Avian blood parasite infection during the non-breeding season: an overlooked issue in declining populations?

Background Pathogens and parasites can have major impacts on host population dynamics, both through direct mortality and via indirect effects. Both types of effect may be stronger in species whose populations are already under pressure. We investigated the potential for blood parasites to impact upon their hosts at the immunological, physiological and population level during the non-breeding season using a declining population of yellowhammers Emberiza citrinella as a model. Results Yellowhammers infected by Haemoproteus spp. showed both a reduced heterophil to lymphocyte (H:L) ratio, and an elevated standardised white blood cell (WBC) count compared to uninfected birds, indicating an immunological response to infection. Infected birds had shorter wings during the first winter of sampling but not during the second, colder, winter; survival analysis of 321 birds sampled across four winters indicated that increased wing length conferred a survival advantage. Conclusions We suggest that the potential impacts of blood parasite infections on over-wintering birds may have been underestimated. Further research should consider the potential impacts of sub-clinical parasite infections on the dynamics of vulnerable populations, and we suggest using declining populations as model systems within which to investigate these relationships as well as examining interactions between sub-clinical disease and other environmental stressors

The Thermal Design, Characterization, and Performance of the SPIDER Long-Duration Balloon Cryostat

We describe the SPIDER flight cryostat, which is designed to cool six millimeter-wavelength telescopes during an Antarctic long-duration balloon flight. The cryostat, one of the largest to have flown on a stratospheric payload, uses liquid helium-4 to deliver cooling power to stages at 4.2 and 1.6 K. Stainless steel capillaries facilitate a high flow impedance connection between the main liquid helium tank and a smaller superfluid tank, allowing the latter to operate at 1.6 K as long as there is liquid in the 4.2 K main tank. Each telescope houses a closed cycle helium-3 adsorption refrigerator that further cools the focal planes down to 300 mK. Liquid helium vapor from the main tank is routed through heat exchangers that cool radiation shields, providing negative thermal feedback. The system performed successfully during a 17 day flight in the 2014-2015 Antarctic summer. The cryostat had a total hold time of 16.8 days, with 15.9 days occurring during flight.Comment: 15 pgs, 17 fig

The Sail-Backed Reptile Ctenosauriscus from the Latest Early Triassic of Germany and the Timing and Biogeography of the Early Archosaur Radiation

Background Archosaurs (birds, crocodilians and their extinct relatives including dinosaurs) dominated Mesozoic continental ecosystems from the Late Triassic onwards, and still form a major component of modern ecosystems (>10,000 species). The earliest diverse archosaur faunal assemblages are known from the Middle Triassic (c. 244 Ma), implying that the archosaur radiation began in the Early Triassic (252.3–247.2 Ma). Understanding of this radiation is currently limited by the poor early fossil record of the group in terms of skeletal remains. Methodology/Principal Findings We redescribe the anatomy and stratigraphic position of the type specimen of Ctenosauriscus koeneni (Huene), a sail-backed reptile from the Early Triassic (late Olenekian) Solling Formation of northern Germany that potentially represents the oldest known archosaur. We critically discuss previous biomechanical work on the ‘sail’ of Ctenosauriscus, which is formed by a series of elongated neural spines. In addition, we describe Ctenosauriscus-like postcranial material from the earliest Middle Triassic (early Anisian) Röt Formation of Waldhaus, southwestern Germany. Finally, we review the spatial and temporal distribution of the earliest archosaur fossils and their implications for understanding the dynamics of the archosaur radiation. Conclusions/Significance Comprehensive numerical phylogenetic analyses demonstrate that both Ctenosauriscus and the Waldhaus taxon are members of a monophyletic grouping of poposauroid archosaurs, Ctenosauriscidae, characterised by greatly elongated neural spines in the posterior cervical to anterior caudal vertebrae. The earliest archosaurs, including Ctenosauriscus, appear in the body fossil record just prior to the Olenekian/Anisian boundary (c. 248 Ma), less than 5 million years after the Permian–Triassic mass extinction. These earliest archosaur assemblages are dominated by ctenosauriscids, which were broadly distributed across northern Pangea and which appear to have been the first global radiation of archosaurs

Economic evaluations of onchocerciasis interventions: a systematic review and research needs

