Parasitos de brânquias de Sardinella brasiliensis de 3 diferentes origens no litoral de Santa Catarina, Brasil

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Centro de Ciências Agrárias. Curso de Engenharia de Aquicultura.A sardinha verdadeira, Sardinella brasiliensis (Teleostei:Clupeidae) é de grande importância econômica na indústria pesqueira do Brasil. Atualmente é classificada entre as principais espécies pescadas no país. A finalidade de sua pesca é voltada para o consumo humano e para continuação da cadeia produtiva da pesca de tunídeos, a qual utiliza juvenis de S. brasilliensis como isca viva. A ação intensiva da pesca tem como resultado diminuição dos estoques naturais da sardinha verdadeira. Para auxiliar na conservação desta espécie e ter melhor compreensão da biodiversidade local, um conhecimento na fauna parasitaria da sardinha verdadeira é importante. Estudos parasitológicos específicos para esta espécie são atualmente escassos. O presente estudo teve o objetivo de identificar ectoparasitos nas brânquias de S. brasiliensis em diferentes regiões do Estado de Santa Catarina, Brasil. Foram analisados 90 exemplares de sardinha verdadeira coletados em três diferentes pontos: A) Tanque de engorda em ambiente controlado, Laboratório de Piscicultura Marinha/Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; B) Cultivo em tanque-rede na área da Enseada da Armação de Itapocoroi, município de Penha; e C) Zona Costeira de Itajaí. Arcos brânquiais mantidos em formalina 5% foram observadas com a utilização do estereomicroscópio. Parasitos identificados incluiram representantes: Cribomazocraes sp. (Monogenea), crustáceos Isópodes e Clavellisa ilishae (Copepoda : Lernaeopodidae). Espécimes de sardinha verdadeira provenientes do local A não apresentaram ectoparasitos brânquiais. Peixeis capturados no local B apresentaram isópodes com prevalência (P) de 6,7%. A maior diversidade parasitária foi observada nas brânquias dos peixes selvagens capturados no local C, sendo encontrados Isópodes e Cribomazocraes sp. ambos com P = 3,33%; e C. ilishae com P = 30%. Este é o primeiro registro de Cribomazocraes sp. parasitando S. brasiliensis, sendo também o primeiro relato de Cribomazocraes sp. e C. ilishae no estado de Santa Catarina, Brasil.The Sardinella brasiliensis (Teleostei:Clupeidae) presents great economic importance to fisheries industry in Brazil. Herrings occupy the first place on the national ranking of captured-fisheries species. Resources are used either for human consume or as an important element in Tunas fishing chain, where juveniles serve as live baits. Overfishing has led to a decrease of S. brasiliensis natural stocks. Therefore, there is a need to increase studies that evaluate aquaculture characteristics for this specie, including those of sanitary and parasitological nature. During the period from March to May 2014, 90 specimens of S. brasiliensis were collected in 3 different areas of Santa Catarina state, Brazil, for identification of gill ectoparasites. Collecting areas presented distinct characteristics: A) filtered water system tank in Marine Fish Laboratory - Federal University of Santa Catarina; B) Net-cage located in Enseada da Armação do Itapocoroi, Penha/SC; and C) Wild fish from costal zone. Parasites found in the gills were identified as Isopodes, Cribomazocraes sp (Monogenea). and Clavellisa ilishae (Copepoda: Lernaeopodidae). Animals from controlled conditions (local A) did not present gill parasites. Specimies of S. brasiliensis collected from local B presented low prevalence (P) and diversity of parasites, Isopod crustaceans were identified with P = 6.7%. Fish collected from the coastal zone presented the most diverse parasite fauna, composed by Isopodes, Cribomazocraes sp., both with P = 3,33% and C. ilishae P = 30%. This is the first record of Cribomazocraes sp. parasiting S. brasiliensis in Brazil, and the first record of Cribomazocraes sp. and Clavellisa ilishae in the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil

The Risk of Adverse Events Associated With Atropine Administration During Dobutamine Stress Echocardiography in Cardiac Transplant Patients: A 28-Year Single-Center Experience

Background Although dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) is performed in heart transplant patients, the safety profile of atropine administration in DSE in this setting is unclear. Methods and Results We identified heart transplant patients who received atropine during DSE from January 1984 to August 2011 at our institution and compared them with a propensity-scored matched control group of heart transplant patients who underwent DSE without atropine. Adverse events were defined as significant arrhythmias (sinus arrest, Mobitz type II heart block, complete heart block, ventricular tachycardia, or ventricular fibrillation), hypotension requiring hospitalization, syncope or presyncope, myocardial infarction, and death. Forty-five heart transplant patients (median age 62 years, 82% male) received 0.2–1 mg atropine during DSE. Of these, 1 patient (2.2%) developed temporary complete heart block. No adverse events were identified in the control group of 154 patients who received dobutamine without atropine. Conclusions Our findings suggest that complete heart block can occur infrequently with the administration of atropine in heart transplant patients undergoing DSE. Therefore, patients should be appropriately monitored for these adverse events during and after DSE

