Effects of timber harvest on phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in a production forest: abundance of species on tree trunks and prevalence of trypanosomatids

The Amazon forest is being exploited for timber production. The harvest removes trees, used by sand flies as resting sites, and decreases the canopy, used as refuges by some hosts. The present study evaluated the impact of the timber harvest, the abundance of sand flies, and their trypanosomatid infection rates before and after selective logging. The study was accomplished in terra-firme production forest in an area of timber harvest, state of Amazonas, Brazil. Sand fly catches were carried out in three areas: one before and after the timber harvest, and two control areas, a nature preservation area and a previously exploited area. The flies were caught by aspiration on tree trunks. Samples of sand flies were dissected for parasitological examination. In the site that suffered a harvest, a larger number of individuals was caught before the selective extraction of timber, showing significant difference in relation to the number of individuals and their flagellate infection rates after the logging. The other two areas did not show differences among their sand fly populations. This fact is suggestive of a fauna sensitive to the environmental alterations associated with selective logging.

Detection of human growth hormone doping in urine: out of competition tests are necessary.

The misuse of human growth hormone (hGH) in sport is deemed to be unethical and dangerous because of various adverse effects. Thus, it has been added to the International Olympic Committee list of banned substances. Until now, the very low concentration of hGH in the urine made its measurement difficult using classical methodology. Indeed, for routine diagnosis, only plasma measurements were available. However, unlike blood samples, urine is generally provided in abundant quantities and is, at present, the only body fluid allowed to be analysed in sport doping controls. A recently developed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Norditest) makes it now possible, without any extraction, to measure urinary hGH (u-hGH) in a dynamic range of 2-50 ng hGH/l. In our protocol, untreated and treated non-athlete volunteers were followed. Some of them received therapeutical doses of recombinant hGH (Norditropin) for one week either intramuscularly (three increasing doses) or subcutaneously (12 i.u. every day). The u-hGH excretion after treatment showed dramatic increases of 50-100 times the basal values and returned to almost the mean normal level after 24 h. u-hGH was also measured in samples provided by the anti-doping controls at major and minor competitions. Depending on the type of efforts made during the competition, the hGH concentration in urine was dramatically increased. Insulin-like growth factor binding proteins and beta 2-microglobulins in urine and/or in blood could be necessary for the correct investigation of any hGH doping test procedure.

Antibacterial and antifungal activity of extracts and exudates of the Amazonian medicinal tree Himatanthus articulatus (Vahl) Woodson (common name: sucuba)

Himatanthus articulatus (Vahl) Woodson is a tree found in the northern Amazon savannahs (common name: sucuba) that is used in local Amerindian medicine. Leaf, bark and branch wood methanol extracts, sequentially obtained hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts and latex were evaluated for antifungal and antibacterial activities against American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) and local clinical strains using the disc diffusion method. Methanol extracts and latex inhibited Candida albicans, leaf methanol extracts inhibited Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis and bark methanol extracts inhibited B. subtilis. Active extracts inhibited the ATCC and clinical strains. Polar antifungal and antibacterial principles in latex and extracts are thought to be responsible for the inhibition.

Consumption and portion sizes of tree nuts, peanuts and seeds in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohorts from 10 European countries

Tree nuts, peanuts and seeds are nutrient dense foods whose intake has been shown to be associated with reduced risk of some chronic diseases. They are regularly consumed in European diets either as whole, in spreads or from hidden sources (e.g. commercial products). However, little is known about their intake profiles or differences in consumption between European countries or geographic regions. The objective of this study was to analyse the population mean intake and average portion sizes in subjects reporting intake of nuts and seeds consumed as whole, derived from hidden sources or from spreads. Data was obtained from standardised 24-hour dietary recalls collected from 36 994 subjects in 10 different countries that are part of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Overall, for nuts and seeds consumed as whole, the percentage of subjects reporting intake on the day of the recall was: tree nuts = 4. 4%, peanuts = 2.3 % and seeds = 1.3 %. The data show a clear northern (Sweden: mean intake = 0.15 g/d, average portion size = 15.1 g/d) to southern (Spain: mean intake = 2.99 g/d, average portion size = 34.7 g/d) European gradient of whole tree nut intake. The three most popular tree nuts were walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts, respectively. In general, tree nuts were more widely consumed than peanuts or seeds. In subjects reporting intake, men consumed a significantly higher average portion size of tree nuts (28.5 v. 23.1 g/d, P<0.01) and peanuts (46.1 v. 35.1 g/d, P<0.01) per day than women. These data may be useful in devising research initiatives and health policy strategies based on the intake of this food group.