Objective To provide a systematic review of economic evaluations that has been conducted for onchocerciasis interventions, to summarise current key knowledge and to identify research gaps. Method A systematic review of the literature was conducted on the 8th of August 2018 using the PubMed (MEDLINE) and ISI Web of Science electronic databases. No date or language stipulations were applied to the searches. Results We identified 14 primary studies reporting the results of economic evaluations of onchocerciasis interventions, seven of which were cost‐effectiveness analyses. The studies identified used a variety of different approaches to estimate the costs of the investigated interventions/programmes. Originally, the studies only quantified the benefits associated with preventing blindness. Gradually, methods improved and also captured onchocerciasis‐associated skin disease. Studies found that eliminating onchocerciasis would generate billions in economic benefits. The majority of the cost‐effectiveness analyses evaluated annual mass drug administration (MDA). The estimated cost per disability‐adjusted life year (DALY) averted of annual MDA varies between US$3 and US$30 (cost year variable). Conclusions The cost benefit and cost effectiveness of onchocerciasis interventions have consistently been found to be very favourable. This finding provides strong evidential support for the ongoing efforts to eliminate onchocerciasis from endemic areas. Although these results are very promising, there are several important research gaps that need to be addressed as we move towards the 2020 milestones and beyond

Chylothorax after surgery on congenital heart disease in newborns and infants -risk factors and efficacy of MCT-diet

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Objectives</p> <p>To analyze risk factors for chylothorax in infants after congenital heart surgery and the efficacy of median chain triglyceride diet (MCT). To develop our therapeutic pathway for the management of chylothorax.</p> <p>Patients and methods</p> <p>Retrospective review of the institutional surgical database and patient charts including detailed perioperative informations between 1/2000 and 10/2006. Data analyzing with an elimination regression analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty six out of 282 patients had chylothorax (=9.2%). Secondary chest closure, low body weight, small size, longer cardiopulmonary bypass (242 ± 30 versus 129 ± 5 min) and x-clamp times (111 ± 15 versus 62 ± 3 min) were significantly associated with chylothorax (p < 0.05). One patient was cured with total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and one without any treatment. 24 patients received MCT-diet alone, which was successful in 17 patients within 10 days. After conversion to regular alimentation within one week only one chylothorax relapsed. Out of 7 patients primarily not responsive to MCT-diet, 2 were successfully treated by lysis of a caval vein thrombosis, 2 by TPN + pleurodesis + supradiaphragmatic thoracic duct ligation, one by octreotide treatment, and two patients finally died.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Chylothorax may appear due to injury of the thoracic duct, due to venous or lymphatic congestion, central vein thrombosis, or diffuse injury of mediastinal lymphatic tissue in association with secondary chest closure. Application of MCT alone was effective in 71%, and more invasive treatments like TPN should not be used in primary routine. After resolution of chylothorax, MCT-diet can be converted to regular milk formula within one week and with very low risk of relapse.</p

Skewed genomic variability in strains of the toxigenic bacterial pathogen, Clostridium perfringens

Clostridium perfringens is a Gram-positive, anaerobic spore-forming bacterium commonly found in soil, sediments, and the human gastrointestinal tract. C. perfringens is responsible for a wide spectrum of disease, including food poisoning, gas gangrene (clostridial myonecrosis), enteritis necroticans, and non-foodborne gastrointestinal infections. The complete genome sequences of Clostridium perfringens strain ATCC 13124, a gas gangrene isolate and the species type strain, and the enterotoxin-producing food poisoning strain SM101, were determined and compared with the published C. perfringens strain 13 genome. Comparison of the three genomes revealed considerable genomic diversity with >300 unique "genomic islands" identified, with the majority of these islands unusually clustered on one replichore. PCR-based analysis indicated that the large genomic islands are widely variable across a large collection of C. perfringens strains. These islands encode genes that correlate to differences in virulence and phenotypic characteristics of these strains. Significant differences between the strains include numerous novel mobile elements and genes encoding metabolic capabilities, strain-specific extracellular polysaccharide capsule, sporulation factors, toxins, and other secreted enzymes, providing substantial insight into this medically important bacterial pathogen. ©2006 by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press

The Osteology of the Basal Archosauromorph Tasmaniosaurus triassicus from the Lower Triassic of Tasmania, Australia

Proterosuchidae are the most taxonomically diverse archosauromorph reptiles sampled in the immediate aftermath of the Permo-Triassic mass extinction and represent the earliest radiation of Archosauriformes (archosaurs and closely related species). Proterosuchids are potentially represented by approximately 15 nominal species collected from South Africa, China, Russia, Australia and India, but the taxonomic content of the group is currently in a state of flux because of the poor anatomic and systematic information available for several of its putative members. Here, the putative proterosuchid Tasmaniosaurus triassicus from the Lower Triassic of Hobart, Tasmania (Australia),is redescribed. The holotype and currently only known specimen includes cranial and postcranial remains and the revision of this material sheds new light on the anatomy of the animal, including new data on the cranial endocast. Several bones are re-identified or reinterpreted, contrasting with the descriptions of previous authors. The new information provided here shows that Tasmaniosaurus closely resembles the South African proterosuchid Proterosuchus, but it differed in the presence of, for example, a slightly downturned premaxilla, a shorter anterior process of maxilla, and a diamond-shaped anterior end of interclavicle. Previous claims for the presence of gut contents in the holotype of Tasmaniosaurus are considered ambiguous. The description of the cranial endocast of Tasmaniosaurus provides for the first time information about the anatomy of this region in proterosuchids. The cranial endocast preserves possibly part of the vomero-nasal (= Jacobson's) system laterally to the olfactory bulbs. Previous claims of the absence of the vomero-nasal organs in archosaurs, which is suggested by the extant phylogenetic bracket, are questioned because its absence in both clades of extant archosaurs seems to be directly related with the independent acquisition of a non-ground living mode of life

Cross-species protein sequence and gene structure prediction with fine-tuned Webscipio 2.0 and Scipio

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Obtaining transcripts of homologs of closely related organisms and retrieving the reconstructed exon-intron patterns of the genes is a very important process during the analysis of the evolution of a protein family and the comparative analysis of the exon-intron structure of a certain gene from different species. Due to the ever-increasing speed of genome sequencing, the gap to genome annotation is growing. Thus, tools for the correct prediction and reconstruction of genes in related organisms become more and more important. The tool Scipio, which can also be used via the graphical interface WebScipio, performs significant hit processing of the output of the Blat program to account for sequencing errors, missing sequence, and fragmented genome assemblies. However, Scipio has so far been limited to high sequence similarity and unable to reconstruct short exons.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Scipio and WebScipio have fundamentally been extended to better reconstruct very short exons and intron splice sites and to be better suited for cross-species gene structure predictions. The Needleman-Wunsch algorithm has been implemented for the search for short parts of the query sequence that were not recognized by Blat. Those regions might either be short exons, divergent sequence at intron splice sites, or very divergent exons. We have shown the benefit and use of new parameters with several protein examples from completely different protein families in searches against species from several kingdoms of the eukaryotes. The performance of the new Scipio version has been tested in comparison with several similar tools.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>With the new version of Scipio very short exons, terminal and internal, of even just one amino acid can correctly be reconstructed. Scipio is also able to correctly predict almost all genes in cross-species searches even if the ancestors of the species separated more than 100 Myr ago and if the protein sequence identity is below 80%. For our test cases Scipio outperforms all other software tested. WebScipio has been restructured and provides easy access to the genome assemblies of about 640 eukaryotic species. Scipio and WebScipio are freely accessible at <url>http://www.webscipio.org</url>.</p

Comparison of placental growth factor and fetal flow Doppler ultrasonography to identify fetal adverse outcomes in women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) are leading causes of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Failure to detect intrauterine growth restriction in women at high risk has been highlighted as a significant avoidable cause of serious fetal outcome. In this observational study we compare fetal flow using Doppler ultrasonography with a new test for placental growth factor (PlGF) to predict fetal adverse events. METHODS: Eighty-nine women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (24 with chronic hypertension, 17 with gestational hypertension, 12 with HELLP syndrome, 19 with preeclampsia and 17 with superimposed preeclampsia) were enrolled. A single maternal blood sample to measure free PlGF (Alere Triage) taken before 35 weeks of pregnancy was compared to the last Doppler ultrasound measurement of fetal flow before delivery. PlGF was classified as normal (PlGF>/=100 pg/ml), low (12<PlGF<100) or very low (PlGF</=12 pg/ml). A positive test for abnormal fetal flow was defined as either signs of centralisation of the fetal circulation or diastolic block or reverse flow in the umbilical artery or descending aorta; this was a criterion for delivery. Fetal outcomes were intrauterine growth restriction and birth before 37 weeks of pregnancy. RESULTS: In total 61/89 women had a preterm birth and 22 infants had IUGR. Of those who delivered preterm, 20/20 women with abnormal fetal flow and 36/41 (87.8%) women with normal fetal flow had low or very low PlGF. Of those infants with IUGR, 22/22 had low or very low maternal PlGF and 10/22 had abnormal fetal flow. CONCLUSIONS: PlGF may provide useful information before 35th gestational week to identify fetuses requiring urgent delivery, and those at risk of later adverse outcomes not identified by fetal flow Doppler ultrasonography