A lack of Wolbachia-specific DNA in samples from apollo butterfly (Parnassius apollo, Lepidoptera : papilionidae) individuals with deformed or reduced wings

Various insects contain maternally inherited endosymbiotic bacteria which can cause reproductive alterations, modulation of some physiological responses (like immunity, heat shock response, and oxidative stress response), and resistance to viral infections. In butterflies, Wolbachia sp. is the most frequent endosymbiont from this group, occurring in about 30 % of species tested to date. In this report, the presence of Wolbachia-specific DNA has been detected in apollo butterfly (Parnassius apollo). In the isolated population of this insect occurring in Pieniny National Park (Poland), malformed individuals with deformed or reduced wings appear with an exceptionally high frequency. Interestingly, while total DNA isolated from most (about 85 %) normal insects contained Wolbachia-specific sequences detected by PCR, such sequences were absent in a large fraction (70 %) of individuals with deformed wings and in all tested individuals with reduced wings. These results indicate for the first time the correlation between malformation of wings and the absence of Wolbachia sp. in insects. Although the lack of the endosymbiotic bacteria cannot be considered as the sole cause of the deformation or reduction of wings, one might suggest that Wolbachia sp. could play a protective role in the ontogenetic development of apollo butterfly

Detection of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis in Apollo Butterfly (Parnassius apollo, Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) Individuals from a Small, Isolated, Mountain Population

Yersinia pseudotuberculosis is a bacterium pathogenic to humans and other mammals; however, its insecticidal activity has also been documented in laboratory studies. A small population of Apollo butterfly (Parnassius apollo), reconstituted from less than 30 individuals in 1990s, occurs in Pieniny National Park (Poland). In this report, we demonstrate that a DNA fragment specific to Y. pseudotuberculosis could be detected in 40% of biological samples isolated from insects belonging to the Apollo butterfly population. Although Y. pseudotuberculosis DNA occurred in both normal and malformed insects, the difference between the fractions of infected individuals was statistically significant (p = 0.044 in the Fisher\u27s exact test). No such DNA could be detected in analogous samples from other butterflies (Pieris napi, Pieris rapae, and Zerynthia polyxena) occurring in separate habitats (either a meadow near the city of Cracow, Poland, or in a mountain region of Greece). It is suggested that infection with Y. pseudotuberculosis might weaken the general condition of the P. apollo population from Pieniny and contribute to the appearance of developmental abnormalities of the butterflies. Thus, it appears that Y. pseudotuberculosis infections of insects may be of biological significance in natural environment

Wykrywanie obecności genomu rynowirusa w popłuczynach nosowych u chorych na astmę

Human rhinoviruses (HRV) are one of the nine genera belonging to a large family of Picornaviridae. They are responsible for the most cases of common cold, as well as one third to one half of upper respiratory tract (URT) infections. However, HRV are also associated with more severe illnesses, like acute otitis media, sinusitis and some lower respiratory tract diseases such as pneumonia, wheezing in children and exacerbations of asthma. Viral infections are associated with the majority of asthma exacerbations both in children (80-85%) and adults (75-80%), and about 60% of these are caused by HRV. However, the exact mechanism of HRV-induced exacerbations of the disease is not well understood, which makes it difficult to establish the effective treatment. There have already been many attempts to develop a sensitive and specific method of HRV detection in clinical samples. Some of them were based on virus cultures followed by acid lability test, whereas others implemented the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and amplification of conserved sequences of the rhinoviral genome. As numerous of these sequences are common to both rhinoviruses and enteroviruses (EVs), further analyses were necessary, which made those methods laborious, time-consuming and too difficult to use in routine diagnostics. Steininger et al. established an RT-PCR based sensitive and specific method of rhinovirus detection in clinical samples, which was tested to amplify 87 different tissue-culture-grown serotypes of HRV. The aim of this study was to evaluate a modified RT-PCR based method of HRV detection in clinical samples obtained from patients with asthma exacerbaions. We collected 41 nasal lavages from patients with asthma exacerbations who received hospital treatment either following an admission or in an out-patient clinic. HRV was found in 22 cases (54%), which corresponded well with the published data

The genetic evidence for human origin of Jivaroan shrunken heads in collections from the Polish museums

Advances in forensic identification using molecular genetics are helpful in resolving some historical mysteries. The aim of this study was to confirm the authenticity of shrunken-head artifacts exhibited by two Polish museums. Shrunken heads, known as tsantsas, were headhunting trophies of South American Indians (Jivaroan). A special preparation preserved their hair and facial appearance. However, it was quite common to offer counterfeit shrunken heads of sloths or monkeys to collectors of curiosities. We sampled small skin specimens of four shrunken-head skin from the museum collection from Warsaw and Krakow, Poland. Following genomic DNA isolation, highly polymorphic short tandem repeats were genotyped using a commercial chemistry and DNA sequencing analyzer. Haplogroups of human Y chromosome were identified. We obtained an informative genetic profile of genomic short tandem repeats from all the samples of shrunken heads. Moreover, amplification of amelogenin loci allowed for sex determination. All four studied shrunken heads were of human origin. In two ones, a shared Y-chromosome haplogroup Q characteristic for Indigenous Americans was detected. Another artifact was counterfeited because Y-chromosome haplogroup I2 was found, characteristic for the Southeastern European origin. Commercial genetic methods of identification can be applied successfully in studies on the origin and authenticity of some unusual collection items

Urinary 11-dehydro-thromboxane B_{2} as a predictor of acute myocardial infarction outcomes : results of leukotrienes and thromboxane in myocardial infarction (LTIMI) study

BACKGROUND: Urinary 11‐dehydro‐thromboxane (TX)B(2) has been described as a potential predictive biomarker of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in high cardiac risk patients. This part of LTIMI (Leukotrienes and Thromboxane In Myocardial Infarction) study aimed to evaluate the relationship between 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) and MACEs in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS AND RESULTS: LTIMI was an observational, prospective study in 180 consecutive patients with AMI type 1 referred for primary percutaneous coronary intervention. On admission and at follow‐up visits (1 month, 1 year), 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) was measured in urinary samples by using high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. The primary outcome was occurrence of composite MACEs during 1‐year after AMI. Left ventricular ejection fraction was assessed in echocardiography on admission and at 1‐year follow‐up. Analyses of 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) (pg/mg creatinine) were performed on log‐transformed data and expressed as median with IQR (Q1–Q3). 11‐Dehydro‐TXB (2) level on admission was 7.39 (6.85–8.01) and decreased at 1 month (6.73, 6.27–7.12; P<0.001) and 1‐year follow‐up (6.37, 5.91–6.94; P<0.001). In univariate analysis, baseline 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) was higher in patients with MACEs (n=60; 7.73, 7.07–8.60) compared with those without MACEs (n=119; 7.28, 6.68–7.79; P=0.002). In multivariate regression model, 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) and 3 other variables (diabetes, multivessel disease, and left ventricular ejection fraction) were found to be best 1‐year cumulative MACE predictors with odds ratio for 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) of 1.58 (95% CI 1.095–2.33; P=0.017) and area under the curve (in receiver operating characteristic analysis of 0.8). Baseline 11‐dehydro‐TXB (2) negatively correlated with both left ventricular ejection fraction on admission (R=−0.21; P=0.006) and after 1 year (R=−0.346; P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: 11‐Dehydro‐TXB (2) predicts 1‐year cumulative MACEs in AMI patients and provides prognostic information on the left ventricular performance