Prospects for the development of odour baits to control the tsetse flies Glossina tachinoides and G. palpalis s.l.

Field studies were done of the responses of Glossina palpalis palpalis in Côte d'Ivoire, and G. p. gambiensis and G. tachinoides in Burkina Faso, to odours from humans, cattle and pigs. Responses were measured either by baiting (1.) biconical traps or (2.) electrocuting black targets with natural host odours. The catch of G. tachinoides from traps was significantly enhanced (~5×) by odour from cattle but not humans. In contrast, catches from electric targets showed inconsistent results. For G. p. gambiensis both human and cattle odour increased (>2×) the trap catch significantly but not the catch from electric targets. For G. p. palpalis, odours from pigs and humans increased (~5×) the numbers of tsetse attracted to the vicinity of the odour source but had little effect on landing or trap-entry. For G. tachinoides a blend of POCA (P = 3-n-propylphenol; O = 1-octen-3-ol; C = 4-methylphenol; A = acetone) alone or synthetic cattle odour (acetone, 1-octen-3-ol, 4-methylphenol and 3-n-propylphenol with carbon dioxide) consistently caught more tsetse than natural cattle odour. For G. p. gambiensis, POCA consistently increased catches from both traps and targets. For G. p. palpalis, doses of carbon dioxide similar to those produced by a host resulted in similar increases in attraction. Baiting traps with super-normal (~500 mg/h) doses of acetone also consistently produced significant but slight (~1.6×) increases in catches of male flies. The results suggest that odour-baited traps and insecticide-treated targets could assist the AU-Pan African Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Eradication Campaign (PATTEC) in its current efforts to monitor and control Palpalis group tsetse in West Africa. For all three species, only ~50% of the flies attracted to the vicinity of the trap were actually caught by it, suggesting that better traps might be developed by an analysis of the visual responses and identification of any semiochemicals involved in short-range interaction

A MIQE-Compliant Real-Time PCR Assay for Aspergillus Detection

PMCID: PMC3393739This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Managing Tsetse Transmitted Trypanosomosis by Insecticide Treated Nets - an Affordable and Sustainable Method for Resource Poor Pig Farmers in Ghana

An outbreak of tsetse-transmitted trypanosomiasis resulted in more than 50% losses of domestic pigs in the Eastern Region of Ghana (source: Veterinary Services, Accra; April 2007). In a control trial from May 4th–October 10th 2007, the efficacy of insecticide-treated mosquito fences to control tsetse was assessed. Two villages were selected – one serving as control with 14 pigsties and one experimental village where 24 pigsties were protected with insecticide treated mosquito fences. The 100 cm high, 150denier polyester fences with 100 mg/m2 deltamethrin and a UV protector were attached to surrounding timber poles and planks. Bi-monthly monitoring of tsetse densities with 10 geo-referenced bi-conical traps per village showed a reduction of more than 90% in the protected village within two months. Further reductions exceeding 95% were recorded during subsequent months. The tsetse population in the control village was not affected, only displaying seasonal variations. Fifty pigs from each village were ear-tagged and given a single curative treatment with diminazene aceturate (3.5 mg/kg bw) after their blood samples had been taken. The initial trypanosome prevalence amounted to 76% and 72% of protected and control animals, respectively, and decreased to 16% in protected as opposed to 84% in control pigs three months after intervention. After six months 8% of the protected pigs were infected contrasting with 60% in the control group

Improving the Cost-Effectiveness of Artificial Visual Baits for Controlling the Tsetse Fly Glossina fuscipes fuscipes

Tsetse flies, which transmit sleeping sickness to humans and nagana to cattle, are commonly controlled by stationary artificial baits consisting of traps or insecticide-treated screens known as targets. In Kenya the use of electrocuting sampling devices showed that the numbers of Glossina fuscipes fuscipes (Newstead) visiting a biconical trap were nearly double those visiting a black target of 100 cm×100 cm. However, only 40% of the males and 21% of the females entered the trap, whereas 71% and 34%, respectively, alighted on the target. The greater number visiting the trap appeared to be due to its being largely blue, rather than being three-dimensional or raised above the ground. Through a series of variations of target design we show that a blue-and-black panel of cloth (0.06 m2) flanked by a panel (0.06 m2) of fine black netting, placed at ground level, would be about ten times more cost-effective than traps or large targets in control campaigns. This finding has important implications for controlling all subspecies of G. fuscipes, which are currently responsible for more than 90% of sleeping sickness cases

