Impact of Bollgard® genetically modified cotton on the biodiversity of arthropods under practical field conditions in Brazil

Using cotton cultivars that express a gene of the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) bacterium producing a protein (Cry1Ac) with an insecticide effect on the Lepidoptera pests has made it possible to reduce the number of insecticide applications during the crop cycle. Thus, the objective was to determine, in the field during the 2006/2007 harvest in Dourados/MS, Brazil, the impact of the transgenic cultivar (NuOpal®) by comparison with the isogenic, non-transgenic cultivar (DeltaOpal®) on target pests, nontarget pests and natural enemies using two sampling methods (beatsheet and whole plant observation) under conventional growing conditions, with both varieties cultivated in a system incorporating the application of insecticides for non-target pests that reached the recommended threshold level for integrated pest management. It was verified that the average number of target pest specimens for both sampling methods was significantly lower in Bt-cotton than in non-Bt-cotton. However, the average number of non-target pest specimens and natural enemies presented no significant differences between the cultivars for both sampling methods assessed. The diversity of non-target pests characterized by the Shannon-Wiener index presented a significant difference between Bt-cotton and non-Bt-cotton for the whole plant sampling method, whereas for naturally occurring enemies, no difference was revealed using this sampling method.Key words: Bt-cotton, non-target effect, diversity index, side-effect, risk assessment, cotton production, Brazil

Arthropods biodiversity index in Bollgard (R) cotton (CRy1Ac) in Brazil

Shannon-Wiener's diversity index (SWI) was used under untreated conditions of a cotton field during the 2006/2007 crop season in the Cerrado region, Brazil. Comparison was carried out between the transgenic NuOpal (R) (BollgarD (R))(Cry1Ac) and the non-transgenic isogenic variety DeltaOpal (R). SWI was calculated for target pests, non-target herbivores and predators groups. Two sampling methods were used: whole plant observation and beat sheet. As expected, the mean number of target pests, especially Pectinophora gossypiella (Saund) and Alabama argillacea (Hubner), was significantly smaller in Bt cotton. In the whole plant method sampling the SWI for non-tar- get herbivores was significantly higher in Bt-cotton. The mean number of Anthonomus grandis (Boh) and Edessa meditabunda (Fabr) adults were significantly higher in NuOpaP with the whole plant sampling method. However, such differences were not observed with the beat sheet method. For the natural enemies, SWI and mean number of larvae and adults of the dominant predators did not show any significant difference between Bt and non-Bt cotton. These results confirm the conservation of some tritrophic interactions inside the Bt (untreated) cotton and contributes to a better sustainable management of nontarget pests by enhancement of their natural biological control

Native larval parasitoids (Hymenoptera) of Frugivorous Tephritoidea (Kiptera) in South Pantanal, Brazil.

El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar la incidencia de los parasitoides (Hymenoptera) sobre larvara de tephritidae (moscas de la fruta) y los Lonchacidae frugivoros, en varias especies frutiferas nativas y exoticas en el Pantal sur Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasil. Noventa Y dos especies de frutas de 36 familias y 22 órdenes fueron evaluadas..

Impact of herbicides on a predator ant guild

O impacto provocado pelos herbicidas alachlor, metolachlor, dimethenamid e diuron em uma guilda de formigas predadoras, foi avaliado em Dourados, MS (22°13'16"S e 54°48'20"W). Duas áreas testemunhas, com e sem capina, foram utilizadas neste estudo. As formigas foram amostradas através de duas iscas de sardinha por parcela, com quatro repetições por tratamento. Solenopsis sp. foi a espécie mais abundante e freqüente em relação às cinco espécies encontradas nas iscas. Houve um decréscimo no número de formigas nas parcelas pulverizadas e nas testemunhas por um período de 40 dias, não tendo sido encontrada diferença significativa entre as parcelas com e sem herbicidas.The effects of alachor, metolachlor, dimethenamid and diuron herbicides on a predator ant guild were evaluated in Dourados, MS (22°13'16"S and 54°48'20"W). Two control areas, with and without weeds, were used in the study. The ants were sampled using two sardine baits per plot with four replications per treatment. Solenopsis sp. was the most abundant ant species among the five sampled species. There was a decrease in the number of ants in the treatment and control plots afier 40 days. No significant differences were found between the herbicide and control plots.

Fauna and stratification of male orchid bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) and their preference for odor baits in a forest fragment

This is a study of the population fluctuation of euglossine species, as well as their preferences for scent baits (cineole, eugenol, vanillin and methyl salicylate) in two forest strata (canopy and under story) at the Reserva Florestal do Azulão, a forest fragment located in the municipality of Dourados, MS, Brazil (22°12'S, 54°55'W). We collected a total of 529 males from four genera and eight species. Diversity and equitability for both strata (under story: H' = 1.195 and J' = 0.6139; canopy: H' = 1.193 and J' = 0.6131) did not show a significant difference and a high similarity index was found (P = 87.5%). On the other hand, abundance was substantially higher in the canopy (n = 358) than in the under story (n = 171). From the scents used, eugenol attracted a larger number of individuals (n = 225), but cineole and vanillin attracted a higher number of species. © 2011 Sociedade Entomológica do Brasil

The IUPHAR/BPS Guide to PHARMACOLOGY in 2016: towards curated quantitative interactions between 1300 protein targets and 6000 ligands

