An efficient survey method for estimating populations of Marsh Tits Poecile palustris,a low-density woodland passerine

Capsule: A playback survey comprising two visits to woodland in early spring can reliably detect Marsh Tits Poecile palustris and permit reasonable estimation of the number of territories.

Aims: To assess the efficacy of an efficient survey method for detecting and estimating populations of Marsh Tits.

Methods: Detection probability of colour-marked Marsh Tits, surveyed using playback, was assessed with Cormack–Jolly–Seber models. Reliability of territory estimates was compared between colour-marked and largely or wholly unmarked populations.

Results: Playback surveys over two visits in early spring were highly effective in detecting individual Marsh Tits. Territory estimates were similar for woods in years where less than 20% of the population was marked compared to years when a higher proportion of birds were colour-marked, although territories may be underestimated in larger woods with unmarked populations.

Conclusion: A playback survey comprising two visits in early spring is recommended as an efficient method of surveying Marsh Tit populations and locating individuals. A survey protocol is suggested.     

Song function and territoriality in male and female White-throated Dippers Cinclus cinclus

Capsule: Male White-throated Dippers Cinclus cinclus are more likely and quicker to respond to the playback of song than females, but both sexes are more likely to respond before the onset of breeding than after.

Aims: Territoriality and the function of song in female birds have rarely been studied outside of the tropics or Australasia. We investigated territoriality and song function in males and females of a Northern temperate species, the White-throated Dipper.

Methods: We conducted playback trials on established pairs and compared the responses of males and females according to the sex of the simulated intruder and the timing of playback relative to the onset of breeding. A response was classified as movement towards the speaker, singing or both.

Results: Males were significantly more likely and quicker to respond to playback than females, but neither sex responded differently to the playback of male and female song. Both sexes were more likely to respond to playback before breeding had begun than after.

Conclusions: Our results suggest that both males and females are territorial but that males take the dominant role in defence. Female song appears to elicit a similar response to male song and may play a role in territoriality or mate defence.     

Co-occurrence and commensal feeding between Little Egrets Egretta garzetta and Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia

Capsule: The spatial distribution and feeding efficiency of Little Egrets Egretta garzetta wintering in the gulf of Gabès, Tunisia, are affected by a commensal association with the Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia.

Aims: To investigate the role of the interspecific interaction between Little Egrets and Eurasian Spoonbills in shaping the spatial distribution and feeding efficiency of Little Egrets.

Methods: Using count and behavioural data, we examined the co-occurrence of these species in flocks, and compared the foraging efficiency of Little Egrets feeding with Eurasian Spoonbills with that of solitary Little Egrets.

Results: We found that the presence of Eurasian Spoonbills doubled the chance of Little Egrets being present. Within mixed flocks, the number of Little Egrets increased with the number of Spoonbills. Moreover, Little Egrets foraging in association with Eurasian Spoonbills took fewer steps, had higher pecking rates and higher prey intake rates than solitary Little Egrets.

Conclusion: Little Egrets appear to obtain foraging efficiency benefits by following Eurasian Spoonbills. This interaction seems to play a role in determining the spatial distribution of Little Egrets.     

Tawny Owl Strix aluco response to call-broadcasting and implications for survey design

Capsule: The use of call-broadcasting significantly increases the number of Tawny Owls Strix aluco detected in winter point counts, but requires careful survey design to avoid introducing potential sources of bias into population estimates.

Aims: To examine Tawny Owl response to call-broadcasting to aid survey design in national monitoring efforts.

Methods: A nocturnal survey was undertaken at 36 survey points over three nights in winter in Thetford Forest, England. Each survey consisted of four consecutive five-minute segments: a passive count, followed by three counts with the use of call-broadcasting.

Results: Few (4%) Tawny Owls were recorded during passive surveys, whereas the greatest response was during the first and second call-broadcast segments (49% and 36%, respectively). New detections declined to 11% in the final segment. Response was fastest at dusk, although time of night did not significantly affect the number of individuals detected. Male owls accounted for 79% of detections.

Conclusion: Our results show that ten minutes of call-broadcast surveying will detect 85% of responsive Tawny Owls, thus vastly improving detection compared to passive listening alone. However, simultaneous counts of geographically separated detections should be used to provide a minimum count and reduce potential double-counting of mobile individuals.     

Limited prospecting behaviour of juvenile Eagle Owls Bubo bubo during natal dispersal: implications for conservation

Capsule Features of the breeding population and temporary settlement area influence the behaviour of Eagle Owls Bubo bubo prospecting for breeding sites during natal dispersal.

Aims To understand how prospecting behaviour during natal dispersal is affected by (i) the main characteristics of the breeding and dispersing portions of the population and (ii) main prey availability.

Methods We explored the ten-year dynamics and characteristics of radio-tagged breeders and dispersers of an Eagle Owl population.

Results During the first years following natal dispersal there was little prospecting behaviour of nesting sites and birds remained mainly within non-breeding settlement areas, bordering the sector occupied by the breeding population. Settlement areas had an abundant food supply, and low intraspecific competition and mortality. We suggest that these features of the settlement areas may reduce the willingness of individuals to search for breeding sites and may have the potential to impact on the viability of breeding populations.

Conclusion From a conservation perspective, the lengthy use of the temporary settlement areas by juvenile Eagle Owls suggests that the sites should be considered as important as the breeding areas when planning conservation strategies. Reducing juvenile mortality in settlement areas may represent an overlooked conservation strategy for long-lived species and may have a crucial effect on the viability some animal populations.     

Sleep-disordered breathing is associated with higher carboxymethyllysine level in elderly women but not elderly men in the cardiovascular health study

Context: Carboxymethyl-lysine (CML) results from oxidative stress and has been linked to cardiovascular disease.

Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate the association between sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) – a source of oxidative stress – and CML.

Materials and methods: About 1002 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) were studied.

Results: Women with SDB had significantly higher CML concentration compared with those without SDB (OR?=?1.63, 95%CI?=?1.03–2.58, p?=?0.04). The association was not significant among men.

Discussion: SDB was associated with CML concentration among elderly women but not men in the Cardiovascular Health Study.

Conclusion: Accumulation of CML may be an adverse health consequence of SDB     

Circulating levels of apoptotic markers and oxidative stress parameters in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a case-controlled descriptive study

Context: Apoptotic dysregulation plays a role in the pathogenesis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Objective: To evaluate circulatory apoptotic markers and oxidative stress in patients with PCOS.

Materials and methods: Forty-four women with PCOS, and 44 healthy women as controls were enrolled in the study. Oxidative stress parameters and caspases levels were measured in serum.

Results: The caspase 9 level was significantly lower and related with oxidant status in patients with PCOS, while the circulating levels of caspases 3 and 7 were statistically similar in both groups.

Discussion: This study is the first report demonstrating the circulating levels of apoptotic markers and their relationship with oxidant status in PCOS.

Conclusion: The circulating caspase 9 and oxidant status might contribute to apoptotic dysregulation in PCOS.     

Using dual-sex calls improves the playback census method for a nocturnal burrow-nesting seabird,the Manx Shearwater Puffinus puffinus

Capsule: Playback with dual-sex calls increases the response rate of Manx Shearwaters Puffinus puffinus by 40–60% and reduces its daily variability, which would improve the precision of population estimates.

Aims: To test whether playing male and female calls would elicit more responses to playback than male-only calls, reduce daily variability and the length of response rate calibration trials, and give more precise estimates. We also measured response times to playback and assessed the reliability of visual signs of occupancy at burrow entrances.

Methods: Responses to four playback call-types (male-only and three variants of dual-sex calls) were compared in repeated trials at two colonies (Ramsey and Rum, UK) during May–June 2014.

Results: Dual-sex calls gave higher response rates with lower variance than male-only calls, because females frequently replied to female calls but rarely to male calls. In simulated 3–5-day calibration trials, response rates and correction factors were up to 50% more precise with dual-sex calls. Visual signs of burrow occupancy were unreliable.

Conclusion: Playback for Manx Shearwaters should use a 25 seconds recording of male and female calls intermixed, with 10 seconds listening time for delayed responses. Census-specific calibration trials are essential for accurate estimates of daily response rates.     

Association of IL-10 (-819T/C, -592A/C and -1082A/G) and IL-6 -174G/C gene polymorphism and the risk of pneumonia-induced sepsis

Context: Association between inherited variants and the risks of sepsis is controversial.

