Leptospirosis in American Samoa – Estimating and Mapping Risk Using Environmental Data

Leptospirosis is the most common bacterial infection transmitted from animals to humans. Infected animals excrete the bacteria in their urine, and humans can become infected through contact with animals or a contaminated environment such as water and soil. Environmental factors are important in determining the risk of human infection, and differ between ecological settings. The wide range of risk factors include high rainfall and flooding; poor sanitation and hygiene; urbanisation and overcrowding; contact with animals (including rodents, livestock, pets, and wildlife); outdoor recreation and ecotourism; and environmental degradation. Predictive risk maps have been produced for many infectious diseases to identify high-risk areas for transmission and guide allocation of public health resources. Maps are particularly useful where disease surveillance and epidemiological data are poor. The objectives of this study were to estimate leptospirosis seroprevalence at geographic locations based on environmental factors, produce a predictive disease risk map for American Samoa, and assess the accuracy of the maps in predicting infection risk. This study demonstrated the value of geographic information systems and disease mapping for identifying environmental risk factors for leptospirosis, and enhancing our understanding of disease transmission. Similar principles could be used to investigate the epidemiology of leptospirosis in other areas

Women's experiences of postnatal distress: a qualitative study

Women can experience a range of psychological problems after birth, including anxiety, depression and adjustment disorders. However, research has predominantly focused on depression. Qualitative work on women's experiences of postnatal mental health problems has sampled women within particular diagnostic categories so not looked at the range of potential psychological problems. The aims of this study were to explore how women experienced and made sense of the range of emotional distress states in the first postnatal year

A strong conditional mutualism limits and enhances seed dispersal and germination of a tropical palm

Seed predation and seed dispersal can have strong effects on early life history stages of plants. These processes have often been studied as individual effects, but the degree to which their relative importance co-varies with seed predator abundance and how this influences seed germination rates is poorly understood. Therefore, we used a combination of observations and field experiments to determine the degree to which germination rates of the palm Astrocaryum mexicanum varied with abundance of a small mammal seed predator/disperser, Heteromysdesmarestianus, in a lowland tropical forest. Patterns of abundance of the two species were strongly related; density of H. desmarestianus was low in sites with low density of A. mexicanum and vice versa. Rates of predation and dispersal of A. mexicanum seeds depended on abundance of H. desmarestianus; sites with high densities of H. desmarestianus had the highest rates of seed predation and lowest rates of seed germination, but a greater total number of seeds were dispersed and there was greater density of seedlings, saplings, and adults of A. mexicanum in these sites. When abundance of H. desmarestianus was experimentally reduced, rates of seed predation decreased, but so did dispersal of A. mexicanum seeds. Critically, rates of germination of dispersed seeds were 5 times greater than undispersed seeds. The results suggest that the relationship between A. mexicanum and H. desmarestianus is a conditional mutualism that results in a strong local effect on the abundance of each species. However, the magnitude and direction of these effects are determined by the relative strength of opposing, but related, mechanisms. A. mexicanum nuts provide H. desmarestianus with a critical food resource, and while seed predation on A. mexicanum nuts by H. desmarestianus is very intense, A. mexicanum ultimately benefits because of the relatively high germination rates of its seeds that are dispersed by H. desmarestianus

When Subterranean Termites Challenge the Rules of Fungal Epizootics

Over the past 50 years, repeated attempts have been made to develop biological control technologies for use against economically important species of subterranean termites, focusing primarily on the use of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. However, no successful field implementation of biological control has been reported. Most previous work has been conducted under the assumption that environmental conditions within termite nests would favor the growth and dispersion of entomopathogenic agents, resulting in an epizootic. Epizootics rely on the ability of the pathogenic microorganism to self-replicate and disperse among the host population. However, our study shows that due to multilevel disease resistance mechanisms, the incidence of an epizootic within a group of termites is unlikely. By exposing groups of 50 termites in planar arenas containing sand particles treated with a range of densities of an entomopathogenic fungus, we were able to quantify behavioral patterns as a function of the death ratios resulting from the fungal exposure. The inability of the fungal pathogen M. anisopliae to complete its life cycle within a Coptotermes formosanus (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) group was mainly the result of cannibalism and the burial behavior of the nest mates, even when termite mortality reached up to 75%. Because a subterranean termite colony, as a superorganism, can prevent epizootics of M. anisopliae, the traditional concepts of epizootiology may not apply to this social insect when exposed to fungal pathogens, or other pathogen for which termites have evolved behavioral and physiological means of disrupting their life cycle

