Monitoring of Mass Distribution Interventions for Trachoma in Plateau State,Nigeria

Mass drug administration (MDA) with antibiotics is a key component of the SAFE strategy for trachoma control. Guidelines recommend that where MDA is warranted the whole population be targeted with 80% considered the minimum acceptable coverage. In other countries, MDA is usually conducted by salaried Ministry of Health personnel (MOH). In Plateau State, Nigeria, the existing network of volunteer Community Directed Distributors (CDD) was used for the first trachoma MDA. We conducted a population-based cluster random survey (CRS) of MDA participation to determine the true coverage and compared this to coverage reported from CDD registers. We surveyed 1,791 people from 352 randomly selected households in 24 clusters in three districts in Plateau State in January 2011, following the implementation of MDA. Households were enumerated and all individuals present were asked about MDA participation. Household heads were questioned about household-level characteristics and predictors of participation. Individual responses were compared with the CDD registers. MDA coverage was estimated as 60.3% (95% CI 47.9–73.8%) by the survey compared with 75.8% from administrative program reports. CDD registration books for comparison with responses were available in 19 of the 24 clusters; there was a match for 658/682 (96%) of verifiable responses. CDD registers did not list 481 (41.3%) of the individuals surveyed. Gender and age were not associated with individual participation. Overall MDA coverage was lower than the minimum 80% target. The observed discrepancy between the administrative coverage estimate from program reports and the CRS was largely due to identification of communities missed by the MDA and not reported in the registers. CRS for evaluation of MDA provides a useful additional monitoring tool to CDD registers. These data support modification of distributor training and MDA delivery to increase coverage in subsequent rounds of MDA.     

GFP Affects Human T Cell Activation and Cytokine Production following In Vitro Stimulation

There are many Green Fluorescent Proteins (GFPs) originating from diverse species that are invaluable to cell biologists today because of their ability to provide experimental visualization of protein expression. Since their initial discovery, they have been modified and improved to provide more stable variants with emission ranges spanning a wide array of colors. Due to their ease of expression both in-vitro and in-vivo, they are an attractive choice for use as markers in molecular biology. GFPs are generally assumed to have negligible effects on the cells to which they have been introduced. However, a growing number of reports indicate that this is not always the case. Consequently, because of GFP''s ubiquitous use, it is important to document the nature and extent of unintended effects. In this report, we find that GFP affects T cell activation, leading to defects in clustering, upregulation of the activation marker CD25 and IL-2 cytokine production following stimulation in human primary T cells that also express TurboGFP. We utilized a reporter assay which has been routinely used to assay the NF-κB pathway and found reduced NF-κB activitation in stimulated HEK293 and HeLa cells that were co-transfected with TurboGFP, suggesting that GFP interferes with signaling through the NF-κB pathway. These findings indicate that the utilization of GFP-tagged vectors may negatively impact in vitro experiments in T cells, emphasizing the critical importance of controls to identify any GFP-induced effects.     

Lgr5 Identifies Progenitor Cells Capable of Taste Bud Regeneration after Injury

Taste buds are composed of a variety of taste receptor cell types that develop from tongue epithelium and are regularly replenished under normal homeostatic conditions as well as after injury. The characteristics of cells that give rise to regenerating taste buds are poorly understood. Recent studies have suggested that Lgr5 (leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein coupled receptor 5) identifies taste bud stem cells that contribute to homeostatic regeneration in adult circumvallate and foliate taste papillae, which are located in the posterior region of the tongue. Taste papillae in the adult anterior region of the tongue do not express Lgr5. Here, we confirm and extend these studies by demonstrating that Lgr5 cells give rise to both anterior and posterior taste buds during development, and are capable of regenerating posterior taste buds after injury induced by glossopharyngeal nerve transection.     

Effects of X-Ray Dose On Rhizosphere Studies Using X-Ray Computed Tomography

X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) is a non-destructive imaging technique originally designed for diagnostic medicine, which was adopted for rhizosphere and soil science applications in the early 1980s. X-ray CT enables researchers to simultaneously visualise and quantify the heterogeneous soil matrix of mineral grains, organic matter, air-filled pores and water-filled pores. Additionally, X-ray CT allows visualisation of plant roots in situ without the need for traditional invasive methods such as root washing. However, one routinely unreported aspect of X-ray CT is the potential effect of X-ray dose on the soil-borne microorganisms and plants in rhizosphere investigations. Here we aimed to i) highlight the need for more consistent reporting of X-ray CT parameters for dose to sample, ii) to provide an overview of previously reported impacts of X-rays on soil microorganisms and plant roots and iii) present new data investigating the response of plant roots and microbial communities to X-ray exposure. Fewer than 5% of the 126 publications included in the literature review contained sufficient information to calculate dose and only 2.4% of the publications explicitly state an estimate of dose received by each sample. We conducted a study involving rice roots growing in soil, observing no significant difference between the numbers of root tips, root volume and total root length in scanned versus unscanned samples. In parallel, a soil microbe experiment scanning samples over a total of 24 weeks observed no significant difference between the scanned and unscanned microbial biomass values. We conclude from the literature review and our own experiments that X-ray CT does not impact plant growth or soil microbial populations when employing a low level of dose (<30 Gy). However, the call for higher throughput X-ray CT means that doses that biological samples receive are likely to increase and thus should be closely monitored.     

Assessing avian diversity and community composition along a successional gradient in traditional Lacandon Maya agroforests

Evidence regarding the ability of agroforests to conserve biological diversity has been mixed; they tend to maintain avian communities with species richness similar to that of undisturbed forest ecosystems but generally do not completely preserve community composition. Using a combination of occupancy modeling and non-metric multidimensional scaling on point-count data, we assessed changes in avian community diversity and composition along a successional gradient in traditional Lacandon Maya agroforests and compared them to protected areas in the region. Bird species richness and diversity in Lacandon agroforests peaked in early secondary forest stages. These agroforests' mean Shannon–Weiner diversity was 5% higher than that of nearby protected areas, but their species richness was similar. Community composition in Lacandon agroforests changed throughout succession, with earlier stages supporting communities distinctly characterized by generalist species, while subsequent, less-intensively managed stages tended to support more forest-dwellers. The bird community observed in even the most mature secondary forest stages in Lacandon agroforests differed from that of undisturbed rain forest ecosystems. These results demonstrate the potential of traditional Lacandon agroforestry management to conserve avian biodiversity while ensuring food sovereignty for farmers. However, because the community composition of early-successional stages was different than later stages, shortening fallow cycles and reducing forest cover to increase agricultural production will limit the species this system can support. This study illustrates the value of incorporating traditional agroecosystems into conservation planning as well as maintaining protected areas, because the latter serve as refugia for species that require undisturbed forest habitat in an agroecological matrix.     

Cave-adapted evolution in the North American amblyopsid fishes inferred using phylogenomics and geometric morphometrics

Cave adaptation has evolved repeatedly across the Tree of Life, famously leading to pigmentation and eye degeneration and loss, yet its macroevolutionary implications remain poorly understood. We use the North American amblyopsid fishes, a family spanning a wide degree of cave adaptation, to examine the impact of cave specialization on the modes and tempo of evolution. We reconstruct evolutionary relationships using ultraconserved element loci, estimate the ancestral histories of eye-state, and examine the impact of cave adaptation on body shape evolution. Our phylogenomic analyses provide a well-supported hypothesis for amblyopsid evolutionary relationships. The obligate blind cavefishes form a clade and the cave-facultative eyed spring cavefishes are nested within the obligate cavefishes. Using ancestral state reconstruction, we find support for at least two independent subterranean colonization events within the Amblyopsidae. Eyed and blind fishes have different body shapes, but not different rates of body shape evolution. North American amblyopsids highlight the complex nature of cave-adaptive evolution and the necessity to include multiple lines of evidence to uncover the underlying processes involved in the loss of complex traits.     

Mycorrhizal preference promotes habitat invasion by a native Australian orchid: Microtis media

Background and Aims

Mycorrhizal specialization has been shown to limit recruitment capacity in orchids, but an increasing number of orchids are being documented as invasive or weed-like. The reasons for this proliferation were examined by investigating mycorrhizal fungi and edaphic correlates of Microtis media, an Australian terrestrial orchid that is an aggressive ecosystem and horticultural weed.

