Genomic characterization of the first oral avian papillomavirus in a colony of breeding canaries (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Serinus canaria</Emphasis>)

Papillomaviruses are non-enveloped, DNA viruses that infect skin and mucosa of a wide variety of vertebrates, causing neoplasias or simply persisting asymptomatically. Avian papillomaviruses, with six fully sequenced genomes, are the second most studied group after mammalian papillomaviruses. In this study, we describe the first oral avian papillomavirus, detected in the tongue of a dead Yorkshire canary (Serinus canaria) and in oral swabs of the same bird and other two live canaries from an aviary in Madrid, Spain. Its genome is 8,071 bp and presents the canonical papillomavirus architecture with six early (E6, E7, E1, E9, E2, E4) and two late open reading frames (L1 and L2) and a long control region between L1 and E6. This new avian papillomavirus L1 gene shares a 64% pairwise identity with FcPV1 L1, so it has been classified as a new species (ScPV1) within the Ethapapillomavirus genus. Although the canary died after showing breathing problems, there is no evidence that the papillomavirus caused those symptoms so it could be part of the oral microbiota of the birds. Hence, future investigations are needed to evaluate the clinical relevance of the virus.     

Newly recorded species of the genus Isohypsibius （Tardigrada; Hypsibiidae） from China

This paper reports two newly recorded species, lsohypsibius lunulatus Iharos, 1966 and lsohypsibiusprosostomus Thulin, 1928, of the genus lsohypsibius （Tardigrada; Hypsibiidae） from China. The specimens of lsohysibius lunulatus were collected from Taibai Mt （34°18′N, 107°42′E） at 2,500 m a.s.1, and those oflsohypsibius prosostomus from Taibai Mt （34°10′N, 107°35′E） at 2,000 m above sea level. All specimens are deposited at the College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, China. A key to the Chinese species of lsohypsibius was also given.     

Immune responses elicited in mice with recombinant <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lactococcus lactis</Emphasis> expressing F4 fimbrial adhesin FaeG by oral immunization

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is a major pathogenic agent causing piglet diarrhea. The major subunit and adhesin FaeG of F4⁺ ETEC is an important virulence factor with strong immunogenicity. To determine whether Lactococcus lactis (L. lactis) could effectively deliver FaeG to the mucosal immune system, recombinant L. lactis expressing FaeG was constructed, and immune responses in mice following oral route delivery of recombinant L. lactis were explored. The production of FaeG expressed in L. lactis was up to approximately 10% of soluble whole-cell proteins, and recombinant FaeG (rFaeG) possessed good immunoreactivity by Western blot analysis. Oral immunization with recombinant L. lactis expressing FaeG induced F4-specific mucosal and systemic immune responses in the mice. In addition, high dose recombinant L. lactis or co-administration of high dose recombinant L. lactis with CTB enhanced the immune responses. These results suggested that L. lactis expressing FaeG was a promising candidate vaccine against ETEC.     

Assessing the Impacts of Time-to-Detection Distribution Assumptions on Detection Probability Estimation

Abundance estimates from animal point-count surveys require accurate estimates of detection probabilities. The standard model for estimating detection from removal-sampled point-count surveys assumes that organisms at a survey site are detected at a constant rate; however, this assumption can often lead to biased estimates. We consider a class of N-mixture models that allows for detection heterogeneity over time through a flexibly defined time-to-detection distribution (TTDD) and allows for fixed and random effects for both abundance and detection. Our model is thus a combination of survival time-to-event analysis with unknown-N, unknown-p abundance estimation. We specifically explore two-parameter families of TTDDs, e.g., gamma, that can additionally include a mixture component to model increased probability of detection in the initial observation period. Based on simulation analyses, we find that modeling a TTDD by using a two-parameter family is necessary when data have a chance of arising from a distribution of this nature. In addition, models with a mixture component can outperform non-mixture models even when the truth is non-mixture. Finally, we analyze an Ovenbird data set from the Chippewa National Forest using mixed effect models for both abundance and detection. We demonstrate that the effects of explanatory variables on abundance and detection are consistent across mixture TTDDs but that flexible TTDDs result in lower estimated probabilities of detection and therefore higher estimates of abundance.Supplementary materials accompanying this paper appear on-line.     