Effect of Levels of Acetate on the Mevalonate Pathway of Borrelia burgdorferi

Borrelia burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease, is a spirochetal pathogen with limited metabolic capabilities that survives under highly disparate host-specific conditions. However, the borrelial genome encodes several proteins of the mevalonate pathway (MP) that utilizes acetyl-CoA as a substrate leading to intermediate metabolites critical for biogenesis of peptidoglycan and post-translational modifications of proteins. In this study, we analyzed the MP and contributions of acetate in modulation of adaptive responses in B. burgdorferi. Reverse-transcription PCR revealed that components of the MP are transcribed as individual open reading frames. Immunoblot analysis using monospecific sera confirmed synthesis of members of the MP in B. burgdorferi. The rate-limiting step of the MP is mediated by HMG-CoA reductase (HMGR) via conversion of HMG-CoA to mevalonate. Recombinant borrelial HMGR exhibited a Km value of 132 µM with a Vmax of 1.94 µmol NADPH oxidized minute−1 (mg protein)−1 and was inhibited by statins. Total protein lysates from two different infectious, clonal isolates of B. burgdorferi grown under conditions that mimicked fed-ticks (pH 6.8/37°C) exhibited increased levels of HMGR while other members of the MP were elevated under unfed-tick (pH 7.6/23°C) conditions. Increased extra-cellular acetate gave rise to elevated levels of MP proteins along with RpoS, CsrABb and their respective regulons responsible for mediating vertebrate host-specific adaptation. Both lactone and acid forms of two different statins inhibited growth of B. burgdorferi strain B31, while overexpression of HMGR was able to partially overcome that inhibition. In summary, these studies on MP and contributions of acetate to host-specific adaptation have helped identify potential metabolic targets that can be manipulated to reduce the incidence of Lyme disease

Actin Dynamics Regulate Multiple Endosomal Steps during Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Entry and Trafficking in Endothelial Cells

The role of actin dynamics in clathrin-mediated endocytosis in mammalian cells is unclear. In this study, we define the role of actin cytoskeleton in Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) entry and trafficking in endothelial cells using an immunofluorescence-based assay to visualize viral capsids and the associated cellular components. In contrast to infectivity or reporter assays, this method does not rely on the expression of any viral and reporter genes, but instead directly tracks the accumulation of individual viral particles at the nuclear membrane as an indicator of successful viral entry and trafficking in cells. Inhibitors of endosomal acidification reduced both the percentage of nuclei with viral particles and the total number of viral particles docking at the perinuclear region, indicating endocytosis, rather than plasma membrane fusion, as the primary route for KSHV entry into endothelial cells. Accordingly, a viral envelope protein was only detected on internalized KSHV particles at the early but not late stage of infection. Inhibitors of clathrin- but not caveolae/lipid raft-mediated endocytosis blocked KSHV entry, indicating that clathrin-mediated endocytosis is the major route of KSHV entry into endothelial cells. KSHV particles were colocalized not only with markers of early and recycling endosomes, and lysosomes, but also with actin filaments at the early time points of infection. Consistent with these observations, transferrin, which enters cells by clathrin-mediated endocytosis, was found to be associated with actin filaments together with early and recycling endosomes, and to a lesser degree, with late endosomes and lysosomes. KSHV infection induced dynamic actin cytoskeleton rearrangements. Disruption of the actin cytoskeleton and inhibition of regulators of actin nucleation such as Rho GTPases and Arp2/3 complex profoundly blocked KSHV entry and trafficking. Together, these results indicate an important role for actin dynamics in the internalization and endosomal sorting/trafficking of KSHV and clathrin-mediated endocytosis in endothelial cells

