Performance of Two Fruit Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) Pupal Parasitoids (Coptera haywardi [Hymenoptera: Diapriidae] and Pachycrepoideus vindemiae [Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae]) under Different Environmental Soil Conditions

We evaluated the performance of Coptera haywardi (Ogloblin) (Diapriidae) and Pachycrepoideus vindemiae (Rondani) (Pteromalidae), both hymenopteran pupal parasitoids of Anastrepha spp. (Diptera: Tephritidae). Performance was studied by manipulating the following environmental conditions in the laboratory: (1) soil type, (2) soil moisture content, (3) soil compaction, and (4) depth at which pupae were buried in the soil. There were two experiments: in the first, exposure time of pupae was held constant and in the second, it varied. In the first experiment, C. haywardi was significantly more effective than P. vindemiae in parasitizing fly pupae. With exposure time held constant (36 h), only soil type and pupal burial depth were significantly related to parasitism rates. While P. vindemiae only parasitized pupae located on the soil surface, C. haywardi attacked pupae that were buried up to 5 cm deep, performing better in clayey than in loamy soil. In the second experiment, exposure time (24, 36, 48, and 72 h) had no significant effect on parasitism rates, but soil type did. P. vindemiae again only attacked pupae on the soil surface while C. haywardi was also able to parasitize pupae that were buried up to 5 cm deep. We conclude that C. haywardi represents a viable candidate to replace the environmentally unfriendly P. vindemiae in augmentative biological control programs against fruit flies.     

Higher-level phylogeny of Hydrophilinae (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) based on larval, pupal and adult characters

Abstract.  A phylogenetic analysis, at a tribal and subtribal level, of the subfamily Hydrophilinae was conducted. The analysis was based on twenty-nine taxa (twenty-three genera) and 148 characters (fifty-eight from immature stages and bionomics, and ninety from adults). According to the present study, Hydrophilinae is monophyletic, and except for the tribe Hydrophilini which appears as polyphyletic (it includes the subtribes Hydrophilina, Hydrobiina, and Acidocerina), the remaining tribes are monophyletic. The tribes Berosini and Chaetarthriini form the basal clade of Hydrophilinae. One unexpected result is the relationship between the subtribe Hydrobiina and the tribe Sperchopsini, which form a well-supported clade. The final tree has the following structure: (((((Sperchopsini Hydrobiina) (Anacaenini Laccobiini)) Acidocerina) Hydrophilina) (Berosini Chaetarthriini)). The results partially disagree with the phylogeny presented by Hansen, in 1991, which was based mostly on adult characters. Several evolutionary trends are briefly discussed: the types of egg case, the morphology of the clypeolabrum, mouthparts, legs, and breathing adaptations in larvae.     

A rapid extraction method for detecting aflatoxin producing isolates

A rapid extraction method for screening aflatoxin producing potential ofAspergillus flavus group isolates is described. The method is performed using a moist wheat medium with ca. five infected grains extracted with 2 mL of chloroform, and using thin layer chromatography. This method was proved with 95A. flavus isolates from animal feeds.     

Possible role of cytokinins in cereals with regard to the resistance to obligate fungus parasites

The cultivars of barley and wheat resistant to mildew had a higher level of free zeatin and its derivatives during the whole ontogeny than the susceptible cultivars. The effect of exogenous application of cytokinins on the growth ofErysiphe graminis DC. was different. Kinetin and benzylaminopurine showed only a slight inhibitory effect. Zeatin and its derivatives completely inhibited growth of this fungus. Presented at the International Symposium “Plant Growth Regulators” held on June 18-22 1984 at Liblice, Czechoslovakia.     

To produce many small or few large eggs: a size-independent reproductive tactic of fish

Summary We demonstrate here the existence of a range of size-independent reproductive tactics in teleostean fish involving the allocation of a size-dependent reproductive effort between fecundity and egg size. Despite considerable evidence that larger eggs and the larvae hatching from them are more likely to survive than smaller ones, we found no evidence of evolutionary trends towards greater egg sizes. Fish with pelagic eggs tend to spawn many, and therefore small, eggs, whereas demersal spawners tend to produce large, and therefore few, eggs. Maximizing egg number should increase the number of eggs hatching in suitable locations in the patchy pelagic environment and, hence, increase the reproductive success of pelagic spawners. On the other hand, the reproductive success of demersal spawners, which reduce the variance in growing conditions experienced by the off spring, should be more dependent on the survival of the individual larvae, which increases as egg size increases.     

Bacterial Metabolism of 2,6-Xylenol

Strain DM1, a Mycobacterium sp. that utilizes 2,6-xylenol, 2,3,6-trimethylphenol, and o-cresol as sources of carbon and energy, was isolated. Intact cells of Mycobacterium strain DM1 grown with 2,6-xylenol cooxidized 2,4,6-trimethylphenol to 2,4,6-trimethylresorcinol. 4-Chloro-3,5-dimethylphenol prevents 2,6-xylenol from being totally degraded; it was quantitatively converted to 2,6-dimethylhydroquinone by resting cells. 2,6-Dimethylhydroquinone, citraconate, and an unidentified metabolite were detected as products of 2,6-xylenol oxidation in cells that were partially inactivated by EDTA. Under oxygen limitation, 2,6-dimethylhy-droquinone, citraconate, and an unidentified metabolite were released during 2,6-xylenol turnover by resting cells. Cell extracts of 2,6-xylenol-grown cells contained a 2,6-dimethylhydroquinone-converting enzyme. When supplemented with NADH, cell extracts catalyzed the reduction of 2,6-dimethyl-3-hydroxyquinone to 2,6-dimethyl-3-hydroxyhydroquinone. Since a citraconase was also demonstrated in cell extracts, a new metabolic pathway with 2,6-dimethyl-3-hydroxyhydroquinone as the ring fission substrate is proposed.     

Comparison between intra- and extracellular surfactant in respiratory distress induced by oleic acid

The present study compares the phospholipid distribution and protein content in bronchoalveolar lavage, purified extracellular surfactant and lamellar bodies isolated from rabbits killed at intervals of 2.5, 12 and 24 h after oleic acid administration. The data suggest that the alteration of pulmonary surfactant could be partially due to the type II cell response to the injury.     

Differential effects of cisplatin on mouse hepatic and renal mitochrondrial DNA

The objective of this study was to determine if the nephrotoxic effects induced by cisplatin were correlated to mitochondrial DNA damage. Comparisons were made with the liver since hepatotoxicity is rarely observed. Cisplatin doses of 10, 20 and 40 mg/kg were administered intraperitoneally to C57BL/6J mice. Mitochrondrial DNA was isolated from both the hepatic and renal tissues and quantitated by hybridization with a specific mitochondrial probe. Cisplatin caused differential effects on mouse hepatic and renal mitochondrial DNA. The 10 and 20 mg/kg dose caused an elevation in mitochondrial DNA levels in the hepatic, but no increase in the renal tissue was observed. This is the first study demonstrating an organ specific effect of cisplatin at the DNA level.