Malaria parasites (Plasmodium spp.) infecting introduced, native and endemic New Zealand birds

Avian malaria is caused by intracellular mosquito-transmitted protist parasites in the order Haemosporida, genus Plasmodium. Although Plasmodium species have been diagnosed as causing death in several threatened species in New Zealand, little is known about their ecology and epidemiology. In this study, we examined the presence, microscopic characterization and sequence homology of Plasmodium spp. isolates collected from a small number of New Zealand introduced, native and endemic bird species. We identified 14 Plasmodium spp. isolates from 90 blood or tissue samples. The host range included four species of passerines (two endemic, one native, one introduced), one species of endemic pigeon and two species of endemic kiwi. The isolates were associated into at least four distinct clusters including Plasmodium (Huffia) elongatum, a subgroup of Plasmodium elongatum, Plasmodium relictum and Plasmodium (Noyvella) spp. The infected birds presented a low level of peripheral parasitemia consistent with chronic infection (11/15 blood smears examined). In addition, we report death due to overwhelming parasitemia in a blackbird, a great spotted kiwi and a hihi. These deaths were attributed to infections with either Plasmodium spp. lineage LINN1 or P. relictum lineage GRW4. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first published report of Plasmodium spp. infection in great spotted and brown kiwi, kereru and kokako. Currently, we are only able to speculate on the origin of these 14 isolates but consideration must be made as to the impact they may have on threatened endemic species, particularly due to the examples of mortality

The Anatomy of the bill Tip of Kiwi and Associated Somatosensory Regions of the Brain: Comparisons with Shorebirds

Three families of probe-foraging birds, Scolopacidae (sandpipers and snipes), Apterygidae (kiwi), and Threskiornithidae (ibises, including spoonbills) have independently evolved long, narrow bills containing clusters of vibration-sensitive mechanoreceptors (Herbst corpuscles) within pits in the bill-tip. These ‘bill-tip organs’ allow birds to detect buried or submerged prey via substrate-borne vibrations and/or interstitial pressure gradients. Shorebirds, kiwi and ibises are only distantly related, with the phylogenetic divide between kiwi and the other two taxa being particularly deep. We compared the bill-tip structure and associated somatosensory regions in the brains of kiwi and shorebirds to understand the degree of convergence of these systems between the two taxa. For comparison, we also included data from other taxa including waterfowl (Anatidae) and parrots (Psittaculidae and Cacatuidae), non-apterygid ratites, and other probe-foraging and non probe-foraging birds including non-scolopacid shorebirds (Charadriidae, Haematopodidae, Recurvirostridae and Sternidae). We show that the bill-tip organ structure was broadly similar between the Apterygidae and Scolopacidae, however some inter-specific variation was found in the number, shape and orientation of sensory pits between the two groups. Kiwi, scolopacid shorebirds, waterfowl and parrots all shared hypertrophy or near-hypertrophy of the principal sensory trigeminal nucleus. Hypertrophy of the nucleus basorostralis, however, occurred only in waterfowl, kiwi, three of the scolopacid species examined and a species of oystercatcher (Charadriiformes: Haematopodidae). Hypertrophy of the principal sensory trigeminal nucleus in kiwi, Scolopacidae, and other tactile specialists appears to have co-evolved alongside bill-tip specializations, whereas hypertrophy of nucleus basorostralis may be influenced to a greater extent by other sensory inputs. We suggest that similarities between kiwi and scolopacid bill-tip organs and associated somatosensory brain regions are likely a result of similar ecological selective pressures, with inter-specific variations reflecting finer-scale niche differentiation

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival

The pathogenesis of pneumonia in sheep : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Massey University

