Trophic niche overlap and wild ungulate consumption by red fox and wolf in a mountain area in Italy

Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and wolf (Canis lupus) are two widespread opportunistic predators living in simpatry in many areas. Nonetheless, scarce information are available on their trophic interactions. We investigated food habits of these two carnivores in a mountain area in Italy and assessed the extent of their trophic niche overlap, focusing on the consumption of wild ungulates. Thereby we analyzed the content of 669 red fox scats and 253 wolf scats collected between May 2008 and April 2009. Red foxes resulted to have a more than three times higher niche breadth than wolves. Vegetables, small mammals, wild ungulates, and invertebrates were major items (altogether 92% of volume) of the red fox annual diet. On the contrary wolf annual diet relied on wild ungulates (94% of volume) with wild boar (Sus scrofa) being the main food item. The degree of trophic niche overlap between the two species was found to be low (Pianka's O = 0.356). Diet variation between the warm and the cold seasons was limited in both species, and higher in red fox than in wolf. The two canids appeared to use wild ungulates unevenly being the former more selective for younger preys, smaller in size (newborn piglets and roe deer Capreolus capreolus fawns), whereas the latter exhibited a preference for medium-sized and large ungulates (10–35 kg wild boar and adult roe deer). Even if wild ungulates represent the main shared food category, the different use of age/weight classes by the two predators, together with their possible consumption as carrions by red fox, suggests a very limited trophic competition between wolf and red fox.This study represents a contribution to the knowledge of trophic interaction in predator–prey systems where sympatric carnivores are present.     

The Orphan Seven-Transmembrane Receptor Apj Supports the Entry of Primary T-Cell-Line-Tropic and Dualtropic Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) enters target cells by sequential binding to CD4 and specific seven-transmembrane-segment (7TMS) coreceptors. Viruses use the chemokine receptor CCR5 as a coreceptor in the early, asymptomatic stages of HIV-1 infection but can adapt to the use of other receptors such as CXCR4 and CCR3 as the infection proceeds. Here we identify one such coreceptor, Apj, which supported the efficient entry of several primary T-cell-line tropic (T-tropic) and dualtropic HIV-1 isolates and the simian immunodeficiency virus SIVmac316. Another 7TMS protein, CCR9, supported the less efficient entry of one primary T-tropic isolate. mRNAs for both receptors were present in phytohemagglutinin- and interleukin-2-activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Apj and CCR9 share with other coreceptors for HIV-1 and SIV an N-terminal region rich in aromatic and acidic residues. These results highlight properties common to 7TMS proteins that can function as HIV-1 coreceptors, and they may contribute to an understanding of viral evolution in infected individuals.     

Influence of diets supplemented with vitamins C and E on pirarucu (Arapaima gigas) blood parameters

This study evaluated the influence of diets supplemented with 500, 800, 1200 mg kg^− 1 of vitamin C (ascorbic acid or AA) and vitamin E (α-tocopherol or α-T) on the physiological responses of pirarucu fed for 2 months. Weight and mortality were not affected by dietary vitamin type or their concentrations. Significant increase (p < 0.05) on the red blood cells count was obtained on treatments with 800 and 1200 mg AA kg^− 1 and on the hemoglobin concentration on treatment with 500 mg α-T kg^− 1 relatively to control. Mean corpuscular volume presented a significant decrease (p < 0.05) on treatment with 800 and 1200 mg AA kg⁻¹ when compared to control. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration was significantly high (p < 0.05) on treatment with 500 mg α-T kg^− 1. Only in vitamin C treatments, we noticed a significant increase (p < 0.05) in the number of leucocytes relative to control. All fish in the vitamin-supplemented treatments, except 500 mg AA kg^− 1, had high total protein values compared to control. Fish treated with 800 or 1200 mg α-T kg^− 1 also showed increases in plasma glucose concentrations. Our results suggest that 800 and 1200 mg AA kg^− 1 are probably the most suitable concentrations for pirarucu diets, although high vitamin E diets are not necessary for quantitative leucocyte increases for this species.     