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci for the European tree frog (Hyla arborea)

We developed 11 new microsatellite markers for the European tree frog (Hyla arborea), and tested patterns of polymorphism in 54 adults (27 males and 27 females) from two ponds close to Lausanne (Western Switzerland). One marker was sex linked and two pairs displayed linkage disequilibrium. Comparisons of allele numbers with heterozygosity values support a stepwise-mutation model at neutral equilibrium, with mutation rates spanning nearly two orders of magnitude. These markers will prove useful for population genetic studies and fine-scale investigations requiring genetic assignment techniques.

The genetic consequences of hatchery-induced sperm competition in a salmonid

Supportive breeding is an important tool in conservation management, but its long-term genetic consequences are not well understood. Among the factors that could affect the genetics of the offspring is sperm competition as a consequence of mixed-milt fertilizations - which is still a common practice in many hatcheries. Here, we measured and combined the relevant factors to predict the genetic consequences of various kinds of hatchery-induced sperm competition. We drew a random sample of male Coregonus zugensis (an Alpine whitefish) from a hatchery program and quantified their in vitro sperm potency by integrating sperm velocity during the first minute after activation, and their in vitro milt potency by multiplying sperm potency with milt volume and sperm cell density. We found that not controlling for sperm density and/or milt volume would, at a constant population size, decrease the variance effective number of male breeders N-em by around 40-50%. This loss would decrease with increasing population growth rates. Partial multifactorial breeding and the separate rearing of in total 799 batches of eggs revealed that neither sperm nor milt potency was significantly linked to egg survival. Sperm and milt potency was also not significantly correlated to other potential quality measures such as breeding tubercles or condition factor. However, sperm potency was correlated to male age and milt potency to male growth rate. Our findings suggest that hatchery-induced sperm competition not only increases the loss of genetic variation but may also induce artificial selection, depending on the fertilization protocol. By not equalizing milt volume in multi-male fertilization hatchery managers lose relatively more genetic variation and give fast-growing males a reproductive advantage, while equalizing milt volume reduces the loss of genetic variation and favors younger males who may have fast sperm to compensate for their subdominance at the spawning place. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

ICTINEUAUV wins the First SAUC-E competition

A pioneer team of students of the University of Girona decided to design and develop an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) called ICTINEU-AUV to face the Student Autonomous Underwater Challenge-Europe (SAUC-E). The prototype has evolved from the initial computer aided design (CAD) model to become an operative AUV in the short period of seven months. The open frame and modular design principles together with the compatibility with other robots previously developed at the lab have provided the main design philosophy. Hence, at the robot's core, two networked computers give access to a wide set of sensors and actuators. The Gentoo/Linux distribution was chosen as the onboard operating system. A software architecture based on a set of distributed objects with soft real time capabilities was developed and a hybrid control architecture including mission control, a behavioural layer and a robust map-based localization algorithm made ICTINEU-AUV the winning entry

Schistosomiasis risk mapping in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, using a decision tree approach, remote sensing data and sociological indicators

Schistosomiasis mansoni is not just a physical disease, but is related to social and behavioural factors as well. Snails of the Biomphalaria genus are an intermediate host for Schistosoma mansoni and infect humans through water. The objective of this study is to classify the risk of schistosomiasis in the state of Minas Gerais (MG). We focus on socioeconomic and demographic features, basic sanitation features, the presence of accumulated water bodies, dense vegetation in the summer and winter seasons and related terrain characteristics. We draw on the decision tree approach to infection risk modelling and mapping. The model robustness was properly verified. The main variables that were selected by the procedure included the terrain's water accumulation capacity, temperature extremes and the Human Development Index. In addition, the model was used to generate two maps, one that included risk classification for the entire of MG and another that included classification errors. The resulting map was 62.9% accurate.

Alterations of specific biomarkers of metabolic pathways in vascular tree from patients with Type 2 diabetes.

The aims of this study were to check whether different biomarkers of inflammatory, apoptotic, immunological or lipid pathways had altered their expression in the occluded popliteal artery (OPA) compared with the internal mammary artery (IMA) and femoral vein (FV) and to examine whether glycemic control influenced the expression of these genes. The study included 20 patients with advanced atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes mellitus, 15 of whom had peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD), from whom samples of OPA and FV were collected. PAOD patients were classified based on their HbA1c as well (HbA1c ≤ 6.5) or poorly (HbA1c > 6.5) controlled patients. Controls for arteries without atherosclerosis comprised 5 IMA from patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM). mRNA, protein expression and histological studies were analyzed in IMA, OPA and FV. After analyzing 46 genes, OPA showed higher expression levels than IMA or FV for genes involved in thrombosis (F3), apoptosis (MMP2, MMP9, TIMP1 and TIM3), lipid metabolism (LRP1 and NDUFA), immune response (TLR2) and monocytes adhesion (CD83). Remarkably, MMP-9 expression was lower in OPA from well-controlled patients. In FV from diabetic patients with HbA1c ≤6.5, gene expression levels of BCL2, CDKN1A, COX2, NDUFA and SREBP2 were higher than in FV from those with HbA1c >6.5. The atherosclerotic process in OPA from diabetic patients was associated with high expression levels of inflammatory, lipid metabolism and apoptotic biomarkers. The degree of glycemic control was associated with gene expression markers of apoptosis, lipid metabolism and antioxidants in FV. However, the effect of glycemic control on pro-atherosclerotic gene expression was very low in arteries with established atherosclerosis.

