Herbivoria de Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: tetranychidae) induz defesa direta em morangueiro?

Plantas de morangueiro Fragaria x ananassa podem apresentar mecanismos de defesa direta e indireta contra herbívoros. Tais defesas podem alterar o comportamento e o desenvolvimento dos ácaros fitófagos e seus inimigos naturais, reduzindo a taxa de herbivoria. Testou-se o efeito da préinfestação de plantas de morangueiro por Tetranychus urticae Koch sobre o seu desenvolvimento e reprodução. Plantas de morangueiro cultivar IAC Campinas foram divididas em dois grupos: plantas limpas e plantas pré-infestadas por T. urticae. A infestação prévia de plantas de morangueiro por T. urticae não alterou a duração das fases imaturas, a fecundidade e a sobrevivência das fêmeas do ácaro. Tais resultados podem estar associados à inexistência ou baixo nível de resistência induzida da cultivar IAC Campinas, ou ainda, ao fato de a pré-infestação ter sido insuficiente para induzir defesa. Assim, a resistência relatada na cultivar IAC Campinas a T. urticae pode estar relacionada às defesas indiretas

Diabetes mellitus remission in a cat with pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism after trilostane treatment

Case summary An 8-year-old male neutered Persian cat was presented with polyuria, polydipsia, polyphagia and muscle weakness associated with a 7 month history of diabetes mellitus (DM). The cat had initially been treated with neutral protamine Hagedorn (NPH) insulin 2 U q12h, followed by porcine lente insulin 2 U q12h and, most recently, 3 U glargine insulin q12h, without improvement of clinical signs. The cat also suffered from concurrent symmetrical bilateral alopecia of thorax and forelimbs, abdominal distension and lethargy. Hyperadrenocorticism (HAC), specifically pituitary-dependent HAC, was suspected and confirmed through abdominal ultrasonography demonstrating bilateral adrenal enlargement, and a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test using 0.1 mg/kg dexamethasone intravenously. Trilostane treatment (initially 10 mg/cat PO q24h then increased to 10 mg/cat PO q12h) was started and insulin sensitivity gradually improved, ultimately leading to diabetic remission after an increased in trilostane dose to 13mg/cat PO q12h, 14 months after the DM diagnosis and 7 months after the initiation of trilostane therapy. Relevance and novel information DM in cats with HAC is a difficult combination of diseases to treat. To our knowledge this is the first reported case of diabetic remission in a feline patient with HAC as a result of treatment with trilostane. Further work should focus on whether fine-tuning of trilostane-treatment protocols in cats with concurrent DM and HAC could lead to a higher proportion of diabetic remissions in this patient group