Toxicity of oxalic acid on in vitro reared honeybee larvae

Varroa destructor is considered as a serious pest of honeybees (Apis mellifera) and its resistance to acaricides has been reported since the early 1990s. Because large colony loses are yearly reported from over the world, new methods of treatment for Varroa mites are still in focus of many scientists. In our bioassay, we determined the lethal concentration 72 h LC50 of 2.425% oxalic acid solution following single spray exposure of honeybee larvae under laboratory conditions (Guideline OECD 237, 2013).Varroa destructor is considered as a serious pest of honeybees (Apis mellifera) and its resistance to acaricides has been reported since the early 1990s. Because large colony loses are yearly reported from over the world, new methods of treatment for Varroa mites are still in focus of many scientists. In our bioassay, we determined the lethal concentration 72 h LC50 of 2.425% oxalic acid solution following single spray exposure of honeybee larvae under laboratory conditions (Guideline OECD 237, 2013)

The use of parasites as bioindicators of pesticide exposure

Organisms used in risk assessment of pesticides must be the most sensitive ones to pesticides exposure. The aim of this study was to observe the effect of two commercial pesticide products (containing glyphosate and tolylfluanid) to larval stages of parasites Cooperia curticei, Ostertagia circumcincta, Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus axei. There were two concentrations tested for each product vs. control group. Larvae (500 individuals/Petri dish) were incubated at 27 °C and observed daily for 42 days

Zur Problematik der schreibenden Frauen um 1800

In der zweiten Hälfte des 18. Jahrhunderts entwickeln sich in der neu etablierten Kulturgesellschaft moderne Denk- und Wertvorstellungen, die um 1800 in umfassenden Systemen geordnet, bis weit in unser Jahrhundert hinein als allgemeingültig anerkannt und tradiert werden. Eine der kontroversen Themen dieser Zeit bildet auch die Problematik der (Un-)Mündigkeit und Geschlechtsvormundschaft der Frauen. Gerade in diesem Zeitraum wird die bereits seit dem 16. Jahrhundert tradierte Domestikation der Frauen als freiwillig idealisiert, was zur Unmündigkeit als "Einschätzungsmuster des Weiblichen" führte. Weiter wird danach getrachtet, das uralte, biblische Gegenverhältnis beider Geschlechter aufrechtzuerhalten, ja sogar noch stärker zu festigen. Die Frauen werden infolgedessen auf einen Sonderweg verwiesen, weil in der zeitgenössischen Anthropologie und Philosophie mit dem Individuum, das für seine Naturrechte auf Freiheit, Gleichheit und Brüderlichkeit kämpft, nur der Mann, genauer der Bürger gemeint war. "Ausdrücklich wird sie [die Frau] zur beruflichen und politischen Unmündigkeit (Unselbstständigkeit als Person) in der androzentrischen Gesellschaft bestimmt, was für ihre Mündigkeit sowie ihre außerfamiliäre, kulturschaffende Tätigkeit weitreichende Konsequenzen hat.

[Rezension zu:] Kozmová, Ružena/Drinková, Daniela/Miklošíková, Viera/Demčišák, Ján: IDIAL. Deutsch im interkulturellen Dialog. – Plovdiv: Lettera Verlag, 2009

Das 2009 erschienene Lehrwerk für Deutsch als Fremdsprache IDIAL. Deutsch im interkulturellen Dialog ist im Rahmen eines gleichnamigen internationalen Projektes entstanden, das von der Europäischen Union im Rahmen des Bildungsprogramms "Lebenslanges Lernen" gefördert und parallel in mehreren Staaten Europas durchgeführt wurde. An dem Projekt beteiligt waren Schulen und Institutionen aus Deutschland sowie germanistische Abteilungen polnischer, slowakischer und bulgarischer Universitäten und Hochschulen. Wie der Titel bereits verrät (Interkultureller DIALog), reflektieret das Lehrwerk die steigende Notwendigkeit des interkulturellen Lernens im europäischen, also sprachenvielfältigen Raum, in dem die Interaktion zwischen den Kulturen die Voraussetzung für einen zufrieden stellenden Austausch zwischen Menschen aus verschiedenen Kulturen darstellt. Das Lehrbuch des slowakischen Teams zielt also nicht nur darauf, die Fremdsprache zu vermitteln und die Deutschkenntnisse der Lernenden zu vertiefen, sondern bietet einen Austausch zwischen der Eigenkultur und der Fremdkultur, wodurch die interkulturelle Kompetenz der Lernenden entwickelt bzw. weiterentwickelt wird. Das Lehrwerk richtet sich an Studierende der Stufe B2 des Europäischen Referenzrahmens und die ersten positiven Erfahrungen an Hochschulen bestätigen, dass sowohl das Gesamtkonzept erfolgreich verfolgt als auch die partiellen Ziele, die das Buch verfolgt, erfolgreich erreicht werden können