Standardizing Visual Control Devices for Tsetse Flies: West African Species Glossina tachinoides, G. palpalis gambiensis and G. morsitans submorsitans

Here we describe field trials designed to standardize tools for the control of Glossina tachinoides, G. palpalis gambiensis and G.morsitans submorsitans in West Africa based on existing trap/target/bait technology. Blue and black biconical and monoconical traps and 1 m2 targets were made in either phthalogen blue cotton, phthalogen blue cotton/polyester or turquoise blue polyester/viscose (all with a peak reflectance between 450–480 nm) and a black polyester. Because targets were covered in adhesive film, they proved to be significantly better trapping devices than either of the two trap types for all three species (up to 14 times more for G. tachinoides, 10 times more for G. palpalis gambiensis, and 6.5 times for G. morsitans submorsitans). The relative performance of the devices in the three blue cloths tested was the same when unbaited or baited with a mixture of phenols, 1-octen-3-ol and acetone. Since insecticide-impregnated devices act via contact with flies, we enumerated which device (traps or targets) served as the best object for flies to land on by also covering the cloth parts of traps with adhesive film. Despite the fact that the biconical trap proved to be the best landing device for the three species, the difference over the target (20–30%) was not significant. This experiment also allowed an estimation of trap efficiency, i.e. the proportion of flies landing on a trap that are caught in its cage. A low overall efficiency of the biconical or monoconical traps of between 11–24% was recorded for all three species. These results show that targets can be used as practical devices for population suppression of the three species studied. Biconical traps can be used for population monitoring, but a correction factor of 5–10 fold needs to be applied to captures to compensate for the poor trapping efficiency of this device for the three species

Social factors affecting seasonal variation in bovine trypanosomiasis on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: African Animal Trypanosomiasis (AAT) is a widespread disease of livestock in Nigeria and presents a major constraint to rural economic development. The Jos Plateau was considered free from tsetse flies and the trypanosomes they transmit due to its high altitude and this trypanosomiasis free status attracted large numbers of cattle-keeping pastoralists to the area. The Jos Plateau now plays a major role in the national cattle industry in Nigeria, accommodating approximately 7% of the national herd, supporting 300,000 pastoralists and over one million cattle. During the past two decades tsetse flies have invaded the Jos Plateau and animal trypanosomiasis has become a significant problem for livestock keepers. Here we investigate the epidemiology of trypanosomiasis as a re-emerging disease on the Plateau, examining the social factors that influence prevalence and seasonal variation of bovine trypanosomiasis. METHODS: In 2008 a longitudinal two-stage cluster survey was undertaken on the Jos Plateau. Cattle were sampled in the dry, early wet and late wet seasons. Parasite identification was undertaken using species-specific polymerase chain reactions to determine the prevalence and distribution of bovine trypanosomiasis. Participatory rural appraisal was also conducted to determine knowledge, attitudes and practices concerning animal husbandry and disease control. RESULTS: Significant seasonal variation between the dry season and late wet season was recorded across the Jos Plateau, consistent with expected variation in tsetse populations. However, marked seasonal variations were also observed at village level to create 3 distinct groups: Group 1 in which 50% of villages followed the general pattern of low prevalence in the dry season and high prevalence in the wet season; Group 2 in which 16.7% of villages showed no seasonal variation and Group 3 in which 33.3% of villages showed greater disease prevalence in the dry season than in the wet season. CONCLUSIONS: There was high seasonal variation at the village level determined by management as well as climatic factors. The growing influence of management factors on the epidemiology of trypanosomiasis highlights the impact of recent changes in land use and natural resource competition on animal husbandry decisions in the extensive pastoral production system

Patterns of genetic diversity and differentiation in the tsetse fly Glossina morsitans morsitans Westwood populations in East and southern Africa

