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‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi’ (Ca. P. ulmi) belongs to the ribosomal subgroup 16SrV-A and is associated with dieback, shoot proliferation and yellows disease on various Ulmus spp. Other plant species, such as Carpinus betulus and Prunus spp. have also been reported infected by the same pathogen. In 2021, in the frame of research activities focused on grapevine’s Flavescence dorée (FD), one specimen of Orientus ishidae - an East Palearctic leafhopper that was identified as an alternative vector of FD phytoplasmas - was found harboring Ca. P. ulmi in southern Switzerland. No phytoplasmas were detected in plant samples taken in the same location. Orientus ishidae has already been reported to be able to acquire diverse phytoplasmas associated with other plant diseases, such as Peach X-disease. This is the first report of Ca. P. ulmi in Switzerland, as well as in O. ishidae. Ca. P. ulmi may potentially be present in the wild compartment of the Swiss Pre-alpine and Alpine range, but no dedicated survey has so far been conducted. In the case of O. ishidae, this finding highlights the broad affinity of such a species for the acquisition of several phytoplasmas. This calls for a further investigation regarding its potential role as a vector on various pathosystems of agronomic importance.

IntroductionThe pulmonary endothelium is the primary target of lung ischemia-reperfusion injury leading to primary graft dysfunction after lung transplantation. We hypothesized that treating damaged rat lungs by a transient heat stress during ex-vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) to elicit a pulmonary heat shock response could protect the endothelium from severe reperfusion injury.MethodsRat lungs damaged by 1h warm ischemia were reperfused on an EVLP platform for up to 6h at a constant temperature (T°) of 37°C (EVLP37°C group), or following a transient heat stress (HS) at 41.5°C from 1 to 1.5h of EVLP (EVLPHS group). A group of lungs exposed to 1h EVLP only (pre-heating conditions) was added as control (Baseline group). In a first protocol, we measured lung heat sock protein expression (HSP70, HSP27 and Hsc70) at selected time-points (n=5/group at each time). In a second protocol, we determined (n=5/group) lung weight gain (edema), pulmonary compliance, oxygenation capacity, pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and vascular resistance (PVR), the expression of PECAM-1 (CD31) and phosphorylation status of Src-kinase and VE-cadherin in lung tissue, as well as the release in perfusate of cytokines (TNFα, IL-1β) and endothelial biomarkers (sPECAM, von Willebrand Factor -vWF-, sE-selectin and sICAM-1). Histological and immunofluorescent studies assessed perivascular edema and formation of 3-nitrotyrosine (a marker of peroxinitrite) in CD31 lung endothelium.ResultsHS induced an early (3h) and persisting expression of HSP70 and HSP27, without influencing Hsc70. Lungs from the EVLP37°C group developed massive edema, low compliance and oxygenation, elevated PAP and PVR, substantial release of TNFα, IL-1β, s-PECAM, vWF, E-selectin and s-ICAM, as well as significant Src-kinase activation, VE-cadherin phosphorylation, endothelial 3-NT formation and reduced CD31 expression. In marked contrast, all these alterations were either abrogated or significantly attenuated by HS treatment.ConclusionThe therapeutic application of a transient heat stress during EVLP of damaged rat lungs reduces endothelial permeability, attenuates pulmonary vasoconstriction, prevents src-kinase activation and VE-cadherin phosphorylation, while reducing endothelial peroxinitrite generation and the release of cytokines and endothelial biomarkers. Collectively, these data demonstrate that therapeutic heat stress may represent a promising strategy to protect the lung endothelium from severe reperfusion injury.

