Cross modal perception of body size in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris)

While the perception of size-related acoustic variation in animal vocalisations is well documented, little attention has been given to how this information might be integrated with corresponding visual information. Using a cross-modal design, we tested the ability of domestic dogs to match growls resynthesised to be typical of either a large or a small dog to size- matched models. Subjects looked at the size-matched model significantly more often and for a significantly longer duration than at the incorrect model, showing that they have the ability to relate information about body size from the acoustic domain to the appropriate visual category. Our study suggests that the perceptual and cognitive mechanisms at the basis of size assessment in mammals have a multisensory nature, and calls for further investigations of the multimodal processing of size information across animal species

Population-Level Benefits from Providing Effective HIV Prevention Means to Pregnant Women in High Prevalence Settings

Background:HIV prevalence among pregnant women in Southern Africa is extremely high. Epidemiological studies suggest that pregnancy increases the risk of HIV sexual acquisition and that HIV infections acquired during pregnancy carry higher risk of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT). We analyze the potential benefits from extending the availability of effective microbicide to pregnant women (in addition to non-pregnant women) in a wide-scale intervention.Methods and Findings:A transmission dynamic model was designed to assess the impact of microbicide use in high HIV prevalence settings and to estimate proportions of new HIV infections, infections acquired during pregnancy, and MTCT prevented over 10 years. Our analysis suggests that consistent use of microbicide with 70% efficacy by 60% of non-pregnant women may prevent approximately 40% and 15% of new infections in women and men respectively over 10 years, assuming no additional increase in HIV risk to either partner during pregnancy (RRHIV/preg = 1). It may also prevent 8-15% MTCT depending on the increase in MTCT risk when HIV is acquired during pregnancy compared to before pregnancy (RRMTCT/preg). Extending the microbicides use during pregnancy may improve the effectiveness of the intervention by 10% (RRHIV/preg = 1) to 25% (RRHIV/preg = 2) and reduce the number of HIV infections acquired during pregnancy by 40% to 70% in different scenarios. It may add between 6% (RRHIV/preg = 1, RRMTCT/preg = 1) and 25% (RRHIV/preg = 2, RRMTCT/preg = 4) to the reduction in the residual MTCT.Conclusion:Providing safe and effective microbicide to pregnant women in the context of wide-scale interventions would be desirable as it would increase the effectiveness of the intervention and significantly reduce the number of HIV infections acquired during pregnancy. The projected benefits from covering pregnant women by the HIV prevention programs is more substantial in communities in which the sexual risk during pregnancy is elevated. © 2013 Dimitrov et al

Baubles, Bangles, and Biotypes: A Critical Review of the use and Abuse of the Biotype Concept

Pest species of insects are notoriously prone to escape the weapons deployed in management efforts against them. This is particularly true in herbivorous insects. When a previously successful tactic fails the insect population has apparently adapted to it and is often considered to be a new or distinct entity, and given the non-formal category ‘biotype’. The entities falling under the umbrella term ‘biotype’ are not consistent either within or between biotypes, and their underlying genetic composition and origins, while generally unknown, are likely heterogeneous within and variable between biotypes. In some cases race or species may be more appropriate referents. Some examples of applications of the concept in the context of host plant resistance are discussed. It is argued here that the term ‘biotype’ and its applications are overly simplistic, confused, have not proved useful in current pest management, and lack predictive power for future management

Association study with Wegener granulomatosis of the human phospholipase Cγ2 gene

BACKGROUND: Wegener Granulomatosis (WG) is a multifactorial disease of yet unknown aetiology characterized by granulomata of the respiratory tract and systemic necrotizing vasculitis. Analyses of candidate genes revealed several associations, e.g. with α(1)-antitrypsin, proteinase 3 and with the HLA-DPB1 locus. A mutation in the abnormal limb mutant 5 (ALI5) mouse in the region coding for the hydrophobic ridge loop 3 (HRL3) of the phospholipaseCγ2 (PLCγ-2) gene, corresponding to human PLCγ-2 exon 27, leads to acute and chronic inflammation and granulomatosis. For that reason, we screened exons 11, 12 and 13 coding for the hydrophobic ridge loop 1 and 2 (HRL1 and 2, respectively) and exon 27 of the PLCγ-2 protein by single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP), sequencing and PCR/ restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analyses. In addition, we screened indirectly for disease association via 4 microsatellites with pooled DNA in the PLCγ-2 gene. RESULTS: Although a few polymorphisms in these distinct exons were observed, significant differences in allele frequencies were not identified between WG patients and respective controls. In addition, the microsatellite analyses did not reveal a significant difference between our patient and control cohort. CONCLUSION: This report does not reveal any hints for an involvement of the PLCγ-2 gene in the pathogenesis of WG in our case-control study

