Risk of Egg Parasitoid Attraction Depends on Anti-aphrodisiac Titre in the Large Cabbage White Butterfly Pieris brassicae

Males of a variety of insects transfer an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone to females during mating that renders them less attractive to conspecific males. In cabbage white butterflies, the transfer of an anti-aphrodisiac can result in the unwanted attraction of tiny egg parasitoid wasps of the genus Trichogramma that hitch-hike with mated female butterflies to a host plant where they parasitize the freshly laid butterfly eggs. Here, we show that the anti-aphrodisiac benzyl cyanide (BC) of the large cabbage white Pieris brassicae is depleted by frequent display of the mate-refusal posture that signals a female’s unreceptivity to mating. This depletion of BC is ecologically important because it results in a reduced risk of attracting the hitch-hiking egg parasitoid Trichogramma brassicae to mated female butterflies over time since mating. Our results indicate for the first time that a reduction in anti-aphrodisiac titre in mated females due to frequent adoption of the mate-refusal posture is beneficial to both mated females and males particularly when parasitoid pressure is high

Does owning a pet protect older people against loneliness?

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Pet ownership is thought to make a positive contribution to health, health behaviours and the general well-being of older people. More specifically pet ownership is often proposed as a solution to the problem of loneliness in later life and specific 'pet based' interventions have been developed to combat loneliness. However the evidence to support this relationship is slim and it is assumed that pet ownership is a protection against loneliness rather than a response to loneliness. The aim of this paper is to examine the association between pet ownership and loneliness by exploring if pet ownership is a response to, or protection against, loneliness using Waves 0-5 from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA)

Reproductive Markers of Testicular Function and Size During Puberty in Boys With and Without a History of Cryptorchidism

ContextLongitudinal data on levels of hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis hormones and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) during puberty in boys with a history of cryptorchidism are largely missing.ObjectiveWe aimed to compare pubertal hormone levels between boys with a history of congenital cryptorchidism who experienced spontaneous testicular descent or underwent orchiopexy and boys without a history of cryptorchidism.MethodsThis was a nested case-control study within a population-based birth cohort, with a prospective, longitudinal pubertal follow-up every 6 months (2005 to 2019). Participants were 109 Finnish boys, including boys with a history of unilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy (n = 15), unilateral cryptorchidism who had spontaneous testicular descent (n = 15), bilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy (n = 9), bilateral cryptorchidism who had spontaneous testicular descent (n = 7), and controls (n = 63). Serum reproductive hormone levels and testicular volumes were measured.ResultsFrom around onset of puberty, boys with bilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy had significantly higher follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and lower inhibin B levels than controls. Boys with unilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy had significantly higher FSH than controls, whereas inhibin B levels were similar. Testosterone, luteinizing hormone, insulin-like factor 3, and IGF-I were generally similar between groups. Testicular volume of boys with unilateral or bilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy was smaller than that of the controls from 1 year after pubertal onset (P ConclusionCryptorchid boys, particularly those with bilateral cryptorchidism who underwent orchiopexy, had altered levels of serum biomarkers of Sertoli cells and germ cells and smaller testicular volumes compared with controls.</p

Comparing the Epidermal Growth Factor Interaction with Four Different Cell Lines: Intriguing Effects Imply Strong Dependency of Cellular Context

The interaction of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) with its receptor (EGFR) is known to be complex, and the common over-expression of EGF receptor family members in a multitude of tumors makes it important to decipher this interaction and the following signaling pathways. We have investigated the affinity and kinetics of 125I-EGF binding to EGFR in four human tumor cell lines, each using four culturing conditions, in real time by use of LigandTracer®

Unemployment and disability pension-an 18-year follow-up study of a 40-year-old population in a Norwegian county

<p>© 2012 Støver et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.</p><p>This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.</p

Adipose Tissue Serves as a Reservoir for Recrudescent Rickettsia prowazekii Infection in a Mouse Model

Brill-Zinsser disease, the relapsing form of epidemic typhus, typically occurs in a susceptible host years or decades after the primary infection; however, the mechanisms of reactivation and the cellular reservoir during latency are poorly understood. Herein we describe a murine model for Brill-Zinsser disease, and use PCR and cell culture to show transient rickettsemia in mice treated with dexamethasone >3 months after clinical recovery from the primary infection. Treatment of similarly infected mice with cyclosporine failed to produce recrudescent bacteremia. Therapy with doxycycline for the primary infection prevented recrudescent bacteremia in most of these mice following treatment with dexamethasone. Rickettsia prowazekii (the etiologic agent of epidemic typhus) was detected by PCR, cell culture, and immunostaining methods in murine adipose tissue, but not in liver, spleen, lung, or central nervous system tissues of mice 4 months after recovery from the primary infection. The lungs of dexamethasone-treated mice showed impaired expression of β-defensin transcripts that may be involved in the pathogenesis of pulmonary lesions. In vitro, R. prowazekii rickettsiae infected and replicated in the murine adipocyte cell line 3T3-L1. Collectively these data suggest a role for adipose tissue as a potential reservoir for dormant infections with R. prowazekii