Coatings of different carbon nanotubes on platinum electrodes for neuronal devices: Preparation, cytocompatibility and interaction with spiral ganglion cells

Cochlear and deep brain implants are prominent examples for neuronal prostheses with clinical relevance. Current research focuses on the improvement of the long-term functionality and the size reduction of neural interface electrodes. A promising approach is the application of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), either as pure electrodes but especially as coating material for electrodes. The interaction of CNTs with neuronal cells has shown promising results in various studies, but these appear to depend on the specific type of neurons as well as on the kind of nanotubes. To evaluate a potential application of carbon nanotube coatings for cochlear electrodes, it is necessary to investigate the cytocompatibility of carbon nanotube coatings on platinum for the specific type of neuron in the inner ear, namely spiral ganglion neurons. In this study we have combined the chemical processing of as-delivered CNTs, the fabrication of coatings on platinum, and the characterization of the electrical properties of the coatings as well as a general cytocompatibility testing and the first cell culture investigations of CNTs with spiral ganglion neurons. By applying a modification process to three different as-received CNTs via a reflux treatment with nitric acid, long-term stable aqueous CNT dispersions free of dispersing agents were obtained. These were used to coat platinum substrates by an automated spray-coating process. These coatings enhance the electrical properties of platinum electrodes, decreasing the impedance values and raising the capacitances. Cell culture investigations of the different CNT coatings on platinum with NIH3T3 fibroblasts attest an overall good cytocompatibility of these coatings. For spiral ganglion neurons, this can also be observed but a desired positive effect of the CNTs on the neurons is absent. Furthermore, we found that the well-established DAPI staining assay does not function on the coatings prepared from single-wall nanotubes. © 2016 Burblies et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.DFG/EXC 1077/1 “Hearing4all

Real time magnetic resonance assessment of septal curvature accurately tracks acute hemodynamic changes in pediatric pulmonary hypertension

International audienceBACKGROUND:This study assesses the relationship between septal curvature and mean pulmonary artery pressure and indexed pulmonary vascular resistance in children with pulmonary hypertension. We hypothesized that septal curvature could be used to estimate right ventricular afterload and track acute changes in pulmonary hemodynamics.METHODS AND RESULTS:Fifty patients with a median age of 6.7 years (range, 0.45-16.5 years) underwent combined cardiac catheterization and cardiovascular magnetic resonance. The majority had idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (n=30); the remaining patients had pulmonary hypertension associated with repaired congenital heart disease (n=17) or lung disease (n=3). Mean pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance were acquired at baseline and during vasodilation. Septal curvature was measured using real-time cardiovascular magnetic resonance. There was a strong correlation between mean pulmonary artery pressure and SCmin at baseline and during vasodilator testing (r=-0.81 and -0.85, respectively; P<0.01). A strong linear relationship also existed between pulmonary vascular resistance and minimum septal curvature indexed to cardiac output both at baseline and during vasodilator testing (r=-0.88 and -0.87, respectively; P<0.01). Change in septal curvature metrics moderately correlated with absolute change in mean pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance, respectively (r=0.58 and -0.74; P<0.01). Septal curvature metrics were able to identify vasoresponders with a sensitivity of 83% (95% confidence interval, 0.36-0.99) and a specificity of 91% (95% confidence interval, 0.77-0.97), using the Sitbon criteria. Idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension subgroup analysis revealed 3 responders with ΔSCmin values of 0.523, 0.551, and 0.568. If the middle value of 0.551 is taken as a cutoff, the approximate sensitivity would be 67% and the specificity would be 93%.CONCLUSIONS:Septal curvature metrics are able to estimate right ventricular afterload and track acute changes in pulmonary hemodynamics during vasodilator testing. This suggests that septal curvature could be used for continuing assessment of load in pulmonary hypertension

