Spread and potential host range of the invasive oak lace bug [Corythucha arcuata (Say, 1832) – Heteroptera: Tingidae] in Eurasia

1. The North American oak lace bug feeds on leaves of ‘white oaks” in its native range. In Europe, it was first discovered in northern Italy in 2000. In recent years, it has subsequently spread rapidly and population outbreaks have been observed in several European countries. In the present study, we summarize the steps of its expansion.
2. To predict its potential host range, we checked 48 oak species in 20 sentinel gardens in seven countries between 2013 and 2018.
3. In total, 27 oak species were recorded as suitable hosts; 13 of them are globally new ones, 23 out of the 29 in section Quercus (～ white oaks, an intrageneric taxonomic unit within genus Quercus), including Asian oaks, native to Japan, Korea and China, and four out of five in section Cerris (another intrageneric unit of the same genus), were accepted as hosts. None of the species in section Lobatae (red oaks) or in the Ilex group was accepted.
4. Host records were also collected in forest stands of 10 countries. We found 11 oak species that were infested. Outbreak populations were most commonly found on Quercus robur, Quercus frainetto, Quercus petraea and Quercus cerris, comprising widespread and outstandingly important oaks species in Europe.
5. Based on our findings, we conclude that suitable hosts for oak lace bug are present in most of Europe and Asia. This means that a lack of hosts will likely not restrict further range expansion.

     

Football,the Beast,and the Sovereign: The Politics of Joking Relationships in Spain

As of 2017, Spain is facing the greatest challenge to its post-Franco unity as Catalonia prepares to unilaterally declare independence in spite of a constitutional ban. The crisis of European sovereignty due to state–region antagonisms emerges forcefully in culture. A key domain for the contestation of power relationships is mockery and joking through the use of animal imagery. In particular, the jeering of the Spanish sovereign and the national anthem at football games catalyses spectacular debates over state–region relations, the freedom of expression, and the formation of political communities. The anthropological study of joking relationships in western urban societies helps problematise the concept of sovereignty and domination, vindicate the liberating and democratising potential of mockery, and identify some of their carnival spheres. Joking relationships cultivate a culture of resistance and have community making potential as they draw antagonistic parties into the kernel of a relationship.     

Differences in postmortem stability of sex steroid receptor immunoreactivity in rat brain.

Difficulties in demonstrating sex steroid receptors in the human brain by immunohistochemistry (IHC) may depend on postmortem delay and a long fixation time. The effect of different postmortem times was therefore studied in rat brain kept in the skull at room temperature for 0, 6, or 24 hr after death. After a long fixation for 20 days, hypothalami were embedded in paraffin and sections were immunohistochemically stained for androgen receptor (AR), estrogen receptor-alpha (ER), or progesterone receptor (PR). Retrieving the antigenic sites by microwave pretreatment was essential to obtain successful IHC in all groups studied. In general, immunoreactivity was restricted to the cell nuclei. However, the intensity of the staining appeared to be strongly dependent on the different receptor antigens and postmortem time. Both AR and ER but not PR immunoreactivity were decreased after immersion-fixation compared to the perfused sections at time point zero. In brains fixed by immersion, all three receptors decreased gradually with increasing postmortem time, and ER became hardly detectable after 24 hr postmortem. The results of these experiments show that, with the protocol used, postmortem variables and lengthy fixation do not, in principle, prevent sex steroid receptor IHC in human material. The outcome of the immunostaining, however, might be strongly dependent on the epitopes and/or antibody used.     

Investigating the Antioxidant and Color Properties of Bee Pollens of Various Plant Sources

In our study, Central and Eastern European bee pollens of different botanical origins were compared, based on their antioxidant and color properties. Total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and in vitro antioxidant capacity (by FRAP, CUPRAC, ABTS⋅⁺ and DPPH⋅ assays) were determined spectrophotometrically. Besides, Relative Antioxidant Capacity Indexes (RACI) were calculated. CIELAB color parameters (L*, a*, b*, chroma) were determined by using a tristimulus-based instrument. Potential correlations between the investigated parameters were also identified. Based on the results of the preliminary study, ethanol:distilled water (60 : 40) was chosen as an extraction solvent. The total phenolic content of our samples ranged between 9.41 and 27.49 mg GAE/g dw. Pollens showed TFC:TPC ratios between 9 and 44 %. RACI values indicate that rapeseed (Brassica napus), traveller's joy (Clematis vitalba) and phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia) pollens have relatively high, while pollens of certain plants of the Asteraceae family possess low antioxidant potential. Antioxidant properties correlated significantly in most cases. RACI values showed strong positive correlation with each of the other antioxidant capacity parameters, suggesting that this approach is well applicable for comparing the antioxidant potential of bee pollens. No clear correlation was found between the antioxidant and color parameters.