Body Characteristic of Drones of Different Origin

Computer-based methods help beekeepers and scientists in apidology and bee research. Using software Optika Vision Pro in this study, three body morphological characteristics has been applied to honeybees’ drones (Apis mellifera carnica) of different origin in identification of difference among them. All three measured body morphological characteristics (body length, forewing length, and head length) were statistically different between drones originated from colonies with mated queens and drones originated from colonies with unfertilised queen and/or with unfertilised worker bee(s), respectively, thus making them potentially more successful in queen fertilization and secondary colony development and productivity

Environmental and societal factors associated with COVID-19-related death in people with rheumatic disease: an observational study

Published by Elsevier Ltd.Background: Differences in the distribution of individual-level clinical risk factors across regions do not fully explain the observed global disparities in COVID-19 outcomes. We aimed to investigate the associations between environmental and societal factors and country-level variations in mortality attributed to COVID-19 among people with rheumatic disease globally. Methods: In this observational study, we derived individual-level data on adults (aged 18-99 years) with rheumatic disease and a confirmed status of their highest COVID-19 severity level from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance (GRA) registry, collected between March 12, 2020, and Aug 27, 2021. Environmental and societal factors were obtained from publicly available sources. The primary endpoint was mortality attributed to COVID-19. We used a multivariable logistic regression to evaluate independent associations between environmental and societal factors and death, after controlling for individual-level risk factors. We used a series of nested mixed-effects models to establish whether environmental and societal factors sufficiently explained country-level variations in death. Findings: 14 044 patients from 23 countries were included in the analyses. 10 178 (72·5%) individuals were female and 3866 (27·5%) were male, with a mean age of 54·4 years (SD 15·6). Air pollution (odds ratio 1·10 per 10 μg/m3 [95% CI 1·01-1·17]; p=0·0105), proportion of the population aged 65 years or older (1·19 per 1% increase [1·10-1·30]; p<0·0001), and population mobility (1·03 per 1% increase in number of visits to grocery and pharmacy stores [1·02-1·05]; p<0·0001 and 1·02 per 1% increase in number of visits to workplaces [1·00-1·03]; p=0·032) were independently associated with higher odds of mortality. Number of hospital beds (0·94 per 1-unit increase per 1000 people [0·88-1·00]; p=0·046), human development index (0·65 per 0·1-unit increase [0·44-0·96]; p=0·032), government response stringency (0·83 per 10-unit increase in containment index [0·74-0·93]; p=0·0018), as well as follow-up time (0·78 per month [0·69-0·88]; p<0·0001) were independently associated with lower odds of mortality. These factors sufficiently explained country-level variations in death attributable to COVID-19 (intraclass correlation coefficient 1·2% [0·1-9·5]; p=0·14). Interpretation: Our findings highlight the importance of environmental and societal factors as potential explanations of the observed regional disparities in COVID-19 outcomes among people with rheumatic disease and lay foundation for a new research agenda to address these disparities.MAG is supported by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (grant numbers K01 AR070585 and K24 AR074534 [JY]). KDW is supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Rheumatology Research Foundation Scientist Development award. JAS is supported by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (grant numbers K23 AR069688, R03 AR075886, L30 AR066953, P30 AR070253, and P30 AR072577), the Rheumatology Research Foundation (K Supplement Award and R Bridge Award), the Brigham Research Institute, and the R. Bruce and Joan M. Mickey Research Scholar Fund. NJP is supported by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (T32-AR-007258). AD-G is supported by grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Rheumatology Research Foundation. RH was supported by the Justus-Liebig University Giessen Clinician Scientist Program in Biomedical Research to work on this registry. JY is supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (K24 AR074534 and P30 AR070155).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio