The Parasitoid Eretmocerus hayati Is Compatible with Barrier Cropping to Decrease Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci MED) Densities on Cotton in China

The whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) cryptic species Mediterranean (MED), is a destructive insect pest worldwide. In order to contribute to controlling B. tabaci by non-chemical methods, we examined the possibility of using a combination of trap/barrier crops and a parasitoid natural enemy in cotton. We performed field experiments using cantaloupe (Cucumis melo) and sunflower (Helianthus annuus) as trap crops and maize (Zea mays) as a barrier crop combined with periodic releases of the parasitoid Eretmocerus hayati in Hebei Province, Northern China. All treatments significantly reduced immature whitefly densities. Parasitism rate was significantly higher in cotton plots intercropped with sunflower and with perimeter-planted cantaloupe. Adult whitefly density was negatively related to parasitoid abundance and was significantly lower in cotton plots intercropped with maize than in the control plots. Intercropping was more effective than perimeter-planting at reducing B. tabaci densities and increasing yield. Parasitoid dispersal was not hampered by barrier crops, indicating that the two methods of control are compatible. These results contribute to the development of integrated pest management methods against this important pest.National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (31760541) (31672087); National Key R&D Project of China (2016YFC1201200, 2017YFC1200600); International Science and Technology Cooperation of China (2015DFG32300)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Cold Storage Effects on Fitness of the Whitefly Parasitoids Encarsia sophia and Eretmocerus hayati

Successful biological control of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci involves the mass rearing of biocontrol agents in large numbers for field release. Cold storage of the biocontrol agents is often necessary to provide a sufficient number of biocontrol agents during an eventual pest outbreak. In this study, the fitness of two whitefly parasitoids Encarsia sophia Girault and Dodd (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) and Eretmocerus hayati Zolnerowich and Rose (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) was evaluated under fluctuating cold storage temperatures. The emergence rate of old pupae of either species was not affected when stored at 12, 10, 8 and 6 °C for 1 week. Cold storage had no effect on the longevity of the emerging adult En. sophia except young pupae stored at 4 °C, while Er. hayati was negatively affected after 2 weeks of storage time at all temperatures. Parasitism by adults emerging from older pupae stored at 12 °C for 1 week was equivalent to the control. Combined with the results for the emergence time, we suggest that the old pupal stage of En. sophia and Er. hayati could be stored at 12 and 10 °C, respectively (transferred every 22 h to 26 ± 1 °C for 2 h), for 1 week, with no or little adverse effect.National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (31672087); National Key Research and Development Project of China (2017YFC1200600, 2016YFC1201200); International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (2015DFG32300); Shenzhen Science and Technology Program (KQTD20180411143628272)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gambaran Kadar Kalsium Pada Pasien Penyakit Ginjal Kronik Stadium 5 Non Dialisis

: Calcium is the largest mineral in the body and is necessary in most biological processes. The body\u27s calcium levels are influenced by a variety of renal disorders, one of which is chronic kidney disease. Chronic kidney disease is a pathophysiological process with diverse etiology, resulting in a progressive decline in renal function, and generally end up with kidney failure (stage 5 / end stage). This study aims to describe the levels of calcium in patients with non dialysis stage 5 chronic kidney disease. The method used in this study was a descriptive study conducted from December 2015-January 2016 at two hospitals, Prof. Dr. R. D Kandou hospital and Advent Teling hospital in Manado. The samples were blood samples of all patients with non-dialysis CKD stage 5 in the period and criteria set determined by non-probability sampling types consecutive sampling. Examination serum calcium using O-Cresolphthalein Complexon method. The result obtained 22 (62.9%) were decreased calcium levels (hypocalcemia), 12 (34.3%) calcium levels nomal and 1 (2.9%) with increased levels of calcium (hypercalcemia). The results of this study concluded that most of the non-dyalisis stage 5 chronic kidney disease patients (62,9%) were decline in calcium levels

Responses of Three Successive Generations of Beet Armyworm, Spodoptera exigua, Fed Exclusively on Different Levels of Gossypol in Cotton Leaves

