Harmonia axyridis: an environmental risk assessment for Northwest Europe

In this paper, we summarize the international situation with respect to environmental risk assessment for biological control agents. Next, we apply a recently designed, comprehensive risk evaluation method consisting of a stepwise procedure to evaluate the environmental risks of Harmonia axyridis in Northwest Europe. This resulted in the very clear conclusion that H. axyridis is a potentially risky species for Northwest Europe, because it is able to establish, it has a very wide host range including species from other insect orders and even beyond the class of Insecta, it may feed on plant materials, it can cover large distances (>50 km per year), it does move into non-target areas, it may attack many non-target species including beneficial insects and insects of conservation concern, its activities have resulted in the reduction of populations of native predators in North America, it is known as a nuisance in North America and recently also in Northwest Europe, and it may develop as a pest of fruit in North America. Considering the H. axyridis case, current knowledge would lead to the conclusion that, although the predator is capable to effectively control several pest species, its risks are manifold and it should, thus, not have been released in Northwest Europe. At the time of the first releases in Nortwest Europe in 1995, the available scientific literature made clear that H. axyridis is a large sized polyphagous predator and has a great reproductive capacity in comparison with other ladybird beetles, and that there was a need to study non-target effects because of its polyphagous behaviour. In retrospect, this information should have been sufficient to reject import and release of this species, but it was apparently ignored by those who considered release of this predator in Northwest Europe. The case of Harmonia releases in Northwest Europe underlines that there is an urgent need for harmonized, world-wide regulation of biological control agents, including an information system on risky natural enemy species

Characterization of queen specific components of the fluid released by fighting honey bee queens

Swarming honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies rear supernumerary young queens that compete for the limited resources (workers) necessary for founding a new colony. Young queens often fight to death. Queens show several adaptations to fight and conflict, such as short developmental time and early onset of venom production. During fights, queens often release rectal fluid with a strong smell of wine grapes, after which they temporarily stop fighting. This potentially reduces individual overall risk of deadly injury. The fluid and one of its components, ortho-aminoacetophenone, were previously found to have a pheromonal effect on workers, but the evidence is equivocal. Recently, it has been suggested that the effects of this substance may be context- or concentration-specific. We performed semi-quantitative gas-chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis of the fluid (1) released by queens during their first fight, (2) released during a subsequent fight, and (3) obtained by dissecting the hindgut of queens and (4) of workers. Following preliminary results by Page et al. 1988 (Experientia 44: 270-271), we scored presence / absence of eight substances. Five substances (ortho-aminoacetophenone, decanoic acid, dodecanoic acid, octyl decanoate, and decyl decanoate) were characteristic of queens only. ortho-Aminoacetophenone was detected in all queen and in none of the worker samples, in agreement with previous findings that worker faeces do not have any pheromonal effect. The fluid released by queens on their second fight also contained ortho-aminoacetophenone, but in smaller quantities. These data substantiate previous bioassay results, and provide estimates of ortho-aminoacetophenone concentration as required to design experiments addressing the function and adaptive significance of this behaviour

A refined TALDICE-1a age scale from 55 to 112 ka before present for the Talos Dome ice core based on high-resolution methane measurements

A precise synchronization of different climate records is indispensable for a correct dynamical interpretation of paleoclimatic data. A chronology for the TALDICE ice core from the Ross Sea sector of East Antarctica has recently been presented based on methane synchronization with Greenland and the EDC ice cores and δ<sup>18</sup>O<sub>ice</sub> synchronization with EDC in the bottom part (TALDICE-1). Using new high-resolution methane data obtained with a continuous flow analysis technique, we present a refined age scale for the age interval from 55–112 thousand years (ka) before present, where TALDICE is synchronized with EDC. New and more precise tie points reduce the uncertainties of the age scale from up to 1900 yr in TALDICE-1 to below 1100 yr over most of the refined interval and shift the Talos Dome dating to significantly younger ages during the onset of Marine Isotope Stage 3. Thus, discussions of climate dynamics at sub-millennial time scales are now possible back to 110 ka, in particular during the inception of the last ice age. Calcium data of EDC and TALDICE are compared to show the impact of the refinement to the synchronization of the two ice cores not only for the gas but also for the ice age scale

Interleukin-1 Receptor antagonist Production by Human Keratinocytes

Human keratinocytes produce biologically active pro–IL-Iα and inactive pro-IL-1β with most protein remaining intracellular. IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) is a newly described member of the IL-1 family that is secreted by stimulated monocytes and binds competitively to IL-1 receptors without stimulating target cells. We examined the characteristics of IL-1ra production by cultured human keratinocytes. By ELISA, keratinocyte lysates contained 390 ng IL-1ra/mg total protein with little IL-1ra detected in supernatants. In contrast, monocytes produced 297 ng IL- 1ra/mg total protein during 24 h of culture on adherent IgG with about half of the IL-1ra detected in supernatants. By Western blot analysis, keratinocyte IL-1ra was ≈ 20 kD in size and was slightly larger than recombinant monocyte IL- 1ra. In contrast to monocytes, human keratinocyte IL-1ra was not secreted in 22- 25-kD molecular weight glycosylated forms. Affinity-purified keratinocyte IL-1ra exhibited identical biologic activity to recombinant monocyte IL-1ra, each inhibiting IL-1 -dependent augmentation of murint thymocyte proliferation to the same degree per amount protein. An IL-1ra mRNA of 1.8 kb was detected by Northern blot analysis in RNA extracted from keratinocytes. in order to determine the effect of differentiation on IL-1 and IL-1ra production, human keratinocytes were cultured for 72 h in low (0.03 mM), medium (0.15 mM), or high (1.0 mM) -calcium concentrations. The absolute amounts of IL-1ra increased twofold and the ratio of IL-1ra to IL-1ra in keratinocyte lysates increased from ≈ 12: 1 to 25: 1 during differentiation. These results indicate that keratinocytes constitutively produce large amounts of a biologically active intracellular variant of IL-1ra that increase with differentiation. IL-1ra released during keratinocyte damage may be important in modifying the inflammatory effects of IL-1α in human skin

