A mortandade de abelhas no município de Japaratuba, Sergipe. Causas e consequências: um estudo de caso.

A apicultura, criação racional de abelhas Apis melífera L., é uma atividade sustentável crescente, no Brasil e no mundo, impulsionando o agronegócio e as relações de interação e integração do homem com o meio ambiente, especialmente com o campo, seja através dos produtos fornecidos pela produtividade da atividade apícola. No município de Japaratuba, em Sergipe, a atividade contribui para o sustento de praticantes da agricultura familiar, que, junto ao associativismo, garantem uma parte da renda familiar, através da venda direta ou indireta dos produtos da colmeia. Entretanto, o uso indiscriminado de agrotóxicos proibidos por normativa federal do Ministério da Agricultura, pelas usinas de cana, afetou a produtividade apícola municipal. Este estudo de caso objetiva analisar e descrever o caso de mortandade de abelhas no município de Japaratuba, Sergipe, com base no laudo pericial toxicológico e decisão judicial liminar

Transcriptome-based phylogenomic analysis reveals evidence of ancient hybridization events in the Mepraia genus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Triatominae)

IntroductionThe Mepraia genus is composed of three endemic species in Chile, namely Mepraia spinolai, Mepraia gajardoi, and Mepraia parapatrica, all capable of transmitting the causative agent of Chagas disease. Although species divergence within this genus is supported by morphological, molecular, and geological evidence, it has never been validated by genome-wide data.MethodsIn this sense, a pioneering phylogenomic study was conducted using transcriptome data of the three species, aiming to infer robust phylogenies and evaluate the impact of interspecific gene flow on the evolution of these insects. Our transcriptomes were used to robustly infer the phylogenetic relationships, employing multi-species coalescent and supermatrix approaches, as well as to investigate the occurrence of introgression.Results and discussionThe inferred phylogenies support the monophyly of the three described taxa and infer divergence times, although gene trees display high levels of discordance. Our results indicate widespread introgression among Mepraia lineages. Thus, our results support that Mepraia diversification occurred in a short period resulting in reticulate phylogenies and low genetic diversity. Additionally, we obtained evidence of introgression suggesting that ancient hybridization has had a major role in the evolution of the three Mepraia species

Paracoccidioides HSP90 can be found in the cell surface and is a target for antibodies with therapeutic potential

Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is one of the most frequent systemic mycoses in Latin America. It affects mainly male rural workers in impoverished regions, and the therapy can last up to two years or use drugs that are very toxic. Given the need for novel safe and effective approaches to treat PCM, we have been developing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that could be used not only to block specific fungal targets, but also modulate the host’s antifungal immunity. In this work we show the generation of and promising results with an mAb against Heat Shock Protein (HSP)90, a molecular chaperone that is an important virulence factor in fungi. Using recombinant Paracoccidioides lutzii (Pb01) and P. brasiliensis (Pb18) HSP90 proteins produced in E. coli, we immunized mice and generated polyclonal antibodies and an IgG1 hybridoma mAb. The proteins were very immunogenic and both the polyclonal serum and mAb were used in immunofluorescence experiments, which showed binding of antibodies to the yeast cell surface. The mAb successfully opsonized P. lutzii and P. brasiliensis cells in co-incubations with J774.16 macrophage-like cells. Our results suggest that this mAb could serve as the basis for new immunotherapy regimens for PCM

Relação entre os níveis de lisina da dieta e as características de desempenho de codornas de corte EV2, durante o período de crescimento

Estudou-se a exigência de lisina total para a linha EV2 de codornas de corte na fase de crescimento. Foram utilizadas 312 codornas de corte EV2, de ambos os sexos, em delineamento experimental inteiramente ao acaso, cujos tratamentos consistiram de dietas com seis níveis lisina total - 1,4; 1,5; 1,6; 1,7; 1,8 e 1,9% - e quatro repetições de 13 codornas por unidade experimental. Para avaliação do desempenho, estudaram-se peso corporal ao final de cada período (g), ganho de peso (g), consumo alimentar (g) e conversão alimentar (g de alimento/g de peso) durante os períodos experimentais inicial (nascimento ao 21º) e total (nascimento ao 42º dia de idade). No período inicial, houve efeito significativo dos níveis de lisina total da dieta sobre o peso corporal, ganho de peso, consumo e conversão alimentar, com máximo desempenho das codornas nos níveis de 1,66; 1,66; 1,40 e 1,59% de lisina total, respectivamente. Para o período total de criação, houve também efeito quadrático dos níveis de lisina da dieta sobre o peso corporal ao 42º dia, ganho de peso, consumo e conversão alimentar, com os pontos de máximo desempenho estimados em 1,62; 1,62; 1,60 e 1,61%, respectivamente. A exigência de lisina total para o máximo ganho de peso de machos e fêmeas de codornas de corte do nascimento ao 21º dia é estimada em 1,66% e do nascimento ao 42º dia de idade, em 1,62% da dieta

A Coffee Berry Borer (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) Bibliography

Native to Africa, the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae), has gradually invaded most coffee-growing areas worldwide. Adult females colonize the coffee berry and oviposit within galleries in the coffee seeds. Larvae and adults consume the seeds, resulting in drastic reductions in yields and quality, negatively affecting the income of approximately 20 million coffee-growing families (~100 million people) in ~80 countries, with losses surpassing more than $500 million annually (Vega et al. 2015). It has become evident that the coffee berry borer scientific community could greatly benefit from having access to a bibliography of the literature related to the insect. Such an information source would allow scientists to find out what research areas have been explored throughout the many coffee berry borer-infested countries after more than 100 years of research on the topic. It could also help to direct lead future research efforts into novel areas, and away from topics and ideas that have been thoroughly investigated in the past