Tools for delivering entomopathogenic fungi to malaria mosquitoes: effects of delivery surfaces on fungal efficacy and persistence.

BACKGROUND\ud \ud Entomopathogenic fungi infection on malaria vectors increases daily mortality rates and thus represents a control measure that could be used in integrated programmes alongside insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS). Before entomopathogenic fungi can be integrated into control programmes, an effective delivery system must be developed.\ud \ud METHODS\ud \ud The efficacy of Metarhizium anisopliae ICIPE-30 and Beauveria bassiana I93-825 (IMI 391510) (2 × 10(10) conidia m(-2)) applied on mud panels (simulating walls of traditional Tanzanian houses), black cotton cloth and polyester netting was evaluated against adult Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto. Mosquitoes were exposed to the treated surfaces 2, 14 and 28 d after conidia were applied. Survival of mosquitoes was monitored daily.\ud \ud RESULTS\ud \ud All fungal treatments caused a significantly increased mortality in the exposed mosquitoes, descending with time since fungal application. Mosquitoes exposed to M. anisopliae conidia on mud panels had a greater daily risk of dying compared to those exposed to conidia on either netting or cotton cloth (p < 0.001). Mosquitoes exposed to B. bassiana conidia on mud panels or cotton cloth had similar daily risk of death (p = 0.14), and a higher risk than those exposed to treated polyester netting (p < 0.001). Residual activity of fungi declined over time; however, conidia remained pathogenic at 28 d post application, and were able to infect and kill 73 - 82% of mosquitoes within 14 d.\ud \ud CONCLUSION\ud \ud Both fungal isolates reduced mosquito survival on immediate exposure and up to 28 d after application. Conidia were more effective when applied on mud panels and cotton cloth compared with polyester netting. Cotton cloth and mud, therefore, represent potential substrates for delivering fungi to mosquitoes in the field

CT angiography; useful in non-selected outpatients?

Dance has been a part of the physical education (PE) curriculum in several countries for a longtime. In spite of this, studies demonstrate that the position of dance in the subject of PE iscontested and that little time is devoted to dance. The overall aim of this article is to examine theposition of dance as a pedagogical discourse in Swedish steering documents over time. Theempirical material consists of five Swedish curricula for PE over a period of 50 years (1962–2011).Discourse analysis is used to identify organised systems of meaning, including privileged andprioritised values. Our theoretical frame of reference draws on Bernstein’s concept of codes. Threedifferent knowledge areas within dance are found in the text material: ‘dance as cultural preserver’,‘dance as bodily exercise’ and ‘dance as expression’. Three pedagogical discourses emerge fromthese knowledge areas: an identity formation discourse, a public health discourse and an aestheticdiscourse. The identity formation discourse in earlier curricula focuses on the perpetuation ofSwedish and Nordic cultural traditions, while in later curricula, it emphasises the construction of abroader multicultural identity formation related to the understanding of different cultures. Thepublic health discourse constitutes a prioritised understanding of dance as physical training relatedto a healthy lifestyle. The aesthetic discourse, which has the weakest position over time, representsthe valuing of embodied experiences and feelings expressed through movements. This discourse isclosely linked to the construction of gender. Over time, a new performance code came to surpassthe former competence code in the steering documents. The performance code positions dance inPE as mainly a physical activity with little artistic or aesthetic value. The pedagogical discourse ofdance remains within a highly disciplinary framework of social control

Positron emission tomography; viable tool in patients pre-CABG?

Vascular Biology and Interventio

Synergy in Efficacy of Fungal Entomopathogens and Permethrin against West African Insecticide-Resistant Anopheles gambiae Mosquitoes

Background Increasing incidences of insecticide resistance in malaria vectors are threatening the sustainable use of contemporary chemical vector control measures. Fungal entomopathogens provide a possible additional tool for the control of insecticide-resistant malaria mosquitoes. This study investigated the compatibility of the pyrethroid insecticide permethrin and two mosquito-pathogenic fungi, Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae, against a laboratory colony and field population of West African insecticide-resistant Anopheles gambiae s.s. mosquitoes. Methodology/Findings A range of fungus-insecticide combinations was used to test effects of timing and sequence of exposure. Both the laboratory-reared and field-collected mosquitoes were highly resistant to permethrin but susceptible to B. bassiana and M. anisopliae infection, inducing 100% mortality within nine days. Combinations of insecticide and fungus showed synergistic effects on mosquito survival. Fungal infection increased permethrin-induced mortality rates in wild An. gambiae s.s. mosquitoes and reciprocally, exposure to permethrin increased subsequent fungal-induced mortality rates in both colonies. Simultaneous co-exposure induced the highest mortality; up to 70.3±2% for a combined Beauveria and permethrin exposure within a time range of one gonotrophic cycle (4 days). Conclusions/Significance Combining fungi and permethrin induced a higher impact on mosquito survival than the use of these control agents alone. The observed synergism in efficacy shows the potential for integrated fungus-insecticide control measures to dramatically reduce malaria transmission and enable control at more moderate levels of coverage even in areas where insecticide resistance has rendered pyrethroids essentially ineffective

Infection of Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes with entomopathogenic fungi: effect of host age and blood-feeding status