Male mouse meiotic chromosome cores deficient in structural proteins SYCP3 and SYCP2 align by homology but fail to synapse and have possible impaired specificity of chromatin loop attachment

The targeted deletion of the meiotic chromosome core component MmSYCP3 results in chromosome synaptic failure at male meiotic prophase, extended meiotic chromosomes, male sterility, oocyte aneuploidy and absence of the MmSYCP2 chromosome core component. To test the functions of SYCP2 and SYCP3 proteins in the cores, we determined the effect of their deletion on homology recognition by whole chromosome painting and the effect on chromatin loop attachment to the cores with endogenous and exogenous sequences. Because we observed that the alignment of cores is between homologs, it suggested that alignment is not a function of the chromosome core components but might be mediated by chromatin-chromatin interactions. The alignment function therefore appears to be separate from intimate synapsis function of homologous cores that is observed to be defective in the SYCP3-/- males. To examine the functions of the SYCP2 and 3 core proteins in chromatin loop attachment, we measured the loop sizes of the centromeric major satellite chromatin and the organization of an exogenous transgene in SYCP3+/+ and SYCP3-/- males. We observed that these satellite chromatin loops have a normal appearance in SYCP3-/- males, but the loop regulation of a 2-Mb exogenous lambda phage insert appears to be altered. Normally the insert fails to attach to the core except by flanking endogenous sequences, but in the absence of SYCP2 and SYCP3, there appears to be multiple attachments to the core. This suggests that the selective preference for the attachment of mouse sequences to the chromosome core in the wild-type male is impaired in the SYCP3-/- male. Apparently the SYCP2 and SYCP3 proteins function in the specificity of chromatin attachment to the chromosome core.     

Chromosome damage and aneuploidy detected by interphase multicolour FISH in benzene-exposed shale oil workers

A multicolour tandem-labelling fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) procedure was used to detect chromosome alterations in peripheral blood cells of a group of Estonian petrochemistry workers. Twelve workers employed in benzene production and five cokery workers, together with eight unexposed rural controls, were enrolled in the study. The methodology employed, based on the in situ hybridization of adjacent centromeric and pericentromeric regions, allowed the simultaneous detection of both chromosome breakage, involving damage-prone pericentromeric regions, and hyperploidy in interphase cells. Blood smears from all subjects were hybridized with chromosome 1 specific probes, in order to detect genotoxic damage in circulating lymphocytes and granulocytes. Moreover, lymphocyte cultures were established, harvested 48 h following mitogen stimulation and hybridized with the tandem chromosomes 1 and 9 probes. No significant difference in the incidence of breakage was detected in the nucleated cells of blood smears of exposed vs. control subjects. In contrast, modest but significantly increased frequencies of breakage affecting both chromosomes 1 and 9 were observed in the cultured lymphocytes of the benzene-exposed workers compared to the unexposed controls, suggesting an expression of premutagenic lesions during the S-phase in vitro. Across the entire study group, the frequencies of breakage affecting chromosomes 1 and 9 in the stimulated lymphocytes were highly intercorrelated (p < 0.001). No significant difference was found in the incidence of hyperploidy among the study groups, although a tendency to higher values was observed in benzene-exposed workers. Although the relatively small size of the study groups does not allow firm conclusions on the role of occupational exposure, the observed patterns are suggestive of effects in the benzene-exposed workers. This work also shows that tandem labelling FISH can be usefully applied in human biomonitoring, allowing the simultaneous detection of both hyperploidy and chromosome breakage at interphase in different cell types.     

A randomized controlled trial of qigong for fibromyalgia

Introduction

Fibromyalgia is difficult to treat and requires the use of multiple approaches. This study is a randomized controlled trial of qigong compared with a wait-list control group in fibromyalgia.

Methods

One hundred participants were randomly assigned to immediate or delayed practice groups, with the delayed group receiving training at the end of the control period. Qigong training (level 1 Chaoyi Fanhuan Qigong, CFQ), given over three half-days, was followed by weekly review/practice sessions for eight weeks; participants were also asked to practice at home for 45 to 60 minutes per day for this interval. Outcomes were pain, impact, sleep, physical function and mental function, and these were recorded at baseline, eight weeks, four months and six months. Immediate and delayed practice groups were analyzed individually compared to the control group, and as a combination group.

Results

In both the immediate and delayed treatment groups, CFQ demonstrated significant improvements in pain, impact, sleep, physical function and mental function when compared to the wait-list/usual care control group at eight weeks, with benefits extending beyond this time. Analysis of combined data indicated significant changes for all measures at all times for six months, with only one exception. Post-hoc analysis based on self-reported practice times indicated greater benefit with the per protocol group compared to minimal practice.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that CFQ, a particular form of qigong, provides long-term benefits in several core domains in fibromyalgia. CFQ may be a useful adjuvant self-care treatment for fibromyalgia.

Trial registration

clinicaltrials.gov NCT00938834.     

