State-of-the-art review of goat TSE in the European Union, with special emphasis on PRNP genetics and epidemiology

Scrapie is a fatal, neurodegenerative disease of sheep and goats. It is also the earliest known member in the family of diseases classified as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) or prion diseases, which includes Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), and chronic wasting disease in cervids. The recent revelation of naturally occurring BSE in a goat has brought the issue of TSE in goats to the attention of the public. In contrast to scrapie, BSE presents a proven risk to humans. The risk of goat BSE, however, is difficult to evaluate, as our knowledge of TSE in goats is limited. Natural caprine scrapie has been discovered throughout Europe, with reported cases generally being greatest in countries with the highest goat populations. As with sheep scrapie, susceptibility and incubation period duration of goat scrapie are most likely controlled by the prion protein (PrP) gene (PRNP). Like the PRNP of sheep, the caprine PRNP shows significantly greater variability than that of cattle and humans. Although PRNP variability in goats differs from that observed in sheep, the two species share several identical alleles. Moreover, while the ARR allele associated with enhancing resistance in sheep is not present in the goat PRNP, there is evidence for the existence of other PrP variants related to resistance. This review presents the current knowledge of the epidemiology of caprine scrapie within the major European goat populations, and compiles the current data on genetic variability of PRNP.     

Western Blot Analysis of Proacrosin/Acrosin in Frozen Dog Sperm During In Vitro Capacitation

Acrosin is an acrosomal protease synthesized as an inactive precursor, proacrosin, which is processed via autoproteolysis into active forms alpha- and beta-acrosin. In this paper, a comparative study on the immunoreactivity of acrosin during in vitro capacitation of frozen and fresh (control) canine sperm using Western blot analysis is reported. Semen samples were obtained by digital stimulation and ejaculates processed as fresh and frozen samples and then capacitated for 0, 30, 60 and 90 min. At each time period, samples were analyzed with monoclonal antibody C5F10 by Western blot. The antibody specifically recognized, in fresh and frozen/thawed spermatozoa, a 40-, 32- and 27-kDa bands corresponding to proacrosin, alpha- and beta-acrosin, respectively, during capacitation. Western immunoblots showed that the beta-acrosin reactivity in fresh sperm was directly proportional to the time of capacitation, whereas a decreased reactivity of active form of acrosin was observed with frozen-thawed sperm (p   < 0.05). These results suggest that proacrosin is activated to beta-acrosin earlier in frozen/thawed dog spermatozoa than in fresh dog spermatozoa.     

Millets, Rice, Social Complexity, and the Spread of Agriculture to the Chengdu Plain and Southwest China

Southwest China played a pivotal role in the spread of agriculture across East and Southeast Asia. Both rice and millet were important in the spread of populations and the expansion of agriculture into this region. Recent finds in the mountainous peripheries of Sichuan Province show that the earliest inhabitants of this region practiced a combination of broomcorn and foxtail millet agriculture (ca 4000?C2500 BC). These crops are adapted to high altitude and arid environments, which facilitated their movement across this region and eventually into the Tibetan Plateau. At around 2700 BC, a combined system of rice and foxtail millet agriculture appears suddenly in sites of the Baodun culture on the Chengdu Plain. The use of this double cropping system provided advantages to the inhabitants of this region in both risk reduction and yield. I argue that this had important consequences for spurring population growth, facilitating expansion into new territories and the development of social complexity.     

The power of discourse: Hard lessons for traditional forest communities in the Amazon

In the contemporary Amazon, ‘discourse’ is increasingly a new means of exercising power, influencing local society and the ways in which natural resources are managed. As society becomes ever more complex, direct means of exercising power no longer enjoy the same legitimacy and efficacy. Discourses are instead now assuming a dominant role in defining governance regimes; the sense of what is correct and socially acceptable, and what is not. This is particularly relevant for the rapidly advancing development frontiers in the Amazon region, where local communities are coming into contact with external players highly interested in their forest resources. This study focuses on understanding how external discourses can restrict the Amazonian communities' options for using their forests, but also how communities can harness these discourses to achieve their own claims and objectives. Empirical evidence from four study areas in the Bolivian, Brazilian and Peruvian Amazon regions is used to show how discourses on sustainable forest management are moulding forestry governance. The conclusion shows that while the discourses used by loggers and development organisations are strongly influencing the way communities manage their forests, some communities are also successfully using these discourses in alliances with environmental organisations to achieve acknowledgment of their demands.     