Physiological characteristics of insects can influence their susceptibility to fungal infection of which age and nutritional status are among the most important. An understanding of host–pathogen interaction with respect to these physiological characteristics of the host is essential if we are to develop fungal formulations capable of reducing malaria transmission under field conditions. Here, two independent bioassays were conducted to study the effect of age and blood-feeding status on fungal infection and survival of Anopheles gambiae s.s. Giles. Mosquitoes were exposed to 2 × 1010 conidia m−2 of oil-formulated Metarhizium anisopliae ICIPE-30 and of Beauveria bassiana I93-825, respectively, and their survival was monitored daily. Three age groups of mosquitoes were exposed, 2–4, 5–8, and 9–12 days since emergence. Five groups of different feeding status were exposed: non-blood-fed, 3, 12, 36, and 72 h post-blood feeding. Fungal infection reduced the survival of mosquitoes regardless of their age and blood-feeding status. Although older mosquitoes died relatively earlier than younger ones, age did not tend to affect mosquito susceptibility to fungal infection. Non-blood-fed mosquitoes were more susceptible to fungus infection compared to all categories of blood-fed mosquitoes, except for those exposed to B. bassiana 72 h post-blood feeding. In conclusion, formulations of M. anisopliae and B. bassiana can equally affect mosquitoes of different age classes, with them being relatively more susceptible to fungus infection when non-blood-fed

Incontinence in Individuals with Rett Syndrome: A Comparative Study

Frequency and type of incontinence and its association with other variables were assessed in females with Rett Syndrome (RS) (n = 63), using an adapted Dutch version of the ‘Parental Questionnaire: Enuresis/Urinary Incontinence’ (Beetz et al. 1994). Also, incontinence in RS was compared to a control group consisting of females with non-specific (mixed) intellectual disability (n = 26). Urinary incontinence (UI) (i.e., daytime incontinence and nocturnal enuresis) and faecal incontinence (FI) were found to be common problems among females with RS that occur in a high frequency of days/nights. UI and FI were mostly primary in nature and occur independent of participants’ age and level of adaptive functioning. Solid stool, lower urinary tract symptoms and urinary tract infections (UTI’s) were also common problems in females with RS. No differences in incontinence between RS and the control group were found, except for solid stool that was more common in RS than in the control group. It is concluded that incontinence is not part of the behavioural phenotype of RS, but that there is an increased risk for solid stool in females with RS

Assessment of left ventricular volumes; reliable by gated SPECT?

Ventricular Dysfunction & Heart Failur

Lethal and Pre-Lethal Effects of a Fungal Biopesticide Contribute to Substantial and Rapid Control of Malaria Vectors

Rapidly emerging insecticide resistance is creating an urgent need for new active ingredients to control the adult mosquitoes that vector malaria. Biopesticides based on the spores of entomopathogenic fungi have shown considerable promise by causing very substantial mortality within 7–14 days of exposure. This mortality will generate excellent malaria control if there is a high likelihood that mosquitoes contact fungi early in their adult lives. However, where contact rates are lower, as might result from poor pesticide coverage, some mosquitoes will contact fungi one or more feeding cycles after they acquire malaria, and so risk transmitting malaria before the fungus kills them. Critics have argued that ‘slow acting’ fungal biopesticides are, therefore, incapable of delivering malaria control in real-world contexts. Here, utilizing standard WHO laboratory protocols, we demonstrate effective action of a biopesticide much faster than previously reported. Specifically, we show that transient exposure to clay tiles sprayed with a candidate biopesticide comprising spores of a natural isolate of Beauveria bassiana, could reduce malaria transmission potential to zero within a feeding cycle. The effect resulted from a combination of high mortality and rapid fungal-induced reduction in feeding and flight capacity. Additionally, multiple insecticide-resistant lines from three key African malaria vector species were completely susceptible to fungus. Thus, fungal biopesticides can block transmission on a par with chemical insecticides, and can achieve this where chemical insecticides have little impact. These results support broadening the current vector control paradigm beyond fast-acting chemical toxins

"I am becoming more and more like my eldest brother!": the relationship between older siblings, adolescent gambling severity, and the attenuating role of parents in a large-scale nationally representative survey study

The present study examined the association between having older siblings who gamble and adolescent at-risk/problem gambling and how parents (i.e., parental knowledge of their whereabouts) and peers might moderate such effects. Data were drawn from the ESPAD®Italia2012 survey (European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs) comprising a nationally representative Italian sample of adolescents. The analysis was carried out on a subsample of 10,063 Italian students aged 15–19 years (average age = 17.10; 55 % girls) who had at least one older sibling and who had gambled at some point in their lives. Respondents’ problem gambling severity, older gambler sibling, gambler peers, parental knowledge, and socio-demographic characteristics were individually assessed. Multinomial logistic regression analyses including two- and three-way interactions were conducted. The odds of being an at-risk/problem gambler were higher among high school students with older siblings that gambled and those with peers who gambled. Higher parental knowledge (of who the adolescent was with and where they were in their leisure time) was associated with lower rates of at-risk/problem gambling. There was also an interaction between gamblers with older siblings and parental knowledge. The combination of having siblings who gambled and a greater level of parental knowledge was associated with lower levels of problem gambling. The present study confirmed the occurrence of social risk processes (older siblings and peers who gambled) and demonstrated that gambling among older siblings and peers represents an important contextual factor for increased at-risk/problem gambling. However, parental knowledge appears to be sufficient to counterbalance the influence of older siblings

Assessment of risk of insect-resistant transgenic crops to nontarget arthropods

An international initiative is developing a scientifically rigorous approach to evaluate the potential risks to nontarget arthropods (NTAs) posed by insect-resistant, genetically modified (IRGM) crops. It adapts the tiered approach to risk assessment that is used internationally within regulatory toxicology and environmental sciences. The approach focuses on the formulation and testing of clearly stated risk hypotheses, making maximum use of available data and using formal decision guidelines to progress between testing stages (or tiers). It is intended to provide guidance to regulatory agencies that are currently developing their own NTA risk assessment guidelines for IRGM crops and to help harmonize regulatory requirements between different countries and different regions of the world