The economics of malaria control in Thailand

Economics has been variously described as the science concerned with the production, consumption and distribution of goods and services, the art of assessing values and, less flatteringly for economists, applied common sense. Irrespective of one's view, there can be little doubt about the basic issue. Resources available to a community are always scarce in relation to needs and aspirations and as a result, choices have to be made about how resources will be used, which requires economic evaluation. In addition, efforts have to be made to understand and improve the efficiency of existing operations by economic analysis.     

Drinking to intracerebroventricularly infused angiotensin II, III, and IV in the SHR

Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) revealed exaggerated water consumption to the intracerebroventricular (ICV) infusion of angiotensin II (AII), and angiotensin III (AIII), as compared with Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) normotensive rat strains, in agreement with an earlier report (30) that employed ICV bolus injections of AII and AIII. However, the ICV infusion of AII(3-8) (AIV) did not yield reliable drinking. A second hypothesis that the infusion of AII and AIII would yield equivalent drinking within members of each strain, as previously observed with bolus ICV injections in SD rats, was not confirmed. In contrast, ICV infusion of AII yielded greater water intake than AIII in members of each strain tested. These results suggest that the slow infusion of these ligands allowed endogenous aminopeptidases to adequately keep pace with the degradation of these peptides in contrast with bolus injections that could temporarily saturate the available aminopeptidases thus extending the half-life of the ligand.     

The SUMO protease SENP3 regulates mitochondrial autophagy mediated by Fis1

Mitochondria are unavoidably subject to organellar stress resulting from exposure to a range of reactive molecular species. Consequently, cells operate a poorly understood quality control programme of mitophagy to facilitate elimination of dysfunctional mitochondria. Here, we used a model stressor, deferiprone (DFP), to investigate the molecular basis for stress‐induced mitophagy. We show that mitochondrial fission 1 protein (Fis1) is required for DFP‐induced mitophagy and that Fis1 is SUMOylated at K149, an amino acid residue critical for Fis1 mitochondrial localization. We find that DFP treatment leads to the stabilization of the SUMO protease SENP3, which is mediated by downregulation of the E3 ubiquitin (Ub) ligase CHIP. SENP3 is responsible for Fis1 deSUMOylation and depletion of SENP3 abolishes DFP‐induced mitophagy. Furthermore, preventing Fis1 SUMOylation by conservative K149R mutation enhances Fis1 mitochondrial localization. Critically, expressing a Fis1 K149R mutant restores DFP‐induced mitophagy in SENP3‐depleted cells. Thus, we propose a model in which SENP3‐mediated deSUMOylation facilitates Fis1 mitochondrial localization to underpin stress‐induced mitophagy.     

Time series covering up to four decades reveals major changes and drivers of marine growth and proportion of repeat spawners in an Atlantic salmon population

1. Wild Atlantic salmon populations have declined in many regions and are affected by diverse natural and anthropogenic factors. To facilitate management guidelines, precise knowledge of mechanisms driving population changes in demographics and life history traits is needed.
2. Our analyses were conducted on (a) age and growth data from scales of salmon caught by angling in the river Etneelva, Norway, covering smolt year classes from 1980 to 2018, (b) extensive sampling of the whole spawning run in the fish trap from 2013 onwards, and (c) time series of sea surface temperature, zooplankton biomass, and salmon lice infestation intensity.
3. Marine growth during the first year at sea displayed a distinct stepwise decline across the four decades. Simultaneously, the population shifted from predominantly 1SW to 2SW salmon, and the proportion of repeat spawners increased from 3 to 7%. The latter observation is most evident in females and likely due to decreased marine exploitation. Female repeat spawners tended to be less catchable than males by anglers.
4. Depending on the time period analyzed, marine growth rate during the first year at sea was both positively and negatively associated with sea surface temperature. Zooplankton biomass was positively associated with growth, while salmon lice infestation intensity was negatively associated with growth.
5. Collectively, these results are likely to be linked with both changes in oceanic conditions and harvest regimes. Our conflicting results regarding the influence of sea surface temperature on marine growth are likely to be caused by long‐term increases in temperature, which may have triggered (or coincided with) ecosystem shifts creating generally poorer growth conditions over time, but within shorter datasets warmer years gave generally higher growth. We encourage management authorities to expand the use of permanently monitored reference rivers with complete trapping facilities, like the river Etneelva, generating valuable long‐term data for future analyses.

     

The limits of convergence in the collective behavior of competing marine taxa

Collective behaviors in biological systems such as coordinated movements have important ecological and evolutionary consequences. While many studies examine within‐species variation in collective behavior, explicit comparisons between functionally similar species from different taxonomic groups are rare. Therefore, a fundamental question remains: how do collective behaviors compare between taxa with morphological and physiological convergence, and how might this relate to functional ecology and niche partitioning? We examined the collective motion of two ecologically similar species from unrelated clades that have competed for pelagic predatory niches for over 500 million years—California market squid, Doryteuthis opalescens (Mollusca) and Pacific sardine, Sardinops sagax (Chordata). We (1) found similarities in how groups of individuals from each species collectively aligned, measured by angular deviation, the difference between individual orientation and average group heading. We also (2) show that conspecific attraction, which we approximated using nearest neighbor distance, was greater in sardine than squid. Finally, we (3) found that individuals of each species explicitly matched the orientation of groupmates, but that these matching responses were less rapid in squid than sardine. Based on these results, we hypothesize that information sharing is a comparably important function of social grouping for both taxa. On the other hand, some capabilities, including hydrodynamically conferred energy savings and defense against predators, could stem from taxon‐specific biology.     