Content removed due to copyright restriction: Alley, M. (1969). Seasonal variations in sheep pneumonia. New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 17(9), 184. Alley, M., Marshall, R., & Pearson, R. (1970). The isolation of Neisseria sp. from pneumonic sheep lungs. New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 18(1-2), 18. Alley, M., & Manktelow, B. (1971). Alveolar epithelialisation in ovine pneumonia. The Journal Of Pathology, 103(4), 219-224. Clarke, J., Brown, V., & Alley, M. (1974). Isolation and identification of mycoplasmas from the respiratory tract of sheep in New Zealand. New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 22(7), 117-121.The pathology of pneumonia in sheep in New Zealand is described in a study of over 400 naturally-occurring cases obtained from field and abattoir sources. The common forms of enzootic pneumonia consist of two distinct pathological and epidemiological entities; an acute pneumonia affecting sheep of all ages and a subacute or chronic, non-progressive pneumonia affecting lambs from approximately 3 to 10 months of age. Acute pneumonia is characterised by intense congestion, alveolar haemorrhage, fibrinous exudation and ventral consolidation of both lungs. Ultrastructurally the cellular exudate consists of a mixture of neutrophils, macrophages and detached alveolar epithelial cells with which bacteria are closely associated. Subacute and chronic pneumonia is characterised by varying degrees of dull red to grey consolidation of the anterior lobes. Ultrastructural studies reveal a variety of degenerative changes in the alveolar epithelium including several subcellular changes not previously recorded. Repair is by type II cell hyperplasia and this has been studied ultrastructurally and histochemically. Undifferentiated type II cells resembling those found in the foetal lamb and cells transitional between type II and type I have been observed. The significance of these findings in relation to the origin and dynamics of alveolar epithelial repair is discussed. The major factor underlying the pathological differences between acute and chronic pneumonia is considered to be the degree of damage to the alveolar epithelium which is universal in the former disease and less severe and localised in the latter. Experimental injury to the ovine lung produced by the endobronchial instillation of dilute (1%) nitric acid with India ink as a marker was studied at periods from 2 hours to 10 days after administration. Alveolar collapse and neutrophil infiltration were the earliest changes seen but few neutrophils remained after 3 days. Large macrophages which were active from 3 hours were joined by smaller macrophages which migrated from interstitial tissues from 12 hours until 3 days after administration. The ultrastructural changes observed in the alveolar epithelium were similar to those encountered in naturally-occurring pneumonia. Proliferation of Clara cells and type II cells was detected one day after administration and partial "epithelialization" of some alveoli at 5 days. There was complete loss of pulmonary surfactant from affected areas by 12 hours and return to normal activity was irregular. Parentally administered Paraquat and oral dosing with busulphan were also tested for their value as agents for producing experimental pulmonary injury in sheep. Maximum pulmonary involvement occurred at between 6 to 10 mg/Kg of Paraquat but death appeared to result from liver and kidney toxicity. Paraquat pre-treatment did not affect pulmonary resitance to endobronchially inoculated bacteria in pure or mixed cutures, however lesions similar in nature to those of acute enzootic pneumonia were produced by Staphylococcus aureus. No significant pulmonary effects were produced with busulphan at high dose rates. To investigate the bacterial flora of the respiratory tract of normal and pneumonic sheep, 184 normal sheep and 246 sheep aged 6 to 9 months with chronic or subacute pneumonia were examined at slaughter over a 2 year period. Pasteurella haemolytica was present in the nasal cavities of 73% of normal sheep and 78% of sheep with pneumonia, while Neisseria catarrhalis was also commonly isolated from both classes. Pneumonic lungs characterised by alveolar collapse yielded few bacteria whereas those in which cellular exudate predominated contained P. haemolytica in 75% of cases. In lungs with severe proliferative changes P. haemolytica was recovered in over 60% of cases and N. catarrhalis in 25 to 33%. The prevalence of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae and Mycoplasma arginini was also investigated in the respiratory tract of normal and pneumonic 6 to 9-month-old sheep. Both organisms were ubiquitous in the nasal cavity but M. ovipneumoniae was recovered more frequently than M. arginini. The recovery rate and titre of M. ovipneumoniae in pneumonic lungs were substantially higher than in normal lungs and several proliferative histological features were found to be associated with these titres. Cellular exudation and epithelial hyperplasia were associated with combined high titres of M. ovipneumoniae and bacteria. Lymphoid hyperplasia and mucus secretion were associated with low bacterial titres. Transmission experiments with lung homogenate derived from cases of acute pneumonia succeeded in producing lesions similar to the natural disease when inoculated endobronchially into worm-free, housed lambs whereas cultures of P. haemolytica, M. arginini or pneumonic lung homogenised in medium containing antibiotic produced minimal or no effect. However, the excessive amount of inoculum and unnatural means of inoculation required suggested that host and environmental factors have a major role in the pathogenesis of the acute form of the natural disease. Serial transmission of subacute and chronic pneumonia was achieved by intranasal aerosol inoculation of lung homogenate derived from abattoir cases. The clinical signs and pathological lesions were similar in most respects to the naturally-occurring disease. The pathological development of the lesions was studied in a further transmission experiment in which 12 lambs were slaughtered sequentially from 2 to 12 days after inoculation. In studying the effect of various chemotherapeutic agents on the development of chronic pneumonia it was found that both ronidazole at 100 mg/Kg and oxytetracycline suppressed the development of the disease while tylosin and penicillin suppressed the development of the lesions without completely inhibiting the growth of micro-organisms. A controlled experiment to assess the effect of pneumonia transmission on weight gain produced a significant reduction in the weight gain of treated animals but there was no correlation between the weight gain of individuals and pneumonic lesions. It was presumed that the result was due to a transitory systemic effect immediately following inoculation. Intranasal inoculation of M. ovipneumoniae cultures produced lesions in 2 caesarian-derived lambs but inoculation of 9 worm-free housed lambs was unsuccessful. The balance of evidence indicates that pneumonia in sheep, as it occurs in this country, results from the interaction of host and environmental factors with infectious agents. In acute pneumonia, bacterial multiplication in alveoli, presumably damaged by systemic agents, is responsible for the destructive changes which occur. In chronic pneumonia bacteria from the nasal cavity actively contribute to the severity of the lesions but it is unlikely that they initiate the disease process. M. ovipneumoniae is also closely associated with the lesions of chronic pneumonia but further inoculation experiments and epidemiological studies are needed to define this organism's role more closely