Conservation phylogeography: does historical diversity contribute to regional vulnerability in European tree frogs (Hyla arborea)?

Documenting and preserving the genetic diversity of populations, which conditions their long-term survival, have become a major issue in conservation biology. The loss of diversity often documented in declining populations is usually assumed to result from human disturbances; however, historical biogeographic events, otherwise known to strongly impact diversity, are rarely considered in this context. We apply a multilocus phylogeographic study to investigate the late-Quaternary history of a tree frog (Hyla arborea) with declining populations in the northern and western part of its distribution range. Mitochondrial and nuclear polymorphisms reveal high genetic diversity in the Balkan Peninsula, with a spatial structure moulded by the last glaciations. While two of the main refugial lineages remained limited to the Balkans (Adriatic coast, southern Balkans), a third one expanded to recolonize Northern and Western Europe, loosing much of its diversity in the process. Our findings show that mobile and a priori homogeneous taxa may also display substructure within glacial refugia ('refugia within refugia') and emphasize the importance of the Balkans as a major European biodiversity centre. Moreover, the distribution of diversity roughly coincides with regional conservation situations, consistent with the idea that historically impoverished genetic diversity may interact with anthropogenic disturbances, and increase the vulnerability of populations. Phylogeographic models seem important to fully appreciate the risks of local declines and inform conservation strategies.

Perceived competition explains regional differences in stereotype content of immigrant groups

This research investigates differences in the stereotype content of immigrant groups between linguistic regions. We expected that immigrant groups who speak the local language of a specific linguistic region would be perceived as more competitive within this region than in another linguistic region. Further, we expected these differences would underlie regional differences in stereotype content, albeit only for the warmth dimension. Predictions were tested in the two largest linguistic regions of Switzerland. As expected, in the German-speaking region, locals perceived German immigrants as more competitive and thus as less warm, whereas in the French-speaking region, locals perceived French immigrants as more competitive and, consequently, as less warm. So, paradoxically, immigrants with strong integration potential are particularly disliked because they are regarded as direct competitors.

Polymorphism at a sex-linked transcription cofactor in European tree frogs (Hyla arborea): Sex-antagonistic selection or neutral processes?

Nascent sex chromosomes offer a unique opportunity to investigate the evolutionary fate of genesrecently trapped in non-recombining segments. A housekeeping gene (MED15) was recently shown to lie on the nascent sex-chromosomes of the European tree frog (Hyla arborea), with different alleles fixed on the X and the Y chromosomes. Here we document a polymorphism (glutamine deletion) in the X copy of the gene, and use population surveys and experimental crosses to test whether this polymorphism is neutral or maintained by sex-antagonistic selection. Tadpoles from parents of known genotypes revealed significant discrepancies from Mendelian inheritance, suggesting possible sex-antagonistic effects under laboratory conditions. Quantitatively, however, these effects did not meet the conditions for polymorphism maintenance. Furthermore, field estimates of female genotypic frequencies did not differ from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and allelic frequencies on the X chromosome did not differ between sexes. In conclusion, although sex antagonistic effects cannot be excluded given the laboratory conditions, the X-linked polymorphism under study appears neutral in the wild. Alternatively, sex-antagonistic selection might still account for the fixation of a male specific allele on the Y chromosome.

Cohesion, competition and contradiction: INTERREG and Franco-British Cross border co-operation

Aquest article resumeix el desenvolupament del programa INTERREG i la cooperació a la frontera franc-britànica en els últims vint anys. Això és seguit per una anàlisi de la forma transfronterera cooperació pot entendre recorrent a les discussions conceptuals de canviar la governança europea i les relacions de poder entre els diferents nivells de govern. Aquestes idees conceptuals proporcionen un context per a un examen en profunditat de la iniciativa INTERREG IIIA, a la frontera franc-britànica que es destaquen alguns dels principals problemes i les contradiccions de la cooperació transfronterera.