Nuevos datos sobre Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae) en Argentina y Brasil

Seven plants belonging to Apocynaceae are recorded as new hosts of Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae): Mandevilla laxa (Ruiz & Pav.) Woodson, Mandevilla pentlandiana (A.DC.) Woodson, Oxypetalum appendiculatum Mart., Oxypetalum balansae Malme, Oxypetalum pannosum Decne. and Oxypetalum teyucuarense Farinaccio & Keller-A. in Argentina, and Gomphocarpus physocarpa (E.Mey.) Schlechter in Brazil. Additionally, new geographical occurrences of O. unifasciatellus in the Argentinian provinces of Mendoza and Misiones are recorded.Se registran siete plantas pertenecientes a Apocynaceae como nuevos hospedantes de Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae): Mandevilla laxa (Ruiz y Pav.) Woodson, Mandevilla pentlandiana (A.DC.) Woodson, Oxypetalum appendiculatum Mart., Oxypetalum balansae Malme, Oxypetalum pannosum Decne. y Oxypetalum teyucuarense Farinaccio y Keller-A. en Argentina, y Gomphocarpus physocarpa (E.Mey.) Schlechter en Brasil. Adicionalmente, se registran nuevas ocurrencias geográficas de O. unifasciatellus en las provincias argentinas de Mendoza y Misiones.Fil: Gil Santana, Helcio. Governo Do Estado Do Rio de Janeiro. Secretaria Da Saude. Instituto Vital Brasil.; Brasil. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz; BrasilFil: Carpintero, Diego Leonardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Keller, Hector Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentin

Nuevos datos sobre Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae) en Argentina y Brasil

Seven plants belonging to Apocynaceae are recorded as new hosts of Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae): Mandevilla laxa (Ruiz & Pav.) Woodson, Mandevilla pentlandiana (A.DC.) Woodson, Oxypetalum appendiculatum Mart., Oxypetalum balansae Malme, Oxypetalum pannosum Decne. and Oxypetalum teyucuarense Farinaccio & Keller-A. in Argentina, and Gomphocarpus physocarpa (E.Mey.) Schlechter in Brazil. Additionally, new geographical occurrences of O. unifasciatellus in the Argentinian provinces of Mendoza and Misiones are recorded.Se registran siete plantas pertenecientes a Apocynaceae como nuevos hospedantes de Oncopeltus (Erythrischius) unifasciatellus Slater, 1964 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeidae): Mandevilla laxa (Ruiz y Pav.) Woodson, Mandevilla pentlandiana (A.DC.) Woodson, Oxypetalum appendiculatum Mart., Oxypetalum balansae Malme, Oxypetalum pannosum Decne. y Oxypetalum teyucuarense Farinaccio y Keller-A. en Argentina, y Gomphocarpus physocarpa (E.Mey.) Schlechter en Brasil. Adicionalmente, se registran nuevas ocurrencias geográficas de O. unifasciatellus en las provincias argentinas de Mendoza y Misiones.Fil: Gil Santana, Helcio. Governo Do Estado Do Rio de Janeiro. Secretaria Da Saude. Instituto Vital Brasil.; Brasil. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz; BrasilFil: Carpintero, Diego Leonardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Keller, Hector Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentin

Associações entre heterópteros Emesinae e aranhas em cavernas calcárias de Minas Gerais, sudeste do Brasil