Placental transfusion: a review

Recently there have been a number of studies and presentations on the importance of providing a placental transfusion to the newborn. Early cord clamping is an avoidable, unphysiologic intervention that prevents the natural process of placental transfusion. However, placental transfusion, although simple in concept, is affected by multiple factors, is not always straightforward to implement, and can be performed using different methods, making this basic procedure important to discuss. Here, we review three placental transfusion techniques: delayed cord clamping, intact umbilical cord milking and cut-umbilical cord milking, and the evidence in term and preterm newborns supporting this practice. We will also review several factors that influence placental transfusion, and discuss perceived risks versus benefits of this procedure. Finally, we will provide key straightforward concepts and implementation strategies to ensure that placental-to-newborn transfusion can become routine practice at any institution

Towards Heat-stable Oxytocin Formulations: Analysis of Degradation Kinetics and Identification of Degradation Products

Purpose. To investigate degradation kinetics of oxytocin as a function of temperature and pH, and identify the degradation products. Materials and Methods. Accelerated degradation of oxytocin formulated at pH 2.0, 4.5, 7.0 and 9.0 was performed at 40, 55, 70 and 80°C. Degradation rate constants were determined from RP-HPLC data. Formulations were characterized by HP-SEC, UV absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. Degradation products were identified by ESI-MS/MS. Results. The loss of intact oxytocin in RP-HPLC was pH- and temperature-dependent and followed (pseudo) first order kinetics. Degradation was fastest at pH 9.0, followed by pH 7.0, pH 2.0 and pH 4.5. The Arrhenius equation proved suitable to describe the kinetics, with the highest activation energy (116.3 kJ/mol) being found for pH 4.5 formulations. At pH 2.0 deamidation of Gln 4, Asn 5, and Gly 9-NH2, as well as combinations thereof were found. At pH 4.5, 7.0 and 9.0, the formation of tri- and tetrasulfidecontaining oxytocin as well as different types of disulfide and dityrosine-linked dimers were found to occur. Beta-elimination and larger aggregates were also observed. At pH 9.0, mono-deamidation of Gln 4, Asn 5, and Gly 9-NH2 additionally occurred. Conclusions. Multiple degradation products of oxytocin have been identified unequivocally, including various deamidated species, intramolecular oligosulfides and covalent aggregates. The strongly pH dependent degradation can be described by the Arrhenius equation. KEY WORDS: aggregation; Arrhenius kinetics; degradation; mass spectrometry; oxytocin

Management of cryptorchidism: a survey of clinical practice in Italy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>An evidence-based Consensus on the treatment of undescended testis (UT) was recently published, recommending to perform orchidopexy between 6 and 12 months of age, or upon diagnosis and to avoid the use of hormones. In Italy, current practices on UT management are little known. Our aim was to describe the current management of UT in a cohort of Italian children in comparison with the Consensus guidelines. As management of retractile testis (RT) differs, RT cases were described separately.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Ours is a retrospective, multicenter descriptive study. An online questionnaire was filled in by 140 Italian Family Paediatricians (FP) from <it>Associazione Culturale Pediatri </it>(ACP), a national professional association of FP. The questionnaire requested information on all children with cryptorchidism born between 1/01/2004 and 1/01/2006. Data on 169 children were obtained. Analyses were descriptive.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Overall 24% of children were diagnosed with RT, 76% with UT. Among the latter, cryptorchidism resolved spontaneously in 10% of cases at a mean age of 21.6 months. Overall 70% of UT cases underwent orchidopexy at a mean age of 22.8 months (SD 10.8, range 1.2-56.4), 13% of whom before 1 year. The intervention was performed by a paediatric surgeon in 90% of cases, with a success rate of 91%. Orchidopexy was the first line treatment in 82% of cases, while preceded by hormonal treatment in the remaining 18%. Hormonal treatment was used as first line therapy in 23% of UT cases with a reported success rate of 25%. Overall, 13 children did not undergo any intervention (mean age at last follow up 39.6 months). We analyzed the data from the 5 Italian Regions with the largest number of children enrolled and found a statistically significant regional difference in the use of hormonal therapy, and in the use of and age at orchidopexy.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our study showed an important delay in orchidopexy. A quarter of children with cryptorchidism was treated with hormonal therapy. In line with the Consensus guidelines, surgery was carried out by a paediatric surgeon in the majority of cases, with a high success rate.</p