Menstrual cycles continue into advanced old age in the common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes)

A long postreproductive lifespan may distinguish women from all other female primates. A long-held consensus among reproductive scientists has been that our closest living relative, the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), experiences menstrual cycles until death. However, a recent study of biannual assessments of gonadotropins, but lacking observations of menstruation, concluded that menopause occurs in chimpanzees between 35 and 40 yr of age. A separate report, but on wild chimpanzees, documented fertility through the 40-44 age range in all populations studied. These contradictory reports pose questions about differences between wild and captive populations and about assessments of menopause. The present study revisits this controversy by analyzing longitudinal records of anogenital swelling and menstruation in 89 female chimpanzees aged 6 to 59 yr (n = 2386 records on cycle length), monitored for most of their adult lives at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center. Twenty of these chimpanzees were observed past 39 yr of age; all 20 displayed menstrual cycles beyond this age, as confirmed by at least two observations of menses about 35 days apart. Three of these were older than 50 yr and still displayed menstrual cycles. Only the oldest female appeared menopausal, with cycles of anogenital swelling ceasing 2 yr prior to her death at age 59. Random-effects statistical modeling reveals a slight decrease in cycle length until 20 yr of age and a slight lengthening thereafter. Mean cycle length across the lifespan is 35.4 days. Our findings, based upon actual observations of menstrual cycles, suggest that menopause in the chimpanzee is rare, occurring near the end of the lifespan.     

A new late Westphalian fossil marattialean fern from Nova Scotia

Sydneia manleyi gen. et sp. nov. is based on part of a fertile frond from the upper Westphalian D of the Sydney Coalfield, Nova Scotia, Canada. It has small synangia composed of laterally fused sporangia that are elongate and with a circular cross-section. The sporangia yielded variably sized monolete and trilete spores with laevigate and microspinate ornamentation; intermediate forms were also observed. The spores can be correlated with the sporae dispersae species Latosporites minutus , Punctatosporites oculus and Laevigatosporites minimus . Size distribution of the spores is variable and highly skewed, suggesting heterogeneity of the spores within the sporangium. Spore ultrastructure indicates that the fossil is part of a fern, and the morphology of the spores and synangia indicate marattialean affinities.  © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2003, 142 , 199–212.     

Host-associated speciation in the coral barnacle Wanella milleporae (Cirripedia: Pyrgomatidae) inhabiting the Millepora coral

Speciation by host shift is a common phenomenon observed in many symbiotic animals. The symbiont–host interaction is highly dynamic, but it is poorly documented in the marine realm. In the present study, we examined the genetic and morphological differentiation of the coral barnacle Wanella milleporae (obligate to fire corals) collected from four different Millepora host species in Taiwan to investigate the host specificity of this barnacle. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial COI gene for 241 individuals of Wanella revealed five distinct clades, whose sequence divergences are comparable to values between other cogeneric barnacle species. The five clades also differ in shell and opercular plate morphology and colour. Genetic and morphological differentiations together strongly suggest the presence of cryptic species. Although the five clades do not display species-level host specificity, they showed a significant difference in preference on host growth form. Clades 1 and 2 were predominantly found on encrusting Millepora exaesa and Millepora platyphylla , while clades 3, 4 and 5 live exclusively on branching-form fire corals Millepora dichotoma and Millepora tenella . Phylogeny inferred from the combined mitochondrial COI, 16S and 12S (2182 bp) analysis suggests the division of the five clades into two major lineages congruent with the morphology of the host coral. Multiple independent invasions to the same form of host and subsequent speciation are evident in the Red Sea and Taiwan. Our results indicate that ecological/sympatric speciation could occur in marine symbiotic invertebrates through host shift and specialization. It appears that, as in their terrestrial counterparts, host–symbiont radiations in the marine realm are more prevalent than we expected and thus warrant further investigation.     