The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is an important pest of numerous crops, and it causes economic damage in China. Use of secondary metabolic compounds in plants is an important method used to control this insect as a part of integrated pest management. In this study the growth, development, and food utilization of three successive generations of S. exigua fed on three cotton gossypol cultivars were examined. Significantly longer larval life-spans were observed in S. exigua fed on high gossypol cultivar M9101 compared with those fed on two low gossypol cultivars, ZMS13 and HZ401. The pupal weight of the first generation was significantly lower than that of the latter two generations fed on ZMS13 group. Significantly lower fecundity was observed in the second and third generations of S. exigua fed on M9101 compared with S. exigua fed on ZMS13 and HZ401. The efficiency of conversion was significantly higher in the first and third generations fed on HZ401 compared with those fed on ZMS13 and M9101. A significantly lower relative growth rate was observed in the three successive generations fed on M9101 compared with those fed on ZMS13 and HZ401. Cotton cultivars significantly affected the growth, development, and food utilization indices of S. exigua, except for frass and approximate digestibility. Development of S. exigua was significantly affected by relative consumption rate and efficiency of conversion of ingested food, but not by relative growth rate or approximate digestibility, suggesting that diet-utilization efficiency was different based on food quality and generation. Measuring the development and food utilization of S. exigua at the individual and population levels over more than one generation provided more meaningful predictions of long-term population dynamics

The Management of Heavy Menstrual Bleeding After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in a Woman of Reproductive Age

Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB), previously known as menorrhagia, is in place with heavy flow and longer lasting days of bleeding during menstrual period, sequentially leading to anemia. We reported a rare case of HMB in a 33-year-old patient after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), who presented with acute coronary syndromes (ACS), uremia and systemic lupus erythematosus before PCI. This patient received three times of hemodialysis weekly (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). On the next day after PCI, this patient began to have menstruation. On the fifth day of menstruation, the patient complained of HMB and physical discomfort, with an urgent need for consultation of gynecologist. After gynecologist consultation, this patient was under oxytocin treatment. However, 2 days of oxytocin treatment did not significantly improve HMB. Afterward, the menstrual volume of patients was significantly reduced on eighth day of menstruation after once therapy of testosterone propionate and norethindrone. Regarding the reasons of HMB, heparin in hemodialysis and antiplatelet drugs utilized (aspirin and clopidogrel) after PCI may be contributors to the HMB. In addition, uterine myoma, cervical canal cyst, renal insufficiency and CYP2C19∗2 heterozygous are also possible contributors to HMB. There is no such case of whom had HMB in reproductive age with ACS, uremia and systemic lupus erythematosus under hemodialysis and antiplatelet therapy. More clinical safety data on HMB of reproductive age women who are under antithrombotic therapy are required

Complete mitochondrial genome of a predominant parasitoid, Necremnus tutae (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) of the South American tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

The complete mitochondrial genome of a predominant parasitoid, Necremnus tutae (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) (GenBank accession number MT916846) is 15,252 bp in length, and contains 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA genes (tRNAs), 2 ribosomal RNA genes, and an A + T-rich region. The overall base composition is 38.86% for A, 7.14% for C, 8.57% for G, and 45.43% for T, with a high AT bias of 84.29%. ATA, ATT, ATG were initiation codons and TAA and T were termination codons. All the 22 tRNAs displayed a typical cloverleaf secondary structure, except for trnS1 and trnR which lacked the dihydrouracil (DHU) arm. Phylogenetic analyses were performed using 13 PCGs showed that N. tutae is closely related to Tenthredo tienmushana, which in accordance with the traditional classification.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Phenotypic Differentiation Is Associated with Gender Plasticity and Its Responsive Delay to Environmental Changes in Alternanthera philoxeroides – Phenotypic Differentiation in Alligator Weed

