Leishmania chagasi infection in cats with dermatologic lesions from an endemic area of visceral leishmaniosis in Brazil

Although dogs are considered the main domestic reservoirs for Visceral Leishmaniosis (VL), which is caused in the Americas by Leishmania chagasi, infected cats have also been recently found in endemic areas of several countries and became a public health concern. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to evaluate cats with dermatologic lesions from an endemic area of VL and the natural infection of L. chagasi. A total of 55 cats were selected between April 2008 and November 2009 from two major animal shelters of Ara?atuba, Southeastern Brazil. All cats underwent general and dermatologic examinations, followed by direct parasitological examination of lymphoid organs, immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and indirect immunofluorescence (IFAT). In addition, detection of amastigotes was performed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in skin lesions of all cats. VL was diagnosed in 27/55 (49.1%) cats with dermatological problems. Amastigotes were found in lymphoid organs of 10/27 (37.0%) cats; serology of 14/27 (51.9%), 6/27 (22.2%) and 5/27 (18.5%) cats was positive for ELISA, IFAT and both, respectively. The IHC identified 9/27 (33.3%) cats; 5/27 (18.5%) were positive only for IHC and therefore increased the overall sensitivity. Specific FIV antibodies were found in 6/55 (10.9%) cats, of which 5/6 (83.3%) had leishmaniosis. Real time PCR followed by amplicon sequencing successfully confirmed L. chagasi infection. In conclusion, dermatological lesions in cats from endemic areas was highly associated to visceral leishmaniosis, and therefore skin IHC and differential diagnosis of LV should be always conducted in dermatological patients in such areas.     

Combinations of cactus pear with different roughage sources on the production,chemical composition,and milk fatty acid profile of F1 Holstein/Zebu cows

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The qualities of food, mainly of animal origin, have always been of concern to consumers. It is known that the composition of animals’ diets can...     

Mating Disruption of Striped Rice Stem Borer: Importance of Early Deployment of Dispensers and Impact on Airborne Pheromone Concentration

正Mating disruption(MD) is an effective environmentallyfriendly control method against the striped rice stem borer(RSB), Chilo suppressalis(Lepidoptera: Crambidae). In this study, the current MD dispensers release the pheromone exponentially, with higher initial release rates that decrease throughout the time. To adjust the timing of dispensers' deployment and evaluate the importance of controlling the early first or the second male flight,     

Changes in amino acid and organic acid composition in tomato and cucumber plants in relation to salinity and nitrogen nutrition

Under conditions of salt stress, plants show qualitative and quantitative alterations in various organic compounds, such as nitrogen (N) compounds and organic acids. In this work, the effect of different saline levels as well as various N levels, supplied as nitrate (NO₃) or as ammonium (NH₄)+NO₃ on the concentration of amino acids and organic acids in the leaves of tomato and cucumber plants has been studied. The effect of the source of N on individual amino acid contents varied with plant species. Most of the amino acids increased when the concentration of N in the nutrient solution was increased, except when N was added as NH₄+NO₃ for tomato. The effect of salt stress depended on which amino acid was considered. The data also indicate that the effect of salinity on each particular amino acid was greatly dependent on the plant species and N source. Organic acids were differently affected by salinity and by the N source, depending on the plant species. In tomato, the concentrations of short‐chain organic acids were 2–3 times higher in NO₃‐supplied plants than in those grown with NH₄+NO₃. Finally, in cucumber, malic acid concentration increased as a function of the saline level in the medium.     

Characterizing the Anti-HIV Activity of Papuamide A

Papuamide A is representative of a class of marine derived cyclic depsipeptides, reported to have cytoprotective activity against HIV-1 in vitro. We show here that papuamide A acts as an entry inhibitor, preventing human immunodeficiency virus infection of host cells and that this inhibition is not specific to R5 or X4 tropic virus. This inhibition of viral entry was determined to not be due to papuamide A binding to CD4 or HIV gp120, the two proteins involved in the cell-virus recognition and binding. Furthermore, papuamide A was able to inhibit HIV pseudotype viruses expressing envelope glycoproteins from vesicular stomatitis virus or amphotropic murine leukemia virus indicating the mechanism of viral entry inhibition is not HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein specific. Time delayed addition studies with the pseudotyped viruses show that papuamide A inhibits viral infection only at the initial stage of the viral life cycle. Additionally, pretreatment studies revealed that the virus, and not the cell, is the target of papuamide A’s action. Together, these results suggest a direct virucidal mechanism of HIV-1 inhibition by papuamide A. We also demonstrate here that the other papuamides (B-D) are able to inhibit viral entry indicating that the free amino moiety of 2,3-diaminobutanoic acid residue is not required for the virucidal activity.     

Large-scale structural variation and long-term growth dynamics of Juniperus thurifera trees in a managed woodland in Soria, central Spain

? Juniper woodlands have a great conservational and productive importance in Spain. However, basic traits of their structural variation and growth dynamics are unknown.

? To characterize the structural variation and assess both height and radial growth patterns, we sampled and measured stem cross-sections every 0.5 m in height from 107 Spanish juniper (Juniperus thurifera L.) trees, which were selected based on a 350 m regular grid over a whole woodland of 3 300 ha in area. We used dendroecological techniques and spatial analysis to study tree structure and growth.

? Structural traits such as bole diameter and height were mainly determined by tree life-related parameters such as tree age and growth rate variation, while abiotic factors such as altitude played a minor role in determining structural variation. Over the last 300 years, juniper establishment has been continuous in time but discontinuous in space. Large-scale spatial heterogeneity of tree establishment, and the presence of an early growth suppression and abrupt growth changes in junipers > 100 years old are consequences of an intense management that almost ceased in the late 19th century.

