Some diagnostic, biologic and morphologic characteristics of Francisella tularensis strains isolated from the ticks Ixodes ricinus (L.) in the Prague agglomeration

Four infectious agents were isolated from the ticks Ixodes ricinus (L.) collected in the recreational area and park-forest of Prague. On the basis of cultivation, staining, biochemical, serologic properties, pathogenicity for animals and histological tests they were identified as Francisella tularensis with the following features: they are short, gram-negative rods of approximate dimensions of 0.3 X 0.8 micron, growing in enriched media after 3-4 day incubation at 37 degrees C. They form small circular, at first transparent, later greyish turbid colonies with regular rims. They are little active biochemically. They are susceptible to streptomycin and some broad spectrum antibiotics. They react positively with tularemic serum, but in lower titres than those in which this serum reacts with standard antigen. The microbes are highly pathogenic for mice, guinea-pigs, young rats, in which a massive bacteriemia occurs before death, but they do not kill rabbits. They multiply well in chick embryo, but do not grow in cell or tissue cultures. The most important histologic changes were observed in liver and spleen of mice. No pathologic changes were found in brain, lungs, heart, kidneys. Necroses were found in liver and in their marginal zones the microbes were present. Conspicuous were changes in numerous hepatocytes which became enlarged due to microbial multiplication and finally transformed into "sacs" packed with microbes. Histological and electronoptical examination showed that these are intracellular parasites fringed with a light lytic zone. Discussed is the problem to what extent the properties of the isolated strains are typical of F. tularensis as well as the importance of their detection from the aspect of epidemiology and differential diagnostics.     

Key problems in science and technology in Thailand

Science and technology can make substantial contributions to socio-economic development in Thailand. In order to promote such contributions, problem areas and specific problems of high priority need to be defined, and possible solutions outlined. Important criteria for selecting priority areas and key problems include relevance to development, the availability of human resources and the possibility of their development, the cutting-edge advantage to be gained by development, the possibility of international collaboration, and the possibility of integration with culture and environment. These criteria suggest in Thailand a focus on the development of bioscience and biotechnology, materials science, electronics, and information science.     

Coral community reproductive patterns: red sea versus the great barrier reef

In contrast to many corals of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, which are synchronous multispecific spawners, the abundant coral species in the northern Red Sea, Israel, exhibit temporal reproductive isolation. Spawning dates of 12 of the 13 Red Sea species followed lunar periodicity and were consistent throughout 3 years of study. Spawning periods of all species occurred in different seasons, different months, or different lunar phases within the same month. The high abundance of the corals studied at Eilat may be due in part to the advantages gained through not having overlapping spawning periods and settlement times.     

A fossil noctuid moth egg from the late cretaceous of eastern north america

A moth egg assignable to the family Noctuidae (Lepidoptera) is described from 75-million-year-old sediments from Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. This sample, which extends the fossil record of this farnily and modern heteroneuran moths back to the Cretaceous, may provide insight into the coevolution of moths and flowering plants, as well as have implications for the evolution of bats.     

Experimental transmission of intestinal coccidiosis to piglets: clinical, parasitological and pathological findings.

Twenty-eight piglets coming from a "specific pathogen free" herd were inoculated at three days of age with 50 000 or 100 000 sporulated oocysts of Isospora suis. Fecal samples were examined for oocyst shedding daily and several clinical parameters were recorded. Ten piglets were used as normal controls. Groups of piglets were euthanized from three days to 12 days postinoculation and routine necropsies were performed. Bacteriological, virological, parasitological and histopathological examinations were made on the intestinal tracts. The incubation period was four to five days. Clinical signs and microscopic intestinal lesions observed in the experimentally infected animals were similar to those reported in spontaneous cases of porcine neonatal coccidiosis. Lesions of villous atrophy in the small intestine seemed to result from the destruction of villous epithelial cells mainly during the peak of asexual reproduction which occurred around four to five days postinoculation. Intracellular coccidial organisms were difficult to find during the late atrophic and villous regrowth stages of the intestinal lesions. The prepatent period varied from four to seven days and the most common was five days. Eighty percent of the piglets kept alive more than four days postinoculation have shed oocysts. Piglets dosed with old sporulated oocysts (ten months old) shed many more oocysts than those infected with a fresh inoculum (less than two months old). The patent period was not determined precisely with the design of the experiment but some of the infected piglets shed oocysts for at least five days.     