Std1 and Mth1 Proteins Interact with the Glucose Sensors To Control Glucose-Regulated Gene Expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The Std1 protein modulates the expression of glucose-regulated genes, but its exact molecular role in this process is unclear. A two-hybrid screen for Std1-interacting proteins identified the hydrophilic C-terminal domains of the glucose sensors, Snf3 and Rgt2. The homologue of Std1, Mth1, behaves differently from Std1 in this assay by interacting with Snf3 but not Rgt2. Genetic interactions between STD1, MTH1, SNF3, and RGT2 suggest that the glucose signaling is mediated, at least in part, through interactions of the products of these four genes. Mutations in MTH1 can suppress the raffinose growth defect of a snf3 mutant as well as the glucose fermentation defect present in cells lacking both glucose sensors (snf3 rgt2). Genetic suppression by mutations in MTH1 is likely to be due to the increased and unregulated expression of hexose transporter genes. In media lacking glucose or with low levels of glucose, the hexose transporter genes are subject to repression by a mechanism that requires the Std1 and Mth1 proteins. An additional mechanism for glucose sensing must exist since a strain lacking all four genes (snf3 rgt2 std1 mth1) is still able to regulate SUC2 gene expression in response to changes in glucose concentration. Finally, studies with green fluorescent protein fusions indicate that Std1 is localized to the cell periphery and the cell nucleus, supporting the idea that it may transduce signals from the plasma membrane to the nucleus.     

Airway distensibility in healthy and asthmatic subjects: effect of lung volume history.

Anatomic dead space (VD) is known to increase with end-inspiratory lung volume (EILV), and the gradient of the relationship has been proposed as an index of airway distensibility (DeltaVD). The aims of this study were to apply a rapid method for measuring DeltaVD and to determine whether it was affected by lung volume history. VD of 16 healthy and 16 mildly asthmatic subjects was measured at a number of known EILVs by using a tidal breathing, CO(2)-washout method. The effect of lung volume history was assessed by using three tidal breathing regimens: 1) three discrete EILVs (low/medium/high; LMH); 2) progressively decreasing EILVs from total lung capacity (TLC; TLC-RV); and 3) progressively increasing EILVs from residual volume (RV; RV-TLC). DeltaVD was lower in the asthmatic group for the LMH (25.3 +/- 2.24 vs. 21.2 +/- 1.66 ml/l, means +/- SE) and TLC-RV (24. 3 +/- 1.69 vs. 18.7 +/- 1.16 ml/l) regimens. There was a trend for a lower DeltaVD in the asthmatic group for the RV-TLC regimen (23.3 +/- 2.19 vs. 18.8 +/- 1.68 ml/l). There was no difference in DeltaVD between groups. In conclusion, mild asthmatic subjects have stiffer airways than normal subjects, and this is not obviously affected by lung volume history.     

Recovery of the visual evoked response in the cat following administration of diisopropylfluorophosphate, an irreversible cholinesterase inhibitor

Visual evoked responses (VER) to counterphased gratings were recorded from area 17 of cat visual cortex prior to and following administration of diisopropylfluorophosphate (DFP). The VER and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity of blood, retina, and visual cortex were reduced significantly following DFP administration. Approximately two hours after exposure to 4 mg/kg DFP, the VER began to recover and in some cats returned to base line levels. In contrast, blood, retina, and cortex AChE activity showed little, if any, tendency for recovery throughout the experiment. Since atropine sulfate provided at least partial recovery of the VER following DFP without affecting AChE inhibition, an accumulation of acetylcholine (ACh) probably is involved in the initial visual loss. However, recovery of the VER over time while AChE remained severely inhibited implicates mechanisms other than, or in addition to, accumulation of ACh at receptor sites.     

Engineering and cell attachment properties of human fibronectin–fibrinogen scaffolds for use in tissue engineered blood vessels

Tissue engineered constructs reported to date have been prepared primarily from poly(glycolic) acid or collagen scaffolds onto which cells are grown and matured. In this paper we report experimental data to demonstrate the use of a natural, human protein, as a tubular scaffold for vascular grafting. Using a manual and a scalable dip-coating technique we prepared fibronectin-based tubes up to 12 cm in length and up to 3 mm in diameter. The tubes were flexible and their mechanical properties, measured in terms of tensile strength and burst pressure as a function of humidity, demonstrated their suitability as scaffolds for use in vascular grafting, e.g. coronary artery by pass grafting. In vitro tests involved the attachment of endothelial cells pumped under laminar flow conditions through the tube lumen and the adherence of smooth muscle cells on the outer surface of the tubes. These tests, carried out in multiwells, showed that the scaffolds had excellent cell attachment and guidance characteristics.     

Valine substituted winter flounder ‘antifreeze': preservation of ice growth hysteresis

Three mutant polypeptides of the type I 37-residue winter flounder ‘antifreeze' protein have been synthesized. All four threonine residues in the native peptide were been mutated to serine, valine and glycine respectively and two additional salt bridges were incorporated into the sequences in order to improve aqueous solubility. The peptides were analyzed by nanoliter osmometry, the ‘ice hemisphere' test, the ‘crystal habit' test, measurement of ice growth hysteresis and CD spectroscopy. While the valine and serine mutants retain the α-helical structure, only the valine mutant retains ‘antifreeze' activity similar to that of the native protein. These data show that the threonine hydroxyl groups do not play a crucial role in the accumulation of the native ‘antifreeze' protein at the ice/water interface and the inhibition of ice growth below the equilibrium melting temperature.