Strelkovimermis spiculatus n. sp. (Mermithidae: Nematoda) Parasitizing Aedes albifasciatus Mac. (Culicidae: Diptera) in Argentina

Strelkovimermis spiculatus n. sp. (Mermithidae: Nematoda), a parasite of the mosquito Aedes albifasciatus Mac. in Argentina, is described. Diagnostic characters of this species include a ventrally shifted mouth opening and spicules fused at the tips. The mermithid has been reared on Culex pipiens L. larvae in the laboratory.     

Mayan Language Revival and Revitalization Politics: Linguists and Linguistic Ideologies

Although spoken by a relatively large population, Mayan languages show signs of language shift and loss because the children in some of the speech communities are no longer learning the language. At the same time, Mayas are participating in a movement of cultural reaffirmation, a principle focus of which is language. Maya linguists are central in formulating and reshaping language ideologies to further the goals of revitalization, and they play a significant role in cultural/linguistic activism. This article shows the extent of the contribution of linguistics to Mayan language vitality through an analysis of language ideologies and how they have been reformulated by Maya linguists, and by a review of an apparently successful attempt at reversing language loss that has arisen through an integrated community-based program of cultural revitalization that centers, to a large extent, on language and makes specific use of linguistics. [Keywords: language shift, language ideologies, language revitalization, Mayan languages, Maya movement]     

The War for the Heart and Soul of a Highland Maya Town

The War for the Heart and Soul of. Highland Maya Town. Robert S. Carlsen. Austin: The University of Texas Press, 1997. 206 pp.     

Coxsackieviruses and diabetes

Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) is an autoimmune disease whose etiology is complex. Both genetic susceptibility, which is polygenic, and environmental factors, including virus infections, appear to be involved in the development of IDDM. In this review, we have tried to balance the discussion of diabetes by examining both immunological and virological perspectives. Several mouse models, including viral and non-viral models, have been used to study diabetes. For this review, we include lessons gleaned from the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse and from mouse models of coxsackievirus- and encephalomyocarditis-virus-induced diabetes. Finally, we present a multi-stage model in which several viral infections, including the coxsackieviruses, are postulated to play a role in the autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta cells.     

Flow cytometric and karyological analyses of Calendula species from Iberian Peninsula

Calendula L. (Asteraceae) is a taxonomically and cytologically complex genus due to its high morphological and karyological variation. To gather consistent cytological information aiming to consolidate the existing knowledge, sustain the taxonomic revision of the genus and explore the evolutionary relationships among species, the genome size and chromosome number of the Iberian Peninsula representatives of this genus were assessed. The study included 11 taxa that occur in the Iberian Peninsula, one in Madeira and two from Morocco. Chromosome counts were made using the squash technique in root tips and flower buds, while nuclear DNA contents were assessed using propidium iodide flow cytometry. The following chromosome numbers are reported: 2n = 44 for C. arvensis, 2n = 30 for C. tripterocarpa, and 2n = 32 for the remaining Iberian taxa. The genome size of Calendula species was assessed for the first time and ranged from 1.75 pg/2C in C. maroccana to 5.41 pg/2C in C. arvensis. Within the complex formed by C. incana and C. suffruticosa, a gradient of genome size values was obtained. Intraspecific variation in genome size was detected in some taxa. The obtained genome size values and their variation are discussed in the light of the theories proposed for the speciation of the genus, with events of hybridization, genome duplication and dysploidy being hypothesized to play a major role in the evolution of this genus.     

The PrPC C1 fragment derived from the ovine A136R154R171 PRNP allele is highly abundant in sheep brain and inhibits fibrillisation of full-length PrPC protein in vitro

Expression of the cellular prion protein (PrP^C) is crucial for the development of prion diseases. Resistance to prion diseases can result from reduced availability of the prion protein or from amino acid changes in the prion protein sequence. We propose here that increased production of a natural PrP α-cleavage fragment, C1, is also associated with resistance to disease. We show, in brain tissue, that ARR homozygous sheep, associated with resistance to disease, produced PrP^C comprised of 25% more C1 fragment than PrP^C from the disease-susceptible ARQ homozygous and highly susceptible VRQ homozygous animals. Only the C1 fragment derived from the ARR allele inhibits in-vitro fibrillisation of other allelic PrP^C variants. We propose that the increased α-cleavage of ovine ARR PrP^C contributes to a dominant negative effect of this polymorphism on disease susceptibility. Furthermore, the significant reduction in PrP^C β-cleavage product C2 in sheep of the ARR/ARR genotype compared to ARQ/ARQ and VRQ/VRQ genotypes, may add to the complexity of genetic determinants of prion disease susceptibility.