Isolation of Babesia spp. from asymptomatic human beings

Babesiosis is a worldwide tick-borne protozoan disease of a variety of wild and domestic animals. For decades, various babesia strains were considered host-specific. However, babesiosis has been diagnosed as the cause of acute illness in 13 human beings in recent years, three of whom died. Studies of babesiosis in domestic animals indicate that for every clinically demonstrable case, there are hundreds of cases of latent infection. In an effort to determine if human babesia infections might be present in Mexico, we selected as our testing ground an endemic rural area along the Gulf Coast where continuous epizootics of equine, bovine, ovine and canine babesiosis were known to occur. Of the 101 individuals examined serologically by the indirect hemagglutination (IHA) test using Babesia canis as antigen, 38 reacted at titers from 1 : 10 to 1 : 80. Blood from these reactors was injected into splenectomized hamsters. Hamsters inoculated with blood from three of the individuals showed babesia in their peripheral blood. The growth of the organism was established by subpassages into additional hamsters. The persons from whom the organisms were isolated were asymptomatic for babesiosis. None of the 29 individuals residing in Mexico City, which represented the urban population in the survey, reacted in the IHA test. This is the first documented finding of the latent form of human babesiosis.     

Cassini dust measurements at Enceladus and implications for the origin of the E ring

During Cassini's close flyby of Enceladus on 14 July 2005, the High Rate Detector of the Cosmic Dust Analyzer registered micron-sized dust particles enveloping this satellite. The dust impact rate peaked about 1 minute before the closest approach of the spacecraft to the moon. This asymmetric signature is consistent with a locally enhanced dust production in the south polar region of Enceladus. Other Cassini experiments revealed evidence for geophysical activities near Enceladus' south pole: a high surface temperature and a release of water gas. Production or release of dust particles related to these processes may provide the dominant source of Saturn's E ring.     

Spider mite control and resistance management: does a genome help?

The complete genome of the two‐spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, has been reported. This is the first sequenced genome of a highly polyphagous and resistant agricultural pest. The question as to what the genome offers the community working on spider mite control is addressed. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Immunomodulatory effects of the methanolic extract of Epimedium alpinum in vitro

The effect of the methanolic extract of root and rhizome of Epimedium alpinum (MEEA) on phenotype and functions of rat lymphocytes in vitro was studied. It has been found that MEEA at lower concentrations (0.1 microg/ml and 1 microg/ml) significantly enhanced proliferation of splenocytes and thymocytes triggered by concanavalin A (Con A), whereas higher concentrations of the extract (50 microg/ml-500 microg/ml) were inhibitory. The stimulatory effect of MEEA on Con A-induced proliferation of splenocytes correlated with the up-regulation of interleukin-2 receptor alpha (IL-2Ralpha) expression. In addition, increased production of IL-2 was observed when a blocking IL-2Ralpha monoclonal antibody (mAb) was added to cell cultures. MEEA-suppressed proliferation of splenocytes was due to the inhibition of IL-2 production, the down-regulation of IL-2Ralpha expression and the induction of apoptosis. Cellular proliferation in the presence of inhibitory concentrations of MEEA higher than 50 microg/ml could not be restored by the addition of exogenous IL-2.     

Antigenic and immunogenic studies on cell culture-derived Babesia canis

Babesia canis antigens derived from cell culture reacted specifically with immune serum from dogs convalescing from babesiosis. The antigens were heterogenous as compared to antigens elaborated in vivo. The major antigenic moiety from cell culture eluted in the first peak of Sephadex G-200 is indicative of a molecular weight around 900 000. In contrast, in vivo-derived antigen coeluted with albumin and hemoglobin suggesting a molecular weight of 67 000. The major antigenic mass is proteinacious and contains disulfide bonds as indicated by thermolability and sensitivity to 2-mercaptoethanol. Both particulate and soluble B. canis antigens were immunogenic, particularly when emulsified in Saponin as an adjuvant. Such antigens conferred a considerable degree of protection in susceptible dogs and it suggested that immunoprophylaxis to B. canis may be feasible.     

Immunologic systems and protection in infections caused by intracellular blood protista

Rickettsiaea and protozoa which invade circulating leukocytes and erythrocytes are discussed in this communication. Characteristic features of animal diseases caused by these agents are (1) they are transmitted by arthropod vectors, (b) most cause devastating losses to the livestock industry, and (c) some are important to human health. A common characteristic of blood protista is their ability to survive for a long time in immunologically hostile hosts. This can be attributed to their intracellular domicile, possible incorporation of host cell proteins in their structure, and antigenic variations causing evasion of the host's surveillance mechanism. The last decade has seen an expansion in the application of immunologic principles to the study of blood protista. Infections caused by blood protista stimulate humoral and cell-mediated immune responses. Antibodies have been measured in serodiagnostic procedures. Cell-mediated immunity in combination with antibodies of various activities seem to be the main protective mechanism. A vaccine using a live attenuated agent (Anaplasma marginale) which induces and maintains the above responses constitutes a novel, realistic, and practical approach to control of blood protistan diseases.     

