Polymorphic microsatellites for the study of Aconitum napellus L. (Ranunculaceae), a rare species in France

Aconitum napellus is a perennial European Ranunculaceae that is currently decreasing in France. Six polymorphic microsatellite markers were characterized to study the polymorphism among individuals sampled from six populations in France. The total number of alleles per locus varied from two to four. Mean observed heterozygosities at each microsatellite locus ranged from 0.05 to 0.19. This set of microsatellites offers an efficient tool for more detailed investigations on population genetic structure of a rare species that can reproduce both sexually and by vegetative spread.     

Integrated Source Case Investigation for Tuberculosis (TB) and HIV in the Caregivers and Household Contacts of Hospitalised Young Children Diagnosed with TB in South Africa: An Observational Study

Background

Contact tracing, to identify source cases with untreated tuberculosis (TB), is rarely performed in high disease burden settings when the index case is a young child with TB. As TB is strongly associated with HIV infection in these settings, we used source case investigation to determine the prevalence of undiagnosed TB and HIV in the caregivers and household contacts of hospitalised young children diagnosed with TB in South Africa.

Methods

Caregivers and household contacts of 576 young children (age ≤7 years) with TB diagnosed between May 2010 and August 2012 were screened for TB and HIV. The primary outcome was the detection of laboratory-confirmed, newly-diagnosed TB disease and/or HIV-infection in close contacts.

Results

Of 576 caregivers, 301 (52·3%) self-reported HIV-positivity. Newly-diagnosed HIV infection was detected in 63 (22·9%) of the remaining 275 caregivers who self-reported an unknown or negative HIV status. Screening identified 133 (23·1%) caregivers eligible for immediate anti-retroviral therapy (ART). Newly-diagnosed TB disease was detected in 23 (4·0%) caregivers. In non-caregiver household contacts (n = 1341), the prevalence of newly-diagnosed HIV infection and TB disease was 10·0% and 3·2% respectively. On average, screening contacts of every nine children with TB resulted in the identification of one case of newly-diagnosed TB disease, three cases of newly diagnosed HIV-infection, and three HIV-infected persons eligible for ART.

Conclusion

In high burden countries, source case investigation yields high rates of previously undiagnosed HIV and TB infection in the close contacts of hospitalised young children diagnosed with TB. Furthermore, integrated screening identifies many individuals who are eligible for immediate ART. Similar studies, with costing analyses, should be undertaken in other high burden settings–integrated source case investigation for TB and HIV should be routinely undertaken if our findings are confirmed.     

Antiretroviral Therapy for Prevention of Tuberculosis in Adults with HIV: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is the strongest risk factor for developing tuberculosis and has fuelled its resurgence, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2010, there were an estimated 1.1 million incident cases of tuberculosis among the 34 million people living with HIV worldwide. Antiretroviral therapy has substantial potential to prevent HIV-associated tuberculosis. We conducted a systematic review of studies that analysed the impact of antiretroviral therapy on the incidence of tuberculosis in adults with HIV infection.

Methods and Findings

PubMed, Embase, African Index Medicus, LILACS, and clinical trial registries were systematically searched. Randomised controlled trials, prospective cohort studies, and retrospective cohort studies were included if they compared tuberculosis incidence by antiretroviral therapy status in HIV-infected adults for a median of over 6 mo in developing countries. For the meta-analyses there were four categories based on CD4 counts at antiretroviral therapy initiation: (1) less than 200 cells/µl, (2) 200 to 350 cells/µl, (3) greater than 350 cells/µl, and (4) any CD4 count.Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. Antiretroviral therapy is strongly associated with a reduction in the incidence of tuberculosis in all baseline CD4 count categories: (1) less than 200 cells/µl (hazard ratio [HR] 0.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.07 to 0.36), (2) 200 to 350 cells/µl (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.60), (3) greater than 350 cells/µl (HR 0.43, 95% CI 0.30 to 0.63), and (4) any CD4 count (HR 0.35, 95% CI 0.28 to 0.44). There was no evidence of hazard ratio modification with respect to baseline CD4 count category (p = 0.20).

Conclusions

Antiretroviral therapy is strongly associated with a reduction in the incidence of tuberculosis across all CD4 count strata. Earlier initiation of antiretroviral therapy may be a key component of global and national strategies to control the HIV-associated tuberculosis syndemic.