Background. Ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) may allow therapeutic reconditioning of damaged lung grafts before transplantation. This study aimed to develop relevant rat models of lung damage to study EVLP therapeutic reconditioning for possible translational applications. Methods. Lungs from 31 rats were exposed to cold ischemia (CI) or warm ischemia (WI), inflated at various oxygen fractions (FiO2), followed by 3 h EVLP. Five groups were studied as follow: (1) C21 (control): 3 h CI (FiO2 0.21); (2) C50: 3 h CI (FiO2 0.5); (3) W21: 1 h WI, followed by 2 h CI (FiO2 0.21); (4) W50: 1 h WI, followed by 2 h CI (FiO2 0.5); and (5) W2h: 2 h WI, followed by 1 h CI (FiO2 0.21). Following 3 h EVLP, we measured static pulmonary compliance (SPC), pulmonary vascular resistance, lung weight gain (edema), oxygenation capacity (differential partial pressure of oxygen), and protein carbonyls in lung tissue (oxidative stress), as well as lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, lung injury), nitrotyrosine (nitro-oxidative stress), interleukin-6 (IL-6, inflammation), and proteins (permeability edema) in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Perivascular edema was quantified by histology. Results. No significant alterations were noted in C21 and C50 groups. W21 and W50 groups had reduced SPC and disclosed increased weight gain, BAL proteins, nitrotyrosine, and LDH. These changes were more severe in the W50 group, which also displayed greater oxidative stress. In contrast, both W21 and W50 showed comparable perivascular edema and BAL IL-6. In comparison with the other WI groups, W2h showed major weight gain, perivascular edema, SPC reduction, drop of differential partial pressure of oxygen, and massive increases of BAL LDH and proteins but comparable increase of IL-6 and biomarkers of oxidative stress. Conclusions. These models of lung damage of increasing severity might be helpful to evaluate new strategies for EVLP therapeutic reconditioning. A model combining 1 h WI and inflation at FiO2 of 0.5 seems best suited for this purpose by reproducing major alterations of clinical lung ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Abstract This article analyses how organizations shape migration trajectories. More specifically, by looking at the Philippine migration industry, this ethnographic research highlights how organizations such as recruitment agencies, and governmental organizations, frame migration trajectories in terms of directionality, spatiality, but also by marketing migrants in the case of domestic workers. By looking at organization’s rationalities, it shows how migration flows have become institutionalized and ruled by organizations based on economic and protection rationalities in order to remain competitive on the global domestic labor market. Moreover, it underlines the crucial role played by these organizations to ensure the matching between the employers and the employee. This article highlights thus how agencies proceed by mobilizing migrant sociodemographic data to market skills such as docility, hardworking and flexibility. In addition, this research describes in detail how age, religion, marital status become key information mobilized by agencies in order to market migrants, meet employers’ expectations, and remain competitive on the global market of domestic labor. Finally, this article emphasizes the contribution of the organizational approach in the field of migration studies.

Massive outbreaks of virus yellows (VY) and syndrome “basses richesses” (SBR) are thought to be responsible for the major loss of sugar beet yields in 2020 in western cantons of Switzerland. Typical yellowing symptoms were visible during field inspections, and control measures were reportedly ineffective or even absent. Both diseases induce yellowing but have distinct etiologies; while VY is caused by aphid-transmitted RNA viruses, SBR is caused by the cixiid-transmitted γ-proteobacterium Candidatus Arsenophonus phytopathogenicus. To clarify the situation, samples from diseased plants across the country were screened for the causal agents of VY and SBR at the end of the season. Beet yellows virus (BYV) and Beet chlorosis virus (BChV) showed high incidence nationwide, and were frequently found together in SBR-infected fields in the West. Beet mild yellowing virus (BMYV) was detected in two sites in the West, while there was no detection of Beet western yellows virus or Beet mosaic virus. The nucleotide diversity of the detected viruses was then investigated using classic and high-throughput sequencing. For both diseases, outbreaks were analyzed in light of monitoring of the respective vectors, and symptoms were reproduced in greenhouse conditions by means of insect-mediated inoculations. Novel quantification tools were designed for BYV, BChV and Ca. A. phytopathogenicus, leading to the identification of specific tissues tropism for these pathogens.

Flavescence dorée (FD) is a grapevine disease caused by ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma vitis’ (FDp), which is epidemically transmitted by the Nearctic leafhopper Scaphoideus titanus. In this study, we applied dendrochronological techniques to analyse the response to FDp infections in terms of wood ring widths and anatomical structures of the xylem and phloem tissues of the trunk of the susceptible grapevine cultivar ‘Chardonnay.’ As a rule, grapevines are susceptible to water shortage and reduce their growth in diameter in case of summer drought. In the season of the external expression of FD symptoms, however, the ring width reductions are extreme and supersede any drought-induced effects. In addition, the anatomy of the phloem tissue in the year of the FD symptom expression appears heavily disarranged. Moreover, in the most suffering individuals, the xylem formation remains incomplete and mostly limited to the early wood tissue. In conclusion, even though the FD phytoplasma does not inhabit and replicate inside the xylem tissue, our results confirm existing indirect inhibiting effects on the ring growth and the xylem tissue formation in FDp-infected grapevines.