Trypanocidal Action of (?)-Elatol Involves an Oxidative Stress Triggered by Mitochondria Dysfunction

Natural compounds have shown good potential for the discovery of new chemotherapeutics for the treatment of Chagas’ disease. Recently, our group reported the effective trypanocidal activity of (−)-elatol, extracted from the red macroalgae Laurencia dendroidea present in the Brazilian coast against Trypanosoma cruzi. However, the mechanism of action of this compound has remained unclear. There are only hypotheses concerning its action on mitochondrial function. Here, we further investigated the mechanisms of action of (−)-elatol on trypomastigotes of T. cruzi. For this, we evaluated some biochemical alterations in trypomastigotes treated with (−)-elatol. Our results show that (−)-elatol induced depolarization of the mitochondrial membrane, an increase in the formation of mitochondrial superoxide anion and loss of cell membrane and DNA integrity. Additionally, (−)-elatol induced formation of autophagic vacuoles and a decrease in cell volume. All together, these results suggest that the trypanocidal action of (−)-elatol involves multiple events and mitochondria might be the initial target organelle. Our hypothesis is that the mitochondrial dysfunction leads to an increase of ROS production through the electron transport chain, which affects cell membrane and DNA integrity leading to different types of parasite death.     

Chemistry of the Nudibranch Aldisa andersoni: Structure and Biological Activity of Phorbazole Metabolites

The first chemical study of the Indo-Pacific dorid nudibranch Aldisa andersoni resulted in the isolation of five chlorinated phenyl-pyrrolyloxazoles belonging to the phorbazole series. Two new molecules, 9-chloro-phorbazole D and N1-methyl-phorbazole A, co-occurring with known phorbazoles A, B and D, have been characterized. Phorbazoles were found to be present mainly in the external part of the mollusc. The structures of the new compounds were determined by interpretation of spectroscopic data, mainly NMR and mass spectrometry and by comparison with the literature data. Evaluation of feeding-deterrence activity as well as in vitro growth inhibitory properties in human cancer cells was also carried out.     

Does otolith macrostructure record environmental or biological events? The case of black hake (Merluccius polli and Merluccius senegalensis)

Fish age determination using otoliths requires a prior understanding of growth mark deposition patterns (translucent rings, TR) as well as their connection with internal or external events experienced by the fish. This study analysed the macrostructural seasonal ring deposition pattern observed in transversal sections of black hake otoliths. A total of 793 black hake otoliths were collected in autumn and spring 2007 from research and commercial surveys carried out in continental and shelf waters off Mauritania. Most of the Merluccius polli otoliths presented narrow and wide translucent rings (NTR and WTR, respectively) regardless of fish size, whereas Merluccius senegalensis otoliths only showed NTR. This seemed to be a sign of ontogenetic discrepancy between the two black hake species, whose otoliths confirmed the existence of significant differences in their growth patterns.The frequency distributions of the number of TR counted along the ventral radius (VR) of the otolith from the nucleus (birth date) and from the ventral edge (death date) were analysed to ascertain whether a specific endogenous event (Hypothesis A) or a precise environmental event (Hypothesis B) could restrain growth leading to the formation of TR. The general TR frequency distribution pattern was somewhat similar for both hake species, which showed marked TR at comparable distances. Within each species, TR frequency distributions of their distances from the nucleus along the otolith VR were quite similar between sexes, seasons, and fish sizes. Our results support the idea of a coincident biological event, such as first maturity, slowing down the growth process and thus provoking the formation of TR in otoliths of both species.This study also experience difficulty using the complex and highly variable macrostructural pattern of black hake otoliths to establish age interpretation criteria for these two species.     

Suspect West Nile virus encephalomyelitis in an imported horse in the UK

This report describes a suspect case of West Nile virus (WNV) encephalomyelitis, reported for the first time in a horse in the UK. The affected gelding had been imported from the Republic of Cyprus and travelled through several WNV endemic areas in Europe before arriving at the premises in Lincolnshire. Clinical signs included muscle fasciculations, weakness of the hindlimbs and transient lip twitching that quickly progressed to depression and recumbency. West Nile virus specific antibodies were detected by serological tests in the absence of a previous history of vaccination. The horse improved clinically 10 days after the onset of disease and fully recovered in 12 weeks. Follow‐ups at 12 and 20 months post event did not reveal any sequela and the horse was performing adequately at novice level. This article refers to the same horse mentioned by Fooks et al. (2014) and it is an extension of the previous published work.