Resistance status of the carmine spider mite, Tetranychus cinnabarinus and the twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae to selected acaricides on strawberries.

The carmine spider mite, Tetranychus cinnabarinus (Boisduval) and the twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch, are serious pests of strawberries and many other horticultural crops. Control of these pests has been heavily dependent upon chemical acaricides. Objectives of this study were to determine the resistance status of these two pest species to commonly used acaricides on strawberries in a year-round intensive horticultural production region. LC90 of abamectin for adult carmine spider mites was 4% whereas that for adult twospotted spider mites was 24% of the top label rate. LC90s of spiromesifen, etoxazole, hexythiazox and bifenazate were 0.5%, 0.5%, 1.4% and 83% of their respective highest label rates for carmine spider mite eggs, 0.7%, 2.7%, 12.1% and 347% of their respective highest label rates for the nymphs. LC90s of spiromesifen, etoxazole, hexythiazox and bifenazate were 4.6%, 11.1%, 310% and 62% of their respective highest label rates for twospotted spider mite eggs, 3%, 13%, 432,214% and 15% of their respective highest label rates for the nymphs. Our results suggest that T. cinnabarinus have developed resistance to bifenazate and that the T. urticae have developed resistance to hexythiazox. These results strongly emphasize the need to develop resistance management strategies in the region

Usages et compétence TIC en formation initiale à l'ENS d'Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire : le cas des formateurs et des futurs enseignants

Les Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication (TIC) sont de plus en plus présentes dans toutes les sphères de la société y compris dans l’éducation. Pour favoriser des usages effectifs de ces technologies par des enseignants dans les salles de classe, il devient pertinent de s’intéresser aux usages qu’en font certains formateurs et futurs enseignants dans le cadre de la formation initiale. Ainsi, dans le contexte de la formation initiale des enseignants en Côte d’Ivoire à l’ENS d’Abidjan, l’objectif général de la présente thèse est de documenter les usages et la compétence TIC. Pour répondre à ces préoccupations, une étude qualitative exploratoire a été réalisée à l’Ecole normale supérieure (ENS) d’Abidjan en Côte d’Ivoire. Les entrevues individuelles semi-dirigées avec des formateurs (n = 9) et des futurs enseignants (n = 15) ont été analysées, en adoptant une approche méthodologique basée essentiellement sur l’analyse du contenu. Les résultats sont présentés sous forme d’articles scientifiques. La thèse tente ainsi de décrire des usages des TIC par des futurs enseignants, de dresser un profil des formateurs usagers des TIC dans le cadre de la formation initiale à l’ENS d’Abidjan. Elle veut aussi examiner les usages des TIC par des futurs enseignants, en formation initiale, pour certaines des composantes de la compétence TIC. Les résultats obtenus permettent de dresser une typologie des usages des TIC par des futurs enseignants dans le cadre de leurs activités d’apprentissage. Pour ce qui est des formateurs, trois profils d’usagers ont été dressés : 1. Les usagers de bas niveau qui font usage des TIC uniquement pour la recherche et la production de documents ; 2. Les usagers de niveau moyen qui, en plus de la recherche et la production de documents, utilisent les outils électroniques de communication dans leurs pratiques professionnelles, et font souvent usage des TIC dans leur classe ; 3. Les usagers de bon niveau qui, en plus de faire usage des outils de communication dans leurs pratiques professionnelles et d’intégrer les TIC dans leurs pratiques en classe, disposent de pages Web à but éducatif. Par ailleurs, l’analyse des discours des futurs enseignants sur les usages des TIC laisse percevoir que la compétence TIC se révèle de façon inégale à travers quatre de ses composantes. En effet, même s’ils n’ont pas une posture critique face aux TIC, ces futurs enseignants ont une conscience de leurs avantages dans le cadre de leur formation. Ainsi, ils utilisent les TIC pour communiquer, rechercher les informations, les interpréter afin de résoudre un problème, se constituer un réseau d’échanges et de formation continue. Même si l’intégration des TIC dans la formation initiale des enseignants en Côte d’Ivoire n’est pas encore effective, des formateurs et des futurs enseignants en font usage dans le cadre de la formation.Information and communications technologies (ICT) play an ever-increasing role in every aspect of our lives, including education. To encourage teachers to make effective use of ICT in their classrooms, it is important to consider how teacher educators and preservice teachers employ them in initial training programs. The research objective was therefore to conduct a qualitative exploratory study to document ICT use and competence in an initial teacher training program at the École normale supérieure (ENS) d’Abidjan, Ivory Coast. We held individual, semi-directed interviews with teacher educators (n = 9) and preservice teachers (n = 15) and analyzed them using a content analysis approach. Results are presented as scientific articles. We also attempted to describe ICT use by preservice teachers and to develop a profile of teacher educators who used ICT in the initial teacher training program at ENS d’Abidjan. In addition, we examined ICT use by preservice teachers in their initial training in terms of specific components of ICT competence. Based on the results, we developed a typology of ICT use by preservice teachers in their initial training program. We also developed three profiles of teacher educators, as follows: 1. Beginners, who used ICT solely to do research and produce documents 2. Intermediates, who, in addition to research and document production, used computerized communication tools in their professional practice, and frequently used ICT in the classroom 3. Adepts, who, in addition to communication for professional purposes and integration of ICT in the classroom, used educational Web pages. Moreover, from the analysis of the interviews with preservice teachers concerning their ICT use, ICT competence appears to vary across four of its components. Furthermore, although preservice teachers did not have a critical attitude toward ICT, they were aware that ICT could benefit their training. Thus, they used ICT to communicate, find information and interpret it in order to solve problems, and set up networks for exchange and continuing professional development. Although effective integration of ICT into initial teacher training in Ivory Coast has not been fully realized, teacher educators and preservice teachers are nevertheless using ICT in teacher training