The IUPHAR/BPS Guide to PHARMACOLOGY (GtoPdb, http://www.guidetopharmacology.org) provides expert-curated molecular interactions between successful and potential drugs and their targets in the human genome. Developed by the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (IUPHAR) and the British Pharmacological Society (BPS), this resource, and its earlier incarnation as IUPHAR-DB, is described in our 2014 publication. This update incorporates changes over the intervening seven database releases. The unique model of content capture is based on established and new target class subcommittees collaborating with in-house curators. Most information comes from journal articles, but we now also index kinase cross-screening panels. Targets are specified by UniProtKB IDs. Small molecules are defined by PubChem Compound Identifiers (CIDs); ligand capture also includes peptides and clinical antibodies. We have extended the capture of ligands and targets linked via published quantitative binding data (e.g. Ki, IC50 or Kd). The resulting pharmacological relationship network now defines a data-supported druggable genome encompassing 7% of human proteins. The database also provides an expanded substrate for the biennially published compendium, the Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY. This article covers content increase, entity analysis, revised curation strategies, new website features and expanded download options

The Concise Guide to Pharmacology 2017/18: Overview

The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2017/18 is the third in this series of biennial publications. This version provides concise overviews of the key properties of nearly 1800 human drug targets with an emphasis on selective pharmacology (where available), plus links to an open access knowledgebase of drug targets and their ligands (www.guidetopharmacology.org), which provides more detailed views of target and ligand properties. Although the Concise Guide represents approximately 400 pages, the material presented is substantially reduced compared to information and links presented on the website. It provides a permanent, citable, point-in-time record that will survive database updates. The full contents of this section can be found at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.13882/full. In addition to this overview, in which are identified ‘Other protein targets’ which fall outside of the subsequent categorisation, there are eight areas of focus: G protein-coupled receptors, ligand-gated ion channels, voltage-gated ion channels, other ion channels, nuclear hormone receptors, catalytic receptors, enzymes and transporters. These are presented with nomenclature guidance and summary information on the best available pharmacological tools, alongside key references and suggestions for further reading. The landscape format of the Concise Guide is designed to facilitate comparison of related targets from material contemporary to mid-2017, and supersedes data presented in the 2015/16 and 2013/14 Concise Guides and previous Guides to Receptors and Channels. It is produced in close conjunction with the Nomenclature Committee of the Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (NC-IUPHAR), therefore, providing official IUPHAR classification and nomenclature for human drug targets, where appropriate

The Concise Guide to Pharmacology 2015/16: Overview

The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2015/16 provides concise overviews of the key properties of over 1750 human drug targets with their pharmacology, plus links to an open access knowledgebase of drug targets and their ligands (www.guidetopharmacology.org), which provides more detailed views of target and ligand properties. The full contents can be found at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10. 1111/bph.13347/full. This compilation of the major pharmacological targets is divided into eight areas of focus: G protein-coupled receptors, ligand-gated ion channels, voltage-gated ion channels, other ion channels, nuclear hormone receptors, catalytic receptors, enzymes and transporters. These are presented with nomenclature guidance and summary information on the best available pharmacological tools, alongside key references and suggestions for further reading. The Concise Guide is published in landscape format in order to facilitate comparison of related targets. It is a condensed version of material contemporary to late 2015, which is presented in greater detail and constantly updated on the website www.guidetopharmacology.org, superseding data presented in the previous Guides to Receptors & Channels and the Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2013/14. It is produced in conjunction with NC-IUPHAR and provides the official IUPHAR classification and nomenclature for human drug targets, where appropriate. It consolidates information previously curated and displayed separately in IUPHAR-DB and GRAC and provides a permanent, citable, point-in-time record that will survive database update

Dehydration of subducting slow-spread oceanic lithosphere in the Lesser Antilles

Subducting slabs carry water into the mantle and are a major gateway in the global geochemical water cycle. Fluid transport and release can be constrained with seismological data. Here we use joint active-source/local-earthquake seismic tomography to derive unprecedented constraints on multi-stage fluid release from subducting slow-spread oceanic lithosphere. We image the low P-wave velocity crustal layer on the slab top and show that it disappears beneath 60–100 km depth, marking the depth of dehydration metamorphism and eclogitization. Clustering of seismicity at 120–160 km depth suggests that the slab’s mantle dehydrates beneath the volcanic arc, and may be the main source of fluids triggering arc magma generation. Lateral variations in seismic properties on the slab surface suggest that serpentinized peridotite exhumed in tectonized slow-spread crust near fracture zones may increase water transport to sub-arc depths. This results in heterogeneous water release and directly impacts earthquakes generation and mantle wedge dynamics

The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2023/24:Introduction and Other Protein Targets

The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2023/24 is the sixth in this series of biennial publications. The Concise Guide provides concise overviews, mostly in tabular format, of the key properties of approximately 1800 drug targets, and about 6000 interactions with about 3900 ligands. There is an emphasis on selective pharmacology (where available), plus links to the open access knowledgebase source of drug targets and their ligands (www.guidetopharmacology.org), which provides more detailed views of target and ligand properties. Although the Concise Guide constitutes almost 500 pages, the material presented is substantially reduced compared to information and links presented on the website. It provides a permanent, citable, point-in-time record that will survive database updates. The full contents of this section can be found at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.16176. In addition to this overview, in which are identified 'Other protein targets' which fall outside of the subsequent categorisation, there are six areas of focus: G protein-coupled receptors, ion channels, nuclear hormone receptors, catalytic receptors, enzymes and transporters. These are presented with nomenclature guidance and summary information on the best available pharmacological tools, alongside key references and suggestions for further reading. The landscape format of the Concise Guide is designed to facilitate comparison of related targets from material contemporary to mid-2023, and supersedes data presented in the 2021/22, 2019/20, 2017/18, 2015/16 and 2013/14 Concise Guides and previous Guides to Receptors and Channels. It is produced in close conjunction with the Nomenclature and Standards Committee of the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (NC-IUPHAR), therefore, providing official IUPHAR classification and nomenclature for human drug targets, where appropriate.</p