Amoebae were found to cause severe gill tissue damage in turbot, Scophthalmus maximus L. from a grow-out facility in northwestern Galicia (Spain). The nature and extent of lesions along with negative results of bacteriological and virological examination made this agent responsible for mortalities in four turbot stocks supplied with water from a single source. We present our findings, although we failed to isolate amoebae, since there was a clear evidence of their primary role in the development of disease condition and occurrence of mortalities. In addition, this is a record both of a new host endangered by amoebae in intensive cultures and pathogenesis of the gill lesions.
Ninety four aquarium fishes were screened for the presence of amoebae in their internal organs. Five specimens of Ca-rassius auratus (L.) and one specimen of Xiphophorus hetleri Heckel were positive. Of the three strains which were isolated from C. auratus, successfully cloned and cultivated, one was identified as Vannella platypodia (Gläser, 1912) Page, 1976 and two strains as Rosculus ithacus Hawes, 1963. Both species are reported for the first time from organs of fish. None of them could be identified with the amoeba-like agent of goldfish granulomas described here.
From November 1997 to June 1998, 3,118 specimens of Echinogammarus stammeri (Karaman, 1931) (Amphipoda) were collected from the River Brenta (Northern Italy) and examined for larval helminths. Larvae of Polymorphus minuius (Goeze, 1782) singly infected the hemocoel of 23 (0.74%) crustaceans; all these larvae were cystacanth stages. This is the first record of Polymorphus minuius in E. stammeri. Some cystacanths had their forebody and hindbody fully inverted. Parasites were bright orange in colour and each was surrounded by a thin acellular envelope. This envelope likely protects the developing parasite larva from cellular responses of the amphipod. Hemocytes were seen adherent to the outer surface of the envelope. The sex ratio among the parasitised E. stammeri was almost 1:1. All Polymorphus minutus larvae were central in the amphipod body, made intimate contact with host internal organs, and frequently induced a marked displacement of them. None of the infected females of E. stammeri. carried eggs or juveniles in their brood pouch. In five hosts, Polymorphus minuius co-occurrcd with the cystacanth of another acanlhocephalan, Pomphorhynchus laevis (Millier, 1776), a parasite offish.
Cryptosporidium parvum causes life-threatening diarrhoea in immunocompromized, especially AIDS patients and the efficiency of proposed anti-cryptosporidial therapies is limited or doubtful. An immunosuppressed adult rat model of C. parvum infection was developed for screening molecules candidate for curative and preventive activity in human cryptosporidiosis. Among 31 drugs tested, lasalocid (2-10 mg/kg/24 h), and sinefungin (2-10 mg/kg/24 h), exhibited some activity against C. parvum infection. Oral sinefungin therapy resulted in a dose related suppression of oocysts shedding, which correlated with oocyst disappearance from ileum sections and was also efficient in preventing infection. Relapses were observed after discontinuation of curative sinefungin therapy, which suggests that the biliary tract, a major location and parasite reservoir which sustains persisting infection, was not cleared of parasites by the drug. Improved therapeutic procedures with sinefungin (or analogues) will result from current pharmacological studies.
Mediální dialog ztrácí některé rysy přirozeného dialogu tváří v tvář, který leží v jeho půdorysu, a získává rysy další, neboť komunikace tu přestupuje přes hranice primární řečové situace. Televizní dialog je dialog veřejný, který se vede před diváckým publikem a pro toto publikum. Divák je nejen svědkem, ale pravým cílem, k němuž je dialog směrován. Stať analyzuje komunikační situaci, při níž jsou ve studiu přítomni redaktor a dva hosté, představitelé různých profesí a názorových proudů (ekonom a ekoložka) i různých stanovisek к určité otázce (globalizace). Redaktor se obrací s otázkami střídavě к oběma. aby je vzájemně konfrontoval a spor vyhrotil. Dotazovaní hosté se snaží nejen odpovídat na otázky redaktora (to je jejich základní role v interview), ale i zpochybňovat či přímo vyvracet odpovědi druhého z hostí (role často neméně důležitá). Hosté komunikují nejen s redaktorem, ale komunikují i mezi sebou navzájem, ať už skrytě, či zjevně, s cílem získat diváka na svou stranu. Stať analyzuje toto interview v souvislosti s otázkou typologie debat a debat založených na konfliktu zájmů a konfliktu hodnot.
Turnover of Dl protein as influenced by actual irradiance and growth irradiance was analyzed in the photoautotrophic suspension cultured cells of Chenopodium rubrum. Proteins were labelled by adding 35S-methionine to the ceU suspension. Following electrophoresis the labelled proteins were detected by autoradiography. Relative label incorporation into the Dl protein containing band was calculated from scans of the autoradiographs and ušed as an estimate of Dl protein synthesis (pulse experiments) and Dl protein degradation (chase experiments). Total label incorporation was not affected by the irradiance during labelling but Dl protein synthesis and degradation were boťh increased at 900 pmol m-2 s*i as compared to 120 pmol m'2 s*^ The effect of growth irradiance was analysed by comparing cells which had been pre-cultured at 120 pmol m'2 s"^ (HL cells) and 900 pmol s‘i (PIL cells) for at least 6 d. The inhibition of chloroplastic protein synthesis by cUoramphenicol exacerbated the effect of photoinhibitory irradiance on the chlorophyll fluorescence parameters in these cells. The inhibitor effect was more pronoímced in PIL cells than in HL ones. This points to a higher chloroplastic protein synthesis capacity of the former cell type. Due to a considerable difference in total label incorporation pulse experiments could not be ušed to check this hypothesis. The chase experiments indicated that the Dl-protein degradation rate was higher in PIL cells tiian in HL cells. Probably a generál increase in the Dl protein tumover occiu^ if the cells are exposed to photoinhibitory irradiances for a prolonged period.
The potential role of intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (i-IELs) in the generation of host protective immunity after helminth infection was investigated using the Trichinella spiralis (Owen, 1835)/mouse model. In this study we found a significant rise of TCRyô i-IELs (P < 0.001) concurrent with the jejunal goblet cells (GC) hyperplasia in T. spiralis-infected C57BL mice on day 4 p.i. However, no direct relationship between the kinetics of the increase in TCRy5+ i-IELs and T, spiralis expulsion was observed in infected mice. Taken together, these results implicate that γδ i-IELs probably perform a unique functions related to the regulation of the CiC proliferation accompanying T. spiralis gut infection. As is known, these TCRyS* i-IELs may release mediators or growth factors that in turn influence GC differentiation. With the use of dexamethason (DEX), a potent anti-inflammatory agent which also induces apoplotic ceil death in i-IELs, wc have confirmed that the expulsion of T. spiralis from the mouse gut is accompanied by an inflammatory response. Indeed, the GC are clearly involved in these phenomena, apparently under the regulation by TCRy8+ i-lEL-mediated responses, since DEX abrogated GC proliferation in T. spiralis-infected C57BL mice and subsequently augmented adult worm burden. Our data also show that the rejection of adult worms starts concurrently with a significant increase in TCRaß* and CDS* i-IELs (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively), namely by day 7 p.i. At the same time, CD4* cells significantly decreased (P < 0.05) in the intestinal epithelium of T. spira/ir-infected, ví uninfected mice. These results may indicate that the TCRaß4 and CDS* i-IELs act as effectors of anti-7’, spiralis defence reactions. The implications of these findings for the potential role of intestinal intraepithélial CD8 and TCRaß' cells in the pathogenesis of the intestinal lesions during T. spiralis gut infection are discussed.