Foliar Lesions Induced by Pestalotiopsis arengae in Oil Palm (O × G) in the Colombian Southwest Palm Zone.

In Colombia, plantings with the oil palm hybrid between Elaeis oleifera × Elaeis guineensis, known as O × G hybrid, have increased due to its tolerance to bud rot. Despite this, different degrees of foliar necrosis, chlorosis, and leaf blight have been reported in some cultivars; therefore, this work aimed to diagnose this problem. We visited plantation plots with palms exhibiting the mentioned symptoms and collected 21 samples of affected tissues in different disease states. The affected tissues were examined and seeded in a culture medium. Pathogenicity tests were performed and the isolates were characterized by culture and morphological and molecular features. Curvularia, Colletotrichum, Phoma, and 25 Pestalotiopsis-like fungi were isolated from the foliar lesions. In the pathogenicity tests, the symptoms observed in the field were reproduced with MFTU01-1, MFTU12, and MFTU21 isolates, which were identified at the species level through a sequence analysis of three genes (ITS, TUB2, and TEF1-α) as Pestalotiopsis arengae with an identical level of 99% based on the results of BLAST and phylogenetic tree analyses. The remaining 22 Pestalotiopsis-like non-pathogenic isolates were identified as species of Neopestalotiopsis and Pseudopestalotiopsis. The direct association of P. arengae with the disease was confirmed via molecular detection in affected tissues in 15 of 21 samples collected for this evaluation. This is the first report of P. arengae as the causal agent of foliar lesions in O × G hybrid oil palm in Colombia.

Choline acts during preimplantation development of the bovine embryo to program postnatal growth and alter muscle DNA methylation.

The preimplantation period of embryonic development can be a key window for programming of postnatal development because extensive epigenetic remodeling occurs during this time. It was hypothesized that modification of one-carbon metabolism of the bovine embryo by addition of the methyl-donor choline to culture medium would change postnatal phenotype through epigenetic modification. Embryos produced in vitro were cultured with 1.8 mM choline chloride or control medium. Blastocysts were transferred into females and pregnancy outcomes and postnatal phenotype of the resultant calves determined. Exposure of embryos to choline increased gestation length and calf birth weight. Calves derived from choline-treated embryos were also heavier at weaning and had increased ratio of body weight to hip height than control calves. Choline altered muscle DNA methylation of calves 4 months after birth. A total of 670 of the 8149 CpG examined were differentially methylated, with the predominant effect of choline being hypomethylation. Among the genes associated with differentially methylated CpG were ribosomal RNAs and genes in AMPK, mTOR, integrin, and BEX2 canonical pathways and cellular functions involved in growth and proliferation. Results demonstrate that provision of the methyl-donor choline to the preimplantation embryo can alter its developmental program to increase gestation length, birth weight, and weaning weight and cause postnatal changes in muscle DNA methylation including those associated with genes related to anabolic processes and cellular growth. The importance of the nutritional status of the embryo with respect to one-carbon metabolism for ensuring health and well-being after birth is emphasized by these observations.

Embryo and cow factors affecting pregnancy per embryo transfer for multiple-service, lactating Holstein recipients.

The objective was to determine whether pregnancy success after embryo transfer (ET) during heat stress in multi-service Holstein cows depends upon characteristics of the embryo or recipient. Female embryos produced in vitro were cultured with either 0.0 (control) or 1.8 mM choline chloride and transferred fresh. Fresh embryos of undetermined breed and frozen Holstein embryos were used when experimental embryos were insufficient. Embryos were transferred 8 d after the last GnRH injection of an ovulation synchronization program. Embryo type [frozen vs. fresh, choline vs. control, unknown breed vs. (control + choline)] and characteristics of recipients (average of 190 d in milk at transfer) were evaluated. Pregnancy per ET was lower for cows receiving frozen embryos (7.0%; 3/43) than for cows receiving fresh embryos (26.7%; 32/120) but there were no differences between various types of fresh embryo. Pregnancy per ET was lower for cows diagnosed with metritis in the early postpartum period (7.1%; 2/28) than for cows without metritis (24.4%; 33/135). In conclusion, the use of frozen/thawed embryos produced in vitro and recipients which had metritis in the early postpartum period reduced the success of ET in multiple-service Holstein cows.

Nonbacterial Thrombotic Endocarditis of the Tricuspid Valve in a Male Patient with Antiphospholipid Syndrome.

Valve vegetations in nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis consist of fibrin and platelet aggregates and can be related to circulating immune complexes, such as in the case of antiphospholipid syndrome. In patients with primary antiphospholipid syndrome, echocardiographic studies have disclosed heart valve abnormalities in about a third of patients. Unusual associations between antiphospholipid syndrome and nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis include presentation as an intracardiac mass compatible with a myxoma on imaging studies, as well as isolated involvement of the tricuspid valve. Both of these scenarios have been previously reported in female patients. This article presents the case of a 53-year-old Hispanic male with antiphospholipid syndrome who presented to the hospital with symptoms of heart failure and persistent right calf pain. An intracardiac mass attached to the anterior leaflet of the tricuspid valve was found through transthoracic echocardiography. Further imaging studies suggested the mass to be a myxoma and the patient underwent mass excision with tricuspid valve replacement. Pathology report of the surgical specimen was consistent with a diagnosis of nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis. This case highlights the importance of considering nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis as a key differential diagnosis in patients with concomitant antiphospholipid syndrome and intracardiac masses, as well as challenges encountered in diagnosis and management.

