Ginsenoside production in different phenotypes of Panax ginseng transformed roots.

Transformed roots were obtained after the inoculation of sterile root discs of Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer with Agrobacterium rhizogenes A4. The established hairy root lines displayed three morphological phenotypes when cultured on hormone-free liquid Schenk and Hildebrandt medium. Most of the cultures showed the characteristic traits of hairy roots (HR-M), while others were either callus-like (C-M) or thin (T-M) without branching. The growth rate of the transformed root lines was always higher than that of untransformed roots, showing that the genetic changes caused by the A. rhizogenes transformation conditioned a higher biomass formation. When considering the different transformed root phenotypes, we can observe that the highest ginsenoside production was achieved by HR-M root lines, closely followed by C-M ones, whereas the lowest yield was reached by T-M root phenotype. The study of the integration of the TL-DNA and TR-DNA fragments of the pRiA4 in the root genome showed that the aux1 gene was always detected in HR-M and C-M root phenotypes which presented the highest biomass and ginsenoside productions. This fact suggests a significant role of aux genes in the morphology of Panax ginseng transformed roots. The ginsenoside pattern of transformed roots varied according to their morphology, although the ginsenoside contents of the Rg group was always higher than that of the Rb group. From our results, we can infer the potential of some root phenotypes of Panax ginseng hairy root cultures for an improved ginsenoside production.

[Lipomatous hypertrophy of the interatrial septum. Report of 2 cases diagnosed in vivo]. / Hipertrofia lipomatosa del tubérculo intervenoso. A propósito de dos casos diagnosticados en vivo.

Lipomatous hypertrophy of intervenous tubercle is a clinicopathological entity characterized by an accumulation of not capsulated fatty tissue, with its thickness exceeding 15 mm, in the atrial septum, above the fossa ovalis, at the intervenous level and protruding into the right atrium. It can be clinically associated with atrial electric abnormalities such as disorders of the atrial conduction and supraventricular arrhythmias, difficulty of the venous return and sudden death. Nowadays its diagnosis is not difficult using non invasive image techniques. We present two cases of lipomatous hypertrophy of intervenous tubercle which were suspected by echocardiography. In one of them we used transthoracic echocardiography and in the other one transesophageal echocardiography. The diagnostic was latter confirmed by magnetic nuclear resonance and axial computerized tomography.