Tau-Targeted Immunization Impedes Progression of Neurofibrillary Histopathology in Aged P301L Tau Transgenic Mice

In Alzheimer's disease (AD) brains, the microtubule-associated protein tau and amyloid-β (Aβ) deposit as intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) and extracellular plaques, respectively. Tau deposits are furthermore found in a significant number of frontotemporal dementia cases. These diseases are characterized by progressive neurodegeneration, the loss of intellectual capabilities and behavioral changes. Unfortunately, the currently available therapies are limited to symptomatic relief. While active immunization against Aβ has shown efficacy in both various AD mouse models and patients with AD, immunization against pathogenic tau has only recently been shown to prevent pathology in young tau transgenic mice. However, if translated to humans, diagnosis and treatment would be routinely done when symptoms are overt, meaning that the histopathological changes have already progressed. Therefore, we used active immunization to target pathogenic tau in 4, 8, and 18 months-old P301L tau transgenic pR5 mice that have an onset of NFT pathology at 6 months of age. In all age groups, NFT pathology was significantly reduced in treated compared to control pR5 mice. Similarly, phosphorylation of tau at pathological sites was reduced. In addition, increased astrocytosis was found in the oldest treated group. Taken together, our data suggests that tau-targeted immunization slows the progression of NFT pathology in mice, with practical implications for human patients

Nutrient and feed value analysis in leaves of cassava wild species and cultivars

Objective: In order to provide reference for developing cassava leaves as feed resources nutritional components in leaves of cassava wild species and cultivars were studied. Method: Nutritional components including crude lipid, crude protein, soluble sugar, starch, carotenoid and HCN contents in functional leaves of eight cassava germplasms (three cassava wild species and five cultivars) were determined. The expression levels of proteases (UGPase, AGPase, GBSSI and Linamarase) were determined using Western blotting method. Result: Among eight cassava germplasms，wild species Manihot cecropiaefolia Phhl contained the highest starch content in functional leaves, which was 2.5 g/100 gDW, the highest soluble sugar content which was 30.0 g/100 gDW and the highest carotenoid content which wsa 91.9 mg/100 gFW, but protein and hydrocyanic acid contents were at moderate level. Cultivar SC9 contained moderate protein and soluble sugar contents in functional leaves，and the lowest HCN content which was 167 mg/kgFW. According to Western blotting analysis，expression levels of key enzymes, UGPase, AGPase and GBSSI, for sugar and starch metabolic pathway were the highest in M. cecropiaefolia Phhl; while key enzyme Linamarase for SC9 HCN metabolic pathway was the lowest. Expression levels of all proteins were in accordance with related physiological indexes variation trend. Principal component analysis revealed that, the cassava germplasms with high starch and soluble sugar content in leaf were tend to contain low crude lipid content; and the ones with high soluble sugar, crude protein and carotenoid contents would contain low HCN content. Conclusion: Comprehensive nutritional value of functional leaves in cassava wild species M. cecropiaefolia Phhl is high, which may be developed as feed resources for livestock and silkworm. HCN content in cultivar SC9 fresh leaf is low, thus it can be used as feed for silkworm

The importance of early immunotherapy in patients with faciobrachial dystonic seizures.

