No abstract

Breast cancer (BC) is a significant threat to female health, with both modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors. It is essential to monitor patients regularly and to raise population awareness. Increasing research also suggests that E-selectin (SELE) may increase tumor angiogenesis and the development of cancer. This study investigated SELE single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the following positions: rs5367T/C, rs5368C/T, rs5362T/G, and rs5362T/C. Using polymerase chain reaction, significant differences in allele and genotype frequencies were found between BC patients and controls. Position rs5368 was associated with an increased risk of BC for the CT and TT genotypes, with odds ratios (ORs) of 16.3 and 6.90 (Fisher probability=0.0001, p = 0.05). Women with the T allele had a 19.3-fold higher incidence of BC, while allele C may be a protective allele against BC (OR, 0.05). Heterozygous genotypes at rs5367, rs5362, and rs5362 were significantly more common in BC patients, with ORs of 5.70, 4.50, and 3.80, respectively. These SNPs may be associated with the risk of BC, because the frequency of mutant alleles was significantly higher in patients (OR: 4.26, 3.83, and 4.30, respectively) than in controls (OR: 0.23, 0.30, and 0.20, respectively). These SNPs may be considered a common genotype in the Iraqi population, with the wild-type allele having a protective fraction and the mutant allele having an environmental fraction. The results also revealed a 2-fold increase in gene expression in BC patients compared to controls, with a significant effect (p = 0.02). This study's findings confirm the importance of SELE polymorphisms in cancer risk prediction.

In a pilot study, a biological control with hypovirus-infected Cryphonectria parasitica was applied in 3 study plots in Turkey, in June 2013. The aim of this study was to evaluate the success of the applied biological control by verifying the establishment of the released hypovirus (CHV-1) strains using molecular markers. C. parasitica isolates were sampled from cankers at 3 different time points: before the biological control treatments (April 2013), and 5 months (October 2013) and 11 months (May 2014) after the treatment. In total, 255 C. parasitica isolates were recovered and characterized. First, the culture morphology and vegetative compatibility type of these isolates were assessed. Next, the presence of hypoviruses in white isolates was checked by RNA extraction and subsequent RT-PCR. Finally, a sequence analysis was performed to compare the hypoviruses to the released biological control hypoviruses by examining single nucleotide markers and reconstructing their phylogenetic relationship. The study sites in İzmir and Kütahya were found to be free of hypoviruses prior to the biological control, whereas in Sinop, the occurrence of hypoviruses of the Italian subtype was observed. Reisolations of the treated cankers and subsequent molecular analysis resulted in the detection of the released biocontrol hypovirus strains in all 3 study sites. The reisolated hypoviruses in İzmir and Kütahya originated from either one of the released biocontrol strains. In Sinop, both natural and artificially introduced hypoviruses were detected. Our study showed that the released biological control hypoviruses persisted in the treated cankers, which is promising for the biological control of chestnut blight in Turkey.

No abstract

Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) is an important tree species in the Marmara and Aegean regions of Turkey as these two regions produce the great majority of edible nuts, especially those used for marron glacé production. Chestnut forests and orchards in these regions showing severe dieback symptoms not associated with chestnut blight were investigated to determine the role of Phytophthora spp. in the decline syndrome. Soil samples were collected from around 108 symptomatic chestnut trees at 29 sites and Phytophthora spp. isolated using soil baiting technique and selective medium. Species isolated were identified by cultural characteristics and ITS sequencing. Phytophthora x cambivora was the dominant species detected in 13 sites, followed by P. cinnamomi (5 sites), P. plurivora (3 sites) and P. cryptogea (1 site). Phytophthora x cambivora was present in both regions, while P. cinnamomi was found only in the Marmara region in coastal areas around Istanbul. When inoculated at the stem bases of 3‐year‐old chestnut saplings, P. cinnamomi produced significantly longer necrotic lesions (7.8–12.0 cm) than P. x cambivora (2.6–6.3 cm) by 12 days after inoculation. Phytophthora plurivora was the least aggressive species causing only small lesions. Phytophthora cryptogea, which represents the first record on chestnut in Turkey, produced intermediate sized lesions in between P. x cambivora and P. plurivora. These results indicate that P. x cambivora and in some areas P. cinnamomi play major roles in the observed dieback of sweet chestnut in western Turkey.