Trematodes from the Cave Bat. Myotis Sodalis Miller and Allen

Author Institution: Department of Zoology and Entomology, The Ohio State University, Columbus 1

Metagonimoides Oregonensis Price, 1931 Occurring in Ohio Raccoons (Trematoda: Heterophyidae)

Author Institution: Science Department, Waynesburg College, Waynesburg, Pa. ; Science Division, Southern Illinois University, Alto

Effect of Allyl Isothiocyanate on Developmental Toxicity in Exposed Xenopus Laevis Embryos

The pungent natural compound allyl isothiocyanate isolated from the seeds of Cru-ciferous (Brassica) plants such as mustard is reported to exhibit numerous beneficialhealth-promoting antimicrobial, antifungal, anticarcinogenic, cardioprotective, and neu-roprotective properties. Because it is also reported to damage DNA and is toxic to aquaticorganisms, the objective of the present study was to determine whether it possesses tera-togenic properties. The frog embryo teratogenesis assay-Xenopus (FETAX) was used todetermine the following measures of developmental toxicity of the allyl isothiocyanate:(a) 96-h LC50, defined as the median concentration causing 50% embryo lethality; (b) 96-h EC50, defined as the median concentration causing 50% malformations of the survivingembryos; and (c) teratogenic malformation index (TI), equal to 96-h LC50/96-h EC50. Thequantitative results and the photographs of embryos before and after exposure suggest thatallyl isothiocyanate seems to exhibit moderate teratogenic properties. The results also indi-cate differences in the toxicity of allyl isothiocyanate toward exposed embryos observedin the present study compared to reported adverse effects of allyl isothiocyanate in fish,rodents, and humans. The significance of the results for food safety and possible approachesto protect against adverse effects of allyl isothiocyanate are discussed

Photometric Monitoring of the Gravitationally Lensed Ultraluminous BAL Quasar APM08279+5255

We report on one year of photometric monitoring of the ultraluminous BAL quasar APM 08279+5255. The temporal sampling reveals that this gravitationally lensed system has brightened by ~0.2 mag in 100 days. Two potential causes present themselves; either the variability is intrinsic to the quasar, or it is the result of microlensing by stars in a foreground system. The data is consistent with both hypotheses and further monitoring is required before either case can be conclusively confirmed. We demonstrate, however, that gravitational microlensing can not play a dominant role in explaining the phenomenal properties exhibited by APM 08279+5255. The identification of intrinsic variability, coupled with the simple gravitational lensing configuration, would suggest that APM 08279+5255 is a potential golden lens from which the cosmological parameters can be derived and is worthy of a monitoring program at high spatial resolution.Comment: 17 pages, with 2 figures. Accepted for publication in P.A.S.

The Inter-Rater Consistency of Clinician Ratings of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Therapy Content.

Effective communication between clinicians is essential for the success of mental health interventions in multidisciplinary contexts. This relies on a shared understanding of concepts, diagnoses and treatments. A major assumption of clinicians when discussing psychological treatments with each other is that both parties have a shared understanding of the theory, rationale and application of the respective technique. We aimed to determine to what extent there is inter-rater agreement between clinicians in describing the content of group therapy sessions. Pairs of clinicians, drawn from a large multidisciplinary team (13), were asked to provide ratings of the therapeutic content and emphasis of N = 154 group therapy sessions conducted during an intensive residential treatment program for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In most therapeutic content domains there was a moderate level of agreement between clinicians regarding session content (Cohen's Kappa 0.4 to 0.6), suggesting that clinicians have a broad shared understanding of therapeutic content, but that there are also frequent discordant understandings. The implications of these findings on multidisciplinary team communication, patient care and clinical handovers are discussed and directions for further research are outlined

Laboratory And Field Assessment Of Some Kairomone Blends For Host-Seeking \u3ci\u3eAedes Aegypti\u3c/i\u3e

Using laboratory Y-tube olfactometers, the attractiveness of lactic acid and 2 kairomone blends from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and BioGents GmbH (BG) was assessed for attractiveness to Aedes aegypti. Four geographically disparate populations were assessed: North Queensland Australia (NQA), Florida USA, Minas Gerais Brazil (MGB), and Singapore. In descending order, populations were attracted to USE)A, BG blends, and lactic acid. MGB was poorly attracted to lactic acid alone. The blends were less attractive than human odor. Proprietary blends were modified, and their attractiveness was assessed to find the optimum attractive mixture for NQA. Adding acetone to BG, and ammonia and caproic acid to USDA, improved attractiveness in the laboratory. Field attractiveness was assessed by coupling the blends with a newly developed BG-Sentinel Ae. aegypti trap. Trials were carried out using the BG blend, BG blend plus acetone, USDA blend, USDA blend plus ammonia and caproic acid, and a control trap with no kairomones. The traps were highly effective, with mean 24-h collections up to 11.15 Ae. aegypti per trap, and this species made up 91.7% of collections. However, the effectiveness of the unbaited control trap indicated that the BG-Sentinel has visual attractive properties for Ae. aegypti and that the kairomone lures added little to trap performance in NQA