Phenotypic plasticity is common in many taxa, and it may increase an organism's fitness in heterogeneous environments. However, in some cases, the frequency of environmental changes can be faster than the ability of the individual to produce new adaptive phenotypes. The importance of such a time delay in terms of individual fitness and species adaptability has not been well studied. Here, we studied gender plasticity of Alternanthera philoxeroides to address this issue through a reciprocal transplant experiment. We observed that the genders of A. philoxeroides were plastic and reversible between monoclinous and pistillody depending on habitats, the offspring maintained the maternal genders in the first year but changed from year 2 to 5, and there was a cubic relationship between the rate of population gender changes and environmental variations. This relationship indicates that the species must overcome a threshold of environmental variations to switch its developmental path ways between the two genders. This threshold and the maternal gender stability cause a significant delay of gender changes in new environments. At the same time, they result in and maintain the two distinct habitat dependent gender phenotypes. We also observed that there was a significant and adaptive life-history differentiation between monoclinous and pistillody individuals and the gender phenotypes were developmentally linked with the life-history traits. Therefore, the gender phenotypes are adaptive. Low seed production, seed germination failure and matching phenotypes to habitats by gender plasticity indicate that the adaptive phenotypic diversity in A. philoxeroides may not be the result of ecological selection, but of gender plasticity. The delay of the adaptive gender phenotype realization in changing environments can maintain the differentiation between gender systems and their associated life-history traits, which may be an important component in evolution of novel traits and taxonomic diversity

Evaluation of a novel saliva-based epidermal growth factor receptor mutation detection for lung cancer: A pilot study.

BackgroundThis article describes a pilot study evaluating a novel liquid biopsy system for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. The electric field-induced release and measurement (EFIRM) method utilizes an electrochemical biosensor for detecting oncogenic mutations in biofluids.MethodsSaliva and plasma of 17 patients were collected from three cancer centers prior to and after surgical resection. The EFIRM method was then applied to the collected samples to assay for exon 19 deletion and p.L858 mutations. EFIRM results were compared with cobas results of exon 19 deletion and p.L858 mutation detection in cancer tissues.ResultsThe EFIRM method was found to detect exon 19 deletion with an area under the curve (AUC) of 1.0 in both saliva and plasma samples in lung cancer patients. For L858R mutation detection, the AUC of saliva was 1.0, while the AUC of plasma was 0.98. Strong correlations were also found between presurgery and post-surgery samples for both saliva (0.86 for exon 19 and 0.98 for L858R) and plasma (0.73 for exon 19 and 0.94 for L858R).ConclusionOur study demonstrates the feasibility of utilizing EFIRM to rapidly, non-invasively, and conveniently detect epidermal growth factor receptor mutations in the saliva of patients with NSCLC, with results corresponding perfectly with the results of cobas tissue genotyping

Mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes can alleviate GVHD and preserve the GVL effect in allogeneic stem cell transplantation animal models

BackgroundMesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can alleviate graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). MSCs-derived exosomes (MEXs) can mirror the biological function of their parent cells. Whether MEXs can alleviate GVHD like their parent cells or not is unclear. In this study, we investigate the effects of MEXs on GVHD and graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect in vitro and in HSCT animal models.MethodMSCs were produced using bone marrow mononuclear cells (MNCs), and MEXs were separated from the supernatants of MSCs. Electron microscopy, western blot, and nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) were used to determine the characteristics of MEXs. The immunomodulatory function of MEXs and their effects on GVHD and GVL were examined in vitro and in vivo.ResultLike other cell-type derived exosomes, our data revealed that MEXs were also disc-shaped vesicles with a diameter of 100–200 nm under electron microscopy and were positive for the exosomal hallmark proteins. MEXs can notably inhibit the expression of costimulatory molecules and functional cytokine secretion of dendritic cells (DCs). Meanwhile, MEXs can exert suppressive effects on T lymphocyte proliferation and activation. Moreover, MEXs can also encourage the polarization of macrophages toward the M2 type. In animal HSCT models, MEXs can promote the differentiation of Treg cells in spleens, decrease the GVHD score, increase the survival rate of mice, and preserve the cytotoxic antileukemia effects of CD8+ T lymphocytes from recipient mice.ConclusionThese findings showed that MEXs exert their effects by inhibiting the immunomodulatory function of DCs, macrophages, and T lymphocytes. In the animal model, MEXs ameliorate the clinical symptoms of GVHD, while maintaining the antitumor effects of CD8+ T lymphocytes. Therefore, it can be inferred that MEXs can separate GVHD from GVL in HSCT. Our study suggests that MEXs have broad clinical application potential in the prevention and treatment of GVHD in HSCT in the near future