EFFECT OF PYRAZON ON PHOTOSYNTHESIS OF VARIOUS PLANT SPECIES

Summary. Studies were conducted to determine the influence of pyrazon (5-amino-4-chloio-2-phenyl-3(2H)-pyridazinone) on photosynthesis. A strong inhibiting effect on O₂ evolution from leaf discs of several species was recorded. For most species a concentration of 5 × 10⁻⁵ M caused a reduction of about 50% in the rate of photosynthesis. Photosynthesis of sugar beet, highly resbtant to pyrazon, was reduced to 50% by a concentration of 7–5 × 10⁻⁵ M. Since these differences cannot account for the great divergence in susceptibility to pyrazon, it is suggested that the selectivity of this herbicide results from degradation and differential accumulation in the foliage.
Pyrazon was phytotoxic to plants of tomato and pigweed (Amaranthus retrofiexus L.) kept in the light but not when kept in the dark, after foliage application. The conclusion that pyrazon inhibits the mechanism of photosynthesis and causes starvation for carbohydrates, was strengthened by the fact that external feeding of glucose overcame the toxicity of the compound in tomato plants. These results and a possible mode of selectivity are discussed.     

中国水稻三化螟防治研究的进展

在中国为害水稻較重的螟虫已知有6种,以三化螟 Tryporyza incertulas (Wlk.)最为重要,分布于我国中南部稻区。本文阐述了气候、食料、水稻栽培制度和生物等因素对三化螟种群数量变动的影响,并指出作为螟虫食料的水稻及其栽培制度的作用更为明显。研究証明,三化螟的产卵、侵入、成活、繁殖和为害都与水稻的生育期有密切关系,水稻的分蘖期及孕穗期,都是水稻最易受害的生育期,在这两个时期被害,会造成枯心或白穗;而秧田期、移植至回青期、圓稈期和成熟期都对螟虫不利。螟虫的发生基数和生活环境条件,密切影响种群数量的变动,而这些都受水稻栽培制度的影响。发生基数决定于春季螟虫的有效虫源,其数量的大小对当年的螟虫,尤其对第一、二代的发生量有密切关系。螟害程度主要决定于:(1)种群数量和(2)水稻最易受害的生育期与螟虫盛发期配合程度的综合作用。为了加強防治,各地区必须因地制宜,利用耕作栽培措施,一方面尽可能消灭虫源、压低发生基数、控制以后各代螟虫的发生;另一方面力求改进栽培技术、調节水稻生育期,恶化螟虫的生活条件,避免或減輕螟害。化学防治也是治螟的一項重要措施。目前广泛应用的药剂是6％丙体六六六,每亩用量在防治枯心时为1.5斤,防治白穗为2斤。主要的施药方法为泼浇和撒毒土,两者对防治枯心的效果都很好;撒毒土防治白穗的效果虽稍差,但操作簡便易行。在螟虫发生期內,适值分蘖和孕穗的水稻田一般都要施药;但預测螟害低于1％的田块,可不防治。防治枯心的施药适期一般在孵化高峯前1—2天天开始,如虫量很大,要提前到盛孵始期用药。防治白穗的施药适期是:在蚁螟盛孵前孕穗的水稻,普通在盛孵始期开始施药;蚁螟盛孵后孕穗的水稻,在孕穗始期开始用药。稻螟是我国长期以来的一种严重害虫,解放前因螟害常年損失稻谷10％以上。解放后,在党和政府的領导下,科学技术有了显著的进展,治螟工作貫彻了“防治并举、以防为主”的方針,“以农业防治为基础,重点使用药剂綜合防治”的策略;采用了准确的預测預报;开展了群众性的防治活动,基本上控制了螟虫的危害,1663年的螟害率已压低到2％左右,不少地区已降低到1％以下。这都是在总路线、大跃进、人民公社三面紅旗光輝照耀下,領导、技术人員、群众三結合所取得的成果的     

Magnetic flux transport on the sun

Although most of the magnetic flux observed on the sun originates in the low-latitude sunspot belts, this flux is gradually dispersed over a much wider range of latitudes by supergranular convective motions and meridional circulation. Numerical simulations show how these transport processes interact over the 11-year sunspot cycle to produce a strong "topknot" polar field, whose existence near sunspot minimum is suggested by the observed strength of the interplanetary magnetic field and by the observed areal extent of polar coronal holes. The required rates of diffusion and flow are consistent with the decay rates of active regions and with the rotational properties of the large-scale solar magnetic field.     

Morphological study of bacterial pneumonia of feedlot cattle: Determination of age of lesions

Lungs from 48 feedlot cattle that had died from bacterial pneumonia were examined grossly and microscopically. Criteria based on microscopic lesions were adopted to age these pneumonias. In 38 cases, pneumonic lesions were of relatively uniform age throughout the affected tissue. In eight other cases, the presence of older lesions confined to one or two lobes suggested a previous episode of pneumonia. The aging criteria adopted were in agreement with the duration of the observed clinical signs in 26 cases. In 13 other cases, the pneumonia was estimated to be of longer duration than suggested by the history, whereas in the remaining nine cases, it was estimated to be more recent. Areas of tan discoloration of the parenchyma surrounded by white or yellow borders were considered the best areas to examine microscopically since they offered the best chances of revealing necrosis and fibrosis, the main lesions used to age the pneumonia.