Genetic diversity and differentiation within and among nine G. morsitans morsitanspopulations from East and southern Africa was assessed by examining variation at seven microsatellite loci and a mitochondrial locus, cytochrome oxidase (COI). Mean COI diversity within populations was 0.63 ± 0.33 and 0.81 taken over all populations. Diversities averaged over microsatellite loci were high (mean number of alleles/locus ≥7.4; mean H E ≥ 65%) in all populations. Diversities averaged across populations were greater in East Africa (mean number of alleles = 22 ± 2.6; mean h e = 0.773 ± 0.033) than in southern Africa (mean number of alleles = 18.7 ± 4.0; mean h e = 0.713 ± 0.072). Differentiation among all populations was highly significant (R ST = 0.25, F ST = 0.132). Nei’s G ij statistics were 0.09 and 0.19 within regions for microsatellites and mitochondria, respectively; between regions, G ij was 0.14 for microsatellites and 0.23 for mitochondria. G ST among populations was 0.23 for microsatellite loci and 0.40 for mitochondria. The F, G and R statistics indicate highly restricted gene flow among G. m. morsitans populations separated over geographic scales of 12–917 km

Social inequalities and correlates of psychotropic drug use among young adults: a population-based questionnaire study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Use of psychotropic drugs is widespread in Europe, and is markedly more common in France than elsewhere. Young adults often fare less well than adolescents on health indicators (injury, homicide, and substance use). This population-based study assessed disparities in psychotropic drug use among people aged 18–29 from different socio-occupational groups and determined whether they were mediated by educational level, health status, income, health-related behaviours, family support, personality traits, or disability.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 1,257 people aged 18–29, randomly selected in north-eastern France completed a post-mailed questionnaire covering sex, date of birth, height, weight, educational level, occupation, smoking habit, alcohol abuse, income, health-status, diseases, reported disabilities, self-reported personality traits, family support, and frequent psychotropic medication for tiredness, nervousness/anxiety or insomnia. The data were analyzed using the adjusted odds ratios (ORa) computed with logistic models.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Use of psychotropic drugs was common (33.2%). Compared with upper/intermediate professionals, markedly high odds ratios adjusted for sex were found for manual workers (2.57, 95% CI 1.02–6.44), employees (2.58, 1.11–5.98), farmers/craftsmen/tradesmen (4.97, 1.13–21.8), students (2.40, 1.06–5.40), and housewives (3.82, 1.39–10.5). Adjusting for all the confounders considered reduced the estimates to a pronounced degree for manual workers (adjusted OR 1.49, non-significant) but only slightly for the other socio-occupational groups. The odds ratio for unemployed people did not reach statistical significance. The significant confounders were: sex, not-good health status, musculoskeletal disorders and other diseases, being worried, nervous or sad, and lack of family support (adjusted odds ratios between 1.60 and 2.50).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>There were marked disparities among young adults from different socio-occupational groups. Sex, health status, musculoskeletal diseases, family support, and personality traits were related to use of psychotropic drugs. These factors mediated the higher risk strongly among manual workers and slightly among the other groups.</p

Angiogenesis in Differentiated Placental Multipotent Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Is Dependent on Integrin α5β1

Human placental multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (hPMSCs) can be isolated from term placenta, but their angiogenic ability and the regulatory pathways involved are not known. hPMSCs were shown to express integrins αv, α4, α5, β1, β3, and β5 and could be induced to differentiate into cells expressing endothelial markers. Increases in cell surface integrins α5 and β1, but not α4, αvβ3, or αvβ5, accompanied endothelial differentiation. Vascular endothelial growth factor-A augmented the effect of fibronectin in enhancing adhesion and migration of differentiated hPMSC through integrin α5β1, but not αvβ3 or αvβ5. Formation of capillary-like structures in vitro from differentiated cells was inhibited by pre-treatment with function-blocking antibodies to integrins α5 and β1. When hPMSCs were seeded onto chick chorioallantoic membranes (CAM), human von Willebrand factor-positive cells were observed to engraft in the chick endothelium. CAMs transplanted with differentiated hPMSCs had a greater number of vessels containing human cells and more incorporated cells per vessel compared to CAMs transplanted with undifferentiated hPMSCs, and overall angiogenesis was enhanced more by the differentiated cells. Function-blocking antibodies to integrins α5 and β1 inhibited angiogenesis in the CAM assay. These results suggest that differentiated hPMSCs may contribute to blood vessel formation, and this activity depends on integrin α5β1