Defective Fluid Secretion from Submucosal Glands of Nasal Turbinates from CFTR-/- and CFTRΔF508/ΔF508 Pigs

Cystic fibrosis (CF), caused by reduced CFTR function, includes severe sinonasal disease which may predispose to lung disease. Newly developed CF pigs provide models to study the onset of CF pathophysiology. We asked if glands from pig nasal turbinates have secretory responses similar to those of tracheal glands and if CF nasal glands show reduced fluid secretion.Unexpectedly, we found that nasal glands differed from tracheal glands in five ways, being smaller, more numerous (density per airway surface area), more sensitive to carbachol, more sensitive to forskolin, and nonresponsive to Substance P (a potent agonist for pig tracheal glands). Nasal gland fluid secretion from newborn piglets (12 CF and 12 controls) in response to agonists was measured using digital imaging of mucus bubbles formed under oil. Secretion rates were significantly reduced in all conditions tested. Fluid secretory rates (Controls vs. CF, in pl/min/gland) were as follows: 3 µM forskolin: 9.2±2.2 vs. 0.6±0.3; 1 µM carbachol: 143.5±35.5 vs. 52.2±10.3; 3 µM forskolin + 0.1 µM carbachol: 25.8±5.8 vs. CF 4.5±0.9. We also compared CF(ΔF508/ΔF508) with CFTR(-/-) piglets and found significantly greater forskolin-stimulated secretion rates in the ΔF508 vs. the null piglets (1.4±0.8, n = 4 vs. 0.2±0.1, n = 7). An unexpected age effect was also discovered: the ratio of secretion to 3 µM forskolin vs. 1 µM carbachol was ∼4 times greater in adult than in neonatal nasal glands.These findings reveal differences between nasal and tracheal glands, show defective fluid secretion in nasal glands of CF pigs, reveal some spared function in the ΔF508 vs. null piglets, and show unexpected age-dependent differences. Reduced nasal gland fluid secretion may predispose to sinonasal and lung infections

Effectiveness of habitat management in the recovery of low-density populations of wild rabbit.

Understanding the relationship between spatial patterns of landscape attributes and population presence and abundance is essential for understanding population processes as well as supporting management and conservation strategies. This study evaluates the influence of three factors: environment, habitat management, and season on the presence and abundance of the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), an important prey species for Mediterranean endangered predator species. To address this issue, we estimated wild rabbit presence and abundance by latrine counting in transects located in 45 plots within a 250×250 m grid from June 2007 until June 2009 in a 1,200 ha hunting area in southern Portugal.We then analyzed how wild rabbit presence and abundance correlatewith the aforementioned factors. Our results showed that the main variable influencing wild rabbit presence and abundance was the distance to the artificial warrens. North and northeast slope directions were negatively related to wild rabbit presence. Conversely, rabbit presence was positively correlated with short distances to ecotone, artificial warrens, and spring. Regarding rabbit abundance, in addition to artificial warrens, soft soils, bushes, and season also had a positive effect. We found that environmental variables, management practices, and season each affect wild rabbit presence and abundance differently at a home range scale in low-density population. Thus, our major recommendations are reducing the distance to artificial warrens and ecotone, ideally to less than 100 m, and promoting habitat quality improvement on slopes with plenty of sun exposure

Laying the Foundations for a Human-Predator Conflict Solution: Assessing the Impact of Bonelli's Eagle on Rabbits and Partridges

BACKGROUND: Predation may potentially lead to negative effects on both prey (directly via predators) and predators (indirectly via human persecution). Predation pressure studies are, therefore, of major interest in the fields of theoretical knowledge and conservation of prey or predator species, with wide ramifications and profound implications in human-wildlife conflicts. However, detailed works on this issue in highly valuable--in conservation terms--Mediterranean ecosystems are virtually absent. This paper explores the predator-hunting conflict by examining a paradigmatic, Mediterranean-wide (endangered) predator-two prey (small game) system. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We estimated the predation impact ('kill rate' and 'predation rate', i.e., number of prey and proportion of the prey population eaten, respectively) of Bonelli's eagle Aquila fasciata on rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus and red-legged partridge Alectoris rufa populations in two seasons (the eagle's breeding and non-breeding periods, 100 days each) in SE Spain. The mean estimated kill rate by the seven eagle reproductive units in the study area was c. 304 rabbits and c. 262 partridges in the breeding season, and c. 237 rabbits and c. 121 partridges in the non-breeding period. This resulted in very low predation rates (range: 0.3-2.5%) for both prey and seasons. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The potential role of Bonelli's eagles as a limiting factor for rabbits and partridges at the population scale was very poor. The conflict between game profitability and conservation interest of either prey or predators is apparently very localised, and eagles, quarry species and game interests seem compatible in most of the study area. Currently, both the persecution and negative perception of Bonelli's eagle (the 'partridge-eating eagle' in Spanish) have a null theoretical basis in most of this area

Multilocus Genotyping of Human Giardia Isolates Suggests Limited Zoonotic Transmission and Association between Assemblage B and Flatulence in Children

Giardia intestinalis is a protozoan parasite found world-wide and it is a major cause of diarrhea in humans and other mammals. The genetic variability within G. intestinalis is high with eight distinct genotypes or assemblages (A-H). Here we performed sequence-based multilocus genotyping of around 200 human Giardia isolates. We found evidence of limited zoonotic transmission of certain A subtypes and an association between flatulence and assemblage B infection in children. This shows that it is important to investigate different assemblages and sub-assemblages of G. intestinalis in human infections in order to understand the clinical significance, zoonotic potential, sequence divergence, and transmission pathways of this parasite

An Overview of 9/11 Experiences and Respiratory and Mental Health Conditions among World Trade Center Health Registry Enrollees

http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/61276/1/farfel m, digrande l, brackbill r, galea s, overview of 9-11 experiences and respiratory and mental haelth conditions.pd

Density and climate effects on age-specific survival and population growth: consequences for hibernating mammals

The impact of factors such as density dependence, food availability and weather are known to be important for predicting population change in a wide range of species. However, a challenge in ecology is understanding the contributory and interactive role of these drivers on populations. This is necessary to design effective conservation and management strategies. Using data from long-term studies of five hazel dormouse Muscardinus avellanarius populations in Europe, we tested the relationship between population density and weather and their impact on demographic rates. We used an integrated population modelling approach, estimating age-specific overwinter survival, annual population growth and fecundity rates. We found strong negative effects of population density, precipitation and winter temperature on population growth rates. This suggests that warmer and wetter weather negatively affects dormouse survival for both adults and juveniles, but we found subtle differences in these effects between age classes. We also identified an interaction between weather measures and population density on age-specific survival, possibly as a result of weather impacts during hibernation. Although we found low winter temperature was positively associated with population growth, we found evidence consistent with density dependence. We discuss our results in the context of woodland habitat conservation management