The River Endrick - then and now, monitoring by photography

A major survey of the River Endrick was carried out in 1959-60. This survey was repeated three decades later in 1989-90 and comparisons were made of the fauna at the two times of sampling. During both surveys, photographs were taken of all the sampling sites and the objective of the present paper is to compare some of these photographs and discuss the value of photography in studies of river ecology. The sites used for photographic comparison were not chosen originally for that purpose but as appropriate places on the river from source to mouth to study its ecology. The pairs of photos now available have proved of interest and value and some lessons have been learned in relation to the selection of sites for any future photographic studies. Ideally photos should be taken in more than one season of the year as much of the river can be obscured by riparian trees and shrubs during the vegetative season. The exact position from which each photograph is taken is also a major factor to be considered

The smelt Osmerus eperlanus in Scotland

Smelt populations have been recorded since the 18th Century from at least 15 rivers in Scotland, but over the last Century the species has suffered a severe decline and has disappeared from all its former sites except the rivers Cree, Forth and Tay. These populations must now be regarded as having high conservation importance. There are probably several different reasons for this decline. In some rivers, such as the Clyde and the Stinchar, pollution in the lower reaches has prevented successful migration and reproduction. In other rivers, high weirs and barriers have completely cut off access to spawning grounds. In some estuaries and rivers, such as the Solway Firth, overfishing is believed to have been responsible for eliminating local stocks. A Species Action Plan for the smelt has been prepared and it is hoped that this will be the basis of a future conservation strategy for this species in Scotland

Characterization of Human Papillomavirus Type 16 E2 Protein and Subdomains Expressed in Insect Cells

AbstractThe E2 open reading frame of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) encodes a DNA-binding protein which modulates papillomavirus transcription and replication. To investigate the biological and biochemical properties of the HPV-16 E2 protein, we have constructed recombinant baculoviruses which express the full-length molecule and individual N- and C-terminal domains in Sf21 insect cells. In this system the full-length E2 protein was phosphorylated and targeted to the insect cell nucleus. A 93 amino acid C-terminal fragment encompassing the DNA binding and dimerization functions of E2 was also translocated to the nucleus but was not modified by phosphorylation. The E2 N-terminal protein accumulated in the insect cell cytoplasm but was not efficiently phosphorylated. The formation of heterodimers between full-length and N-terminally truncated E2 species was observed when Sf21 cells were co-infected with recombinant viruses and when homodimers were mixed in vitro, suggesting that the dimer interface is not sufficiently stable to prevent subunit exchange in vivo. Both homo- and heterodimeric E2 species were able to bind specifically and in any combination to tandem E2 binding sites from the HPV-16 regulatory region. Furthermore, the HPV-16 E2 protein bound to DNA exhibited a distinct susceptibility profile to pronase digestion, potentially contrasting with that reported for BPV-1 E2. These observations suggest that significant structural and functional differences may exist between the BPV/HPV E2 proteins and have implications for understanding E2-dependent regulation of transcription and replication

The River Endrick - Then and now, monitoring by photography

The River Endrick is one of the largest rivers flowing into Loch Lomond andis certainly the richest - both chemically and biologically. The mouth of theriver and the marshes surrounding it is a National Nature Reserve and ofinternational importance as a RAMSAR site. Accounts of various aspects ofthe River Endrick are available from the 17th century onwards (Franck 1658)and it is now one of the best known of Scottish rivers

The status of Arctic charr, Salvelinus alpinus (L), in southern Scotland: a cause for concern

In the British Isles, the Arctic charr (Morton 1955), Salvelinus alpinus (L.)(see Fig. 1), in individual lakes have been isolated from each other forthousands of years and have developed a variety of phenotypiccharacteristics (Gunther 1865; Day 1887; Regan 1909, 1914) which areprobably genetically based (Nyman 1972; Child 1977, 1984; Ferguson1981). The differences between some populations are so great that manywere originally described as distinct species

