Acoustic emissions of Sorex unguiculatus (Mammalia: Soricidae): Assessing the echo‐based orientation hypothesis

Shrew species have been proposed to utilize an echo‐based orientation system to obtain additional acoustic information while surveying their environments. This system has been supported by changes in vocal emission rates when shrews encounter different habitats of varying complexity, although detailed acoustic features in this system have not been reported. In this study, behavioral experiments were conducted using the long‐clawed shrew (Sorex unguiculatus) to assess this orientation system. Three experimental conditions were set, two of which contained obstacles. Short‐click, noisy, and different types of tonal calls in the audible‐to‐ultrasonic frequency range were recorded under all experimental conditions. The results indicated that shrews emit calls more frequently when they are facing obstacles or exploring the experimental environment. Shrews emitted clicks and several different types of tonal calls while exploring, and modified the use of different types of calls for varying behavior. Furthermore, shrews modified the dominant frequency and duration of squeak calls for different types of obstacles, that is, plants and acrylic barriers. The vocalizations emitted at short inter‐pulse intervals could not be observed when shrews approached these obstacles. These results are consistent with the echo‐based orientation hypothesis according to which shrews use a simple echo‐orientation system to obtain information from their surrounding environments, although further studies are needed to confirm this hypothesis.     

Fast, efficient and reproducible genetic transformation of Phaseolus spp. by Agrobacterium rhizogenes

This transformation procedure generates, with high efficiency (70-90%), hairy roots in cultivars, landraces and accessions of Phaseolus vulgaris (common bean) and other Phaseolus spp. Hairy roots rapidly develop after wounding young plantlets with Agrobacterium rhizogenes, at the cotyledon node, and keeping the plants in high-humidity conditions. Callogenesis always precedes hairy-root formation, and after 15 days, when roots develop at wounded sites, the stem with the normal root is cleaved below the hairy root zone. Transgenic roots and nodules co-transformed with a binary vector can be easily identified using a reporter gene. This procedure, in addition to inducing robust transgenic hairy roots that are susceptible to being nodulated by rhizobia and to fixing nitrogen efficiently, sets the foundation for a high-throughput functional genomics approach on the study of root biology and root-microbe interactions. This protocol can be completed within 30 days.     

A proteomics analysis of cell signaling alterations in colorectal cancer

To gain further insight into alterations in cellular pathways, tumor profiling, and marker discovery in colorectal cancer (CRC) we used a new antibody microarray specific for cell signaling. Soluble protein extracts were prepared from paired tumor/normal biopsies of 11 patients diagnosed with colorectal carcinoma at different stages; four liver carcinomas were used as a reference. Antibody microarray analysis identified 46 proteins that were differentially expressed between normal colorectal epithelium and adenocarcinoma. These proteins gave a specific signature for CRC, different from other tumors, as well as a panel of novel markers and potential targets for CRC. Twenty-four proteins were validated by using a specific colorectal cancer tissue microarray and immunoblotting analysis. Together with some previously well known deregulated proteins in CRC (beta-catenin, c-MYC, or p63), we found new potential markers preferentially expressed in CRC tumors: cytokeratin 13, calcineurin, CHK1, clathrin light chain, MAPK3, phospho-PTK2/focal adhesion kinase (Ser-910), and MDM2. CHK1 antibodies were particularly effective in discriminating between tumoral and normal mucosa in CRC. Moreover a global picture of alterations in signaling pathways in CRC was observed, including a significant up-regulation of different components of the epidermal growth factor receptor and Wnt/beta-catenin pathways and the down-regulation of p14(ARF). The experimental approach described here should be applicable to other pathologies and neoplastic processes.     

Gustatory thresholds for food-associated sugars in the spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi)

The purpose of this study was to determine gustatory thresholds for five different food-associated sugars in Ateles geoffroyi. Using a two-bottle test, three adult spider monkeys were found to significantly prefer concentrations as low as 3 mM sucrose, 15 mM fructose, 20 mM glucose, and 10 mM lactose over tap water. Maltose was significantly discriminated down to 20 mM with individual animals showing either a preference or an aversion, or an inverted U-shaped function of preference toward higher concentrations of this carbohydrate. The results showed the spider monkey to respond to lower sugar concentrations compared to other nonhuman primates tested so far and thus support the assumptions that Ateles geoffroyi may use sweetness as a criterion for food selection, and that the remarkably high sweet-taste sensitivity of this frugivorous species might be correlated with its dietary specialization. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Early kinetics of calprotectin in plasma following inguinal hernia surgery

Calprotectin is one of the most abundant proteins of neutrophil granulocytes. It is released upon neutrophil activation and is considered a sensitive and clinically useful marker for neutrophil-mediated inflammation, including bacterial infections. However, early kinetics of calprotectin activation following inflammatory activation has hitherto been unknown. The aim of the present study was to determine the early phase of the kinetics of calprotectin, in comparison with the inflammatory markers CRP, IL-6, TNF-α, and procalcitonin, in plasma following a standardized temporary mild inflammatory response, using uncomplicated inguinal hernia surgery as a model. The study cohort consisted of 17 adult patients (15 male and 2 female) undergoing elective surgery for hernia. Values of calprotectin increased significantly at 2 h following surgery, and continued to increase to reach the highest level at 24–36 h after surgery, values still not exceeding upper normal reference level. This contrasts to IL-6 and CRP, for which an elevation was found first later, 4 h and 24–36 h post-surgery, respectively, for IL-6, and CRP. No significant increase was seen for TNF-α, or procalcitonin. The data demonstrate a very rapid and significant but modest increase in calprotectin following induction of mild inflammation, supporting that calprotectin can be useful for early detection of inflammatory response.     