Objective: To evaluate the risk of pneumonia-induced sepsis by examining its linkage with polymorphisms of IL-6 and IL-10.

Materials and methods: Samples were obtained from 188 pneumonia-induced sepsis patients, 162 pneumonia patients and 200 healthy controls.

Results: Subjects with IL-10 -1082 AA genotypes and IL-6 -174?CC genotype had a higher risk of sepsis and increased mRNA levels.

Conclusion: The variants of IL-10 -1082 A allele and IL-6 -174 C allele contributed to an increased risk of pneumonia-induced sepsis.     

Improved reliability of the urine lactate concentration under controlled hydration after maximal exercise

Context: Urine lactate may be a novel biomarker of lactate production capacity but its reliability has been unsatisfactory so far.

Objective: To compare the reliability of urine lactate between controlled hydration and no hydration after maximal exercise.

Material and methods: Athletes performed swimming exercise four times: two followed by consumption of 1?L of water and two followed by no water intake. Blood and urine lactate was measured.

Results: The reliability of urine lactate was good and similar to that in blood only after controlled hydration. Blood and urine lactate were correlated under both hydration conditions.

Discussion and conclusion: Controlled hydration after exercise provides satisfactory reliability of urine lactate.     

Biomarker discovery for drug-induced phospholipidosis: phenylacetylglycine to hippuric acid ratio in urine and plasma as potential markers

Context: Drug-induced phospholipidosis is one of the significant concerns in drug development, especially in safety assessment and noninvasive diagnostic tool is highly desirable.

Objective: The objective of this study is to explored novel biomarkers for phospholipidosis using a metabolomic approach.

Method: NMR spectrometry and LC/MS/MS analyses were applied to urine and plasma of rats administrated cationic amphiphilic drugs.

Results: The phenylacetylglycine to hippuric acid ratio in plasma was increased in time and dose-dependent manners; and it was well correlated with histopathological observation.

Conclusion: The plasma phenylacetylglycine to hippuric acid ratio is a potential marker in monitoring drug-induced phospholipidosis.     

Beta-2-glycoprotein-1 and alpha-1-antitrypsin as urinary markers of renal cancer in von Hippel–Lindau patients

Context: Von Hippel–Lindau disease (VHLD) is a rare inherited neoplastic syndrome. Among all the VHLD-associated tumors, clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the major cause of death.

Objective: The aim of this paper is the discovery of new non-invasive biomarker for the monitoring of VHLD patients.

Materials and methods: We compared the urinary proteome of VHLD patients, ccRCC patients and healthy volunteers.

Results: Among all differentially expressed proteins, alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) and APOH (beta-2-glycoprotein-1) are strongly over-abundant only in the urine of VHLD patients with a history of ccRCC.

Discussion and conclusion: A1AT and APOH could be promising non-invasive biomarkers.     

Validation of a protein panel for the noninvasive detection of recurrent non-muscle invasive bladder cancer

Context: About 50–70% of patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) experience relapse of disease.

Objective: To establish a panel of protein biomarkers incorporated in a multiplexed microarray (BCa chip) and a classifier for diagnosing recurrent NMIBC.

Materials and methods: Urine samples from 45 patients were tested. Diagnostic performance was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.

Results: A multi biomarker panel (ECadh, IL8, MMP9, EN2, VEGF, past recurrences, BCG therapies and stage at diagnosis) was identified yielding an area under the curve of 0.96.

Discussion and conclusion: This biomarker panel represents a potential diagnostic tool for noninvasive diagnosis of recurrent NMIBC.     

Propeptide big-endothelin,N-terminal-pro brain natriuretic peptide and mortality. The Ludwigshafen risk and cardiovascular health (LURIC) study

Context: The endothelin system (Big-ET-1) is a key regulator in cardiovascular (CV) disease and congestive heart failure (CHF).

Objectives: We have examined the incremental value of Big-ET-1 in predicting total and CV mortality next to the well-established CV risk marker N-Terminal Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP).

Methods: Big-ET-1 and NT-proBNP were determined in 2829 participants referred for coronary angiography (follow-up 9.9 years).

