The cat as a possible source of Toxoplasma infection for man.

The authors examined 1,027 persons divided into two groups by means of the toxoplasmin skin test. Group I contained 472 persons who owned domestic cats. Of these 255, i.e. 54.0% gave a positive reaction. Group II consisted of 555 persons who did not own cats. Of these 237, i.e. 42.7% reacted positively. A statistically significant difference at the 1% level of significance was assessed between the two groups. A difference of highest diagnostic importance was found in persons of unexposed occupations in the lowest age group, 14-19 years: 39.5% positive reactions among cat owners and 16.1% among those who did not own cats. The results support the assumption on the role played by domestic cats in the epidemiology of toxoplasmosis. An analysis of the ethology of the cat as regards its importance in the spread of Toxoplasma infection is the subject of the present study.     

COX-2 and sPLA2 inhibitory activity of aqueous extract and polyphenols of Rhizophora mangle (red mangrove)

The aqueous extract of Rhizophora mangle bark and its polyphenolic fractions showed remarkable in vitro antiinflammatory activity in a preliminary study. The low molecular weight fraction exhibited cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitory activity while the total aqueous extract and the low molecular weight fraction showed secretory phospholipase A(2) inhibitory activity.     

Landscape composition is the strongest determinant of bird occupancy patterns in tropical forest patches

Context

Biodiversity in tropical region has declined in the last decades, mainly due to forest conversion into agricultural areas. Consequently, species occupancy in these landscapes is strongly governed by environmental changes acting at multiple spatial scales.

Objectives

We investigated which environmental predictors best determines the occupancy probability of 68 bird species exhibiting different ecological traits in forest patches.

Methods.

We conducted point-count bird surveys in 40 forest sites of the Brazilian Atlantic forest. Using six variables related to landscape composition and configuration and local vegetation structure, we predicted the occupancy probability of each species accounting for imperfect detections.

Results

Landscape composition, especially forest cover, best predicted bird occupancy probability. Specifically, most bird species showed greater occupancy probability in sites inserted in more forested landscapes, while some species presented higher occurrence in patches surrounded by low-quality matrices. Conversely, only three species showed greater occupancy in landscapes with higher number of patches and dominated by forest edges. Also, several species exhibited greater occupancy in sites harbouring either larger trees or lower number of understory plants. Of uttermost importance, our study revealed that a minimum of 54% of forest cover is required to ensure high (> 60%) occupancy probability of forest species.

Conclusions

We highlighted that maintaining only 20% of native vegetation in private property according to Brazilian environmental law is insufficient to guarantee a greater occupancy for most bird species. We recommend that policy actions should safeguard existing forest remnants, expand restoration projects, and curb human-induced disturbances to minimise degradation within forest patches.

     

Occurrence of filaria in domestic dogs of Samburu pastoralists in Northern Kenya and its associations with canine distemper

Samples of blood (serum, smears and blood preserved with ethanol) were collected from dogs during a vaccination campaign in northern Kenya in the years 2006 and 2007. Blood was screened for filarial parasites using molecular and microscopy methods and sera were tested for antibodies against canine distemper virus (CDV). Parasitological examination revealed the presence of two species of canine filariae: Acanthocheilonema dracunculoides and A. reconditum. The DNA from the former species was detected in 58% dogs sampled in 2006 and 36% dogs sampled in 2007, whereas the latter was found only in 4.2% samples collected in 2007. Microfilariae were found in 33.8% blood smears collected in 2006 and 10.6% blood smears collected in 2007. The seroprevalence of CDV was 33.4% in 2006 and 11.2% in 2007. The effect of sex, age and CDV-seropositivity/seronegativity on the occurrence of A. dracunculoides was evaluated. Infection by A. dracunculoides was more common in males and in dogs with a positive antibody titer for canine distemper, but evenly distributed among different age groups. The difference in the prevalence of A. dracunculoides in two isolated mountain ranges was not statistically significant. Methodologies available for detection and determination of canine filariae are compared, underlining methodical pitfalls arising through the determination of less common filarial species. The role of single epidemiological factors and possible association between canine distemper and filariasis are discussed.     

Feeding of yeast (Candida spp.) improves in vitro ruminal fermentation of ifbrous substrates

In vitro gas production technique (IVGPT) was used with the objective of determining the inclusion effect of live cel s of two strains of Candida yeast on in vitro ruminal fermentation of two ifbrous s...     

Changes in threats to macroalgal forests (Cystoseira sensu lato) at three restoration sites in the Mediterranean Sea

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The effect of domestication on a brown trout (Salmo trutta m fario) broodstock in Hungary

Molecular markers (PCR–RFLP and microsatellite) were used to investigate the genetic background of the only brown trout (Salmo trutta m fario) broodstock in Hungary which due to the hydrogeography of the country should theoretically belong to the Danubian lineage. PCR–RFLP (mitochondrial DNA control region and lactate dehydrogenase and somatolactin genes) as well as microsatellite (BFRO002, OMM1064, Ssa408uos, SsoSL417, SsoSL438) markers were used to distinguish between Danubian and Atlantic lineages of brown trout in the Lillafüred broodstock. Altogether 435 fish were tagged during the experimental period. Due to mortalities, fin clips were collected from 401 individuals. According to the genetic analysis of the mitochondrial DNA, the Danubian haplotype is present in only one individual (0.2 %) of the broodstock. Analysis of the nuclear markers revealed that alleles characteristic of both the Atlantic and the Danubian lineages are found in the population. However, Atlantic alleles dominate throughout the broodstock which is in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium according to the investigated markers. Results indicate that the original broodstock that was introduced to the farm following its construction in 1933 was of the Atlantic lineage. Although later fish from a local stream were collected and added to the broodstock, the number of these was limited and they were almost exclusively males. Fish from this farm that are stocked by anglers can have a significant genetic impact on trout populations of natural streams.     

Competitive interactions for food resources between the invasive Amur sleeper (Perccottus glenii) and threatened European mudminnow (Umbra krameri)

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