Underwater observations of piranhas in western Brazil

Synopsis The behaviour of three piranha species,Serrasalmus marginatus, S. spilopleura, andPygocentrus nattereri, and their prey fishes was studied underwater in the Pantanal region, Mato Grosso, Brazil. General habits, predatory tactics, feeding behaviour, and social interactions while foraging, as well as defensive tactics of prey fishes were observed.S. marginatus is solitary whereas the other two species live in shoals; their agonistic behaviour varies accordingly, the simplest being displayed by the solitary species. Predatory tactics and feeding behaviour also vary:S. spilopleura shows the most varied diet and highly opportunistic feeding strategy, which includes aggressive mimicry. The solitaryS. marginatus, besides fin and scale-eating, occasionally cleans larger individuals ofP. nattereri. Several cichlid species display defensive tactics clearly related to piranha attacks: tail protecting, watching, and confronting the predator are the most commonly observed behaviours. Piranhas seem to strongly influence use of habitat, social structure, and foraging mode of the fish communities.     

碱性与中性含酶清洗剂清洗医疗器械效果比较

目的：探讨碱性含酶清洗剂与中性含酶清洗剂清洗医疗器械的效果。方法：随机抽取污染医疗器械420件,分成观察组与对照组,每组210件,观察组器械浸泡于1：200的碱性含酶清洗剂中,对照组器械浸泡于1：200的中性含酶清洗剂中,5min后分别取出在流动水下彻底冲洗,观察并比较两组器械洁净度以及潜血阳性率。结果：观察组洁净度明显优于对照组,差异有统计学意义（P〈0．05）;潜血阳性率显著低于对照组,差异有显著统计学意义（P〈0．01）。结论：碱性含酶清洗剂清洗医疗器械的效果明显优于中性含酶清洗剂,适合推广应用。     

Cleaner fish become hosts: a novel form of parasite transmission

Adult bucephalid trematodes (Digenea) generally only occur in piscivorous fish. Within labrid fishes they are very rare, however, we have found them in labrid cleaner fish that feed on the ectoparasites of fish. We surveyed 969 labrid fishes from the tropical Pacific and found bucephalids only in cleaners (Labroides dimidiatus, L. bicolor, and Bodianus axillaris) and none in piscivores. The prevalences of bucephalids in L. dimidiatus at Lizard Island, Heron Island, Orpheus Island (all on the Great Barrier Reef), New Caledonia, and Moorea (French Polynesia) were 51, 47, 67, 56, and 67%, respectively. All of the L. bicolor examined from Moorea were infected. Bucephalids were highly prevalent in all size classes of L. dimidiatus from Lizard Island. Bucephalids were found in a 1.6-cm long juvenile L. dimidiatus, in which, piscivory is highly unlikely. We examined the literature on the worldwide bucephalid fauna in labrids and all hosts were found to be cleaners (Symphodus tinca, S. mediterraneus, L. dimidiatus, L. bicolor, and Bodianus axillaris) except Notolabrus parilus, whose ecology is unknown. We suggest that cleaners eat bucephalid metacercariae directly from the exterior surface of client fish during cleaning interactions. This is the first evidence of digeneans in the diet of L. dimidiatus, and the first study to show this novel form of parasite transmission where infective stages are eaten as a result of cleaning behaviour. Cleaning-mediated parasite transmission may result in behavioural modification of second intermediate hosts because clients and parasites both benefit from transmission. If the infection is costly to cleaners and acquired during cheating behaviour, then this parasite might regulate mutualism. Alternatively, if infective stages are targeted, infection by these bucephalids may be a negative consequence of an honest foraging strategy.Communicated by: P. F. Sale     

Study into the kinetic properties and surface attachment of a thermostable adenylate kinase

A thermostable adenylate kinase (tAK) has been used as model protein contaminant on surfaces, so used because residual protein after high temperature wash steps can be detected at extremely low concentrations. This gives the potential for accurate, quantitative measurement of the effectiveness of different wash processes in removing protein contamination. Current methods utilise non-covalent (physisorbtion) of tAK to surfaces, but this can be relatively easily removed. In this study, the covalent binding of tAK to surfaces was studied to provide an alternative model for surface contamination. Kinetic analysis showed that the efficiency of the enzyme expressed as the catalytic rate over the Michaelis constant (k_cat/K_M) increased from 8.45±3.04 mM^?1 s^?1 in solution to 32.23±3.20 or 24.46±4.41 mM^?1 s^?1 when the enzyme was immobilised onto polypropylene or plasma activated polypropylene respectively. Maleic anhydride plasma activated polypropylene showed potential to provide a more robust challenge for washing processes as it retained significantly higher amounts of tAK enzyme than polypropylene in simple washing experiments. Inhibition of the coupled enzyme (luciferase/luciferin) system used for the detection of adenylate kinase activity, was observed for a secondary product of the reaction. This needs to be taken into consideration when using the assay to estimate cleaning efficacy.     

Development of a cleaning in place protocol and repetitive application of Escherichia coli homogenate on STREAMLINE™ Q XL

An optimization of a cleaning in place (CIP) protocol has been performed for STREAMLINE™ Q XL separation medium using homogenised Escherichia coli as sample. The effectiveness of the different cleaning protocols was tested by analysing the content of fatty acids, phosphorus compounds and amino acids in STREAMLINE™ Q XL. Additionally, RAMAN and FT-IR measurements were used to verify the degree of contamination of separation medium. From the results of the optimization experiments, a cleaning procedure was suggested and subsequently tested with 50 repetitive applications. The study shows that of the different agents tested, 1 M NaOH is the most efficient cleaning solution and that long contact time (8 h) with 1 M NaOH is important. An additional cleaning step with 30% 2-propanol (v/v) is also recommended for E. coli samples.     

Physiology of biofilms of thermophilic bacilli—potential consequences for cleaning

Thermophilic Bacillus species readily attached and grew on stainless steel surfaces, forming mature biofilms of >10^6.0 cells/cm² in 6 h on a surface inoculated with the bacteria. Clean stainless steel exposed only to pasteurized skim milk at 55 °C developed a mature biofilm of >10^6.0 cells/cm² within 18 h. When bacilli were inoculated onto the steel coupons, 18-h biofilms were 30 m thick. Biofilm growth followed a repeatable pattern, with a reduction in the numbers of bacteria on the surface occurring after 30 h, followed by a recovery. This reduction in numbers was associated with the production of a substance that inhibited the growth of the bacteria. Variations in the environment, including pH and molarity, affected the viability of the cells. Chemicals that attack the polysaccharide matrix of the biofilm were particularly effective in killing and removing cells from the biofilm, demonstrating the importance of polysaccharides in the persistence of these biofilms. Treatment of either the biofilm or a clean stainless steel surface with lysozyme killed biofilm cells and prevented the attachment of any bacteria exposed to the surface. This suggests that lysozyme may have potential as an alternative control method for biofilms of these bacteria.     

Innovative Scouring for Cotton‐Based Textiles

An innovative approach addressing ecological problems associated with scouring of cotton‐based textiles was developed. The innovative scouring method is based on the use of β‐cyclodextrin in the presence of a wetting agent. β‐cyclodextrin is able to accommodate the wax in its cavity, complex with it and dissolve it together with other cotton impurities by the aid of a wetting agent, thereby effecting their removal. The work comprises treatment of desized cotton and polyester/cotton fabrics with β‐cyclodextrin and a wetting agent under a variety of conditions. Variables studied include concentration of β‐cyclodextrin, chemical nature and concentration of the wetting agent, pH of the scouring bath, and temperature and time of scouring. The samples were monitored for the residual wax percent and wettability. The scouring performance of the innovative method was compared with that of the conventional method. Chemical oxygen demand, total dissolved solids and conductivity of the wastewater effluent discharged by the two methods were also determined and compared. The comparison reveals the advantages of the new method in minimizing the degradation of the cotton and polyester/cotton fabrics, which occur during conventional scouring and the persistence of such advantage even after bleaching. The mode of wax removal during the innovative scouring and the impact of the latter on the environment were discussed.     

Cleaning behavior ofBodianus rufus,Thalassoma bifasciatum,Gobiosoma evelynae,andPericlimenes pedersoni along a depth gradient at Salt River Submarine Canyon,St. Croix

Synopsis Cleaning activity at specific cleaning stations was monitored over a depth range of 15–45 m at Salt River Submarine Canyon, St. Croix using the HYDROLAB underwater habitat. We observed over 4600 cleaning events involving 32 host species. Cleaners included the fishesGobiosoma evelynae (cleaning goby), juvenileBodianus rufus (Spanish hogfish) and juvenileThalassoma bifasciatum (bluehead wrasse) and the shrimpPericlimenes pedersoni, often active simultaneously at the same stations. Although cleaning was observed to depths of 30 m, the greatest density of cleaning fishes occurred at a sharp break in the bottom contour at 15 m.Clepticus parrae was the dominant fish cleaned by fishes (80% of events), and the graysby,Petrometopon cruentatum, was most frequently cleaned byPericlimenes. Cleaning was initiated byGobiosoma at 0600 to 0630 h and continued throughout the day as intense bouts of cleaning activity were interspersed with periods of relative calm.Bodianus patrolled areas of several meters and would sometimes rise over a meter above the substrate to initiate cleaning. In contrast, gobies were much more restricted in both lateral and vertical movements.Gobiosoma andBodianus cleaned 3104 and 1346 hosts during the study compared to only 207 forThalassoma. This study of a deeper reef area shows significantly more cleaning activity byBodianus and much less byThalassoma than has been reported from other studies in shallower water     

Extraction and cleaning methods to detect yessotoxins in contaminated mussels

Yessotoxin (YTX) and its analogues are a newly recognized group of toxins with increased presence in shellfish in recent years. They can be quantified by various functional assays due to their interaction with phosphodiesterases (PDEs). One of these assays detects the binding between the YTX and the fluorescently labeled PDE I using fluorescence polarization, a spectroscopic technique based on exciting a fluorescent molecule with plane-polarized light and measuring the polarization degree of the emitted light. The aim of this study was to develop a YTX extraction procedure from mussels that does not interfere with this detection method. YTX concentrations were measured in spiked mussel extracts obtained through use of different extraction methods and cleaning procedures. The percentages of toxin recovery in various steps of the processes were calculated using these concentrations. Six extraction methods and two cleaning steps were used and no matrix effects and high toxin recoveries were obtained in two cases. One case used acetone as extraction solvent followed by three dichloromethane partitions and the other case used methanol. The cleaning procedure includes a silica cartridge and a 10,000 NMWL filter. Finally these two extraction-cleaning-detection methods were applied to a naturally contaminated mussel sample and results showed that not only YTX but also homoYTX and hydroxyYTX can be quantified with a 85-90% recovery.