Childhood vulvovaginitis

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical findings, microscopic examination and culture of vaginal secretions, and response to treatment in prepubertal girls with vulvovaginitis.Methods: We studied prospectively over a period of about 6 years in a clinic for pediatric kidney and urinary tract diseases, 171 girls aged 2.5 -8 years with urogenital symptoms.Findings: Dysuria, erythema, itching, soreness, and vaginal discharge were frequently observed genital symptoms and signs. Pathogenic bacteria were isolated in 27% of cases, Streptococcus pyogenes being a common agent. Nonpathogenic enteric flora was isolated in about 43%. There was no growth of bacteria in 30%. Poor hygiene was an associated factor in those with nonpathogenic positive culture (p = 0.001). Purulent vaginal discharge occurred more in cases with vulvovaginal pathogenic infection than in those with negative culture, and this difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). Also there was significant difference in WBC count in vaginal smears of patients with pathogenic bacteria and of those who had no growth of pathogens (p<0.001). Candida and sexually transmitted agents were not found in any of the girls. Labial fusion was not an uncommon abnormality. Simple measures to improve hygiene and use of local estrogen were effective in the patients with nonpathogenic and nonspecific etiology. Conclusion: Physical examination of genital area should be done in all girls with genitourinary symptoms. Antibiotic should be prescribed based on bacteriologic culture of vaginal secretion. Appropriate hygienic practices and local estrogen application is the most effective therapy in children with noninfectious vulvovaginitis

Allopatric speciation in the desert: diversification of cichlids at their geographical and ecological range limit in Iran

Cichlids are textbook examples for rapid diversification and high species diversity. While in South America, several hundred and in Africa, more than 1500 species of cichlid fish have been described, only one single cichlid species, Iranocichla hormuzensis Coad 1982, was known from Iran, the easternmost range margin of the species-rich African cichlids (Cichlidae: Pseudocrenilabrinae). The aim of our paper was to assess the genetic and phenotypic diversity among populations of Iranocichla across most of its geographical range in Southern Iran. For this, we sequenced two mitochondrial genes and collected color observation of male nuptial coloration in different habitats. Besides conspicuous differences in male nuptial coloration, we found considerable genetic differentiation among Iranocichla populations pointing to the existence of at least two allopatric species, with no evidence of more than one species at one site. Diversification within Iranocichla started, based on our data, in the middle or late Pleistocene and was followed by further population differentiation and bottlenecks during isolation events in the last glacial maximum. Population dispersal leading to the population structure observed today most likely occurred in the course of the early Holocene sea-level rise

Accumulation of polystyrene nanoplastics and triclosan by a model tooth-carp fish, Aphaniops hormuzensis (Teleostei: Aphaniidae)

The presence and effects of nanoplastics (NPs; <1 μm) in the aquatic environment are a growing concern. In this study, a model tooth-carp fish, Aphaniops hormuzensis, has been exposed to different concentrations of fluorescent polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NP) in its diet (up to 5 mg kg−1) over periods of 28 d and the particle accumulation in different tissues determined. Accumulation was observed in both digestive and non-digestive organs, with concentrations greater in the gut, liver and gill (up to 400 μg kg−1 dw) than in the skin and muscle (<180 μg kg−1 dw), but no dependency on exposure time or dose was evident. The presence of the organic contaminant, triclosan (TCS), in the diet and at concentrations up to 0.5 μg kg−1 did not affect PS-NP uptake by A. hormuzensis, while TCS accumulation in the whole body increased with time (up to 10 μg kg−1) and, likewise, appeared to be unaffected by the presence of PS-NPs. These observations suggest that the two contaminants do not interact with each other or that any interactions have no impact on accumulation. The results of this study add to the growing body of evidence that NPs can be translocated by aquatic organisms after ingestion, and reveal that, for the species and conditions employed, nanoplastics are accumulated more readily than a widely used organic chemical