Faciobrachial dystonic seizures and limbic encephalitis closely associate with antibodies to leucine-rich glioma-inactivated 1 (LGI1). Here, we describe 103 consecutive patients with faciobrachial dystonic seizures and LGI1 antibodies to understand clinical, therapeutic and serological differences between those with and without cognitive impairment, and to determine whether cessation of faciobrachial dystonic seizures can prevent cognitive impairment. The 22/103 patients without cognitive impairment typically had normal brain MRI, EEGs and serum sodium levels (P < 0.0001). Overall, cessation of faciobrachial dystonic seizures with antiepileptic drugs alone occurred in only 9/89 (10%) patients. By contrast, 51% showed cessation of faciobrachial dystonic seizures 30 days after addition of immunotherapy (P < 0.0001), with earlier cessation in cognitively normal patients (P = 0.038). Indeed, expedited immunotherapy (P = 0.031) and normal cognition (P = 0.0014) also predicted reduced disability at 24 months. Furthermore, of 80 patients with faciobrachial dystonic seizures as their initial feature, 56% developed cognitive impairment after 90 days of active faciobrachial dystonic seizures. Whereas only one patient developed cognitive impairment after cessation of faciobrachial dystonic seizures (P < 0.0001). All patients had IgG4-LGI1 antibodies, but those with cognitive impairment had higher proportions of complement-fixing IgG1 antibodies (P = 0.03). Both subclasses caused LGI1-ADAM22 complex internalization, a potential non-inflammatory epileptogenic mechanism. In summary, faciobrachial dystonic seizures show striking time-sensitive responses to immunotherapy, and their cessation can prevent the development of cognitive impairment.awx323media15681705685001

Dissecting the causal effect between gut microbiota, DHA, and urate metabolism: A large-scale bidirectional Mendelian randomization

ObjectivesOur aim was to investigate the interactive causal effects between gut microbiota and host urate metabolism and explore the underlying mechanism using genetic methods.MethodsWe extracted summary statistics from the abundance of 211 microbiota taxa from the MiBioGen (N =18,340), 205 microbiota metabolism pathways from the Dutch Microbiome Project (N =7738), gout from the Global Biobank Meta-analysis Initiative (N =1,448,128), urate from CKDGen (N =288,649), and replication datasets from the Global Urate Genetics Consortium (N gout =69,374; N urate =110,347). We used linkage disequilibrium score regression and bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) to detect genetic causality between microbiota and gout/urate. Mediation MR and colocalization were performed to investigate potential mediators in the association between microbiota and urate metabolism.ResultsTwo taxa had a common causal effect on both gout and urate, whereas the Victivallaceae family was replicable. Six taxa were commonly affected by both gout and urate, whereas the Ruminococcus gnavus group genus was replicable. Genetic correlation supported significant results in MR. Two microbiota metabolic pathways were commonly affected by gout and urate. Mediation analysis indicated that the Bifidobacteriales order and Bifidobacteriaceae family had protective effects on urate mediated by increasing docosahexaenoic acid. These two bacteria shared a common causal variant rs182549 with both docosahexaenoic acid and urate, which was located within MCM6/LCT locus.ConclusionsGut microbiota and host urate metabolism had a bidirectional causal association, implicating the critical role of host-microbiota crosstalk in hyperuricemic patients. Changes in gut microbiota can not only ameliorate host urate metabolism but also become a foreboding indicator of urate metabolic diseases

Serum Fetuin-A Associates with Type 2 Diabetes and Insulin Resistance in Chinese Adults

Previous studies have demonstrated that fetuin-A is related to insulin resistance among subjects with normal glucose tolerance but not patients with type 2 diabetes. There are limited data available concerning fetuin-A and insulin resistance in Chinese. We aimed to study the association of fetuin-A with insulin resistance among participants with or without type 2 diabetes in a large sample size of adults aged 40 and older.A community-based cross-sectional study was performed among 5,227 Chinese adults. The average age of our study was 61.5±9.9 years. Serum fetuin-A concentrations were not significantly different between male and female (296.9 vs. 292.9 mg/l, p = 0.11). Compared with the lowest quartile, the highest quartile of serum fetuin-A revealed a significant higher proportion of type 2 diabetic patients (34.8% vs. 27.3%, p<0.0001). In the multinomial logit models, the risk of type 2 diabetes was associated with each one quartile increase of serum fetuin-A concentrations when referenced not only to normal glucose tolerance (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.07-1.43, p = 0.004) but also to impaired glucose regulation (OR 1.25, 95% CI 1.08-1.44, p = 0.003, respectively), after adjustment for age, sex, community, current smoking, and current drinking. The logistic regression analysis showed that fetuin-A were associated with elevated HOMA-IR and fasting serum insulin both among the participants with or without type 2 diabetes in the full adjusted analysis. There was no significant association between elevated serum fetuin-A concentrations and impaired glucose regulation (all p≥0.12).Higher fetuin-A concentrations were associated with type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance in middle aged and elderly Chinese

Modification effect of changes in cardiometabolic traits in association between kidney stones and cardiovascular events

BackgroundsWhether longitudinal changes in metabolic status influence the effect of kidney stones on cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains unclarified. We investigated the modification effect of status changes in metabolic syndrome (MetS) in the association of kidney stones with risk of incident CVD events.MethodsWe performed a prospective association and interaction study in a nationwide cohort including 129,172 participants aged ≥ 40 years without CVDs at baseline and followed up for an average of 3.8 years. Kidney stones information was collected by using a questionnaire and validated by medical records. The repeated biochemical measurements were performed to ascertain the metabolic status at both baseline and follow-up.Results4,017 incident total CVDs, 1,413 coronary heart diseases (CHDs) and 2,682 strokes were documented and ascertained during follow-up. Kidney stones presence was significantly associated with 44%, 70% and 31% higher risk of CVDs, CHDs and stroke, respectively. The stratified analysis showed significant associations were found in the incident and sustained MetS patients, while no significant associations were found in the non-MetS at both baseline and follow-up subjects or the MetS remission ones, especially in women. For the change status of each single component of the MetS, though the trends were not always the same, the associations with CVD were consistently significant in those with sustained metabolic disorders, except for the sustained high blood glucose group, while the associations were consistently significant in those with incident metabolic disorders except for the incident blood pressure group. We also found a significant association of kidney stone and CVD or CHD risk in the remain normal glucose or triglycerides groups; while the associations were consistently significant in those with incident metabolic disorders except for the incident blood pressure group. We also found a significant association of kidney stone and CVD or CHD risk in the remain normal glucose or triglycerides groups.ConclusionsA history of kidney stones in women with newly developed MetS or long-standing MetS associated with increased risk of CVD. The mechanisms link kidney stones and CVD risk in the metabolic and non-metabolic pathways were warranted for further studies

The Relative Body Weight Gain From Early to Middle Life Adulthood Associated With Later Life Risk of Diabetes: A Nationwide Cohort Study

AimTo determine the effect of decade-based body weight gain from 20 to 50 years of age on later life diabetes risk.Methods35,611 non-diabetic participants aged ≥ 50 years from a well-defined nationwide cohort were followed up for average of 3.6 years, with cardiovascular diseases and cancers at baseline were excluded. Body weight at 20, 30, 40, and 50 years was reported. The overall 30 years and each 10-year weight gain were calculated from the early and middle life. Cox regression models were used to estimate risks of incident diabetes.ResultsAfter 127,745.26 person-years of follow-up, 2,789 incident diabetes were identified (incidence rate, 2.18%) in 25,289 women (mean weight gain 20-50 years, 7.60 kg) and 10,322 men (7.93 kg). Each 10-kg weight gain over the 30 years was significantly associated with a 39.7% increased risk of incident diabetes (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.33-1.47); weight gain from 20-30 years showed a more prominent effect on the risk of developing diabetes before 60 years than that of after 60 years (Hazard ratio, HR = 1.084, 95% CI [1.049-1.121], P &lt;0.0001 vs. 1.015 [0.975-1.056], P = 0.4643; PInteraction=0.0293). It showed a stable effect of the three 10-year intervals weight gain on risk of diabetes after 60 years (HR=1.055, 1.038, 1.043, respectively, all P &lt; 0.0036).ConclusionsThe early life weight gain showed a more prominent effect on developing diabetes before 60 years than after 60 years; however, each-decade weight gain from 20 to 50 years showed a similar effect on risk developing diabetes after 60 years

Cytoplasmic Accumulation and Aggregation of TDP-43 upon Proteasome Inhibition in Cultured Neurons

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) are characterized by intraneuronal deposition of the nuclear TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) caused by unknown mechanisms. Here, we studied TDP-43 in primary neurons under different stress conditions and found that only proteasome inhibition by MG-132 or lactacystin could induce significant cytoplasmic accumulation of TDP-43, a histopathological hallmark in disease. This cytoplasmic accumulation was accompanied by phosphorylation, ubiquitination and aggregation of TDP-43, recapitulating major features of disease. Proteasome inhibition produced similar effects in both hippocampal and cortical neurons, as well as in immortalized motor neurons. To determine the contribution of TDP-43 to cell death, we reduced TDP-43 expression using small interfering RNA (siRNA), and found that reduced levels of TDP-43 dose-dependently rendered neurons more vulnerable to MG-132. Taken together, our data suggests a role for the proteasome in subcellular localization of TDP-43, and possibly in disease