Oncology Virtual Issue Articles

The following three articles have been published online as part of the EVE Oncology Virtual Issue which is available online at wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/eve     

Effect of Primula root and other plant extracts on infection structure formation of Phyllosticta ampelicida (asexual stage of Guignardia bidwellii) and on black rot disease of grapevine in the greenhouse

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The paper describes in vitro and in vivo experiments with extracts from Primula root and Hedera helix aimed at characterizing their effect on Phyllosticta...     

Sensitivity of Neurospora crassa to a Marine-Derived Aspergillus tubingensis Anhydride Exhibiting Antifungal Activity That Is Mediated by the MAS1 Protein

The fungus Aspergillus tubingensis (strain OY907) was isolated from the Mediterranean marine sponge Ircinia variabilis. Extracellular extracts produced by this strain were found to inhibit the growth of several fungi. Among the secreted extract components, a novel anhydride metabolite, tubingenoic anhydride A (1) as well as the known 2-carboxymethyl-3-hexylmaleic acid anhydride, asperic acid, and campyrone A and C were purified and their structure elucidated. Compound 1 and 2-carboxymethyl-3-hexylmaleic acid anhydride inhibited Neurospora crassa growth (MIC = 330 and 207 μM, respectively) and affected hyphal morphology. We produced a N. crassa mutant exhibiting tolerance to 1 and found that a yet-uncharacterized gene, designated mas-1, whose product is a cytosolic protein, confers sensitivity to this compound. The ∆mas-1 strain showed increased tolerance to sublethal concentrations of the chitin synthase inhibitor polyoxin D, when compared to the wild type. In addition, the expression of chitin synthase genes was highly elevated in the ∆mas-1 strain, suggesting the gene product is involved in cell wall biosynthesis and the novel anhydride interferes with its function.     

Kepler-16: a transiting circumbinary planet

We report the detection of a planet whose orbit surrounds a pair of low-mass stars. Data from the Kepler spacecraft reveal transits of the planet across both stars, in addition to the mutual eclipses of the stars, giving precise constraints on the absolute dimensions of all three bodies. The planet is comparable to Saturn in mass and size and is on a nearly circular 229-day orbit around its two parent stars. The eclipsing stars are 20 and 69% as massive as the Sun and have an eccentric 41-day orbit. The motions of all three bodies are confined to within 0.5° of a single plane, suggesting that the planet formed within a circumbinary disk.     

Complexity and the nervous system

Advances in the neurosciences have revealed the staggering complexity of even "simple" nervous systems. This is reflected in their function, their evolutionary history, their structure, and the coding schemes they use to represent information. These four viewpoints need all play a role in any future science of "brain complexity."     

Visual accommodation in the green turtle

Ophthalmological and anatomical studies indicate that the Atlantic green turtle is extremely myopic when its eyes are out of water. This finding bears on current theories of visual orientation and navigation in these animals.     

KOI-126: a triply eclipsing hierarchical triple with two low-mass stars

The Kepler spacecraft has been monitoring the light from 150,000 stars in its primary quest to detect transiting exoplanets. Here, we report on the detection of an eclipsing stellar hierarchical triple, identified in the Kepler photometry. KOI-126 [A, (B, C)], is composed of a low-mass binary [masses M(B) = 0.2413 ± 0.0030 solar mass (M(⊙)), M(C) = 0.2127 ± 0.0026 M(⊙); radii R(B) = 0.2543 ± 0.0014 solar radius (R(⊙)), R(C) = 0.2318 ± 0.0013 R(⊙); orbital period P(1) = 1.76713 ± 0.00019 days] on an eccentric orbit about a third star (mass M(A) = 1.347 ± 0.032 M(⊙); radius R(A) = 2.0254 ± 0.0098 R(⊙); period of orbit around the low-mass binary P(2) = 33.9214 ± 0.0013 days; eccentricity of that orbit e(2) = 0.3043 ± 0.0024). The low-mass pair probe the poorly sampled fully convective stellar domain offering a crucial benchmark for theoretical stellar models.     

Computational neuroscience

The ultimate aim of computational neuroscience is to explain how electrical and chemical signals are used in the brain to represent and process information. This goal is not new, but much has changed in the last decade. More is known now about the brain because of advances in neuroscience, more computing power is available for performing realistic simulations of neural systems, and new insights are available from the study of simplifying models of large networks of neurons. Brain models are being used to connect the microscopic level accessible by molecular and cellular techniques with the systems level accessible by the study of behavior.