? Abrupt growth releases and suppressions were synchronic among different age classes, and coincided with documentary records on livestock decrease and key historical changes in land use. Growth patterns suggest that juniper is a brow sing-tolerant species that is able to survive large periods of intense browsing pressure.

     

Changes in soluble and cell wall-bound hydroxycinnamic and hydroxybenzoic acids in sugarcane cultivars inoculated with <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sporisorium scitamineum</Emphasis> sporidia

The accumulation of soluble and cell wall-bound phenolics in the sugarcane stems of young plants from highly resistant cv. My 5514 and susceptible cv. B 42231, inoculated or not inoculated with smut sporidia, was studied. The ratio of inoculated to uninoculated plants of some cell wall-bound phenolics, such as ferulic, caffeic, and syringic acids increased for the resistant cv. My 5514, whereas it was maintained more or less constantly for the susceptible cv. B 42231. The highest increase of this ratio in the resistant cv. My 5514 corresponded to both caffeic and syringic acids. This could result in a better capacity to cv. My 5514 for an increase in the frequency of bridges between lignin fragments through ester-ether linkages for reinforcing the cell wall and major resistance to the disease. This reinforcement of the cell wall could provide an effective barrier to pathogen entry and spread. Soluble sub-fractions of all phenolics detected showed non-stable patterns. Caffeic acid, that regulates phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity in sugarcane, showed a significant decrease in its titre at 24 h in the resistant cultivar, principally in the free soluble fraction, whilst the susceptible cultivar enhanced it. We hypothesise that the pathway of hydroxybenzoic acids is only activated once the level of p-coumaric acid justifies the accumulation of hydroxycinnamic acids required for reinforcing the cell wall after inoculation.     

Simultaneous detection of six RNA plant viruses affecting tomato crops using a single digoxigenin-labelled polyprobe

A polyprobe for the simultaneous detection by non-isotopic molecular hybridisation has been developed to detect any of the following six viruses causing important economic losses in tomato crops: Tomato spotted wilt virus, Tomato mosaic virus, Pepino mosaic virus, Cucumber mosaic virus, Potato Y virus and Parietaria mottle virus. The polyprobe detected all six viruses with similar sensitivity to that obtained using individual riboprobes. In addition, we evaluated the possible use of the tissue-printing as a sample preparation technique applied to routine diagnosis of tomato plants with the polyprobe. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

A possible predisposition to dilated cardiomyopathy in Huntaway dogs

AIM: To compare the prevalence of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in New Zealand Huntaway dogs with the prevalence of DCM in other breeds of dog.

METHODS: The necropsy database at Massey University was used to identify cases of DCM diagnosed between January 1999 and March 2006. Dogs were considered to have DCM if echocardiographic, gross necropsy, or histological findings were consistent with this diagnosis. The prevalence in Huntaways was then compared with the prevalence observed in all breeds of dog, as well as the prevalence observed in large breeds of dog.

RESULTS: Twelve dogs were identified with DCM. One was diagnosed using echocardiography, while the other 11 were diagnosed by gross necropsy examination. The gross diagnosis of DCM was confirmed histologically in 6/11 dogs. The prevalence of DCM in Huntaways was significantly higher than the prevalence seen in all breeds of dog (p=0.008), and the prevalence in large breeds of dog (p=0.025). All four Huntaways diagnosed with DCM were male, and had an average age of 4 years. Three dogs presented with symptoms attributable to impaired heart function while one presented with symptoms of chronic renal failure. The duration of clinical symptoms prior to presentation ranged between 1 day and 3 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that Huntaways may be predisposed to the development of DCM. Although the increased prevalence in this breed was significant, only small numbers of affected Huntaways were identified, and additional cases are required to confirm these preliminary findings.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Huntaways are the most common working dog in New Zealand. The premature loss of a working dog is expected to have a significant economic impact on farmers. Further investigation of DCM in Huntaways may allow measures to reduce the prevalence in this breed.     

Effects of low‐density lipoproteins as additive on quality parameters and oxidative stress following cryopreservation of mithun (Bos frontalis) spermatozoa

Artificial breeding of mithun poses several challenges including lack of standard protocol for cryopreservation of spermatozoa. This is further complicated by harmful effects of hen's egg yolk (EY) as additive in extender. Purified low‐density lipoproteins (LDL) extracted from EY have been shown as beneficial over EY extender for long‐term semen storage in several species. This investigation explored use of LDL versus EY on semen quality and oxidative stress following freezing–thawing of spermatozoa. A total of 25 of 50 ejaculates based on biophysical parameters were selected for the experiment. After diluting with the Tris‐citrate‐glycerol (TCG) extender, each sample was split into three equal aliquots: Group I, control, EY; Group II and Group III contained 8% and 10% purified LDL, respectively. Frozen–thawed samples were evaluated for motility parameters (progressive, and in the bovine cervical mucus penetration test [BCMPT]), viability, sperm and nuclear abnormality, acrosome integrity, and enzymatic (leakage of intracellular contents) and biochemical (oxidative stress) profiles and in vitro fertility (IVF) assay. Study revealed a significant (p < .05) improvement in viability, sperm and nuclear abnormality, acrosome integrity, motility (progressive and in cervical mucus), cholesterol content, and reduction in the leakage of intracellular enzymes in Group II. Moreover, intactness of acrosome and biochemical membranes was protected significantly (p < .05) in addition to significant (p < .05) improvement in binding per cent and binding index in IVF assay in extender containing 8% LDL. These results demonstrate that although cryopreservation of mithun's spermatozoa in EY was comparable with other species, addition of 8% LDL holds a clear advantage over EY or 10% LDL.