Results: Big-ET-1 is an independent predictor of total, CV mortality and death due to CHF.

Discussion: The conjunct use of Big-ET-1 and NT-proBNP improves the risk stratification of patients with intermediate to high risk of CV death and CHF.

Conclusions: Big-ET-1improves risk stratification in patients referred for coronary angiography.     

Soluble CD40 ligand in haemodialysis patients: survival impact and cardiovascular prognostic role

Context: Soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40l) can predict cardiovascular events (CVE) and mortality in haemodialysis (HD) patients (short-, medium-term follow-up studies).

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between sCD40l and survival, CVE and mortality in HD patients on long-term follow-up.

Methods: We registered 46?HD patients’ baseline characteristics, mortality and CVE for 108 months.

Results: SCD40l correlated positively with C-reactive protein, was higher in survivors, but had no impact on survival and was not predictive for CVE or CV mortality.

Conclusion: The levels of sCD40l have no influence on survival or CVE and mortality in HD patients in a long-term follow-up.     

Differential expression of circulating vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 in subjects with coronary artery disease and cardiac syndrome X without known diabetes mellitus

Context: Inflammation is one of the mechanisms underlying cardiac syndrome X (CSX).

Objectives: Few studies have compared the expression of inflammatory or adhesion molecules between coronary artery disease (CAD) versus CSX.

Materials and methods: Ninety-two CSX and 145 CAD subjects without known diabetes mellitus underwent coronary angiogram for angina.

Results: Vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM)-1 (median, 507 versus 431?ng/ml, p?=?0.001) was significantly higher in the CAD group. In the binary regression, VCAM-1 was a significant differential factor for CAD versus CSX.

Discussion and conclusion: Adhesion molecules might be implicated in the differential expression of macro versus microvascular coronary disease.

Trial registration number: NCT01198730 at https://clinicaltrials.gov     

Release kinetics of high-sensitivity cardiac troponins I and T and troponin T upstream open reading frame peptide (TnTuORF) in clinically induced acute myocardial infarction

Context: Troponin T upstream open reading frame peptide (TnTuORF) may be useful as a novel biomarker in acute cardiac syndromes.

Objective: The study examined the early release kinetics of TnTuORF.

Materials and methods: We analyzed the time course of the release of cardiac troponins I and T and TnTuORF in patients (n?=?31) with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy undergoing transcoronary ablation of septal hypertrophy (TASH).

Results: Fifteen minutes after TASH, the levels of both troponins increased significantly (cTnT median: 18?ng/L versus 27?ng/L; cTnI median: 15?ng/L versus 25?ng/L). TnTuORF showed no variation.

Discussion: We observed a significantly greater increase in cTnI compared with cTnT.

Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that troponin assays allow early detection of myocardial injury, whereas TnTuORF levels remain unchanged in this setting.     

Pre-fledging survival in a Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis population in northern Iberia is mostly determined by hatching date

Capsule: Pre-fledging survival in a Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis population in northern Iberia is negatively correlated to hatching date.

Aims: To explore which factors have more importance in determining the pre-fledging daily survival rates in a Yellow-legged Gull population from northern Iberia. Specifically, we tested for the effect of hatching date and order, body size and condition and meteorological conditions on pre-fledging survival.

Methods: Cormack–Jolly–Seber models with mixtures were used to model daily survival rates.

Results: Daily survival rates were mostly negatively affected by hatching date.

Conclusions: Hatching date was the most important factor affecting survival of chicks during the pre-fledging period in a Yellow-legged Gull colony from northern Iberia.     

Elevated serum YKL-40 levels in patients with Kawasaki disease

Context: YKL-40 is an inflammatory biomarker for endothelial dysfunction that may have a role in Kawasaki disease (KD).

Objectives: We investigated the association of serum YKL-40 levels with KD and established laboratory parameters for YKL-40 levels and other inflammatory markers.

Methods: YKL-40 levels and other inflammatory markers of 23 KD patients, 9 disease control patients and 11 age-matched healthy controls.

Results: YKL-40 concentration in the serum of KD patients significantly increased during the acute disease phase compared with those of disease controls and healthy controls.

Conclusions: Increased YKL-40 levels may provide a useful inflammatory marker for patients with KD.