A systematic review and meta-synthesis of the impact of low back pain on people's lives

Copyright @ 2014 Froud et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 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 credited.Background - Low back pain (LBP) is a common and costly problem that many interpret within a biopsychosocial model. There is renewed concern that core-sets of outcome measures do not capture what is important. To inform debate about the coverage of back pain outcome measure core-sets, and to suggest areas worthy of exploration within healthcare consultations, we have synthesised the qualitative literature on the impact of low back pain on people’s lives. Methods - Two reviewers searched CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, PEDro, and Medline, identifying qualitative studies of people’s experiences of non-specific LBP. Abstracted data were thematic coded and synthesised using a meta-ethnographic, and a meta-narrative approach. Results - We included 49 papers describing 42 studies. Patients are concerned with engagement in meaningful activities; but they also want to be believed and have their experiences and identity, as someone ‘doing battle’ with pain, validated. Patients seek diagnosis, treatment, and cure, but also reassurance of the absence of pathology. Some struggle to meet social expectations and obligations. When these are achieved, the credibility of their pain/disability claims can be jeopardised. Others withdraw, fearful of disapproval, or unable or unwilling to accommodate social demands. Patients generally seek to regain their pre-pain levels of health, and physical and emotional stability. After time, this can be perceived to become unrealistic and some adjust their expectations accordingly. Conclusions - The social component of the biopsychosocial model is not well represented in current core-sets of outcome measures. Clinicians should appreciate that the broader impact of low back pain includes social factors; this may be crucial to improving patients’ experiences of health care. Researchers should consider social factors to help develop a portfolio of more relevant outcome measures.Arthritis Research U

Gene expression and matrix turnover in overused and damaged tendons

Chronic, painful conditions affecting tendons, frequently known as tendinopathy, are very common types of sporting injury. The tendon extracellular matrix is substantially altered in tendinopathy, and these changes are thought to precede and underlie the clinical condition. The tendon cell response to repeated minor injuries or “overuse” is thought to be a major factor in the development of tendinopathy. Changes in matrix turnover may also be effected by the cellular response to physical load, altering the balance of matrix turnover and changing the structure and composition of the tendon. Matrix turnover is relatively high in tendons exposed to high mechanical demands, such as the supraspinatus and Achilles, and this is thought to represent either a repair or tissue maintenance function. Metalloproteinases are a large family of enzymes capable of degrading all of the tendon matrix components, and these are thought to play a major role in the degradation of matrix during development, adaptation and repair. It is proposed that some metalloproteinase enzymes are required for the health of the tendon, and others may be damaging, leading to degeneration of the tissue. Further research is required to investigate how these enzyme activities are regulated in tendon and altered in tendinopathy. A profile of all the metalloproteinases expressed and active in healthy and degenerate tendon is required and may lead to the development of new drug therapies for these common and debilitating sports injuries

Genome sequencing of the extinct Eurasian wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, illuminates the phylogeography and evolution of cattle

