Explosive backpacks in old termite workers

By nature, defensive behavior is risky. In social insects, such behavior is more likely to occur in individuals whose potential for other tasks is diminished. We show that workers of the termite Neocapritermes taracua develop an exceptional two-component suicidal apparatus consisting of copper-containing protein crystals, stored in external pouches, and internal salivary glands. During aggressive encounters, their bodies rupture, and the crystals react with the salivary gland secretion to produce a toxic droplet. Both the amount of defensive substances and the readiness to explode increase with workers' age, as their food-collecting ability declines.     

阿魏倍半萜类对血吸虫童虫酶活性的影响

小鼠感染日本血吸虫尾蚴后第6天起灌服阿魏倍半萜类300 mg(/kg.次),每周1次,共4次。于每次给药后的第3、5天收集童虫,制成匀浆,作薄层凝胶电泳,胶中有关同工酶经底物显色,作酶活性定性观察。另设相应时间的不给药对照组。结果显示,该药对苹果酸脱氢酶、6-磷酸甘露糖酶I、酸性磷酸酶有明显抑制作用,对磷酸葡萄糖异构酶的活性影响不明显。该结果表明,阿魏倍半萜类对血吸虫童虫的能量代谢以及对红细胞的消化有抑制作用。     

Regional intravenous gentamicin administration for treatment of postoperative tarso-metatarsal infection in a dog--a case report

The regional intravenous antibiotic administration has been used to achieve high local concentrations of antibiotics into the extremities. The goal of this case report was to describe a known, but not often used technique of local administration of antibiotics for treatment of acute soft tissue, joint or bone infection in a dog, which suffered from chronic renal failure. In a seven years old Great Dane tarso-metatarsal arthrodesis was performed and three days after surgery infection was obvious. Gentamicin-sensitive E. co i was found by antibiogram. A tourniquet was tightened on the affected limb and gentamicin was administered in a dosage of 0,5 mg/kg every twelve hours via an intravenous catheter placed in the saphenous vein. The therapy lasted for ten days and wound healing was progressive. Regional intravenous gentamicin administration was very effective in treating distal extremity infection.     

Import and efflux of flubendazole in Haemonchus contortus strains susceptible and resistant to anthelmintics

Drug entry into the body of a helminth is a key factor in the efficacy of anthelmintics. The present project was designed to study the ex vivo uptake and efflux of the benzimidazole anthelmintic flubendazole (FLU) in four strains of H. contortus: the ISE strain (fully susceptible to anthelmintics), the ISE-S strain (resistant to ivermectin), the BR strain (resistant to benzimidazoles) and the WR strain (multi-resistant). The transport of FLU between dead and living nematodes was also compared as well as the effect of verapamil, an inhibitor of the main efflux ABCB1 transporter (P-glycoprotein), on FLU accumulation in nematodes. The obtained results showed that FLU is able to effectively enter H. contortus adults due to high FLU lipophilicity. Passive diffusion is probably the only mechanism in both FLU import and efflux from nematodes. No differences in FLU transport were found among four H. contortus strains with different sensitivity to anthelmintics. No active FLU efflux from H. contortus and no effect of verapamil were observed, indicating that H. contortus cannot protect itself against FLU by the active removal of this anthelmintic from its body.     

Effects of infection intensity with Strongyloides papillosus and albendazole treatment on development of oxidative/nitrosative stress in sheep

The objective of this study was to estimate and evaluate oxidative/nitrosative stress parameters in sheep infected with Strongyloides papillosus and after antihelminthic treatment with albendazole (ABZ). This parasite, especially during development stages can seriously damage parenchaematous organs during migration within the host. The presence of parasites leads to increased productions of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS). It is also well known that certain drugs can be very harmful for the delicate oxidant-antioxidant equilibrium, provoking oxidative stress during their biotransformation. ABZ is a broad spectrum antihelminthic drug, frequently used in veterinary medicine for therapy of parasitic infections. The current research was performed on female Württemberg sheep (n=48). The distribution of parasites in sheep was evaluated using the native smear coprological technique, by sedimentation and flotation methods, revealing the presence of S. papillosus. The degree of infection intensity per sheep was quantitatively established by the method of McMaster, the animals having been divided into three groups according to the intensity of infection; mild, moderate and high. The control group consisted of sheep negative to the parasites. After determining the type of parasite infection, the sheep were treated with ABZ, per orally, in single doses of 5mg/kg per body weight. Sampling of feces for parasitological and blood for biochemical assaying was performed on the 0 and 21st day after treatment with ABZ. The oxidative stress parameters were measured for catalase activity (CAT), the red cell membrane damage by level of malondialdehyde (MDA), while carbonyl and thiol plasma protein group concentrations were used as indicators of the degree of protein oxidative modification. The activity of Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) and relative distribution of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH(1)-LDH(5)) activity were determined electrophoretically. The distribution of LDH isoenzymes in sheep moderately and highly infected with S. papillosus revealed that the parasite induced damage to the myocardial (LDH(2)), lung (LDH(3)) and liver cells (LDH(5)) in infected animals, while ABZ treatment only damaged liver cells (LDH(5)). The MDA concentration revealed that lipid peroxidation increased both in the presence of parasites and the antihelminthic formulation tested (p<0.001) when compared to the control sheep, while the increase of carbonyl concentration (p<0.001), as well as the observed decrease of thiol concentration (p<0.001) indicated significant oxidative damage of plasma proteins in experimental sheep, when compared to the control animals. Our results indicate that S. papillosus induces oxidative/nitrosative stress in sheep. The antihelminthic treatment with ABZ further promotes the disbalance of oxidative-antioxidative equilibrium in all tested sheep.     

Antiproliferative and antiangiogenic effects of flavone eupatorin, an active constituent of chloroform extract of Orthosiphon stamineus leaves

Flavone eupatorin is one of the constituents of Orthosiphon stamineus, a medicinal herb used in folk medicine in South East Asia for treatment of various disorders. In our study, we investigated the antiproliferative properties of a chloroform extract of the leaves of O. stamineus and of pure eupatorin. The compound was able to reduce the number of viable cancer cells to the same extent as the extract, with IC(50) values in micromolar range. Moreover, both the eupatorin standard and the extract caused cells to arrest in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle. This clearly demonstrates that eupatorin contributes significantly to the overall extract activity. Induction of mitotic catastrophe, accompanied by key molecular events defining apoptosis, is the mechanism of eupatorin-induced cell death. Importantly, eupatorin (at the doses cytotoxic to cancer cells) did not kill normal cells; it only limited migration of HUVEC endothelial cells and their ability to create tubes. The ability of eupatorin to nonspecifically inhibit many protein kinases was proven and is the probable cause of its cellular effects. In summary, eupatorin emerges as a promising agent in anticancer research.     

Characterisation and categorisation of the diversity in viscoelastic vibrational properties between 98 wood types

Context   

Increased knowledge on diversity in wood properties would have implications both for fundamental research and for promoting a diversification of uses as material.