Evaluation of seed yield and seed yield components in red–yellow (Pisum fulvum) and Ethiopian (Pisum abyssinicum) peas

Red–yellow (Pisum fulvum Sibth. et Sm.) and Ethiopian (Pisum abyssinicum A. Br.) peas have become of increasing interest to breeders in the last decade, as they have been found to be partially or completely tolerant to various biotic stresses, such as to attack by pea weevil, mildew blight or rust. A trial was carried out at the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops at Rimski ?an?evi from 2005 to 2007, with 13 accessions each of red–yellow and Ethiopian peas sown at 100 viable seeds m^?2, in plots of 0.5 m². Seed yield per plant in red–yellow pea was significantly and positively correlated with seed number per plant (r = 0.881**), pod number per plant (r = 0.839**) and number of fertile nodes (r = 0.820**). The highest positive correlation among the agronomic characteristics in Ethiopian pea was between number of fertile nodes and number of pods (r = 0.937**). Seed yield in Ethiopian pea was highly significantly correlated with number of seeds (r = 0.807**), pods (r = 0.692*), and fertile nodes (r = 0.638*). The results suggest that plant morphology of the progenies between red–yellow or Ethiopian peas and grain-type common pea could not differ significantly from that of individual parents. That means that it could be possible to develop hybrid lines that could keep the desirable morphological traits of grain-type common pea, such as lodging-tolerance and high seed yields, and to make an introgression of a specific resistance from wild pea taxa, especially by back-crosses with the former. However, one must always be aware of unpredicted outcomes as a result of rather different genetic basis of individual seed yield components.     

Administration of recombinant parasite beta-tubulin to goldfish (Carassius auratus L.) confers partial protection against challenge infection with Trypanosoma danilewskyi Laveran and Mesnil, 1904

The infection of carp and other cyprinid fish with Trypanosoma danilewskyi was reported to cause significant morbidity and mortality in aquaculture. Tubulin is a component of parasite excretory/secretory (ES) products recognized by antibodies present in the serum of recovered hosts. To assess the role of parasite tubulin in the induction of a protective immune response in the goldfish, recombinant T. danilewskyi beta-tubulin was produced in Escherichia coli and used to immunize goldfish against challenge with live parasites. Affinity purified rabbit anti-recombinant tubulin IgG bound to both surface and internal structures of trypanosomes, and when added to parasite cultures caused a dose-dependent inhibition of their growth in vitro. Immunization of goldfish i.p. with either 40 microg or 80 microg of endotoxin-free beta-tubulin+Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA) caused a significant decrease in parasitemia during the establishment phase of the infection (days 3 and 7) and increased the time required to reach the maximal mean number of parasites compared to non-immunized sham-injected control fish. The serum from immune fish contained antibodies that recognized trypanosomes as determined by confocal immunofluorescence microscopy and specific antibodies that recognized recombinant tubulin as measured by ELISA. Thus, the immunization of goldfish with recombinant parasite beta-tubulin conferred partial antibody-mediated protection against a challenge infection with live trypanosomes. This is a first report that parasite tubulin is immunogenic in poikilothermic vertebrates.     

Decision making in urban forestry by using approval voting and multicriteria approval method (case study: Zvezdarska forest,Belgrade, Serbia)

This paper deals with a common urban forestry problem: selecting the most appropriate management policy for a forest situated within a city zone. In the presented case study, we analyzed this problem within the Zvezdarska forest in Belgrade, Serbia. The decision makers that took part in the decision making process represented the two main stakeholder groups – the public and the experts. The public group is divided into three different subgroups: local residents, tourists and environmentalists. The experts group is represented by local authorities and academic experts. The procedure implemented for evaluating and selecting the most desired management policy for the case study area combines approval voting and the multicriteria approval method, two social choice theory methods suitable for decision-making in forestry. The main reason for combining these techniques is to be sure that the selected policy will be accepted as the most desired option by both the public and the experts. The results and discussions with involved decision makers clearly show that the applied procedure possesses sufficient analyticity and full transparency in the decision-making process; hence it is applicable to problems in urban forest management as well as to natural resources in general.