Members of the genus ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma’ are obligate intracellular bacteria restricted to phloem sieve elements and are able to colonize several tissues and the hemolymph in their insect vectors. The current unfeasibility of axenic culture and the low complexity of genomic sequences are obstacles in assembling complete chromosomes. Here, a method combining pathogen DNA enrichment from infected insects and dual deep-sequencing technologies was used to obtain the complete genome of a phytoplasma causing Grapevine Flavescence dorée. The de novo assembly generated a circular chromosome of 654,223 bp containing 506 protein-coding genes. Quality assessment of the draft showed a high degree of completeness. Comparative analysis with other phytoplasmas revealed the absence of potential mobile units and a reduced amount of putative phage-derived segments, suggesting a low genome plasticity. Phylogenetic analyses identified Candidatus Phytoplasma ziziphi as the closest fully sequenced relative. The “Flavescence dorée” phytoplasma strain CH genome also encoded for several putative effector proteins potentially playing a role in pathogen virulence. The availability of this genome provides the basis for the study of the pathogenicity mechanisms and evolution of the Flavescence dorée phytoplasma.

Pectobacterium and Dickeya species are the causal agents of blackleg and soft rot diseases in potatoes. The main pathogenic species identified so far on potatoes are Dickeya dianthicola, Dickeya solani, Pectobacterium atrosepticum, Pectobacterium brasiliense, Pectobacterium carotovorum, and Pectobacterium parmentieri. Ten years ago, the most prevalent Soft Rot Pectobacteriaceae in Europe were the Dickeya species, P. atrosepticum and P. carotovorum, with some variations among countries. Since then, a drastic increase in the abundance of P. brasiliense has been observed in most European countries. This shift is difficult to explain without comparing the pathogenicity of all Dickeya and Pectobacterium species. The pathogenicity of all the above-mentioned bacterial species was assessed in field trials and in vitro tuber slice trials in Switzerland. Two isolates of each species were inoculated by soaking tubers of cv. Desiree in a suspension of 105 CFU/mL, before planting in the field. For all trials, the Dickeya species were the most virulent ones, but long-term strain surveys performed in Switzerland indicate that P. brasiliense is currently the most frequent species detected. Our results show that the pathogenicity of the species is not the main factor explaining the high prevalence of P. brasiliense and P. parmentieri in the Swiss potato fields.

Chronic glucocorticoid infusion impairs NCC activity and induces a non-dipping profile in mice, suggesting that glucocorticoids are essential for daily blood pressure variations. In this paper, we studied mice lacking the renal tubular glucocorticoid receptor (GR) in adulthood (GR knockouts, Nr3c1Pax8/LC1). Upon standard salt diet, Nr3c1Pax8/LC1 mice grow normally, but show reduced NCC activity despite normal plasma aldosterone levels. Following diet switch to low sodium, Nr3c1Pax8/LC1 mice exhibit a transient but significant reduction in the activity of NCC and expression of NHE3 and NKCC2 accompanied by significant increased Spak activity. This is followed by transiently increased urinary sodium excretion and higher plasma aldosterone concentrations. Plasma corticosterone levels and 11βHSD2 mRNA expression and activity in the whole kidney remain unchanged. High salt diet does not affect whole body Na+ and/or K+ balance and NCC activity is not reduced, but leads to a significant increase in diastolic blood pressure dipping in Nr3c1Pax8/LC1 mice. When high sodium treatment is followed by 48 h of darkness, NCC abundance is reduced in knockout mice although activity is not different. Our data show that upon Na+ restriction renal tubular GR-deficiency transiently affects Na+ handling and transport pathways. Overall, upon standard, low Na+ and high Na+ diet exposure Na+ and K+ balance is maintained as evidenced by normal plasma and urinary Na+ and K+ and aldosterone concentrations.