High Calcification Costs Limit Mussel Growth at Low Salinity

In coastal temperate regions such as the Baltic Sea, calcifying bivalves dominate benthic communities playing a vital ecological role in maintaining biodiversity and nutrient recycling. At low salinities, bivalves exhibit reduced growth and calcification rates which is thought to result from physiological constraints associated with osmotic stress. Calcification demands a considerable amount of energy in calcifying molluscs and estuarine habitats provide sub-optimal conditions for calcification due to low concentrations of calcification substrates and large variations in carbonate chemistry. Therefore, we hypothesize that slow growth rates in estuarine bivalves result from increased costs of calcification, rather than costs associated with osmotic stress. To investigate this, we estimated the cost of calcification for the first time in benthic bivalve life stages and the relative energy allocation to calcification in three Mytilus populations along the Baltic salinity gradient. Our results indicate that calcification rates are significantly reduced only in 6 psu populations compared to 11 and 16 psu populations, coinciding with ca. 2–3-fold higher calcification costs at low salinity and temperature. This suggests that reduced growth of Baltic Mytilus at low salinities results from increased calcification costs rather than osmotic stress related costs. We also reveal that shell growth (both calcification and shell organic production) demands 31–60% of available assimilated energy from food, which is significantly higher than previous estimates. Energetically expensive calcification represents a major constraint on growth of mytilids in the estuarine and coastal seas where warming, acidification and desalination are predicted over the next century

Ireland's Rejection of the Lisbon Treaty and the EU's Impasse.

non

Dynamic three-dimensional computed tomographic imaging facilitates evaluation of the equine cervical articular process joint in motion

Background Dynamic computed tomography (CT) imaging has been introduced in human orthopaedics and is continuing to gain popularity. With dynamic CT, video sequences of anatomical structures can be evaluated in motion. Objectives To investigate the feasibility of dynamic CT for diagnostic imaging of the equine cervical articular process joints (APJs) and to give a detailed description of the APJ movement pattern. Study design Descriptive cadaver imaging. Methods Cervical specimens of twelve Warmblood horses were included. A custom-made motorised testing device was used to position and manipulate the neck specimens and perform dynamic 2D and 3D CT imaging. Images were obtained with a 320-detector-row CT scanner with a 160 mm wide-area (2D) solid-state detector design that allows image acquisition of a volumetric axial length of 160 mm without moving the CT couch. Dynamic videos were acquired and divided into four phases of movement. Three blinded observers used a subjective scale of 1 (excellent) to 4 (poor) to grade the overall image quality in each phases of motion cycle. Results With an overall median score of 1 the image quality, a significantly lower score was observed in the dynamic 3D videos over the four phases by the three observers compared with the 2D videos for both flexion (3D 95% CI: 1-2 and 2D 95% CI: 1-3; P = .007) and extension movement (3D 95% CI: 1-2 and 2D 95% CI: 1-3; P = .008). Median Translational displacement of the APJ surface was significantly greater in flexion than in extension movement (P = .002). Main limitations The small number of specimens included. Excision of spines and removal of musculature. Conclusions The study is a first step in the investigation of the potential of dynamic 3D CT in veterinary medicine, a technique that has only begun to be explored and leaves much room for refinement prior to its introduction in routine practice. CT with a detector coverage of 16 cm and a rotation speed of 0.32 seconds provides high-quality images of moving objects and gives new insight into the movement pattern of equine cervical APJs

Functional Characterization of HLA-G+ Regulatory T Cells in HIV-1 Infection

Regulatory T cells represent a specialized subpopulation of T lymphocytes that may modulate spontaneous HIV-1 disease progression by suppressing immune activation or inhibiting antiviral T cell immune responses. While the effects of classical CD25hi FoxP3+ Treg during HIV-1 infection have been analyzed in a series of recent investigations, very little is known about the role of non-classical regulatory T cells that can be phenotypically identified by surface expression of HLA-G or the TGF-β latency-associated peptide (LAP). Here, we show that non-classical HLA-G-expressing CD4 Treg are highly susceptible to HIV-1 infection and significantly reduced in persons with progressive HIV-1 disease courses. Moreover, the proportion of HLA-G+ CD4 and CD8 T cells was inversely correlated to markers of HIV-1 associated immune activation. Mechanistically, this corresponded to an increased ability of HLA-G+ Treg to reduce bystander immune activation, while only minimally inhibiting the functional properties of HIV-1-specific T cells. Frequencies of LAP+ CD4 Treg were not significantly reduced in HIV-1 infection, and unrelated to immune activation. These data indicate an important role of HLA-G+ Treg for balancing bystander immune activation and anti-viral immune activity in HIV-1 infection and suggest that the loss of these cells during advanced HIV-1 infection may contribute to immune dysregulation and HIV-1 disease progression

Heilende Implantate : Kontrollierte Wirkstoff-Freisetzung von Hör-Prothesen

Medikamente können dazu beitragen, dass ein Cochlea-Implantat im Ohr des Patienten besser funktioniert. Daher arbeiten Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler vom Institut für Anorganische Chemie sowie der Klinik für Hals-, Nasen-, Ohrenheilkunde an der Medizinischen Hoch-schule Hannover (MHH) gemeinsam an einer lokalen und kontrollierten Wirkstoff-Freisetzung, die direkt vom Implantat ausgeht