Methods

Molecular identification of fungi cultivated from M. media pelotons, symbiotic in vitro M. media seed germination assays, ex situ fungal baiting of M. media and co-occurring orchid taxa (Caladenia arenicola, Pterostylis sanguinea and Diuris magnifica) and soil physical and chemical analyses were undertaken.

Key Results

It was found that: (1) M. media associates with a broad taxonomic spectrum of mycobionts including Piriformospora indica, Sebacina vermifera, Tulasnella calospora and Ceratobasidium sp.; (2) germination efficacy of mycorrhizal isolates was greater for fungi isolated from plants in disturbed than in natural habitats; (3) a higher percentage of M. media seeds germinate than D. magnifica, P. sanguinea or C. arenicola seeds when incubated with soil from M. media roots; and (4) M. media–mycorrhizal fungal associations show an unusual breadth of habitat tolerance, especially for soil phosphorus (P) fertility.

Conclusions

The findings in M. media support the idea that invasive terrestrial orchids may associate with a diversity of fungi that are widespread and common, enhance seed germination in the host plant but not co-occurring orchid species and tolerate a range of habitats. These traits may provide the weedy orchid with a competitive advantage over co-occurring orchid species. If so, invasive orchids are likely to become more broadly distributed and increasingly colonize novel habitats.     

Efficacy of neem compost on root knot nematode pest of Lagos spinach,Celosia argentea

The effects of neem compost on root knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, pest of Lagos spinach, Celosia argentea, cv. TLV 8, was studied during 2010 and 2011 planting seasons on the field. The trial was conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria. There were four treatments, replicated five times fitted into randomised complete block design. Neem compost was applied at 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0?tonnes/ha. Experimental plots, where no compost was applied served as the control. The result obtained shows that Lagos spinach treated with neem compost significantly (p?<?0.05) reduced the final soil nematode population and root infections (damage), with resultant improvement on crop growth and yield. The result of the chemical analysis of the neem compost revealed the presence of flavonoids, sterols, glycosides, alkaloids and saponins.     

CD40L-Tri, a novel formulation of recombinant human CD40L that effectively activates B cells

CD40L has a well-established role in enhancing the immunostimulatory capacity of normal and malignant B cells, but a formulation suitable for clinical use has not been widely available. Like other TNF family members, in vivo and in vitro activity of CD40L requires a homotrimeric configuration, and growing evidence suggests that bioactivity depends on higher-order clustering of CD40. We generated a novel formulation of human recombinant CD40L (CD40L-Tri) in which the CD40L extracellular domain and a trimerization motif are connected by a long flexible peptide linker. We demonstrate that CD40L-Tri significantly expands normal CD19+ B cells by over 20- to 30-fold over 14 days and induces B cells to become highly immunostimulatory antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Consistent with these results, CD40L-Tri-activated B cells could effectively stimulate antigen-specific T responses (against the influenza M1 peptide) from normal volunteers. In addition, CD40L-Tri could induce malignant B cells to become effective APCs, such that tumor-directed immune responses could be probed. Together, our studies demonstrate the potent immune-stimulatory effects of CD40L-Tri on B cells that enable their expansion of antigen-specific human T cells. The potent bioactivity of CD40L-Tri is related to its ability to self-multimerize, which may be facilitated by its long peptide linker.     

Are human endogenous retroviruses pathogenic? An approach to testing the hypothesis

A number of observations have led researchers to postulate that, despite being replication‐defective, human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) may have retained the potential to cause or contribute to disease. However, mechanisms of HERV pathogenicity might differ substantially from those of modern infectious retroviruses or of the infectious precursors of HERVs. Therefore, novel pathways of HERV involvement in disease pathogenesis should be investigated. Recent technological advances in sequencing and bioinformatics are making this task increasingly feasible. The accumulating knowledge of HERV biology may also facilitate the definition and general acceptance of criteria that establish HERV pathogenicity. Here, we explore possible mechanisms whereby HERVs may cause disease and examine the evidence that either has been or should be obtained in order to decisively address the pathogenic potential of HERVs.