Rotwein unter Hochspannung: Mehrjährige Qualitäts- Untersuchung mit Gas-Discharge-Visualisation (GDV)

We investigated whether we can detect any differences in red wines produced either by bio-dynamic or by standard organic agriculture. We used standard methods to investigate the quality of the wines and Gas-Discharge-Visualisation (GDV) method to investigate a holistic quality of the wines. With the GDV-method, samples are exposed to high voltage. The halo-like gas discharge caused by a burst of electron emission of the sample is captured by a digital camera underneath a transparent, dielectric surface. The wine samples measured originate from an On-Farm experiment in South of France with two separately managed but neighbouring blocks (same soil and climate conditions): bio-organic and bio-dynamic. Apart from the use of bio-dynamic preparations, plant protection and fertilization was the same in both blocks. The vinification of the sampled grapes was made in two replicates which were analysed separately. During the three years of examination, the bio-dynamic samples did not reveal significant differences when assessed with standard methods (sensory triangle test, polyphenol analysis etc.). However, with GDV measurements the values for the imageparameter “mean intensity” were mostly higher for the wines from bio-dynamically produced grapes. In a „mixed effect model“ (GDV-parameter „mean intensity“ as dependent variable, replication und cultivation-system as fix and year as random effect) the difference was statistically significant. We conclude that the GDV-method has an interesting potential to detect very sensitively differences in food attributes. However, in order to interpret the results in terms of consumer-relevant quality further research is needed

Coupling of multiple LSP and SPP resonances: interactions between an elongated nanoparticle and a thin metallic film

We study the coupling interactions between a progressively elongated silver nanoparticle and a silver film on a glass substrate. Specifically, we investigate how the coupling between localized surface plasmons (LSPs) and propagating surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) is influenced by nanoparticle length. Although the multiple resonances supported by the nanoparticle are effectively standing wave surface plasmons, their interaction with the SPP continuum of the underlying Ag film indicates that their spectral response is still localized in nature. It is found that these LSP–SPP interactions are not limited to small particles, but that they are present as well for extremely long particles, with a transition to the SPP coupling interactions of a bilayer metallic film system beginning at a particle length of approximately 5 μm

Evaluation of C-reactive protein and its kinetics as a prognostic indicator in canine leptospirosis.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate C-reactive protein at presentation and during hospitalisation in dogs with acute kidney injury resulting from leptospirosis to compare C-reactive protein at presentation in dogs with acute kidney injury of different aetiology and to study its correlation with markers of inflammation, azotaemia and survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS Prospective observational study of 41 dogs with acute kidney injury secondary to leptospirosis and 15 control dogs with acute kidney injury of different aetiology. C-reactive protein was measured at presentation in both groups and daily for 7 days in a subgroup of 28 dogs with leptospirosis. The associations of C-reactive protein with neutrophil count, albumin, urea, creatinine and survival were analysed. RESULTS C-reactive protein was increased at presentation in all dogs with leptospirosis but was not significantly different from dogs with acute kidney injury of different cause. It was associated with markers of inflammation (neutrophil count, albumin) but not with azotaemia (creatinine, urea). It decreased gradually from presentation to day 4, with significantly lower concentrations in survivors than non-survivors. Initial C-reactive protein was only weakly associated with outcome, but its average concentration from presentation to day 2 was more strongly associated. Absolute and relative changes in C-reactive protein during hospitalisation and creatinine at presentation were not associated with survival. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE Serial assessment of C-reactive protein may improve outcome prediction in dogs with leptospirosis compared with a single measurement at presentation or with markers of renal function

Torcetrapib impairs endothelial function in hypertension

Aims A marked increase in HDL notwithstanding, the cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor torcetrapib was associated with an increase in all-cause mortality in the ILLUMINATE trial. As underlying mechanisms remain elusive, the present study was designed to delineate potential off-target effects of torcetrapib. Methods and results Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were treated with torcetrapib (100 mg/kg/day; SHR-T and WKY-T) or placebo (SHR-P and WKY-P) for 3 weeks. Blood pressure transiently increased during the first 3 days of torcetrapib administration in SHRs and returned to baseline thereafter despite continued drug administration. Acetylcholine-induced endothelium-dependent relaxations of aortic rings were markedly impaired, and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) mRNA and protein were down-regulated after 3 weeks of torcetrapib treatment in SHR (P < 0.0001, <0.01, and <0.05, resp. vs. SHR-P). Torcetrapib reduced NO release in cultured aortic endothelial cells (P < 0.01 vs. vehicle-treated cells) and increased generation of reactive oxygen species in aortas of SHR-T (P < 0.05, vs. SHR-P). Vascular reactivity to endothelin-1 (ET-1) and aortic ET-1 tissue content were increased in SHR-T (P < 0.05 vs. SHR-P). Importantly, the ET-1 receptor A/B (ETA/B) antagonist bosentan normalized endothelial function in SHR-T (P < 0.05). Conclusion Torcetrapib induces a sustained impairment of endothelial function, decreases eNOS mRNA, protein as well as NO release, stimulates vascular ROS and ET production, an effect that is prevented by chronic ETA/B-receptor blockade. These unexpected off-target effects of torcetrapib need to be ruled out in the clinical development of novel CETP inhibitors, particularly before a large patient population at increased cardiovascular risk is exposed to these compound