Development of the lung of the brushtail possum, Trichosurus vulpecula

The developing lung of the brushtail possum, Trichosurus vulpecula, was studied by light microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy was used to study the morphology of the conducting airways in the adult. Bronchi did not extend beyond the hilus of each of the six lobes of the lung, and lobules were supplied by major bronchioles. By 105 days post partum, bronchi and bronchioles were fully formed, coinciding with the emergence of mucosal associated lymphoid tissue (MALT), which preceded alveolar maturation by approximately 20 days. In the adult lung, goblet cells were rarely observed in the mucosal epithelium of bronchi, whereas Clara cells were present in the mucosa of all airways, increasing proportionately as the conducting and respiratory portions narrowed distally. Although the airways of the possum lung have a poorly developed mucociliary blanket, this may be compensated for by the large numbers of Clara cells and adequate supply of MALT

The Legacy of Invention: Determinism and Metafiction in Janet Frame's Mona Minim and the Smell of the Sun

This essay offers a close reading of Mona Minim and the Smell of the Sun, a tale for children often thought to be unique in the corpus of Janet Frame in that its implied reading public compelled the author to keep her distance from her usual preoccupation with the great negative themes of twentieth-century consciousness. Yet Frame’s declaration in an interview that this was her favourite among her own published books should alert us to the possibility that thematic continuities subterraneously connect it to the rest of the work. In particular, the exploration of animal life encouraged by the genre can be seen to be paradigmatic of her interest in alternative ontologies and to encode the concern with creativity which is a touchstone of her entire output. Typically, too, the figure of the artist – in this case, of the story-teller – is invested with a redemptive value for the beleaguered individual, and cannot be separated from a metafictional mode of representation which is possibly unexpected in what purports to be a simple fairy tale

Sagittal sections of the brains of six species of birds examined in this study.

<p>Photomicrographs of sagittal sections stained with cresyl violet through the brain of six species of birds examined in this study. The top panel shows the principal sensory trigeminal nucleus (PrV) and the bottom panel the nucleus basorostralis (Bas). The broken black lines indicate the borders of each of the regions present in the sections. Brain sections are shown from North Island brown kiwi (<i>Apteryx mantelli</i>), bar-tailed godwit (<i>Limosa lapponica</i>), Eurasian woodcock (<i>Scolopax rusticola</i>), South Island oystercatcher (<i>Haematopus finschi</i>), black-winged stilt (<i>Himantopus himantopus</i>), and masked lapwing (<i>Vanellus miles</i>). Abbreviations: A: arcopallium, N: nidopallium, H: hyperpallium, E: entopallium, SPC: striatopallidal complex, M: mesopallium, C: caudal, R: rostral, D: dorsal, V: ventral. Scale bars; top panel = 1 mm, bottom panel = 2 mm.</p