Review Registration

International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews CRD42011001209 Please see later in the article for the Editors'' Summary.     

Conserved sequence motifs, alignment, and secondary structure for the third domain of animal 12S rRNA

Secondary structure models are an important step for aligning sequences, understanding probabilities of nucleotide substitutions, and evaluating the reliability of phylogenetic reconstructions. A set of conserved sequence motifs is derived from comparative sequence analysis of 184 invertebrate and vertebrate taxa (including many taxa from the same genera, families, and orders) with reference to a secondary structure model for domain III of animal mitochondrial small subunit (12S) ribosomal RNA. A template is presented to assist with secondary structure drawing. Our model is similar to previous models but is more specific to mitochondrial DNA, fitting both invertebrate and vertebrate groups, including taxa with markedly different nucleotide compositions. The second half of the domain III sequence can be difficult to align precisely, even when secondary structure information is considered. This is especially true for comparisons of anciently diverged taxa, but well-conserved motifs assist in determining biologically meaningful alignments. Patterns of conservation and variability in both paired and unpaired regions make differential phylogenetic weighting in terms of "stems" and "loops" unsatisfactory. We emphasize looking carefully at the sequence data before and during analyses, and advocate the use of conserved motifs and other secondary structure information for assessing sequencing fidelity.      

Competitive PCR reveals the complexity of postcopulatory sexual selection in Teleogryllus commodus

The outcome of mate choice depends on complex interactions between males and females both before and after copulation. Although the competition between males for access to mates and premating choice by females are relatively well understood, the nature of interactions between cryptic female choice and male sperm competition within the female reproductive tract is less clear. Understanding the complexity of postcopulatory sexual selection requires an understanding of how anatomy, physiology and behaviour mediate sperm transfer and storage within multiply mated females. Here we use a newly developed molecular technique to directly quantify mixed sperm stores in multiple mating females of the black field cricket, Teleogryllus commodus. In this species, female postcopulatory choice is easily observed and manipulated as females delay the removal of the spermatophore in favour of preferred males. Using twice‐mated females, we find that the proportion of sperm in the spermatheca attributed to the second male to mate with a female (S₂) increases linearly with the time of spermatophore attachment. Moreover, we show that the insemination success of a male increases with its attractiveness and decreases with the size of the female. The effect of male attractiveness in this context suggests a previously unknown episode of mate choice in this species that reinforces the sexual selection imposed by premating choice and conflicts with the outcome of postmating male harassment. Our results provide some of the clearest evidence yet for how sperm transfer and displacement in multiply mated females can lead directly to cryptic female choice, and that three distinct periods of sexual selection operate in black field crickets.     

Mortality and survival of African Penguins Spheniscus demersusinvolved in the Apollo Seaoil spill: an evaluation of rehabilitation efforts

The bulk ore carrier Apollo Sea sank near Dassen Island, South Africa, on 20 June 1994 during a period of winter storms. Approximately 10 000 African (Jackass) Penguins Spheniscus demersus were oiled, collected and transported to the SANCCOB rescue centre; 5213 were released after cleaning, 4076 with flipper bands. We believe that most of the penguins oiled during this incident reached an island or the mainland alive, and that there was no mass mortality in the wild at the time of the oil spill. Birds from all parts of the breeding range were oiled, but most were from Robben and Dassen Islands. The overwhelming majority of released birds made the transition from the rescue centre to the wild successfully; 2652 had been resighted at breeding colonies within two years of their release; the cumulative number of birds was increasing steadily and an asymptote had not been reached by August 1996. There was a wide dispersal of released penguins, with recoveries and resightings over 1800 km of coastline between Algoa Bay and Walvis Bay.     

Airborne Pollen Grains of Bozuyuk （Bilecik, Turkey）

Airborne pollen grains in the atmosphere of Bozuyuk were investigated over a 2 yr period from 2000 to 2001 using a Durham sampler. A total number of pollen grains of 5 170 pollen grains belonging to 32 taxa were identified and recorded along with some unidentified pollen grains. Of all the pollen grains, 78.66% were arboreal, 19.20% were non-arboreal, and 2.12% were unidentified. The majority of pollen grains investigated were Pinus, Platanus, Quercus, Cupressaceae, Poaceae, Fagus, Salix, Rosaceae, Urticaceae, Asteraceae, and Chenopodiaceae. The maximum number of pollen grains was recorded in May.