Sensitivity of cytopathological examination in the diagnosis of feline sporotrichosis

Sporotrichosis is caused by Sporothrix schenckii. The cat is the animal species most affected by this mycosis and plays an important role in the zoonotic transmission of this disease. The definitive diagnosis is made by isolation of the fungus in culture; however, cytopathological examination is frequently used in cats. Medical records from cats treated at Instituto de Pesquisa Clínica Evandro Chagas/Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between 2004 and 2006 were reviewed. Criteria for inclusion were a diagnosis by isolation of S schenckii in culture and cytopathological examination of the same lesion as that used for collection of the culture material. Eight hundred and six cats were included in the study. Yeast-like structures suggestive of S schenckii were observed in 636 cases. The sensitivity of the method was 78.9%. Its practicality, low cost and sensitivity validate cytopathology as a safe technique for the presumptive diagnosis of sporotrichosis in cats.     

For sex and more: attraction of the tephritid parasitoid Psyttalia concolor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) to male sex pheromone of the olive fruit fly,Bactrocera oleae

The braconid parasitoid Psyttalia concolor foraging for larvae of Bactrocera oleae (Diptera: Tephritidae) uses olfactory cues from the larval microhabitat. However, it could rely on the sex pheromones of adults of its host, since B. oleae mating leks usually occur on olive plants and a high number of infested fruits can be easily located in their close proximity. We quantified the behavioural responses of P. concolor towards different doses of the two major sex pheromone components of B. oleae, the female-borne 1,7-dioxaspiro[5.5]undecane (DSU) and the male-borne (Z)-9-tricosene (ZT). Results showed that P. concolor females and males were attracted only to the highest amounts of ZT (10 B. oleae male equivalents), regardless of the mating status. Wasps remained longer on the surfaces treated with high ZT amounts over the control. P. concolor females could exploit the ZT produced by lekking olive fruit fly males as a foraging kairomone. This could allow them to rapidly track B. oleae-infested olive plants, thus raising their chances to locate host larvae during their lifespan. On the other hand, the perception of ZT by P. concolor males could raise their chances to locate receptive females emerging from parasitised B. oleae pupae or also ovipositing in olive fruits. This study increases the knowledge of the reproductive biology of P. concolor, highlighting a case of chemical espionage in which a sex pheromone component from adult stages of the host is exploited both as a foraging kairomone by female parasitoids and as a sexual kairomone by male wasps.     

Outsourcing and Firm Productivity in a Specific Local Production System: Evidence from Reggio Emilia (Italy)

This paper investigates the impact of outsourcing on the labor productivity of firms in a specific local production system. A number of hypotheses about the location‐specific effects of outsourcing are put forward and tested on a sample of firms in the province of Reggio Emilia (within the Emilia‐Romagna region, in North‐East Italy). The relationship between outsourcing and productivity turns out positive only if considering the externalization of high value‐added activities. On the contrary, it is negative in the case of low value‐added activities. This occurs to a greater extent for firms in mature industrial districts, whose socio‐economic conditions however do not arrive to magnify the productivity premium of externalizing high value‐added ones. The technological innovativeness of the firms instead helps with that, pointing to a developmental use of outsourcing in the area.     

Dosimetric measurement of the visible and UV exposures on field grown soybean plants

This paper describes a dosimeter system for measuring both the PAP (photosynthetically active photons) (400–700 nm) and ultraviolet-B (UVB) (280–320 nm) exposures in the supplemental UVB irradiation of field grown soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) plants. At the V2 growth stage, the dosimeters positioned at the same position and orientation as the trifoliate leaves of the plants that were measured received 12–38% more PAP and 5–82% more UVB than the unifoliate leaves. For the crop maturity stage, the plants exposed to high levels of UV irradiance (high UV treatment) received approximately 40% more UVB on a horizontal plane at the top of the plant canopy compared to the control group of plants (control treatments). For the other measurement sites over the plants that were orientated at 45° to the vertical in the north, south, east and west directions, the additional amount of UVB for the supplemental treatment compared to the corresponding sites for the plants in the control treatments varied between −39 and 37%, due predominantly to the shading provided by the other plants. Furthermore, the supplemental UVB changed the natural partitioning of UVB and PAP and the ratio of PAP to UVB over the plants. All these variations to the UVB and PAP over the plant canopy cannot be predicted by exposure measurement in the wavebands on a horizontal plane. Consequently, for the case of the complex topography of plants, the dosimeters described in this paper have the advantage of allowing the exposures to be measured simultaneously at multiple sites that are at any orientation.     

Ultrasound as a Mechanical Method for Male Dog Contraception

Therapeutic ultrasound (1.5 W/cm²) was investigated for its effect upon testicular size and consistency and semen quality in five dogs. Dogs were treated every other day with a total of three treatments and were examined up to 2 weeks after treatment. There was some tenderness after treatment and a significant decrease in testicular size and semen quality. This method may provide a suitable contraception technique in dogs and requires further investigation.     

Chemical characterization and DNA tracking of Sardinian botargo by Mugil cephalus from different geographical origins

The chemical composition of the Sardinian botargo by Mugil cephalus from different geographical origins was investigated. Fat ( approximately 20%), proteins ( approximately 50%), moisture ( approximately 22%), and salt ( approximately 7%) were measured in ground (G) and whole (W) commercial products. Among the nutritional compounds, omega-3 fatty acids were approximately 8%, squalene was approximately 15 mg/100 g, vitamin E was approximately 8.5 mg/kg, and cholesterol was approximately 300 mg/100 g, on average in both products. Antioxidant properties, assessed by the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) test and expressed as Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), showed quite good activity in extracted oil (0.8-1.1 mmol of Tolox/L). Major constituents in the samples varied noticeably, but only few statistical differences were evidenced between G or W products or between samples from different origins. Principal component analysis (PCA) of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and proteins, coupled with both, did not differentiate samples from different origins. On the basis of our results, chemical and molecular data exclude the differentiation of samples from diverse origins.     

Water Remediation by Columns Filled with Micelle–Vermiculite Systems

Photodegradation of four pharmaceuticals (i.e. carbamazepine, ibuprofen, ketoprofen and 17α-ethinylestradiol) in aqueous media was studied using a solar light simulator (Xe lamp irradiation) and sunlight experiments. These experiments were carried out in river and seawater and compared to distilled water. The latter was used to evaluate the direct photodegradation pathways. Irradiation time was up to 400 min and 24 days for the solar light simulator and sunlight assays, respectively. Pharmaceutical photodegradation followed a first-order kinetics and their half-lives calculated in every aqueous matrix. Moreover, the sensitizing effect of DOC was evaluated by comparison with the kinetics obtained in distilled waters. Ketoprofen was rapidly transformed via direct photolysis in all the waters under both sunlight (t _1/2?=?2.4 min) and simulated solar light simulator test (t _1/2?=?0.54 min). Under xenon lamp radiation, ibuprofen and 17α-ethinylestradiol were photodegraded at moderate rate with half-lives from 1 to 5 h. Finally, carbamazepine had the lowest photodegradation rate (t _1/2?=?8–39 h) attributable to indirect photodegradation. Indeed, its elimination was strongly dependent on the DOC concentration present in solution. Finally, several ketoprofen photoproducts were identified and plotted against solar light simulator irradiation time. Accordingly, the photodegradation pathway of ketoprofen was postulated.