On the nesting biology of eumenine wasps yet again: Minixi brasilianum (de Saussure) is a builder and a renter... at the same time! (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Eumeninae)

Our understanding of eumenine nesting biology is still elusive. The use of two nesting strategies, namely renting and building, are reported concomitantly for the first time for Minixi brasilianum (de Saussure, 1875). Ecological factors such as resource availability and protection against potential enemies may play an important role in eumenine nesting biology.

A survey of mealybugs infesting South-Brazilian wine vineyards

ABSTRACTMealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) are important pests of the grapevine Vitis spp. and are responsible for direct and indirect damage to production. The main mealybug species present in wine grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) in Southern Brazil were identified and their incidence evaluated. Bunch-samples (n = 50) from 131 vineyards located in the Serra Gaúcha Region (RS) of Brazil were analyzed at harvest, and the occurrence of mealybugs in the roots was evaluated at the time of eradication of plants for replanting. Mealybugs were reared in laboratory until adulthood for species determination. The species Dysmicoccus brevipes (Cockerell, 1983), Dysmicoccus sp., Planococcus citri (Risso, 1813), Pl. minor(Maskell, 1897), Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret, 1875) and Pseudococcus sp. were identified in bunches. Dysmicoccus sp., D. umbambae Granara de Willink, 2009, Pl. citri and Pseudococcus sp. were found in the roots. Pl. citri (31.4%) and Dysmicoccus sp. (22.7%) were the most common species found in wine grape bunches in the Serra Gaúcha Region.

Fecundidad parcial de la anchoveta Egraulis rigens durante el invierno 1999

Durante la ejecución del Crucero se estimó la fecundidad parcial de la anchoveta peruana en 16.344 ovocitos.

Simultaneous identification of multiple mammalian species from mixed forensic samples based on mtDNA control region length polymorphism

Molecular species identification in mixed or contaminated biological material has always been problematic. We developed a simple and accurate method for mammal DNA identification in mixtures, based on interspecific mitochondrial DNA control region length polymorphism. Contrary to other published methods dealing with species mixtures, our protocol requires a single universal primer pair and amplification step, and is not based on a pre-defined panel of species. This protocol has been routinely employed by our laboratory for species identification in dozens of human and animal forensic caseworks. Six representative forensic caseworks involving the specific identification of mixed animal samples are reported in this paper, in order to demonstrate the applicability and usefulness of the method.

Microvascular burden and Alzheimer-type lesions across the age spectrum.

The occurrence of microvascular and small macrovascular lesions and Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related pathology in the aging human brain is a well-described phenomenon. Although there is a wide consensus about the relationship between macroscopic vascular lesions and incident dementia, the cognitive consequences of the progressive accumulation of these small vascular lesions in the human brain are still a matter of debate. Among the vast group of small vessel-related forms of ischemic brain injuries, the present review discusses the cognitive impact of cortical microinfarcts, subcortical gray matter and deep white matter lacunes, periventricular and diffuse white matter demyelinations, and focal or diffuse gliosis in old age. A special focus will be on the sub-types of microvascular lesions not detected by currently available neuroimaging studies in routine clinical settings. After providing a critical overview of in vivo data on white matter demyelinations and lacunes, we summarize the clinicopathological studies performed by our center in large cohorts of individuals with microvascular lesions and concomitant AD-related pathology across two age ranges (the younger old, 65-85 years old, versus the oldest old, nonagenarians and centenarians). In conjunction with other autopsy datasets, these observations fully support the idea that cortical microinfarcts are the only consistent determinant of cognitive decline across the entire spectrum from pure vascular cases to cases with combined vascular and AD lesion burden.