Effects of starvation and body mass on drought tolerance in the soil collembolan Folsomia candida

The effects of starvation and body mass on drought tolerance in Folsomia candida were investigated. Starvation for up to 6 weeks did not reduce tolerance to drought (98.2% RH) compared to a nonstarved control group. Animals starved for 1, 2 or 6 weeks prior to drought exposure showed no systematic differences in the accumulation of sugars and polyols (SP). In all groups exposed to drought SP constituted 9-13% of dry weight and was distributed in myoinositol, glucose and a third unidentified compound. At 97.3% RH large individuals (9 weeks old) survived better than small individuals (2 or 3 weeks old). However, no correlation was found between body mass and drought tolerance at relative humidities above 97.3% RH. The results suggest that starvation for ecologically relevant periods of time does not impair the ability to produce desiccation-protective SP in F. candida, and that both small and large life stages are well adapted to dry soil conditions.     

Electrophoretic Karyotypes of Candida Yeasts Recurrently Isolated from Single Patients

Candida strains were isolated repeatedly from single patients during recurrent episodes of Candida infection in a hospital, and their electrophoretic karyotypes were analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis using CHEF system. When only C. albicans (in 6 patients) or C. glabrata (in 1 patient) were recurrently isolated, their karyotypes from each patient were almost identical to one another, suggesting that they carried single type of the yeast. When multiple species were recovered from single patients (6 cases), the karyotypes of the most frequently recovered yeast species were almost identical with respect to each patient. The electrophoretic karyotype analysis has been proved to be useful for epidemiological studies because the method can tell not only the species identification but also the differences among the strains of the same species.     

A Rapid Colorimetric Assay for Determination of Leukocyte-Mediated Inhibition of Mycelial Growth of Candida albicans

A staining method with crystal violet (CV) was demonstrated to be useful for a simple, quick and objective assessment of in vitro growth inhibitory activity of leukocytes against Candida albicans cells. Candida cells incubated with murine neutrophils or macrophages for 14 hr in microwells were stained with CV and, after washing with 0.25% sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), treated with isopropanol containing HCl (0.04 N) to extract Candida cell-bound CV. Then the absorbance at 590 nm of the isopropanol extract was photometrically measured. The results showed that the photometrical absorbance was proportional to the amount of³H-glucose taken up by C. albicans cells, which reflected the number of viable Candida cells.     

Suppression of Anti-Candida Activity of Murine and Human Neutrophils by Glucocorticoids

Effects of glucocorticoid (GC) compounds on inhibitory activity of neutrophils to mycelial growth of Candida albicans were examined by in vitro crystal violet staining method with 14 hr co-culture. Both GC hormones (hydrocortisone ≥6 × 10^–7 m and corticosterone ≥10^–6 m ) and anti-inflammatory GC agents (prednisolone ≥10^–7 m and dexamethasone ≥10^–8 m ) significantly suppressed anti-Candida activity of murine casein-induced neutrophils. Anti-Candida activity of human neutrophils prepared from peripheral blood was also suppressed by hydrocortisone (≥6 × 10^–7 m ). These GC compounds did not affect the Candida growth in the absence of neutrophils. Steroidal compounds without anti-inflammatory activity, cholesterol, cholic acid, aldosterone did not suppress neutrophil activity. These results suggest that GCs at their physiological or clinical concentration may suppress anti-Candida activity of neutrophils in vivo.     

The value of two Collembola species as food for a linyphiid spider

Egg production by the cereal spider Erigone atra was used as a fitness parameter for evaluating the food quality of two species of Collembola: Folsomia fimetaria and Isotoma anglicana. Drosophila melanogaster was used as reference prey. We tested the hypothesis that due to differences in food quality, the two Collembola species would affect the reproduction of the spider differently. The quality ranking of the prey types turned out as: I. anglicana > D. melanogaster > F. fimetaria. With F. fimetaria alone, spiders were unable to maintain reproduction. E. atra was more efficient in utilising I. anglicana and D. melanogaster. Thus, daily consumption rates of I. anglicana were lower in spite of higher egg laying rates by E. atra. A mixed diet of F. fimetaria and D. melanogaster resulted in a lower reproductive output than a pure diet of D. melanogaster, indicating a toxic element in F. fimetaria. In the mixed diet F. fimetaria had a negative influence on the consumption capacity of the spider towards D. melanogaster, while D. melanogaster had a positive influence on the consumption capacity towards F. fimetaria. It is concluded that a high abundance of I. anglicana may support a high reproductive output of E. atra, while the presence, of F. fimetaria in fields may reduce the spider's reproductive output.     

Collembola foraging responses to interacting fungi

Abstract 1. Temperate woodland Collembola feed predominantly on plant detritus and fungi. They exhibit preferences for different fungi reflecting resource value in terms of Collembola growth and reproduction. 2. Studies of fungal grazing by Collembola have focused on non‐interacting fungi and have used one genetic isolate as representative of an entire fungal species. This study examines the effects of fungal interactions on Collembola behaviour, and elucidates differences arising from the use of genetically distinct fungal isolates. 3. Folsomia candida were added to microcosms in which paired combinations of the fungi, Hypholoma fasciculare (four isolates), Phallus impudicus, Phanerochetae velutina and Resinicium bicolor (two isolates), were interacting. Collembola movement and mortality was recorded for 26 days. A constant preference for one fungal mycelium over the other was shown by Collembola in 12 of the 36 interactions studied. Lowest Collembola mortality was normally recorded on the preferred mycelium. 4. In 11 of the remaining 24 interactions, Collembola preference switched from one mycelium to the other; the greatest number of dead Collembola was recorded on the final preference. 5. Collembola behaviour on different fungal isolates was broadly similar, although in one species’ combination a change in fungal isolate resulted in a total reversal of Collembola preference. The implications of these results for decomposer food webs are considered.     

Experimental candidosis and recovery of Candida albicans from the oral cavity of ovariectomized rats

The aim of this study was to analyze the development of candidosis and the recovery of C. albicans from the oral cavity of ovariectomized and sham-ovariectomized rats. One hundred and twenty-four rats originally negative for Candida spp. in the oral cavity were divided into two groups: ovariectomized and sham-ovariectomized. Fifty-eight ovariectomized and the same quantity of sham-ovariectomized rats were inoculated with C. albicans for the study of candidosis development and recovery of yeast. Four animals from each group were not inoculated with yeast suspension and were submitted to tongue dorsum morphologic analysis by optical and scanning electron microscopy. The development of candidosis in the tongue dorsum was observed by optical and scanning electron microscopy in the periods of 6 hr, 24 hr, 7 days and 15 days after the last inoculation. Recovery of C. albicans was performed by oral samples plating on Sabouraud agar after 1, 2, 5 and 7 days and progressively at each 15-day interval until negative cultures for yeasts were obtained. The results were analyzed by Mann-Whitney and Student's t tests. The tongue dorsum of sham-ovariectomized and ovariectomized rats, not infected by Candida, presented normal aspect. Among the infected rats, the ovariectomized group showed less occurrence of candidosis lesions and lower recovery of C. albicans from the oral cavity in relation to the sham-ovariectomized group. It could be concluded that candidosis was less frequent from the oral cavities of ovariectomized rats in relation to sham-ovariectomized.     

喀斯特断陷盆地区不同恢复阶段群落物种组成与多样性特征

研究自然植被恢复过程中的物种组成、群落结构及生物多样性的变化,能够为人工促进植被恢复的树种选择与群落结构的优化配置提供重要依据。本研究以空间代替时间对喀斯特断陷盆地典型区云南省建水县不同天然植被(草丛、灌丛、乔木林)进行群落学调查,对不同恢复阶段的植物群落按乔木、灌木、草本进行分层,分析各恢复阶段植物群落的物种组成、水平和垂直结构、生物多样性。结果表明:在总面积为3200 m²的12个样地中,共记录43科72属94种维管束植物,优势种以壳斗科(Fagaceae)、鼠李科(Rhamnaceae)、紫金牛科(Myrsinaceae)、蔷薇科(Rosaceae)、木犀科(Oleaceae)等科的植物为主;在草丛→灌丛→乔木林的恢复过程中,群落物种组成中的科数、属数、种数逐渐增加,低矮和小径级植物个体数所占比例逐渐减少,但整体仍以低矮的小径级植物为主。草本植物的丰富度和Shannon指数在植被恢复的初期即草丛阶段最大,而均匀度指数则以灌丛阶段最大;木本植物的丰富度和Shannon指数随着植被的恢复逐渐增大,但均匀度指数随着植被的恢复逐渐下降;随着植被的恢复,草本层和乔木层...     

Modeling of local dynamic behavior of phenol degradation in an internal loop airlift bioreactor by yeast Candida tropicalis

A coupled computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model, combining hydrodynamics with biochemical reactions, was developed to simulate the local transient flow patterns and the dynamic behaviors of cell growth and phenol biodegradation by yeast Candida tropicalis in an internal loop airlift reactor (ILALR). To validate this proposed model effectively, the simulated local hydrodynamic characteristics of the gas-mineral salt medium solution (gas-liquid) two-phase system, at a phenol concentration of 1,200 mg L(-1) and no presence of cells, was experimentally investigated in the ILALR using laser Doppler anemometer (LDA) measurements and conductivity probe. Furthermore, the validation of the simulated phenol biodegradation behavior by C. tropicalis at different initial concentrations of phenol and cell was also carried out in the ILALR. The time-averaged and transient results of the model simulations illustrated a satisfactory agreement with the experimental data. Finally, the local instantaneous flow and phenol biodegradation features, including gas holdup, gas velocity, liquid velocity, cell concentration, and phenol concentration inside the ILALR were successfully predicted by the proposed model.     

口腔念珠菌感染与肿瘤患者

目的 :研究五类常见肿瘤患者口腔念珠菌感染率及种群结构。方法 :口腔拭子采样 ,常规念珠菌分离鉴定。结果 :五类肿瘤患者均不同程度的口腔念珠菌感染 ,但以胃癌患者感染率最高 (5 3.3% ,P<0 .0 1)。结论 :白色念珠菌是感染的优势种群。