A systematic review of the literature examining the diagnostic efficacy of measurement of fractionated plasma free metanephrines in the biochemical diagnosis of pheochromocytoma

BACKGROUND: Fractionated plasma metanephrine measurements are commonly used in biochemical testing in search of pheochromocytoma. METHODS: We aimed to critically appraise the diagnostic efficacy of fractionated plasma free metanephrine measurements in detecting pheochromocytoma. Nine electronic databases, meeting abstracts, and the Science Citation Index were searched and supplemented with previously unpublished data. Methodologic and reporting quality was independently assessed by two endocrinologists using a checklist developed by the Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Studies Accuracy Group and data were independently abstracted. RESULTS: Limitations in methodologic quality were noted in all studies. In all subjects (including those with genetic predisposition): the sensitivities for detection of pheochromocytoma were 96%–100% (95% CI ranged from 82% to 100%), whereas the specificities were 85%–100% (95% CI ranged from 78% to 100%). Statistical heterogeneity was noted upon pooling positive likelihood ratios when those with predisposition to disease were included (p < 0.001). However, upon pooling the positive or negative likelihood ratios for patients with sporadic pheochromocytoma (n = 191) or those at risk for sporadic pheochromocytoma (n = 718), no statistical heterogeneity was noted (p = 0.4). For sporadic subjects, the pooled positive likelihood ratio was 5.77 (95% CI = 4.90, 6.81) and the pooled negative likelihood ratio was 0.02 (95% CI = 0.01, 0.07). CONCLUSION: Negative plasma fractionated free metanephrine measurements are effective in ruling out pheochromocytoma. However, a positive test result only moderately increases suspicion of disease, particularly when screening for sporadic pheochromocytoma

The spin label amino acid TOAC and its uses in studies of peptides: chemical, physicochemical, spectroscopic, and conformational aspects

We review work on the paramagnetic amino acid 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-N-oxyl-4-amino-4-carboxylic acid, TOAC, and its applications in studies of peptides and peptide synthesis. TOAC was the first spin label probe incorporated in peptides by means of a peptide bond. In view of the rigid character of this cyclic molecule and its attachment to the peptide backbone via a peptide bond, TOAC incorporation has been very useful to analyze backbone dynamics and peptide secondary structure. Many of these studies were performed making use of EPR spectroscopy, but other physical techniques, such as X-ray crystallography, CD, fluorescence, NMR, and FT-IR, have been employed. The use of double-labeled synthetic peptides has allowed the investigation of their secondary structure. A large number of studies have focused on the interaction of peptides, both synthetic and biologically active, with membranes. In the latter case, work has been reported on ligands and fragments of GPCR, host defense peptides, phospholamban, and β-amyloid. EPR studies of macroscopically aligned samples have provided information on the orientation of peptides in membranes. More recent studies have focused on peptide–protein and peptide–nucleic acid interactions. Moreover, TOAC has been shown to be a valuable probe for paramagnetic relaxation enhancement NMR studies of the interaction of labeled peptides with proteins. The growth of the number of TOAC-related publications suggests that this unnatural amino acid will find increasing applications in the future

Short-Lived Trace Gases in the Surface Ocean and the Atmosphere

The two-way exchange of trace gases between the ocean and the atmosphere is important for both the chemistry and physics of the atmosphere and the biogeochemistry of the oceans, including the global cycling of elements. Here we review these exchanges and their importance for a range of gases whose lifetimes are generally short compared to the main greenhouse gases and which are, in most cases, more reactive than them. Gases considered include sulphur and related compounds, organohalogens, non-methane hydrocarbons, ozone, ammonia and related compounds, hydrogen and carbon monoxide. Finally, we stress the interactivity of the system, the importance of process understanding for modeling, the need for more extensive field measurements and their better seasonal coverage, the importance of inter-calibration exercises and finally the need to show the importance of air-sea exchanges for global cycling and how the field fits into the broader context of Earth System Science