Oportunidades perdidas en inmunización durante la hospitalización / Opportunities lost in immunization during the hospitalization

Se denomina oportunidad perdida en vacunación toda circunstancia en la cual un niño menor de 5 años o una madre en edad fértil, encontrándose aptos para ser vacunados, no reciben la inmunización al ponerse en contacto con un organismo de salud. A pesar de la importancia que han adquirido las vacunas a travéz del Programa Amplio de Inmunización (PAI), aún continúan presentándose oportunidades perdidas en inmunización. Con el objetivo de evaluar ésta problemática se elaboró un estudio prospectivo-descriptivo y transversal, tipo encuesta, a 100 madres de niños hospitalizados en los servicios de medicina y supraespecialidades del Hospital "J.M. de Los Rios" Caracas, se obtuvieron los siguientes resultados: 60 pacientes correspondían a Pediatría Médica y 40 a supraespecialidades; 89,7 por ciento de los médicos preguntaron acerca de la vacunas, 62,9 por ciento pidió la tarjeta de vacunas y 45,9 por ciento piensa que la tarjeta de vacunas es indispensable para aplicar la vacunación; el 42 por ciento de los pacientes ubicados en el Servicio de Pediatría fueron enviados a vacunar al Servicio de Niño Sano, mientras que en las supraespecialidades sólo fueron enviados a vacunar el 15 por ciento. Se encontró un indice alto de oportunidades perdidas, ya que 52,6 por ciento no tenían el esquema de vacunación del Ministerio de Sanidad y Desarrollo Social (MSDS) y sólo fueron enviados a vacunar el 27 por ciento del total de los niños, lo que semuestra un problema serio de falta de incentivo por parte del personal médico acerca de la aplicación y esto es mayor a medida que la pediatría se convierte en supraespecialidad

Tatuajes y perforaciones corporales: ¿que tan frecuentes son? / Tattooing and body piercing: how frequent are they?

Los tatuajes y las perforaciones corporales son prácticas frecuentes en la población mundial. Caracas, la capital más cosmopolita de Venezuela, no escapa a esta realidad que no sólo constituye una práctica ornamental sino que puede tener profundo significado psicológico y conllevar a múltiples complicaciones. Se evaluaron 12.132 pacientes que asistieron a la consulta dermatológica del Instituto de Biomedicina en el Hospital Vargas de Caracas y se realizó una encuesta anónima a médicos dermatólogos y de otras especialidades además de estudiantes de medicina. En Caracas, la frecuencia de tatuajes y perforaciones en la población general estudiada fue de 9,6 por ciento para tatuajes y 17,2 por ciento para los piercing. Las complicaciones de estos son tratadas más frecuentemente por dermatólogos. Sólo el 2 por ciento de los dermatólogos realiza estos procedimientos a sus pacientes y en el caso de los tatuajes sólo los realizan como parte de cirugía cosmética y reconstructiva. Existe poca información entre los estudiantes de medicina y los médicos no dermatólogos acerca de las posibles complicaciones de estos procedimientos

Complicaciones en primiparas precoces y tardias del Hospital Ernesto Paolini-Colon julio 1994-junio 1996 / Complications in precocious primiparas and lates of the Hospital Ernesto Paolini-Colon july 1994-june 1996

Con el propósito de conocer las complicaciones más frecuentes en las primíparas precoces y tardias se estudiaron 2572 historias clínicas con el diagnóstico de mujeres en trabajo de parto en el Hospital de Colón, Tachira (julio 1994-junio 1996), de las cuales el 27,7 por ciento fueron precoces y el 2,9 por ciento tardías; siendo más del 70 por ciento solteras y con ocupación oficios del hogar, teniendo más del 90 por ciento mal control prenatal en ambas poblaciones. Las principales complicaciones apreciadas en las primíparas precoces (25 por ciento): infección urinaria, leucorreas, amenaza de parto prematuro, ruptuta prematura de membranas, desproporción céfalo-pélvica, pre-eclampsia, siendo sus complicaciones perinatales (16 por ciento): sufrimiento fetal agudo, caput succedaneum, hipoxia perinatal, polidactilia entre otras. En las primíparas tardías (13 por ciento) se apreciaron: ruptura prematura de membrana, desproporción céfalo-pélvica y preclampsia, siendo la complicación perinatal sufrimiento fetal agudo (13 por ciento). No se reportaron muertes maternas siendo la perinatal de 0,4 por ciento y 4,34 por ciento para las primíparas precoces y tardías respectivamente