Q fever urban cases in Romania

Q fever urban sporadic cases in Romania in the 1981-87 period are reviewed as concerns their incidence, seasonality and epidemiological data. Urban cases represented 76.8% as against 23.2% rural cases from the 134 Q fever sporadic cases detected in this period. Cases were distributed throughout all months with peaks during April (18.4% of cases) and June (19.4%). Infections were not related to contact with livestock or domestic birds or with raw milk drinking. Cases could not be identified as Q fever occupational ones. 36.7% of patients were working in nonalimentary industry and only 12.6% were involved in meat industry, veterinary or human medical practices. New studies concerning unusual sources of urban infection such as dogs, cats or urban street pigeons are emphasized.     

A new restriction fragment length polymorphism in the haptoglobin gene region

Summary Direct gene analysis of the haptoglobin gene region was carried out by Southern blotting using an Hp cDNA as probe. Two types of polymorphism were observed: one due to intragenic duplication, is characterized by a constant fragment length difference of 1700bp observed with several enzymes and by complete correspondence with the protein molecular weight polymorphism; the second type, due to point mutation, was represented by two additional restriction sites for Eco RI and Pst I, with a frequency comparable to that of other genes. These two mutations segregated together in families, suggesting that the recently described Hp related gene is closely linked to the Hp gene. Moreover, they were completely associated with each other. The evolutionary significance of this finding is discussed.     

Synthesis of N-carboxyalkyl and N-aminoalkyl functionalized dipeptide building units for the assembly of backbone cyclic peptides.

To improve the assembly of backbone cyclic peptides, N-functionalized dipeptide building units were synthesized. The corresponding N-aminoalkyl or N-carboxyalkyl amino acids were formed by alkylation or reductive alkylation of amino acid benzyl or tert-butyl esters. In the case of N-aminoalkyl amino acid derivatives the aldehydes for reductive alkylation were obtained from N,O-dimethyl hydroxamates of N-protected amino acids by reduction with LiAlH4. N-carboxymethyl amino acids were synthesized by alkylation using bromoacetic acid ester and the N-carboxyethyl amino acids via reductive alkylation using aldehydes derived from formyl Meldrums acid. Removal of the carboxy protecting group leads to free N-alkyl amino acids of very low solubility in organic solvents, allowing efficient purification by extraction of the crude product. These N-alkyl amino acids were converted to their tetramethylsilane-esters by silylation with N,O-bis-(trimethylsilyl)acetamide and could thus be used for the coupling with Fmoc-protected amino acid chlorides or fluorides. To avoid racemization the tert-butyl esters of N-alkyl amino acids were coupled with the Fmoc-amino acid halides in the presence of the weak base collidine. Both the N-aminoalkyl and N-carboxyalkyl functionalized dipeptide building units could be obtained in good yield and purity. For peptide assembly on the solid support, the allyl type protection of the branching moiety turned out to be most suitable. The Fmoc-protected N-functionalized dipeptide units can be used like any amino acid derivative under the standard conditions for Fmoc-solid phase synthesis.     

Genetic variation for aerial dispersal behavior in the Banks grass mite

Banks grass mites, Oligonychus pratensis (Banks), exhibit a behavior that facilitates their dispersal as aerial plankton over long distances. The propensity to display this behavior and its latency varies among individual mites. Some of this variation can be attributed to genetic differences among individuals. Mother-daughter resemblance and bi-directional selection were used to estimate the genetic component of latency of the aerial dispersal behavior in a wild population collected from corn plants. Mother-daughter regression analysis suggested that up to 10% of variation in initiation of aerial dispersal behavior was attributable to an additive genetic component. Subsequent selection for shorter and longer latency resulted in significant divergence between selected lines after 9 generation, but the response was not symmetrical. Realized heritability for shorter latency was 0.09, while that for longer latency was not different from 0. This response to selection was consistent with results of the mother-daughter analysis, and the response asymmetry may explain the high variability in the mother-daughter regression. In both their natural habitat and in a corn agroecosystem, mites survive by using a succession of temporarily available hosts. Aerial dispersal behavior by Banks grass mites facilitates colonization of new hosts. The genetic basis and selection response of behavior initiating aerial dispersal is consistent with its role in mites population dynamics in this setting.     

Albino inflorescence proliferation of Dendrocalamus latiflorus

Summary Inflorescence proliferation is a plant tissue culture technique that, can be used to obtain in vitro inflorescences year-round without the intervening development of vegetative organs. In this study, we used albino mutant inflorescences of Dendrocalamus latiflorus as the original explant material to investigate, the effect of plant growth regulators on long-term inflorescence proliferation. The albino inflorescences proliferated on solidified Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with thidiazuron (TDZ), and the optimal concentration for successful long-term inflorescence proliferation was 0.45 μM TDZ. A combination of α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) with 0.45 μM TDZ inhibited the inflorescence proliferation. Inflorescences cultured on a TDZ-free medium supplemented with 26.82 μM NAA rooted in 21 d, vegetative shoots formed by 42 d and, in one case, flowering occurred after 63 d. The auxins 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D, 4.52 μM) and pieloram (4.14 μM) induced shoot formation. The protocol described can be used to produce large numbers of mutant inflorescences within a relatively short period of time.     

An Ecological Imbalance Induced by a Non-Native Species: The Manila Clam in the Venice Lagoon

Among the 19 non-native species of marine invertebrates which have invaded the Venice Lagoon and have established populations, Ruditapes philippinarum, deliberately introduced in 1983, is surely the most successful species. According to the hypothesis that alien species invasion could be favoured by an altered ecological, chemical or physical state of the system induced by anthropogenic disturbance, R. philippinarum turned out to be ‘the right species at the right moment’. By comparing historical data (1968, 1985, 1990) with 1999 data, changes in macrobenthic community, in particular bivalve molluscs, of the lagoon induced by R. philippinarum introduction and subsequent clam exploiting activity were assessed. It has been possible to describe a sharp reduction, both in terms of distribution area and density, of all other filter feeder bivalves. Moreover, by using the clearance rate of the most abundant bivalve species in 1990 and 1999 (Cerastoderma glaucum and R. philippinarum, respectively), it was possible to estimate that the filtration capacity, expressed as l h⁻¹ m⁻², has more than doubled. This has altered the functioning of the ecosystem, resulting in a stronger benthic–pelagic coupling. In this context, R. philippinarum attains control of the system. Considering all this, it is possible to state that the Venice Lagoon ecosystem has entered into a new state, probably more resistant but less resilient, with implications for future management choices.     

A Dynamic Corral Model of Receptor Trafficking at a Synapse

The postsynaptic density (PSD) is a cytoskeletal specialization within the postsynaptic membrane of a neuron that helps to concentrate and organize neurotransmitter receptors at a chemical synapse. The total number of receptors within the PSD, which is a major factor in determining the physiological strength or weight of a synapse, fluctuates due to the surface diffusion of receptors into and out of the PSD, and the interactions of receptors with scaffolding proteins and cytoskeletal elements within the PSD. In this article, we present a stochastic model of protein receptor trafficking at the PSD that takes into account these various processes. The PSD is treated as a stochastically gated corral, which contributes a source of extrinsic or environmental noise that supplements the intrinsic noise arising from small receptor numbers. Using a combination of stochastic analysis and Monte Carlo simulations, we determine the time-dependent variation in the mean and variance of synaptic receptor numbers for a variety of initial conditions that simulate fluorescence recovery after photobleaching experiments, and indicate how such data might be used to infer certain properties of the PSD.