Microbiological evolution of hay and relapse in patients with farmer's lung

Aims: To investigate the conditions which favour the development of these microorganisms in hay and to analyse the relation between their concentration and the risk of occurrence of FLD. Methods: Sequential microbiological analyses of each batch of hay stored in 10 farms at risk for FLD and a serological survey of 10 farmers (five with a past history of FLD). Results: Exposure to microorganisms varied widely according to farms and periods. These microorganisms usually reached a peak in January and proliferated when harvesting conditions favoured excessive humidity in hay (rain during harvest, soil in the hay). Three of the five FLD patients presented with FLD respiratory recurrence and positive serology for A corymbifera during the winter (2000-01), after exposure to a significantly higher amount of A corymbifera than other farmers. Similar, but less significant, results were found for E amstelodami exposure, but not with W sebi. Conclusions: Results contribute to confirming A corymbifera as a major aetiological agent of FLD in Doubs, and encourage further studies with a view to implementing preventive measures

IFN alpha-2a protects mice against a helminth infection of the liver and modulates immune responses

International audienc

Evaluation of an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) with Affinity-Purified Em18 and an ELISA with Recombinant Em18 for Differential Diagnosis of Alveolar Echinococcosis: Results of a Blind Test

Alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is the most potentially lethal parasitic zoonosis of the nontropical areas in the northern hemisphere, where cystic echinococcosis (CE) is also endemic. Both AE and CE are highly endemic in China, and both serologic detection of echinococcosis, either AE or CE, and differentiation of AE from CE are crucial problems. Evaluation of Western blot analysis (WB) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the Em18 antigen, using affinity-purified and recombinant Em18, was carried out “blindly” using 60 human sera from patients diagnosed in France. The results were compared with those obtained using a commercially available Echinococcus WB immunoglobulin G (IgG) kit developed in France. The Em18 WB and Echinococcus WB IgG showed very similar results for detection of AE. Both affinity-purified Em18 or a recombinant Em18 WB and Echinococcus WB IgG seem useful for identification of AE, and the latter seems appropriate for both AE and CE, whereas affinity-purified Em18 ELISA and the newly developed recombinant Em18 ELISA appear to be suitable for detection of AE, especially for epidemiological surveys

Otolith Microstructure during the Early Life-History Stages of Brown Trout: Validation and Interpretation

International audienceWe examined the extent to which otolith microstructure provides an accurate estimate of age, growth, and early life history transitions during the period between hatching and 1 week after emergence in Brown Trout Salmo trutta exposed to natural variations in ambient water temperature. All fry analyzed possessed a prominent check on the observed date of hatching. After hatching, daily growth increments were visible on sagittal otoliths. There was no evidence for the formation of an emergence check mark and no statistically significant evidence that emergence and daily temperature fluctuations interacted to form check marks. However, daily temperature fluctuations may influence the formation of check marks, largely based on an observed increase in the proportion of fish possessing checks on the days following the two largest temperature fluctuations observed during the experiment. There was no evidence that feeding or stressing emergent fish contributed to the formation of an emergence check mark. The observed proportionality of somatic and otolith growth in conjunction with daily growth increments and the formation of a prominent hatch mark provides the opportunity to back-calculate somatic length distributions and to document the hatching, dispersal, growth, and survival of the early life history stages of Brown Trout in natur

A preliminary investigation of spawning migrations of grayling in a small stream as determined by radio-tracking

Adult grayling Thymallus thymallus migrated from 230 to 4980 m up the Aisne stream, Belgium, to spawn between 18 and 29 March, under decreasing floods, increasing temperature and low turbidity.Males (n=4) arrived on spawning grounds several days earlier than females (n=2), stayed there longer (10-19 v. 2-3 days), and occupied a single ground each, whereas females moved between several places. After spawning, all grayling homed precisely into the pool-riffle sequences where they were tagged in late February, and remained here until late June. These observations indicate that resident grayling are far less mobile than autumn-spawning salmonids, and that the environmental factors triggering spawning migrations resemble more closely those of spring-spawning cyprinids than of other salmonids. The implications of these restricted mobility patterns are discussed within the scope of population structure, and impact of river management