Emesine bugs, within several genera, are recorded from caves around the world, but have been regarded as uncommon in these habitats. Many emesines have ecological relationships with spiders, as kleptoparasites, predators, or both. However, cave emesines are apparently rarely involved in these arachnophilous relationships, and only two examples have been previously documented. Recent studies in limestone caves at Presidente Olegário in northwestern Minas Gerais, Southeastern Brazil revealed the presence of four emesine species, two of which (Emesa mourei Wygodzinsky, 1946 and Phasmatocoris sp.) were associated with spiders, probably as kleptoparasites. The spiders recorded in these associations were Mesabolivar aff. tandilicus (Mello-Leitão, 1940) (Pholcidae) and Loxosceles similis Moenkhaus, 1898 (Sicariidae). The only non-emesine reduviid recorded in Presidente Olegário caves was Zelurus zikani (Costa Lima, 1940). We discuss these rarely recorded associations between cave emesines and spiders and the importance of protecting Presidente Olegário caves.Keywords: Arachnophily, Reduviidae, Pholcidae, Sicariidae, subterranean environment.Emesíneos cavernícolas, pertencentes a vários gêneros, são registrados em cavernas ao redor do mundo, porém são considerados menos abundantes nesse habitat. Muitas espécies possuem relações ecológicas com aranhas, como cleptoparasitas, predadores ou ambos. Entretanto, é aparentemente raro esse tipo de associação com aranhas em cavernas e apenas dois exemplos foram documentados anteriormente. Estudos recentes em cavernas calcárias de Presidente Olegário, no noroeste de Minas Gerais, sudeste do Brasil, revelaram a presença de quatro espécies de Emesinae, sendo que duas delas (Emesa mourei Wygodzinsky, 1946 e Phasmatocoris sp.) estavam associadas com aranhas, provavelmente como cleptoparasitas. As aranhas registradas nessas associações foram Mesabolivar aff. tandilicus (Mello-Leitão, 1940) (Pholcidae) e Loxosceles similis Moenkhaus, 1898 (Sicariidae). O único reduvídeo não Emesinae registrado nas cavernas de Presidente Olegário foi Zelurus zikani (Costa Lima, 1940). Discutem-se brevemente essas raras associações entre emesíneos cavernícolas e aranhas e a importância de se proteger as cavernas de Presidente Olegário.Palavras-chave: Aracnofilia, Reduviidae, Pholcidae, Sicariidae, ambiente subterrâneo

Immunization of Experimental Dogs With Salivary Proteins From Lutzomyia longipalpis, Using DNA and Recombinant Canarypox Virus Induces Immune Responses Consistent With Protection Against Leishmania infantum

Metacyclic Leishmania promastigotes are transmitted by sand flies that inject parasites and saliva into the host's skin. Previous studies have demonstrated that DNA plasmids encoding Lutzomyia longipalpis salivary proteins LJM17 and LJL143, when used to immunize dogs, resulted in a systemic and local Th1 cell-mediated immunity that interfered in parasite survival in vitro. Here we evaluated the ability of these same salivary antigens to induce anti-Leishmania immunity and to confer protection by immunizing dogs using a novel vaccination strategy more suitable for use in the field. The strategy consisted of a single dose of plasmid followed by two doses of recombinant Canarypoxvirus (rCanarypoxvirus) expressing L. longipalpis salivary proteins (LJM17 or LJL143). Thirty days after the final immunization, dogs were intradermally challenged with 107Leishmania infantum promastigotes in the presence of L. longipalpis saliva. We followed the experimentally infected dogs for 10 months to characterize clinical, parasitological, and immunological parameters. Upon vaccination, all immunized dogs presented strong and specific humoral responses with increased serum concentrations of IFN-γ, TNF, IL-7, and IL-15. The serum of dogs immunized with LJM17 also exhibited high levels of IL-2, IL-6, and IL-18. L. infantum infection was established in all experimental groups as evidenced by the presence of anti-Leishmania IgG, and by parasite detection in the spleen and skin. Dogs immunized with LJM17-based vaccines presented higher circulating levels of IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-6, IL-7, IL-15, IL-18, TNF, CXCL10, and GM-CSF post-infection when compared with controls. Results demonstrated that relevant Leishmania-specific immune responses were induced following vaccination of dogs with L. longipalpis salivary antigen LJM17 administered in a single priming dose of plasmid DNA, followed by two booster doses of recombinant Canarypox vector. Importantly, a significant increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines known to be relevant for protection against leishmaniasis was evidenced after challenging LJM17-vaccinated dogs as compared to controls. Although similar results were observed following immunization with LJL143, the pro-inflammatory response observed after immunization was attenuated following infection. Collectively, these data suggest that the LJM17-based vaccine induced an immune profile consistent with the expected protective immunity against canine leishmaniosis. These results clearly support the need for further evaluation of the LJM17 antigen, using a heterologous prime-boost vaccination strategy against canine visceral leishmaniosis (CVL)

Copernicus Ocean State Report, issue 6

The 6th issue of the Copernicus OSR incorporates a large range of topics for the blue, white and green ocean for all European regional seas, and the global ocean over 1993–2020 with a special focus on 2020

Global transpiration data from sap flow measurements : the SAPFLUXNET database

Plant transpiration links physiological responses of vegetation to water supply and demand with hydrological, energy, and carbon budgets at the land-atmosphere interface. However, despite being the main land evaporative flux at the global scale, transpiration and its response to environmental drivers are currently not well constrained by observations. Here we introduce the first global compilation of whole-plant transpiration data from sap flow measurements (SAPFLUXNET, https://sapfluxnet.creaf.cat/, last access: 8 June 2021). We harmonized and quality-controlled individual datasets supplied by contributors worldwide in a semi-automatic data workflow implemented in the R programming language. Datasets include sub-daily time series of sap flow and hydrometeorological drivers for one or more growing seasons, as well as metadata on the stand characteristics, plant attributes, and technical details of the measurements. SAPFLUXNET contains 202 globally distributed datasets with sap flow time series for 2714 plants, mostly trees, of 174 species. SAPFLUXNET has a broad bioclimatic coverage, with woodland/shrubland and temperate forest biomes especially well represented (80 % of the datasets). The measurements cover a wide variety of stand structural characteristics and plant sizes. The datasets encompass the period between 1995 and 2018, with 50 % of the datasets being at least 3 years long. Accompanying radiation and vapour pressure deficit data are available for most of the datasets, while on-site soil water content is available for 56 % of the datasets. Many datasets contain data for species that make up 90 % or more of the total stand basal area, allowing the estimation of stand transpiration in diverse ecological settings. SAPFLUXNET adds to existing plant trait datasets, ecosystem flux networks, and remote sensing products to help increase our understanding of plant water use, plant responses to drought, and ecohydrological processes. SAPFLUXNET version 0.1.5 is freely available from the Zenodo repository (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3971689; Poyatos et al., 2020a). The "sapfluxnetr" R package - designed to access, visualize, and process SAPFLUXNET data - is available from CRAN.Peer reviewe

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics' resources: focus on curated databases

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (www.isb-sib.ch) provides world-class bioinformatics databases, software tools, services and training to the international life science community in academia and industry. These solutions allow life scientists to turn the exponentially growing amount of data into knowledge. Here, we provide an overview of SIB's resources and competence areas, with a strong focus on curated databases and SIB's most popular and widely used resources. In particular, SIB's Bioinformatics resource portal ExPASy features over 150 resources, including UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, ENZYME, PROSITE, neXtProt, STRING, UniCarbKB, SugarBindDB, SwissRegulon, EPD, arrayMap, Bgee, SWISS-MODEL Repository, OMA, OrthoDB and other databases, which are briefly described in this article

Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt

Brontostoma lilloi Carpintero, 1980, a junior synonym of B. rubrovenosum (Stål, 1860) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae)

There are 22 genera and more than 100 described species of Ectrichodiinae in the New World (Gil-Santana et al. 2015). Intraspecific variation in coloration and body size have been recorded in several species of the subfamily. These characteristics can occur in the same population or can suggest geographic variation of the same species (Wygodzinsky 1951, Dougherty 1995, Gil-Santana & Baena 2009, Gil-Santana et al. 2013). Sexual dimorphism is also common: females are almost always more or less larger than males, frequently have thicker fore femora and smaller eyes and ocelli (Dougherty 1995).Fil: Gil Santana, Hélcio R.. Fundación Oswaldo Cruz; BrasilFil: Carpintero, Diego Leonardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentin