increases accompanying higher amounts of summer melting. The indicated coupling between surface melting and ice-sheet flow provides a mechanism for rapid, large-scale, dynamic responses of ice sheets to climate warming.     

Ultrastructural findings in congenital anemia, dyskeratosis, and progressive alopecia in Polled Hereford calves.

Ultrastructural evidence of dyserythropoiesis was found in ten calves (ages 1 to 16 months) previously diagnosed as having congenital anemia, dyskeratosis, and progressive alopecia. Morphologic abnormalities found in erythroid precursors of all calves were associated with the nucleus. Rubriblast nuclei were irregular with numerous blebs, indentations, and deep clefts. Elongated blebs appeared as satellite nuclei in some sections. Nuclear membranes had numerous defects or gaps, which were frequently present in, but not limited to, recently divided cells. Cytoplasmic material could be found within these gaps and extending into the nucleus. Rubricytes had chromatin that was abnormally condensed and hyperosmiophilic, with numerous translucent vacuoles present. Binucleate rubricytes occurred frequently in affected calves. These changes resemble those of type I congenital dyserythropoiesis in human beings, and we suggest congenital anemia, dyskeratosis, and progressive alopecia of Polled Hereford calves as the appropriate diagnostic terms to describe this disease.