Türkiye'deki Vahşi Kuşlarda Neospora caninum DNA'sının Varlığı

OBJECTIVE: Neospora caninum is a protozoon parasite that has a worldwide distribution and mainly causes abortion in cattle and current serological evidence shows that the disease may be also zoonotic. Wild birds play a role as a reservoir of the disease in nature. The study aimed to determine the prensence of N. caninum in wild birds. METHODS: In this study, the presence of neosporosis in wild birds (n=55) including 22 different species found in the western side of Turkey, was investigated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In addition, PCR positive samples were confirmed by sequencing, BLAST, and phylogenetic analysis using MEGA7. RESULTS: Obtained results showed that the presence of N. caninum DNA was 5.45% (3/55) in brain-heart homogenates wild birds. The bird species which were found positive for N. caninum were little owl (Athene noctua), common buzzard (Buteo buteo), and little tern (Sternula albifrons). According to phylogenetic analysis and BLAST, all samples were compatible with reference N. caninum isolates. CONCLUSION: To the best of authors' knowledge, this is the first study detecting N. caninum in little tern. In future studies, it may be interesting to investigate the prevalence of N. caninum in other wild animals to elucidate the transmission properties.Amaç: Neospora caninum, dünya çapında dağılım gösteren ve esas olarak sığırlarda düşüklere neden olan protozoon bir parazittir ve güncel serolojik kanıtlar hastalığın zoonotik olabileceğini göstermektedir. Yabani kuşlar, doğada hastalığın rezervuarı olarak rol oynamaktadır. Çalışma, yabani kuşlarda N. caninum varlığının belirlenmesini amaçladı. Yöntemler: Bu çalışmada, Türkiye’nin batısındaki 22 farklı yabani kuşta (n=55) neosporosis varlığı polimeraz zincir reaksiyon (PZR) ile araştırılmıştır. Ek olarak, PZR pozitif örnekler sekanslanarak MEGA7 kullanılarak BLAST ve filogenetik analiz ile doğrulanmıştır. Bulgular: Elde edilen sonuçlara göre, yabani kuşların beyin-kalp homojenatlarının %5,45’inde (3/55) N. caninum DNA’sı saptanmıştır. Kukumav (Athene noctua), bayağı şahin (Buteo buteo) ve küçük sumru (Sternula albifrons) N. caninum pozitif bulunan kuş türleridir. Filogenetik analiz ve BLAST sonuçlarına göre, tüm örnekler referans N. caninum izolatları ile uyumlu olarak tespit edilmiştir. Sonuç: Yazarların bildiği kadarıyla bu çalışma, küçük sumruda N. caninum tespit eden ilk çalışmadır. Gelecekteki çalışmalarda N. caninum bulaşma özelliklerini aydınlatmak amacıyla diğer vahşi hayvanlarda prevalansın araştırılması faydalı olabilir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Küçük sumru, Neospora caninum, PZR, Türkiye, vahşi kuşlar

Preparation of interconnected Pickering polymerized high internal phase emulsions by arrested coalescence

Emulsion templating is a method that enables the production of highly porous and interconnected polymer foams called polymerized high internal phase emulsions (PolyHIPEs). Since emulsions are inherently unstable systems, they can be stabilized either by surfactants or by particles (Pickering HIPEs). Surfactant-stabilized HIPEs form materials with an interconnected porous structure, while Pickering HIPEs typically form closed pore materials. In this study, we describe a system that uses submicrometer polymer particles to stabilize the emulsions. Polymers fabricated from these Pickering emulsions exhibit, unlike traditional Pickering emulsions, highly interconnected large pore structures, and we related these structures to arrested coalescence. We describe in detail the morphological properties of this system and their dependence on different production parameters. This production method might provide an interesting alternative to poly-surfactant-stabilized-HIPEs, in particular where the application necessitates large pore structures

Loading protocols for European regions of low to moderate seismicity

Existing loading protocols for quasi-static cyclic testing of structures are based on recordings from regions of high seismicity. For regions of low to moderate seismicity they overestimate imposed cumulative damage demands. Since structural capacities are a function of demand, existing loading protocols applied to specimens representative of structures in low to moderate seismicity regions might underestimate structural strength and deformation capacity. To overcome this problem, this paper deals with the development of cyclic loading protocols for European regions of low to moderate seismicity. Cumulative damage demands imposed by a set of 60 ground motion records are evaluated for a wide variety of SDOF systems that reflect the fundamental properties of a large portion of the existing building stock. The ground motions are representative of the seismic hazard level corresponding to a 2% probability of exceedance in 50 years in a European moderate seismicity region. To meet the calculated cumulative damage demands, loading protocols for different structural types and vibration periods are developed. For comparison, cumulative seismic demands are also calculated for existing protocols and a set of records that was used in a previous study on loading protocols for regions of high seismicity. The median cumulative demands for regions of low to moderate seismicity are significantly less than those of existing protocols and records of high seismicity regions. For regions of low to moderate seismicity the new protocols might therefore result in larger strength and deformation capacities and hence in more cost-effective structural configurations or less expensive retrofit measures

Gelatin-containing porous polycaprolactone PolyHIPEs as substrates for 3D breast cancer cell culture and vascular infiltration

Tumour survival and growth are reliant on angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels, to facilitate nutrient and waste exchange and, importantly, provide a route for metastasis from a primary to a secondary site. Whilst current models can ensure the transport and exchange of nutrients and waste via diffusion over distances greater than 200 μm, many lack sufficient vasculature capable of recapitulating the tumour microenvironment and, thus, metastasis. In this study, we utilise gelatin-containing polymerised high internal phase emulsion (polyHIPE) templated polycaprolactone-methacrylate (PCL-M) scaffolds to fabricate a composite material to support the 3D culture of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells and vascular ingrowth. Firstly, we investigated the effect of gelatin within the scaffolds on the mechanical and chemical properties using compression testing and FTIR spectroscopy, respectively. Initial in vitro assessment of cell metabolic activity and vascular endothelial growth factor expression demonstrated that gelatin-containing PCL-M polyHIPEs are capable of supporting 3D breast cancer cell growth. We then utilised the chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay to assess the angiogenic potential of cell-seeded gelatin-containing PCL-M polyHIPEs, and vascular ingrowth within cell-seeded, surfactant and gelatin-containing scaffolds was investigated via histological staining. Overall, our study proposes a promising composite material to fabricate a substrate to support the 3D culture of cancer cells and vascular ingrowth

Identification of quantitative trait loci associated with iron deficiency chlorosis resistance in groundnut ( Arachis hypogaea )

Iron deficiency chlorosis is an important abiotic stress affecting groundnut production worldwide in calcareous and alkaline soils with a pH of 7.5–8.5. To identify genomic regions controlling iron deficiency chlorosis resistance in groundnut, the recombinant inbred line population from the cross TAG 24 × ICGV 86031 was evaluated for associated traits like visual chlorosis rating and SPAD chlorophyll meter reading across three crop growth stages for two consecutive years. Thirty-two QTLs were identified for visual chlorosis rating (3.9%–31.8% phenotypic variance explained [PVE]) and SPAD chlorophyll meter reading [3.8%–11% PVE] across three stages over 2 years. This is the first report of identification of QTLs for iron deficiency chlorosis resistance- associated traits in groundnut. Three major QTLs (>10% PVE) were identified at severe stage, while majority of other QTLs were having small effects. Interestingly, two major QTLs for visual chlorosis rating at 60 days (2013) and 90 days (2014) were located at same position on LG AhXIII. The identified QTLs/markers after validation across diverse genetic material could be used in genomics-assisted breeding