Pratylenchus thornei Associated with Reduced Wheat Yield in Oregon

Pratylenchus thornei reaches high population densities in non-irrigated annual cropping systems in low-rainfall regions of the Pacific Northwest. Two spring wheat varieties with different levels of tolerance and susceptibility to P. thornei were treated or not treated with aldicarb in three experiments. Grain yield was inversely correlated (P < 0.05) with pre-plant populations of P. thornei in soil and with P. thornei density in mature roots. As population of P. thornei increased, yield of the moderately tolerant/moderately susceptible variety Krichauff was generally more stable than for the intolerant/susceptible variety Machete. The reproductive factor (Pf/Pi) was generally lower (P < 0.05) for Krichauff than Machete. Aldicarb improved wheat yield (P < 0.05) in highly infested fields by an average of 67% for Krichauff and 113% for Machete. Aldicarb increased (P < 0.05) numbers of headed tillers, plant height, and grain test weight and kernel weight, and reduced (P < 0.05) the density of P. thornei in mature wheat roots, variability in height of heads, and leaf canopy temperature. Aldicarb did not improve yield in a soil with a low population of P. thornei. This is the first report that P. thornei causes economic damage to wheat in the Pacific Northwest.     

First morphogenetic identification of <i>Fusarium solani</i> isolated from orange fruit in Egypt

Losses due to postharvest decay may occur at any time during postharvest handling, from harvest to consumption affecting the produce quality and quantity. Accurate identification of the pathogen causing postharvest disease is essential to the selection of an appropriate disease control approach. Nine isolates of Fusarium recovered from orange fruit were identified as Fusarium solani. The fungus is involved with fruit decay. The obtained cultures were purified and grown on potato-dextrose agar (PDA), malt yeast agar (MYA), and Czapek's nutrient media (CNM) under light for identification. A pathogenicity test was carried out to fulfil Koch's postulates. The pathogen could only enter ripe orange fruit through wounds and cracks causing the rot disease. The identification of the fungal isolates was confirmed to be F. solani by DNA sequencing, which was 99 to 100% homologous to those deposited in the Gen- Bank. The identity of nine fungal isolates was confirmed to be F. solani by DNA sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA region (GenBank Accession Nos. DQ486874 to DQ486881 and KC758879). To our knowledge, this is the first morphogenetic identification of F. solani isolated from orange fruit in Egypt.     

Bottom-up assembly of hydrogels from bacteriophage and Au nanoparticles: the effect of cis- and trans-acting factors

Hydrogels have become a promising research focus because of their potential for biomedical application. Here we explore the long-range, electrostatic interactions by following the effect of trans-acting (pH) and cis-acting factors (peptide mutation) on the formation of Au-phage hydrogels. These bioinorganic hydrogels can be generated from the bottom-up assembly of Au nanoparticles (Au NP) with either native or mutant bacteriophage (phage) through electrostatic interaction of the phage pVIII major capsid proteins (pVIII). The cis-acting factor consists of a peptide extension displayed on the pVIII that mutates the phage. Our results show that pH can dictate the direct-assembly and stability of Au-phage hydrogels in spite of the differences between the native and the mutant pVIII. The first step in characterizing the interactions of Au NP with phage was to generate a molecular model that identified the charge distribution and structure of the native and mutant pVIII. This model indicated that the mutant peptide extension carried a higher positive charge relative to the native pVIII at all pHs. Next, by monitoring the Au-phage interaction by means of optical microscopy, elastic light scattering, fractal dimension analysis as well as Uv-vis and surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy, we show that the positive charge of the mutant peptide extension favors the opposite charge affinity between the phage and Au NP as the pH is decreased. These results show the versatility of this assembly method, where the stability of these hydrogels can be achieved by either adjusting the pH or by changing the composition of the phage pVIII without the need of phage display libraries.     

