In contrast to recently published data, we found only moderate sensitivity, but high specificity and high positive predictive value of the detection of GM in BAL fluid. In addition, neutropenia, antifungal therapy, and BAL standardization affected GM assay performance.

The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate results from voriconazole therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) in haematological patients in routine clinical practice. Between 2005 and 2010, 1228 blood samples were obtained from 264 haematological patients (median 3 samples/patient; range 1-27) receiving voriconazole for targeted/preemptive treatment of invasive aspergillosis (IA) (46.3% of samples), empirical therapy (12.9%) or prophylaxis (40.8%). A high-pressure liquid chromatography assay was used to analyse voriconazole concentrations. Clinical and laboratory data were analysed retrospectively. The median of the detected voriconazole plasma concentration was 1.00 μg ml(-1) (range <0.20-13.47 μg ml(-1)). Significant inter- and intra-patients variability of measured concentrations (81.9% and 50.5%) were identified. With the exception of omeprazole administration, there was no relevant relationship between measured voriconazole concentrations and drug dose, route administration, age, gender, CYP2C19*2 genotype, gastrointestinal tract abnormality, administration via nasogastric tube, serum creatinine, and liver enzymes. However, per patient analysis identified significant role of individual voriconazole dose and drug form change on measured plasma concentration. Measured voriconazole concentrations did not correlate with the treatment outcome of patients with IA. We only identified a limited number of adverse events related to voriconazole therapy; however, the median plasma concentration was not different from concentrations measured in samples without reported toxicity. Our retrospective study has suggested that routine monitoring of voriconazole plasma concentrations has probably only a limited role in daily haematological practice.

Chloroplast movement has been studied in many plants mainly in relation to the local light, mechanical or stress effects. Here we investigated possible systemic responses of chloroplast movement to local light or burning stress in tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum cv. Samsun). Chloroplast movement was measured using two independent methods: one with a SPAD 502 Chlorophyll meter and another by collimated transmittance at a selected wavelength (676 nm). A sensitive periodic movement of chloroplasts was used in high or low (2 000 or 50 μmol/m 2 per s photosynthetically active radiation, respectively) cold white light with periods of 50 or 130 min. Measurements were carried out in the irradiated area, in the non-irradiated area of the same leaf or in the leaf located on the stem below the irradiated or burned one. No significant changes in systemic chloroplast movement in non-irradiated parts of the leaf and in the non-treated leaf were detected. Our data indicate that chloroplast movement in tobacco is dependent dominantly on the intensity and spectral composition of the incident light and on the local stimulation and state of the target tissue. No systemic signal was strong enough to evoke a detectable systemic response in chloroplast movement in distant untreated tissues of tobacco plants.Key words: burning; chloroplast movement; irradiance; systemic response; tobacco. Higher plants respond to changing environmental factors affecting either the whole plants (changing temperature, water deficit, excess light intensity) or the part (local response) of a plant body (wounding) by initiating various defense-related processes. These processes include, for example, the accumulation of defense-related proteins, changes in respiration, stomatal and photosynthetic apparatus responses and also chloroplast movement. Important characteristics of self-defense responses of plants are their velocity and ubiquity. Fast (minutes to hours) responses to injurious factors have been detected in the site of injury and in distant regions (systemic response) at the tissue, cellular and molecular levels in various plants (Herde et al. 1996;Baldwin et al. 1997;Rakwal et al. 2002;Koziolek et al. 2004;Hlaváčková et al. 2006 suggest that a signal moves from the injured tissue to the distant untreated parts of the plants and leads to systemic changes. Precise control of organelle positioning is important for plant responses at the cellular level to environmental conditions and stresses (Nagai 1993;Wada and Suetsugu 2004). In particular, chloroplast photo-movement is one of the responses observed in the cells of many species (including tobacco plants used in our study, Augustynowicz et al. 2001) and occurs throughout the plant kingdom . Chloroplasts move towards the illuminated area under weak light conditions, whereas they move away from the area when the light is too strong. The accepted interpretation of the ecological role of these responses is to optimize light harvesting for photosynthesis. Kasahara et al. (2002) reported that chl...