© The Author(s) 2020.Background Pollen and house dust mite (HDM) subcutaneous immunotherapy (SLIT) and pollen subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) are effective therapies for children with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (AR). There are no previous direct comparative studies investigating quality of life (QoL) of all three immunotherapy regimes. The aim of this study was to compare QoL and safety in children receiving these immunotherapies for AR. Methods Demographic characteristics, Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) and Visual Analogue (VAS) scores were assessed in 249 children undergoing HDM and pollen immunotherapy at a UK specialist paediatric centre between 2007 and 2019. Results All three immunotherapy regimes led to a > 50% improvement in QoL and VAS after 3 years of therapy, with significant improvements by the end of the first year (p  less then  0.05) and further improvements between 1 and 3 years (p  less then  0.05). Age, gender, ethnicity and route of administration had no significant bearing on efficacy. Older, polysensitised children and those receiving HDM SLIT were all more likely to discontinue their treatment (all with p  less then  0.05). The only patient to suffer from anaphylaxis requiring intramuscular adrenaline, and 80% experiencing exacerbations of their asthma had received pollen SCIT. Conclusions Pollen SCIT and pollen and HDM SLIT all lead to significant improvements in QoL. The risk of anaphylaxis is low, but SCIT is associates with a 1 in 5 chance of asthma flares in the days after its administration. Discontinuation of therapy is more frequent in older, polysensitised children, and those undergoing HDM immunotherapy. © The Author(s) 2020.Background Much has been learned about basic biology from studies of insect model systems. The pre-eminent insect model system, Drosophila melanogaster, is a holometabolous insect with a derived mode of segment formation. While additional insect models have been pioneered in recent years, most of these fall within holometabolous lineages. In contrast, hemimetabolous insects have garnered less attention, although they include agricultural pests, vectors of human disease, and present numerous evolutionary novelties in form and function. The milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus (order Hemiptera)-close outgroup to holometabolous insects-is an emerging model system. However, comparative studies within this order are limited as many phytophagous hemipterans are difficult to stably maintain in the lab due to their reliance on fresh plants, deposition of eggs within plant material, and long development time from embryo to adult. Results Here we present the harlequin bug, Murgantia histrionica, as a new hemipteran modellopment. Conclusions The similarity in gene expression between Murgantia and Oncopeltus suggests that Oncopeltus is not a sole outlier species in failing to utilize orthologs of Drosophila PRGs for PR-patterning. Rather, strategies deployed for PR-patterning, including the use of E75A in the PRG-network, are likely conserved within Hemiptera, and possibly more broadly among hemimetabolous insects. © The Author(s) 2020.Despite the importance of seed dispersal as a driving process behind plant community assembly, our understanding of the role of seed dispersal in plant population persistence and spread remains incomplete. As a result, our ability to predict the effects of global change on plant populations is hampered. We need to better understand the fundamental link between seed dispersal and population dynamics in order to make predictive generalizations across species and systems, to better understand plant community structure and function, and to make appropriate conservation and management responses related to seed dispersal. To tackle these important knowledge gaps, we established the CoDisperse Network and convened an interdisciplinary, NSF-sponsored Seed Dispersal Workshop in 2016, during which we explored the role of seed dispersal in plant population dynamics (NSF DEB Award # 1548194). In this Special Issue, we consider the current state of seed dispersal ecology and identify the following collaborative research needs (i) the development of a mechanistic understanding of the movement process influencing dispersal of seeds; (ii) improved quantification of the relative influence of seed dispersal on plant fitness compared to processes occurring at other life history stages; (iii) an ability to scale from individual plants to ecosystems to quantify the influence of dispersal on ecosystem function; and (iv) the incorporation of seed dispersal ecology into conservation and management strategies. © The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company.Background Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common form of acute leukemias in adults which is clinically and molecularly heterogeneous. Several risk and genetic factors have been widely investigated to characterize AML. However, the concomitant epigenetic factors in controlling the gene expression lead to AML transformation was not fully understood. This study was aimed to identify epigenetically regulated genes in AML cell lines induced by epigenetic modulating agents, Trichostatin A (TSA) and 5-Azacytidine (5-Aza). Materials and Methods MV4-11 and Kasumi 1 were treated with TSA and/or 5-Aza at IC50 concentration. Gene expression profiling by microarray was utilized using SurePrint G3 Human Gene Expression v3. Gene ontology and KEGG pathway annotations were analyzed by DAVID bioinformatics software using EASE enrichment score. mRNA expression of the differentially expressed genes were verified by quantitative real time PCR. Results Gene expression analysis revealed a significant changes in the expression of 24,822, 15,720, 15,654 genes in MV4-11 and 12,598, 8828, 18,026 genes in Kasumi 1, in response to TSA, 5-Aza and combination treatments, respectively, compared to non-treated (p less then 0.05). 7 genes (SOCS3, TUBA1C, CCNA1, MAP3K6, PTPRC, STAT6 and RUNX1) and 4 genes (ANGPTL4, TUBB2A, ADAM12 and PTPN6) shown to be predominantly expressed in MV4-11 and Kasumi 1, respectively (EASE less then 0.1). The analysis also revealed phagosome pathway commonly activated in both cell lines. Conclusion Our data showed a distinct optimal biological characteristic and pathway in different types of leukemic cell lines. AG-14361 cost These finding may help in the identification of cell-specific epigenetic biomarker in the pathogenesis of AML. Copyright © International Journal of Hematology-Oncology and Stem Cell Research & Tehran University of Medical Sciences.AG-14361 cost