Patient-level interventions to reduce alcohol-related harms in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-summary

BackgroundDisease and disability from alcohol use disproportionately impact people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). While varied interventions have been shown to reduce alcohol use in high-income countries, their efficacy in LMICs has not been assessed. This systematic review describes current published literature on patient-level alcohol interventions in LMICs and specifically describes clinical trials evaluating interventions to reduce alcohol use in LMICs.Methods and findingsIn accordance with PRISMA, we performed a systematic review using an electronic search strategy from January 1, 1995 to December 1, 2020. Title, abstract, as well as full-text screening and extraction were performed in duplicate. A meta-summary was performed on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated alcohol-related outcomes. We searched the following electronic databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane, WHO Global Health Library, and PsycINFO. Articles that evaluated patient-level interventions targeting alcohol use and alcohol-related harm in LMICs were eligible for inclusion. No studies were excluded based on language.After screening 5,036 articles, 117 articles fit our inclusion criteria, 75 of which were RCTs. Of these RCTs, 93% were performed in 13 middle-income countries, while 7% were from 2 low-income countries. These RCTs evaluated brief interventions (24, defined as any intervention ranging from advice to counseling, lasting less than 1 hour per session up to 4 sessions), psychotherapy or counseling (15, defined as an interaction with a counselor longer than a brief intervention or that included a psychotherapeutic component), health promotion and education (20, defined as an intervention encouraged individuals’ agency of taking care of their health), or biologic treatments (19, defined as interventions where the biological function of alcohol use disorder (AUD) as the main nexus of intervention) with 3 mixing categories of intervention types. Due to high heterogeneity of intervention types, outcome measures, and follow-up times, we did not conduct meta-analysis to compare and contrast studies, but created a meta-summary of all 75 RCT studies. The most commonly evaluated intervention with the most consistent positive effect was a brief intervention; similarly, motivational interviewing (MI) techniques were most commonly utilized among the diverse array of interventions evaluated.ConclusionsOur review demonstrated numerous patient-level interventions that have the potential to be effective in LMICs, but further research to standardize interventions, populations, and outcome measures is necessary to accurately assess their effectiveness. Brief interventions and MI techniques were the most commonly evaluated and had the most consistent positive effect on alcohol-related outcomes.Trial registrationProtocol Registry: PROSPERO CRD42017055549

Catherine Staton and co-workers report on evidence about interventions against harmful alcohol use in low- and middle-income countries.     

DNA-methyltransferase activities in Streptomyces antibioticus

Abstract To quantitate ammonia production by the intestinal flora, ammonia levels in arterial blood and the venous effluent of the small and large bowel of conventional, selectively decontaminated, germ-free and gnotobiotic rats were measured.
When the anaerobic flora was removed by decontamination a significant decrease in ammonia levels was observed in the effluent of both the small and large intestine. Decontamination of aerobic flora did not result in depression of ammonia production. Gnotobiotic rats colonised with an anaerobic flora or with a mixed aerobic and anaerobic flora, showed a slight increase in ammonia levels. No increase in ammonia production was observed when rats were colonised with aerobic flora. These results indicate that the Enterobacteriaceae were not responsible for ammonia generation.
The increase in ammonia levels after colonisation with anaerobic or mixed anaerobic/aerobic flora did not completely restore ammonia levels, despite reaching bacterial counts which were comparable to those in conventional rats. This may be explained by the limited number of species with which the rats were colonized. The finding that aerobic flora does not significantly contribute to ammonia production suggests that neomycin, known to be exclusively effective against aerobic flora, must have other effects to explain improvement of hepatic encephalopathy.     

Hybrid enterotoxin LTA::STa proteins and their protection from degradation by in vivo association with B-subunits of Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin

Chimeric proteins exhibiting antigenic determinants of the heat-labile enterotoxin (LT) and heat-stable (STa) enterotoxins on the same molecule may provide a means to obtain immunoprophylactic and diagnostic reagents for Escherichia coli-caused diarrhea. We recently showed that fusion of two different lengths of the STa gene to the C end of the A-subunit of LT (LTA) results in LTA::STa fusion proteins as monitored by GM1-ELISA [Sanchez et al.: FEBS Lett. 208 (1986) 194-198]. Here we determine the approximate molecular size of the LTA::STa fusion proteins and provide further evidence of their hybrid nature by immunoblot analysis. Using this technique we also demonstrate that to obtain detectable amounts of these recombinant proteins it is essential to coexpress them with the respective B-subunit of LT (LTB). We propose that this dependence on coexpression reflects the association between the LTA::STa hybrids and LTB subunits. The resulting LTA::STa/LTB complexes were found in the E. coli periplasm. This indicated that the exported hybrids, once associated with LTB, were stabilized and formed molecules that behaved essentially as native LT. The protective effect exerted by the B-subunit might conceivably be extended to other LTA-derived hybrid proteins, thus allowing the fusion of other foreign peptides to LTA and their subsequent recovery in the same fashion.