Abstract The mineralocorticoid hormone aldosterone plays a crucial role in the control of Na+ and K+ balance, blood volume, and arterial blood pressure, by acting in the aldosterone‐sensitive distal nephron (ASDN) and stimulating a complex transcriptional, translational, and cellular program. Because the complexity of the aldosterone response is still not fully appreciated, we aimed at identifying new elements in this pathway. Here, we demonstrate that the expression of the proto‐oncogene PIM3 (Proviral Integration Site of Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus 3), a serine/threonine kinase belonging to the calcium/calmodulin‐regulated group of kinases, is stimulated by aldosterone in vitro (mCCDcl1 cells), ex vivo (mouse kidney slices), and in vivo in mice. Characterizing a germline Pim3−/− mouse model, we found that these mice have an upregulated Renin‐Angiotensin‐Aldosterone System (RAAS), with high circulating aldosterone and plasma renin activity levels on both standard or Na+‐deficient diet. Surprisingly, we did not observe any obvious salt‐losing phenotype in Pim3 KO mice as shown by normal blood pressure, plasma and urinary electrolytes, as well as unchanged expression levels of the major Na+ transport proteins. These observations suggest that the potential effects of the loss of the Pim3 gene are physiologically compensated. Indeed, the 2 other family members of the PIM kinase family, PIM1 and PIM2 are upregulated in the kidney of Pim3−/− mice, and may therefore be involved in such compensation. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that the PIM3 kinase is a novel aldosterone‐induced protein, but its precise role in aldosterone‐dependent renal homeostasis remains to be determined.

This article discusses the role of a key actor in contemporary migration, namely recruitment and placement agencies, in the globalized economy of domestic labour. By focusing on two key migration “industries” in Southeast Asia, the Philippines and Indonesia, this article reveals how the discourses and practices of recruitment and placement agencies contribute to the making of the “ideal maid”. First, the article examines the making of labouring bodies through recruitment practices in countries of origin, and secondly, it shows how migrant women’s attitudes are normalized in an attempt to make them correspond to foreign employers’ (supposed) expectations. Finally, the article explores how logics of othering shape the recruitment and, even more so, the placement of migrant domestic workers in destination countries such as Malaysia. By considering bodies in their material and symbolic dimensions, the article points out how domestic workers are progressively produced as a “docile” labour force and as a figure of alterity in the globalized economy of domestic work.

This article aims to analyze the process through which migrant Filipina domestic workers’s bodies and sexualities are normalized. Based on an ethnographic analysis of recruitment and training practices of Filipina domestic workers, this article highlights how domestic worker skills are constructed by relying/drawing on certain stereotypes such as "docility", being "hardworking" and able to "adapt” as well as on a control of sexualities. In doing so, this paper points to the importance of analyzing techniques of control of migrants’ sexualities to understand how skills and social roles are produced in the global care economy. More specifically, this research underlines how migrant sexualities come to reflect a particular “ethics of care“. It therefore shows how the control of sexualities becomes an issue linked to ideas of ​​"health risk", “professionalism”, “economic profit” and “the country’s reputation”. Finally, by analyzing the techniques of governmentality of domestic workers’ bodies and sexualities, this article underlines the process of subjectivation at work during the trainings within the Philippines’s migration industry.

Grapevine red blotch is a recently identified viral disease that was first recognized in the Napa Valley of California. Infected plants showed foliar symptoms similar to leafroll, another grapevine viral disease, on vines testing negative for known grapevine leafroll-associated virus. Later, the Grapevine red blotch virus (GRBV) was independently discovered in the US states of California and New York and was demonstrated to be the causal agent of red blotch disease. Due to its wide occurrence in the United States, vector transmission, and impacts on grape industry, this virus has the potential to cause serious economic losses. Despite numerous attempts, it has yet not been possible to isolate or visualize viral particles from GRBV-infected plants, thereby hampering the development of a serological assay that would facilitate GRBV detection in grapevine. In this work, mass spectrometry approaches were applied in order to quantify GRBV in infected plants and identify potential biomarkers for viral infection. We present for the first time the physical detection on the protein level of the two GRBV genes V1 (coat protein) and V2 in grapevine tissue lysates. The GRBV coat protein load in petioles was determined to be in the range of 100–900 million copies per milligram wet weight by using three heavy isotope labeled reference peptides as internal standards. In leaves on the other hand, the V1 copy number per unit wet tissue weight appeared to be about six times lower than in petioles, and about 300 times lower in terms of protein concentration in the extractable protein mass, albeit these estimations could only be made with one reference peptide detectable in leaf extracts. Moreover, we found in leaf and petiole extracts of GRBV-infected plants a consistent upregulation of several enzymes involved in flavonoid biosynthesis by label-free shotgun proteomics, indicating the activation of a defense mechanism against GRBV, a plant response already described for Grapevine leafroll-associated virus infection on the transcriptome level. Finally and importantly, we identified some other microorganisms belonging to the grapevine leaf microbiota, two bacterial species (Novosphingobium sp. Rr 2-17 and Methylobacterium) and one virus, Grapevine rupestris stem pitting-associated virus.