Background Domestication of the now-extinct wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, gave rise to the two major domestic extant cattle taxa, B. taurus and B. indicus. While previous genetic studies have shed some light on the evolutionary relationships between European aurochs and modern cattle, important questions remain unanswered, including the phylogenetic status of aurochs, whether gene flow from aurochs into early domestic populations occurred, and which genomic regions were subject to selection processes during and after domestication. Here, we address these questions using whole-genome sequencing data generated from an approximately 6,750-year-old British aurochs bone and genome sequence data from 81 additional cattle plus genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism data from a diverse panel of 1,225 modern animals. Results Phylogenomic analyses place the aurochs as a distinct outgroup to the domestic B. taurus lineage, supporting the predominant Near Eastern origin of European cattle. Conversely, traditional British and Irish breeds share more genetic variants with this aurochs specimen than other European populations, supporting localized gene flow from aurochs into the ancestors of modern British and Irish cattle, perhaps through purposeful restocking by early herders in Britain. Finally, the functions of genes showing evidence for positive selection in B. taurus are enriched for neurobiology, growth, metabolism and immunobiology, suggesting that these biological processes have been important in the domestication of cattle. Conclusions This work provides important new information regarding the origins and functional evolution of modern cattle, revealing that the interface between early European domestic populations and wild aurochs was significantly more complex than previously thought

Amyloid associated with elastin-staining laminar aggregates in the lungs of patients diagnosed with acute respiratory distress syndrome

BACKGROUND: The heterogeneity of conditions underlying respiratory distress, whether classified clinically as acute lung injury (ALI) or the more severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), has hampered efforts to identify and more successfully treat these patients. Examination of postmortem lungs among cases clinically diagnosed as ARDS identified a cohort that showed a consistent morphology at the light and electron microscope levels, and featured pathognomonic structures which we termed elastin-staining laminar structures (ELS). METHODS: Postmortem tissues were stained using the Verhoeff-Van Gieson procedure for elastic fibers, and with Congo red for examination under a polarizing microscope. Similar samples were examined by transmission EM. RESULTS: The pathognomonic ELS presented as ordered molecular aggregates when stained using the Verhoeff-van Gieson technique for elastic fibers. In several postmortem lungs, the ELS also displayed apple-green birefringence after staining with Congo red, suggesting the presence of amyloid. Remarkably, most of the postmortem lungs with ELS exhibited no significant acute inflammatory cellular response such as neutrophilic reaction, and little evidence of widespread edema except for focal intra-alveolar hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: Postmortem lungs that exhibit the ELS constitute a morphologically-identifiable subgroup of ARDS cases. The ordered nature of the ELS, as indicated by both elastin and amyloid stains, together with little morphological evidence of inflammation or edema, suggests that this cohort of ARDS may represent another form of conformational disease. If this hypothesis is confirmed, it will require a new approach in the diagnosis and treatment of patients who exhibit this form of acute lung injury

Computational Identification of Phospho-Tyrosine Sub-Networks Related to Acanthocyte Generation in Neuroacanthocytosis

Acanthocytes, abnormal thorny red blood cells (RBC), are one of the biological hallmarks of neuroacanthocytosis syndromes (NA), a group of rare hereditary neurodegenerative disorders. Since RBCs are easily accessible, the study of acanthocytes in NA may provide insights into potential mechanisms of neurodegeneration. Previous studies have shown that changes in RBC membrane protein phosphorylation state affect RBC membrane mechanical stability and morphology. Here, we coupled tyrosine-phosphoproteomic analysis to topological network analysis. We aimed to predict signaling sub-networks possibly involved in the generation of acanthocytes in patients affected by the two core NA disorders, namely McLeod syndrome (MLS, XK-related, Xk protein) and chorea-acanthocytosis (ChAc, VPS13A-related, chorein protein). The experimentally determined phosphoproteomic data-sets allowed us to relate the subsequent network analysis to the pathogenetic background. To reduce the network complexity, we combined several algorithms of topological network analysis including cluster determination by shortest path analysis, protein categorization based on centrality indexes, along with annotation-based node filtering. We first identified XK- and VPS13A-related protein-protein interaction networks by identifying all the interactomic shortest paths linking Xk and chorein to the corresponding set of proteins whose tyrosine phosphorylation was altered in patients. These networks include the most likely paths of functional influence of Xk and chorein on phosphorylated proteins. We further refined the analysis by extracting restricted sets of highly interacting signaling proteins representing a common molecular background bridging the generation of acanthocytes in MLS and ChAc. The final analysis pointed to a novel, very restricted, signaling module of 14 highly interconnected kinases, whose alteration is possibly involved in generation of acanthocytes in MLS and ChAc