Dissemination of Metarhizium anisopliae of low and high virulence by mating behavior in Aedes aegypti

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Dengue is a viral disease transmitted by <it>Aedes </it>mosquitoes. It is a threat for public health worldwide and its primary vector <it>Aedes aegypti </it>is becoming resistant to chemical insecticides. These factors have encouraged studies to evaluate entomopathogenic fungi against the vector. Here we evaluated mortality, infection, insemination and fecundity rates in <it>A. aegypti </it>females after infection by autodissemination with two Mexican strains of <it>Metarhizium anisopliae</it>.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Two <it>M. anisopliae </it>strains were tested: The Ma-CBG-1 least virulent (lv), and the Ma-CBG-2 highly virulent (hv) strain. The lv was tested as non mosquito-passed (NMP), and mosquito-passed (MP), while the hv was examined only as MP version, therefore including the control four treatments were used. In the first bioassay virulence of fungal strains towards female mosquitoes was determined by indirect exposure for 48 hours to conidia-impregnated paper. In the second bioassay autodissemination of fungal conidia from fungus-contaminated males to females was evaluated. Daily mortality allowed computation of survival curves and calculation of the LT₅₀by the Kaplan-Meier model. All combinations of fungal sporulation and mating insemination across the four treatments were analyzed by χ². The mean fecundity was analyzed by ANOVA and means contrasted with the Ryan test.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Indirect exposure to conidia allowed a faster rate of mortality, but exposure to a fungal-contaminated male was also an effective method of infecting female mosquitoes. All females confined with the hv strain-contaminated male died in fifteen days with a LT₅₀of 7.57 (± 0.45) where the control was 24.82 (± 0.92). For the lv strain, it was possible to increase fungal virulence by passing the strain through mosquitoes. 85% of females exposed to hv-contaminated males became infected and of them just 10% were inseminated; control insemination was 46%. The hv strain reduced fecundity by up to 99%, and the lv strain caused a 40% reduction in fecundity.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The hv isolate infringed a high mortality, allowed a low rate of insemination, and reduced fecundity to nearly zero in females confined with a fungus-contaminated male. This pathogenic impact exerted through sexual transmission makes the hv strain of <it>M. anisopliae </it>worthy of further research.</p

Erratum to: 36th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1186/s13054-016-1208-6.]

Assessment of current and alternative methods for killing young grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) during commercial harvest

Title and Abstract in English and French. French title: Évaluation des méthodes d’abattage courante et alternative pour les jeunes phoques gris (Halichoerus grypus) durant la chasse commerciale.A small commercial hunt for 5-7 weeks old grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) occurs intermittently around the Canadian Maritime provinces and may expand in the near future. We sought to better understand and, where possible, improve the harvesting methods of this hunt. We compared the use of the regulation club and the regulation Canadian hakapik to effectively crush the skull of these animals under field conditions. Both tools achieved this purpose, resulting in rapid, if not immediate, death of the animals, but a difference approaching significance was detected which suggested that the club requires fewer blows than the hakapik to crush the skulls. We also tested the efficacy of the .17 HMR (Hornady Magnum Rimfire) rifle cartridge, an ammunition of low energy but high velocity, to quickly kill seals of this age at close range with a shot to the head. All 12 animals studied under controlled conditions and 40 of 45 (88.9%) animals studied under field conditions died immediately or within a few seconds from a single shot. We believe that the latter proportion can be increased further with simple modifications to the method used during the field study and that the .17 HMR rifle cartridge can be an effective tool to quickly kill young grey seals during a commercial hunt, as a possible substitute to the use of the club or hakapik. = Une chasse commerciale à petite échelle visant les phoques gris (Halichoerus grypus) de 5-7 semaines se fait de manière intermittente dans les provinces maritimes et peut prendre de l’ampleur dans un avenir rapproché. Nous avons voulu mieux comprendre et, si possible, améliorer la méthode d’abattage employée durant cette chasse. Nous avons comparé sur le terrain l’emploi du gourdin et de l’hakapik canadien réglementaires pour broyer le crâne de ces animaux d’une manière efficace. Ces deux outils ont pu accomplir cette tâche et ainsi causer la mort rapide, sinon immédiate, des animaux, mais une tendance vers une différence significative fût détectée qui suggérait que le gourdin requiert moins de coups que le hakapik pour broyer le crâne. Nous avons également testé l’efficacité de la cartouche de carabine .17 HMR (Hornady Magnum Rimfire), une munition à faible énergie mais à haute vitesse, pour tuer rapidement les phoques de cet âge par une balle dans la tête à bout portant. Les 12 animaux étudiés dans des conditions contrôlées et 40 de 45 (88.9%) animaux étudiés sur le terrain sont morts immédiatement ou en quelques secondes à l’aide d’une seule balle. Nous croyons que cette dernière proportion peut être améliorée grâce à de simples modifications de la méthode employée sur le terrain et que la cartouche de carabine .17 HMR peut être un outil efficace pour tuer rapidement les jeunes phoques gris durant une chasse commerciale, comme substitut possible à l’emploi du gourdin ou de l’hakapik.Pierre-Yves Daoust, Charles Caraguel, Heather Fenton, Michael O. Hammill, Laurence D. Roy, and Jonathan Spear

What if counterfeit IDs could talk? Chemical profiling of identity documents

As forgers of identity documents leave necessary remnants or traces of their craft and of the materials they use during the manufacturing process, it seems appropriate to develop a strategy to extract relevant information not only about their modus operandi, but also about their connections, organisation and criminal structure. Nowadays, forensic document profiling embraces this very potential, using essentially visual and physical examinations of documents. This practice, though efficient, could be enhanced by a chemical approach that may provide complementary information, as this article explains

Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus in newborn infants of opioid dependent mothers

OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to evaluate the incidence, duration and risk factors for benign neonatal sleep myoclonus (BNSM) in infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) treated with opioids or sedatives, compared with control infants. METHODS: This is a single centre observational case control study. Seventy-eight near term and term infants with neonatal opiate abstinence syndrome confirmed by meconium analysis were included. Exclusion criteria were cerebral malformation, intracranial haemorrhage and perinatal asphyxia. The babies were assessed eight hourly with a modified Finnegan score that included sleep myoclonus. Seventy-eight infants not exposed to opiates during pregnancy, hospitalized for at least 14 days and matched for gestational age were used as controls. RESULTS: The median gestational age was 38 (1)/(7) (95% CI: 35 (3)/(7)-41 (2)/(7)) weeks, birth weight 2730 (95% CI: 1890-3600) g, umbilical artery pH 7.25 (CI 7.10-7.37) and Apgar score at 5 minutes 9 (95% CI: 7-10). The control infants did not differ in these characteristics. Sleep myoclonus was diagnosed in 52 (67%) of the infants with NAS and 2 (2.6%) of the controls (OR 26 [95% CI: 7-223], p 2.5 mmol/L at first occurrence. The neurological examinations as well as cerebral ultrasound scans were normal. An electroencephalogram (EEG) carried out in 18 infants showed no signs of epileptic activity. CONCLUSION: BNSM has a high incidence in infants with NAS. The diagnosis can be made clinically. In the absence of other neurological symptoms further investigations such as EEG are not necessary and anticonvulsive treatment is not indicated