Nematodes in Dryland Field Crops in the Semiarid Pacific Northwest United States

Soils and roots of field crops in low-rainfall regions of the Pacific Northwest were surveyed for populations of plantparasitic and non-plant-parasitic nematodes. Lesion nematodes (Pratylenchus species) were recovered from 123 of 130 non-irrigated and 18 of 18 irrigated fields. Pratylenchus neglectus was more prevalent than P. thornei, but mixed populations were common. Population densities in soil were affected by crop frequency and rotation but not by tillage or soil type (P < 0.05). Many fields (25%) cropped more frequently than 2 of 4 years had potentially damaging populations of lesion nematodes. Pratylenchus neglectus density in winter wheat roots was inversely correlated with grain yield (r² = 0.64, P = 0.002), providing the first field-derived evidence that Pratylenchus is economically important in Pacific Northwest dryland field crops. Stunt nematodes (Tylenchorhynchus clarus and Geocenamus brevidens) were detected in 35% of fields and were occasionally present in high numbers. Few fields were infested with pin (Paratylenchus species) and root-knot (Meloidogyne naasi and M. chitwoodi) nematodes. Nematodes detected previously but not during this survey included cereal cyst (Heterodera avenae), dagger (Xiphinema species), and root-gall (Subanguina radicicola) nematodes.     

Retroviral proteomics and interactomes: intricate balances of cell survival and viral replication

Overall changes in the host cellular proteome upon retroviral infection intensify from the initial entry of the virus to the incorporation of viral DNA into the host genome, and finally to the consistent latent state of infection. The host cell reacts to both the entry of viral elements and the manipulation of host cellular machinery, resulting in a cascade of signaling events and pathway activation. Cell type- and tissue-specific responses are also characteristic of infection and can be classified based on the differential expression of genes and proteins between normal and disease states. The characterization of differentially expressed proteins upon infection is also critical in identifying potential biomarkers within infected bodily fluids. Biomarkers can be used to monitor the progression of infection, track the effectiveness of specific treatments and characterize the mechanisms of disease pathogenesis. Standard proteomic approaches have been applied to monitor the changes in global protein expression and localization in infected cells, tissues and fluids. Here we report on recent investigations into the characterization of proteomes in response to retroviral infection.     

Increased homeostatic cytokines and stability of HIV-infected memory CD4 T-cells identify individuals with suboptimal CD4 T-cell recovery on-ART

Clinical outcomes are inferior for individuals with HIV having suboptimal CD4 T-cell recovery during antiretroviral therapy (ART). We investigated if the levels of infection and the response to homeostatic cytokines of CD4 T-cell subsets contributed to divergent CD4 T-cell recovery and HIV reservoir during ART by studying virologically-suppressed immunologic responders (IR, achieving a CD4 cell count >500 cells/μL on or before two years after ART initiation), and virologically-suppressed suboptimal responders (ISR, did not achieve a CD4 cell count >500 cells/μL in the first two years after ART initiation). Compared to IR, ISR demonstrated higher levels of HIV-DNA in naïve, central (CM), transitional (TM), and effector (EM) memory CD4 T-cells in blood, both pre- and on-ART, and specifically in CM CD4 T-cells in LN on-ART. Furthermore, ISR had higher pre-ART plasma levels of IL-7 and IL-15, cytokines regulating T-cell homeostasis. Notably, pre-ART PD-1 and TIGIT expression levels were higher in blood CM and TM CD4 T-cells for ISR; this was associated with a significantly lower fold-changes in HIV-DNA levels between pre- and on-ART time points exclusively on CM and TM T-cell subsets, but not naïve or EM T-cells. Finally, the frequency of CM CD4 T-cells expressing PD-1 or TIGIT pre-ART as well as plasma levels of IL-7 and IL-15 predicted HIV-DNA content on-ART. Our results establish the association between infection, T-cell homeostasis, and expression of PD-1 and TIGIT in long-lived CD4 T-cell subsets prior to ART with CD4 T-cell recovery and HIV persistence on-ART.