Increased adhesion of Plasmodium falciparum infected erythrocytes to ICAM-1 in children with acute intestinal injury

Background Children with severe malaria are at increased risk of invasive bacterial disease particularly infection with enteric gram-negative organisms. These organisms are likely to originate from the gut, however, how and why they breach the intestinal interface in the context of malaria infection remains unclear. One explanation is that accumulation of infected red blood cells (iRBCs) in the intestinal microvasculature contributes to tissue damage and subsequent microbial translocation which can be addressed through investigation of the impact of cytoadhesion in patients with malaria and intestinal damage. Methods Using a static adhesion assay, cytoadhesion of iRBCs was quantified in 48 children with malaria to recombinant proteins constitutively expressed on endothelial cell surfaces. Cytoadhesive phenotypes between children with and without biochemical evidence of intestinal damage [defined as endotoxemia or elevated plasma intestinal fatty acid binding protein (I-FABP)] was compared. Results The majority of parasites demonstrated binding to the endothelial receptors CD36 and to a lesser extent to ICAM-1. Reduced adhesion to CD36 but not adhesion to ICAM-1 or rosetting was associated with malarial anaemia (p = 0.004). Increased adhesion of iRBCs to ICAM-1 in children who had evidence of elevated I-FABP (p = 0.022), a marker of intestinal ischaemia was observed. There was no correlation between the presence of endotoxemia and increased adhesion to any of the recombinant proteins. Conclusion Increased parasite adhesion to ICAM-1 in children with evidence of intestinal ischaemia lends further evidence to a link between the cytoadherence of iRBCs in gut microvasculature and intestinal damage

The smelt Osmerus eperlanus in Scotland

The smelt Osmerus eperlanus (Linnaeus 1758) (Plate 3A, p. 65), or sparling asit is called in Scotland (and in northern England), is a small to medium-sizedfish whose adult size varies greatly according to habitat. The normal range inlength is 10 to 20 cm but the fish can sometimes reach 30 cm. In general, fishfrom non-migratory freshwater populations are much smaller than those whichhave lived in the sea. The smelt occurs from southern Norway around thewestern coast of Europe (including the Baltic Sea) to north-west Spain. It livesin coastal waters and estuaries and migrates into large clean rivers to spawn inthe spring. The species is tolerant of wide salinity changes and there are severalnon-migratory purely freshwater populations in large freshwater lakes inFinland, Sweden and Norway. The sole British freshwater population of smelt,in Rostherne Mere in Cheshire, became extinct in the 1920s (Ellison & Chubb1968), probably due to eutrophication

Children’s oxygen administration strategies trial (COAST): A randomised controlled trial of high flow versus oxygen versus control in African children with severe pneumonia

Background: In Africa, the clinical syndrome of pneumonia remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in children in the post-neonatal period. This represents a significant burden on in-patient services. The targeted use of oxygen and simple, non-invasive methods of respiratory support may be a highly cost-effective means of improving outcome, but the optimal oxygen saturation threshold that results in benefit and the best strategy for delivery are yet to be tested in adequately powered randomised controlled trials. There is, however, an accumulating literature about the harms of oxygen therapy across a range of acute and emergency situations that have stimulated a number of trials investigating permissive hypoxia.Methods: In 4200 African children, aged 2 months to 12 years, presenting to 5 hospitals in East Africa with respiratory distress and hypoxia (oxygen saturation \u3c 92%), the COAST trial will simultaneously evaluate two related interventions (targeted use of oxygen with respect to the optimal oxygen saturation threshold for treatment and mode of delivery) to reduce shorter-term mortality at 48-hours (primary endpoint), and longer-term morbidity and mortality to 28 days in a fractional factorial design, that compares: Liberal oxygenation (recommended care) compared with a strategy that permits hypoxia to SpO2 \u3e or = 80% (permissive hypoxia); and High flow using AIrVO2TM compared with low flow delivery (routine care)