Diversity of endophytic bacterial populations and their interaction with Xylella fastidiosa in citrus plants

Citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC) is caused by Xylella fastidiosa, a phytopathogenic bacterium that can infect all Citrus sinensis cultivars. The endophytic bacterial communities of healthy, resistant, and CVC-affected citrus plants were studied by using cultivation as well as cultivation-independent techniques. The endophytic communities were assessed in surface-disinfected citrus branches by plating and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Dominant isolates were characterized by fatty-acid methyl ester analysis as Bacillus pumilus, Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens, Enterobacter cloacae, Methylobacterium spp. (including Methylobacterium extorquens, M. fujisawaense, M. mesophilicum, M. radiotolerans, and M. zatmanii), Nocardia sp., Pantoea agglomerans, and Xanthomonas campestris. We observed a relationship between CVC symptoms and the frequency of isolation of species of Methylobacterium, the genus that we most frequently isolated from symptomatic plants. In contrast, we isolated C. flaccumfaciens significantly more frequently from asymptomatic plants than from those with symptoms of CVC while P. agglomerans was frequently isolated from tangerine (Citrus reticulata) and sweet-orange (C. sinensis) plants, irrespective of whether the plants were symptomatic or asymptomatic or showed symptoms of CVC. DGGE analysis of 16S rRNA gene fragments amplified from total plant DNA resulted in several bands that matched those from the bacterial isolates, indicating that DGGE profiles can be used to detect some endophytic bacteria of citrus plants. However, some bands had no match with any isolate, suggesting the occurrence of other, nonculturable or as yet uncultured, endophytic bacteria. A specific band with a high G+C ratio was observed only in asymptomatic plants. The higher frequency of C. flaccumfaciens in asymptomatic plants suggests a role for this organism in the resistance of plants to CVC.     

Plasma glycoprotein profiling for colorectal cancer biomarker identification by lectin glycoarray and lectin blot

Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a major worldwide cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality largely due to the insidious onset of the disease. The current clinical procedures utilized for disease diagnosis are invasive, unpleasant, and inconvenient; hence, the need for simple blood tests that could be used for the early detection of CRC. In this work, we have developed methods for glycoproteomics analysis to identify plasma markers with utility to assist in the detection of colorectal cancer (CRC). Following immunodepletion of the most abundant plasma proteins, the plasma N -linked glycoproteins were enriched using lectin affinity chromatography and subsequently further separated by nonporous silica reversed-phase (NPS-RP)-HPLC. Individual RP-HPLC fractions were printed on nitrocellulose coated slides which were then probed with lectins to determine glycan patterns in plasma samples from 9 normal, 5 adenoma, and 6 colorectal cancer patients. Statistical tools, including principal component analysis, hierarchical clustering, and Z-statistics analysis, were employed to identify distinctive glycosylation patterns. Patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer or adenomas were shown to have dramatically higher levels of sialylation and fucosylation as compared to normal controls. Plasma glycoproteins with aberrant glycosylation were identified by nano-LC-MS/MS, while a lectin blotting methodology was used to validate proteins with significantly altered glycosylation as a function of cancer progression. The potential markers identified in this study for diagnosis to distinguish colorectal cancer from adenoma and normal include elevated sialylation and fucosylation in complement C3, histidine-rich glycoprotein, and kininogen-1. These potential markers of colorectal cancer were subsequently validated by lectin blotting in an independent set of plasma samples obtained from 10 CRC patients, 10 patients with adenomas, and 10 normal subjects. These results demonstrate the utility of this strategy for the identification of N -linked glycan patterns as potential markers of CRC in human plasma, and may have the utility to distinguish different disease states.     

Nonadditive protein accumulation patterns in Maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids during embryo development

Heterosis describes the superior performance of heterozygous F(1)-hybrid plants compared to their homozygous parental inbred lines. In the present study, heterosis was detected for length, weight, and the time point of seminal root primordia initiation in maize (Zea mays L.) embryos of the reciprocal F(1)-hybrids UH005xUH250 and UH250xUH005. A two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) proteome survey of the most abundant proteins of the reciprocal hybrids and their parental inbred lines 25 and 35 days after pollination revealed that 141 of 597 detected proteins (24%) exhibited nonadditive accumulation in at least one hybrid. Approximately 44% of all nonadditively accumulated proteins displayed an expression pattern that was not distinguishable from the low parent value. Electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) analyses and subsequent functional classification of the 141 proteins revealed that development, protein metabolism, redox-regulation, glycolysis, and amino acid metabolism were the most prominent functional classes among nonadditively accumulated proteins. In 35-day-old embryos of the hybrid UH250xUH005, a significant up-regulation of enzymes related to glucose metabolism which often exceeded the best parent values was observed. A comparison of nonadditive protein accumulation between rice and maize embryo data sets revealed a significant overlap of nonadditively accumulated proteins suggesting conserved organ- or tissue-specific regulatory mechanisms in monocots related to heterosis.