Copal is a resin of ritual uses in Mexico that is extracted from several species of trees of the genus Bursera. The effect of traditional management on phenotypical traits of copal trees has not been sufficiently studied. This research analyzed the traditional management and human selection on populations of Bursera bipinnata, and it also examined their influence on the quantity and quality of the resin produced by wild and managed trees. The management of copal was documented through semi-structured interviews and workshops. Samples of 60 trees from six wild and managed populations were selected to quantify the production of resin during two consecutive years. Fresh resin was collected to identify organic volatile compounds through gas chromatography and Principal Components Analysis (PCA); individuals were classified according to the amount and type of organic compounds produced. We identified management strategies from simple harvesting to seeds planting. The criteria of local people for selecting managed trees and seeds are based on the quantity and quality of the resin produced per tree, which were significantly higher in managed than in wild trees: 190.17 ± 329.04 g vs. 29.55 ± 25.50 g (p = 0.003), and 175.88 ± 179.29 g vs. 63.05 ± 53.25 g (p = 0.008) for the production seasons of 2017 and 2018, respectively. Twenty organic volatile compounds were identified, and the PCA showed that managed trees produce higher percentages of compounds associated with scent. The traditional management of Bursera bipinnata involves selective pressures, which generate the differentiation of wild and managed trees that may represent incipient domestication through silvicultural management.

Glioblastoma is a difficult disease to diagnose. Proteomic techniques are commonly applied in biomedical research, and can be useful for early detection, making an accurate diagnosis and reducing mortality. The relevance of mitochondria in brain development and function is well known; therefore, mitochondria may influence the development of glioblastoma. The T98G (with oxidative metabolism) and U87MG (with glycolytic metabolism) cell lines are considered to be useful glioblastoma models for studying these tumors and the role of mitochondria in key aspects of this disease, such as prognosis, metastasis and apoptosis. In the present study, principal component analysis of protein abundance data identified by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC‑MS/MS) and matrix‑assisted laser desorption/ionization‑time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI‑TOF) from 2D gels indicated that representative mitochondrial proteins were associated with glioblastoma. The selected proteins were organized into T98G‑ and U87MG‑specific protein‑protein interaction networks to demonstrate the representativeness of both proteomic techniques. Gene Ontology overrepresentation analysis based on the relevant proteins revealed that mitochondrial processes were associated with metabolic changes, invasion and metastasis in glioblastoma, along with other non‑mitochondrial processes, such as DNA translation, chaperone responses and autophagy. Despite the lower resolution of 2D electrophoresis, principal component analysis yielded information of comparable quality to that of LC‑MS/MS. The present analysis pipeline described a specific and more complete metabolic status for each cell line, defined a clear mitochondrial performance for distinct glioblastoma tumors, and introduced a useful strategy to understand the heterogeneity of glioblastoma.

Breast cancer (BC) is the most prevalent cancer and the one with the highest mortality among women worldwide. Although the molecular classification of BC has been a helpful tool for diagnosing and predicting the treatment of BC, developments are still being made to improve the diagnosis and find new therapeutic targets. Mitochondrial dysfunction is a crucial feature of cancer, which can be associated with cancer aggressiveness. Although the importance of mitochondrial dynamics in cancer is well recognized, its involvement in the mitochondrial function and bioenergetics context in BC molecular subtypes has been scantly explored. In this study, we combined mitochondrial function and bioenergetics experiments in MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines with statistical and bioinformatics analyses of the mitochondrial proteome of luminal A and basal-like tumors. We demonstrate that basal-like tumors exhibit a vicious cycle between mitochondrial fusion and fission; impaired but not completely inactive mitochondrial function; and the Warburg effect, associated with decreased oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complexes I and III. Together with the results obtained in the cell lines and the mitochondrial proteome analysis, two mitochondrial signatures were proposed: one signature reflecting alterations in mitochondrial functions and a second signature exclusively of OXPHOS, which allow us to distinguish between luminal A and basal-like tumors.

Glioblastoma Multiforme is a cancer type with an important mitochondrial component. Here was used mitochondrial proteome Random Sampling in 2D gels from T98G (oxidative metabolism) and U87MG (glycolytic metabolism) cell lines to obtain and analyze representative spots (regardless of their intensity, size, or difference in abundance between cell lines) by Principal Component Analysis for protein identification. Identified proteins were ordered into specific Protein-Protein Interaction networks, to each cell line, showing mitochondrial processes related to metabolic change, invasion, and metastasis; and other nonmitochondrial processes such as DNA translation, chaperone response, and autophagy in gliomas. T98G and U87MG cell lines were used as glioblastoma transition model; representative proteomic signatures, with the most important biological processes in each cell line, were defined. This pipeline analysis describes the metabolic status of each line and defines clear mitochondria performance differences for distinct glioblastoma stages, introducing a new useful strategy for the understanding of glioblastoma carcinogenesis formation. Biological significance: This study defines the mitochondria as an organelle that follows and senses the carcinogenesis process by an original proteomic approach, a random sampling in 2DE gels to obtain a representative spots sample and analyzing their relative abundance by Principal Components Analysis; to faithfully describe glioblastoma cells biology.