Analysis of rice blast resistance gene <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pi</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="Italic">z</Emphasis> in rice germplasm using pathogenicity assays and DNA markers

The Pi-z gene in rice confers resistance to a wide range of races of the rice blast fungus, Magnaporthe oryzae. The objective of this study was to characterize Pi-z in 111 rice germplasm accessions using DNA markers and pathogenicity assays. The existence of Pi-z in rice germplasm was detected by using four simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers (RM527, AP4791, AP5659-1, AP5659-5) closely linked to Pi-z, and was verified using pathogenicity assays with an avirulent strain (IE1k) and two virulent races (IB33 and IB49). Among 111 germplasm accessions evaluated, 73 were found to contain the Pi-z gene using both SSR markers and pathogenicity assays. The remaining 38 germplasm accessions were found to be inconsistent in their responses to the blast races IB33, IEIk and IB49 with expected SSR marker alleles, suggesting the presence of unexpected SSR alleles and additional R gene(s). These characterized germplasm can be used for genetic studies and marker-assisted breeding for improving blast resistance in rice.     

Laboratory characterization of firebrands involved in spot fires

• Introduction  

Wildfires are considered the most important disturbance in the Mediterranean Basin, and some are propagated over long distances due to lift-off and ignition of firebrands.     

Evaluation of two Indian native chicken breeds for reproduction traits and heritability of juvenile growth traits

The present study was conducted to evaluate two Indian native chicken breeds, namely, Aseel and Kadaknath for fertility, hatchability, genetic parameters of juvenile growth traits, and semen quality traits at the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility was similar in Aseel (86.96%) and Kadaknath (85.15%); however, a relatively higher hatchability was observed in Kadaknath (77.94%) than Aseel (70.74%). Heritability estimates of body weights at 4 weeks of age were almost similar in Aseel (0.37) and Kadaknath (0.39), while the estimate of body weight at 6 weeks of age was higher in Aseel (0.42) than Kadaknath (0.31). The heritability estimate of shank length at 6 weeks of age was lower in Aseel (0.16) compared to Kadaknath (0.35). The age at first egg in the flock was comparable in Aseel (148 days) and Kadaknath (150 days). Aseel breed with significantly (P ≤ 0.001) higher body weight, absolute and relative testes weights had significantly higher semen volume (P ≤ 0.05) and sperm motility (P ≤ 0.01) but had lower seminal plasma cholesterol level (P ≤ 0.05) as compared to Kadaknath. It can be concluded that there is a scope for genetic improvement of these two native breeds for juvenile growth traits since heritability estimates of these traits were relatively high.     

Leptospirosis as the most frequent infectious disease impairing productivity in small ruminants in Rio de Janeiro,Brazil

Despite the importance of small ruminants breeding in developing countries, milk/meat productivity remains unsatisfactory. Infectious diseases, such as leptospirosis, brucellosis, and small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs), contribute to this scenario. The objective of the present study was to determine the role of each of these diseases in the productivity of small ruminants breeding in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In goats, 343 samples were tested for leptospirosis, 560 for Brucella abortus, and 506 for caprine arthritis-encephalitis (CAE), whereas in sheep, 308 samples were tested for leptospirosis, 319 for B. abortus, 374 for Brucella ovis, and 278 for Maedi-Visna (MV). Regarding leptospirosis, 25.9% of goats and 47.4% sheep were seroreactive, with serovar Hardjo the most prevalent in both species. Anti-B. abortus agglutinins were found in 0.7% of all samples, exclusively in goats. In relation to SRLVs, 8.6% of goats and 3.2% of sheep samples were positive for CAE and MV, respectively. Leptospirosis was the major infectious problem in the small ruminants sampled and may contribute to impaired productivity of these animals.     

Skin and coat traits in sheep in Brazil and their relation with heat tolerance

The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare physical parameters in groups of sheep with different phenotypic characteristics in the Centre-west region of Brazil. Five groups of sheep, with nine animals per group, were selected, three groups of Santa Inês animals with different coat colours (white, brown and black), one group with crossbred animals (Santa Inês × Bergamasca) and one group with animals of the Bergamasca breed. The following traits were evaluated: coat thickness, number and length of hair, pigmentation level in the coat and the skin as well as the percentage area of sweats glands in the skin tissue, carried out by histological analysis. The number of hairs and the area of sweats glands were not significantly different between the evaluated groups. The Bergamasca breed showed low pigmentation of the skin and long hairs. The levels of pigmentation of the hair and of the skin were highly correlated. Between the Santa Inês groups, the group with white hair showed the better parameters for heat adaptation, while the brown hair group showed the lower heat adaptation when compared with another hair breed groups.