Occurrence of deformed wing virus variants in the stingless Melipona subnitida and honey Apis mellifera bee populations in North Eastern Brazil

Deformed wing virus (DWV) is now a global insect pathogen. Brazilian stingless bees are a diverse group often managed in close proximity to honey bees. We investigated the prevalence and load of DWV in 33 stingless bees (Melipona subnitida) and 12 honey bees (Apis mellifera) colonies from NE Brazil. DWV was detected in all colonies with the A and C-variants dominating M. subnitida and A-variant in A. mellifera. Viral loads were 8.83E+07 and 7.19E+07 in M. subnitida and A. mellifera, respectively. On Fernando de Noronha island DWV is low (<1E+03) in honey bees, but we detected high loads (1.6E+08) in nine island M. subnitida colonies, indicating no viral spill-over of DWV has occurred during the past 34 years. Furthermore, the ubiquitous presence of the DWV-C variant in M. subnitida colonies, and rarity in A. mellifera, may suggest limited viral exchange between these two species

Biological control of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae in trap tyres by Mesocyclops longisetus (Copepoda: Cyclopidae) in two field trials

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Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase in Heart Tissue and Nitric Oxide in Serum of Trypanosoma cruzi-Infected Rhesus Monkeys: Association with Heart Injury

Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, afflicts from 8 to 15 million people in the Latin America. Chronic chagasic cardiomyopathy (CCC) is the most frequent manifestation of Chagas disease. Currently, patient management only mitigates CCC symptoms. The pathogenic factors leading to CCC remain unknown; therefore their comprehension may contribute to develop more efficient therapies. In patients, high nitric oxide (NO) levels have been associated with CCC severity. In T. cruzi-infected mice, NO, mainly produced via inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS/NOS2), is proposed to work in parasite control. However, the participation of iNOS/NOS2 and NO in T. cruzi control and heart injury has been questioned. Here, infected rhesus monkeys and iNOS/NOS2-deficient mice were used to explore the participation of iNOS/NOS2-derived NO in heart injury in T. cruzi infection. Chronically infected monkeys presented electrical abnormalities, myocarditis and fibrosis, resembling the spectrum of human CCC. Moreover, cardiomyocyte lesion correlated with iNOS/NOS2+ cells infiltrating the cardiac tissue. Our findings support that parasite-driven iNOS/NOS2+ cells accumulation in the cardiac tissue and NO overproduction contribute to cardiomyopathy severity, mainly disturbing the pathway involved in electrical synchrony in T. cruzi infection

Therapeutic Activity of Superoxide Dismutase-Containing Enzymosomes on Rat Liver Ischaemia-Reperfusion Injury Followed by Magnetic Resonance Microscopy

Liver ischaemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) may occur during hepatic surgery and is unavoidable in liver transplantation. Superoxide dismutase enzymosomes (SOD-enzymosomes), liposomes where SOD is at the liposomal surface expressing enzymatic activity in intact form without the need of liposomal disruption, were developed with the aim of having a better insight into its antioxidant therapeutic outcome in IRI. We also aimed at validating magnetic resonance microscopy (MRM) at 7T as a tool to follow IRI. SOD-enzymosomes were characterized and tested in a rat ischaemia-reperfusion model and the therapeutic outcome was compared with conventional long circulating SOD liposomes and free SOD using biochemical liver injury biomarkers, histology and MRM. MRM results correlated with those obtained using classical biochemical biomarkers of liver injury and liver histology. Moreover, MRM images suggested that the therapeutic efficacy of both SOD liposomal formulations used was related to prevention of peripheral biliary ductular damage and disrupted vascular architecture. Therefore, MRM at 7T is a useful technique to follow IRI. SOD-enzymosomes were more effective than conventional liposomes in reducing liver ischaemia-reperfusion injury and this may be due to a short therapeutic window.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio