The sugarcane borer Diatraea saccharalis is an important pest of sugarcane and ants are one of its main predators. The practice of burning sugarcane straw in situ after harvest has been gradually replaced in Brazil by other practices. However, it is unknown whether ants can control the abundance of this borer in the presence of straw. In this study, we assessed the diversity and species composition of ants attacking different stages of the pest’s life cycle. Specifically, we asked whether the species richness and abundance of ants varies during the course of day and a year. We established one-hectare plots at random locations in a sugarcane plantation. Once a month, we collected 20 samples of each stage of the D. saccharalis life cycle and randomly distributed these samples as bait on plants spaced 20 m apart within a plot. Ants were collected daily in the morning and afternoon over a period of 12 months. We identified several aspects of ant feeding behaviour that may affect their biological control of the borer: (1) the greatest number of ants were collected from baits consisting of the immature stages of the sugarcane borer, (2) ants were most active in the morning and (3) their activity varied from month to month. Solenopsis saevissima and morphotypes of Crematogaster sp.7 and Pheidole sp.35 are potentially important predators of borers in sugarcane crops in which the straw is not burnt., Roseli de Fatima de Oliveira ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
In our previous studies, a decreased blood pressure was reported in children treated by anthracycline (AC). The aim of this study was to assess the long-term effects of AC anticancer therapy in 45 subjects aged 13-22 years by repeated 24-hour Holter monitoring of blood pressure. Sixty four aged-matched subjects served as controls. The differences between mean values of systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in each hour of both groups were evaluated by Mann-Whitney test. Also the parameters of the least-squares fit of the sinusoidal curve in each subject were estimated (M - mesor, midline-estimating, a mean value of sinusoidal curve corresponds to 24-hours mean pressure; A - amplitude, double amplitude corresponds to nightday difference; Acr - acrophase is a time of maximal value of a sinusoidal curve). SBP and DBP was significantly lower only during night hours in anthracycline patients 19-22 years old. Also M was lower in this age subgroup of patients comparing to age matched controls (SBP: 112±6 mm Hg versus 117±7 mm Hg, p<0.05; DBP: 67±3 mm Hg versus 69±6 mm Hg, p<0.05), A was not different, Acr in patients was shifted one hour earlier (SBP: 2.4 p.m. versus 3.6 p.m., p<0.05; DBP: 2.1 p.m. versus 3.3 p.m., p<0.01). This corresponds to the shift of the morning blood-pressure increase seen on 24-hours blood pressure profiles. M correlated with age in controls (SBP: r=0.374, p<0.01; regression coefficient b=1.34 mm Hg/1 year; DBP: r=0.365, p<0.01; b=0.95 mm Hg/1 year), but not in patients (SBP: r=0.182, DBP: r=0.064). A and Acr were age-independent in all subjects. It is concluded that blood pressure in 19-22 years old AC patients is lower during night hours, the age-dependent increase of blood pressure seen in healthy controls between 13 and 22 years of age does not occur in patients. This finding is consistent with the long-lasting impairment of the sympathetic nervous system caused by anthracyclines., Z. Nováková ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy