4 research outputs found
BLOOD LYMPHOCYTE SUBSET POPULATIONS IN HEALTHY BOXERS AND IN BOXERS AFFECTED BY CANINE LEISHMANIOSIS (L. INFANTUM)
No full textIntroduction: Leishmania infantum infects dogs in several Mediterranean countries, including Italy. It is known,
however, that many infected dogs will not develop clinical manifestations of canine leishmaniosis (CL). Several
studies have been aimed at identifying possible breed predisposition to disease and the Boxer breed, among
others, has been reported to be more predisposed. The aim of the present study was to analyze peripheral blood
lymphocyte subset populations in healthy boxers and in boxers affected by leishmaniosis.
Materials and Methods: Nine healthy, L. infantum-negative boxers and 6 boxers with CL were studied. Infection
status was determined by antibody titre and PCR. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were isolated by
density gradient and analyzed in flow cytometry for the expression of: CD3, CD4,CD8, CD21, CD11a/CD18, CD25 and
Foxp3. Double staining was carried out for CD4/CD8 and CD4/FoxP3, while triple staining was carried out for
CD4/CD25/FoxP3. Results were analyzed with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, with significant differences between
healthy and sick dogs for each subset at p ≤ 0.05.
Results: No significant differences were observed between sick dogs and healthy dogs for CD3+, CD4+CD8- or
CD4+/Foxp3+ cells; levels of CD4-/CD8+ and CD4+/CD8+ lymphocytes tended to be higher in dogs with CL, even
though this was not significant. The levels of CD4+/CD25+/FoxP3+ were extremely low in both groups.
Conclusions: Further studies with a larger population of animals are necessary to confirm or exclude a role for
lymphocyte subset variation in the development of CL in predisposed breeds
Exogone sophiae Langeneck & Musco & Busoni & Conese & Aliani & Castelli 2018, n. sp.
No full textExogone sophiae Langeneck, Musco & Castelli n. sp. (Figures 3–4) Material examined. Holotype (MSNP: P/3879): St. 8, Northern Tyrrhenian Sea, 110 m. Paratypes: St. 8: 1 individual (MSNP: P/001/SEM); St. 10: 2 individuals (MSNP: P/242/V; P/246/V). Additional material: St. 8: 1 individual. Description. Holotype complete specimen, 6 mm long for 47 chaetigers, 0.30 mm wide. All paratypes incomplete. Prostomium short, rectangular, distinctly broader than long, with four rounded, small eyes in trapezoidal arrangement, reddish, sometimes difficult to distinguish in preserved material. Antennae absent in all examined individuals (Fig. 4a). Palps long, broad, fused for their total length, with barely noticeable distal notch. Dorsal cirri very small, oval, slightly longer in the posterior region, lacking at chaetiger 2 (Fig. 3a). First four parapodia with 2 compound spiniger-like chaetae and 3–4 falcigers, after chaetiger 5 only 1 spiniger-like and 3 falcigers (Fig. 4c). Anterior spiniger-like compound chaetae with thick, distally spinulous shaft (Figs 3c, 4d), and thin, elongated blades 25–35 µm long; blades sometimes slightly curved with several long teeth on basal part (Figs 3c, 4d), difficult to see with the light microscope. Posterior spinigers-like chaetae similar but shorter and thinner, 15–20 µm long blades. Anterior falcigers with 7.5–10 µm long blade, with very small distal tooth, massive, strong proximal tooth, and relatively short, coarse serration along ventral edge (Figs 3d, 4e). Posterior falcigers shorter, blades 3.8–5 µm long, with thicker basal part. Anterior dorsal simple chaetae unidentate, smooth; posterior dorsal simple chaetae become distinctly thicker, with a subdistal notch (Fig. 3e). Ventral simple chaetae absent. Pharynx long, relatively wide, extending through six chaetigers, with a large, triangular distal tooth. Proventricle barrelshaped, as long as pharynx, with 20–23 muscle cell rows. Pygidium sub-triangular with two very long, tapering anal cirri (Fig. 3b). Etymology. This species is dedicated to Sophie Langeneck, sister of the first author. Distribution. Tyrrhenian Sea, at a depth between 100 and 110 m. Remarks. Exogone sophiae n. sp. is chiefly characterised by the absence of antennae; albeit preservation may cause the loss of antennae in some syllid species, we believe that this character is not a preservation artefact, as all the sampled individuals do not show any trace of antennae, nor of scars indicating the lost of antennae. Moreover, dorsal cirri are perfectly preserved, suggesting that preservation should not have altered the soft appendages of the collected specimens. Until now two species of Exogone without prostomial antennae have been described, namely Exogone acerata San Martín & Parapar, 1990, and Exogone oculata (Hartman & Fauchald, 1971) (San Martín, 1991). E. sophiae differs from E. acerata in the absence of dorsal cirri at chaetiger 2 (present in E. acerata), in the less pronounced spinulation on shafts of spiniger-like chaetae and in the longer spines on blades of spiniger-like chaetae (San Martín & Parapar, 1990). Exogone sophiae appears closer to E. oculata, as both species lack the dorsal cirrus at chaetiger 2, but E. oculata lacks spiniger-like chaetae on the first four chaetigers. Moreover, both species are provided of ventral simple chaetae, that are absent in all examined individuals of the new species. Among Mediterranean species, E. sophiae appears particularly close to Exogone verugera (Claparède, 1868) and Exogone dispar (Webster, 1879) in size and overall body shape and number of proventricle cell rows. Apart from the absence of antennae, this species differs from E. verugera as E. sophiae has smaller, non-coalescent eyes, longer blades of falciger chaetae, with a higher number of marginal teeth, and slightly shorter blades of spinigerlike chaetae with a more pronounced spinulation along the ventral edge; moreover E. sophiae lacks ventral simple chaetae. Exogone dispar has similar blades of falciger chaetae, and a more pronounced spinulation along the ventral edge of spiniger-like blades (San Martín, 2003); however, in E. sophiae such spinulation is even more pronounced (Fig. 3d). Moreover, E. dispar has dorsal cirri at the second chaetiger. Lastly, E. sophiae might resemble Exogone lopezi San Martín, Ceberio & Aguirrezabalaga, 1996, since this last species apparently lacks ventral simple chaetae, and has very small antennae that are difficult to see. However, E. lopezi has falciger chaetae with long, thread-like marginal teeth that outgrow the chaetal tip, whereas in E. sophiae the marginal serration of falcigers is coarser and less developed.Published as part of Langeneck, Joachim, Musco, Luigi, Busoni, Giulio, Conese, Ilaria, Aliani, Stefano & Castelli, Alberto, 2018, Syllidae (Annelida: Phyllodocida) from the deep Mediterranean Sea, with the description of three new species, pp. 197-220 in Zootaxa 4369 (2) on pages 202-204, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4369.2.3, http://zenodo.org/record/113567
Analyses of serum and urinary metabolites in individuals with peripheral artery disease (PAD) consuming a bean-rich diet: Relationships with drug metabolites
No full textPeripheral artery disease (PAD) has high morbidity and mortality rates. A metabolomics approach was employed to determine whether consumption of bean-rich diets for 8 weeks would impact the metabolomic profile of PAD individuals. Serum and urine, collected from 54 participants with clinical PAD at baseline and after 8 weeks on 0.3 cups beans/d (n=19), 0.6 cups beans/d (n= 20), or control (n=23) diet, and the beans were extracted and analyzed using LC-QTOF-MS. As a result, PGE2 p-acetamidophenyl ester, PGF2α diethyl amide and 5-L-glutamyl-L-alanine were significantly changed in the serum or urine of bean groups compared to control. Significant changes (PThe presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the pdf file of the accepted manuscript may differ slightly from what is displayed on the item page. The information in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript reflects the original submission by the author
