The effect of anthropogenic magnetic field on water ecosystems has been constantly growing as a result of an increasing number of underwater cables transferring electric current. Northern pike were ...subjected to a static magnetic field (emitted by DC cables) of 10 milliteslas (mT) during the embryonic phase and in the first six days post-hatching (DPH), in the period when larvae of this species in the natural environment are attached to artificial substrate. No statistically significant effect of a magnetic field was recorded on the hatching success (87.1% in the magnetic field and 83.3% in the control) or on larvae mortality (54.5% in magnetic field and 54.3% in control). The size of larvae at hatching (9.84 mm SL in a magnetic field and 9.86 mm SL in a control) and their growth rate during the first six days of life (0.52 mm·day−1 in a magnetic field and 0.53 mm·day−1 in a control) were also almost the same – no statistically significant differences. A significant effect of a magnetic field, however, was observed on the time of hatching (one day earlier in a magnetic field than in a control), yolk-sac size on 1 DPH (smaller in a magnetic field), and yolk-sac absorption time (faster in a magnetic field). Faster yolk-sac absorption time in a magnetic field was interpreted as an indication of increased metabolic rate. Even if some negative consequences may be expected as a result of shorter time until first feeding, the actual risk for increased Northern pike larvae mortality due to those factors seems to be negligible. Although it cannot be excluded that higher than 10 mT magnetic field values are hazardous for fish larvae, such values do not occur in the natural environment (e.g. along underwater cables).
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•Norther pike embryos and larvae exposed to static magnetic field of 10 mT.•No effect on the hatching success and the size of larvae at hatch.•No effect on larvae mortality and growth rate during the first six days of life.•Earlier hatching time and faster yolk-sac absorption in magnetic field.
•BioFire Respiratory Panel 2.1 SARS-CoV-2 assay high sensitivity and specificity.•Comparable performance to gold standard tests for low level viral RNA detection.•Rapid, sample-to-answer, syndromic ...testing for respiratory pathogens with SARS-CoV-2.
We evaluated the performance of the BioFire® Respiratory Panel 2.1 (RP2.1) in the detection of SARS CoV-2 in comparison against three other SARS CoV-2 EUA assays. In these studies, the RP2.1 panel had 98 % positive percent agreement (48/49) and 100 % negative percent agreement (49/49). Since 30 % of nasopharyngeal swab specimens have a SARS CoV-2 Ct >30 and thus detection of virus in low titers is clinically relevant, a sample with a high titer was diluted and each 10 fold dilution was tested in triplicate and compared against 6 other EUA approved SARS CoV-2 assays. These data suggested that the BioFire® RP2.1 panel, along with four other SARS CoV-2 assays (Roche cobas, Cepheid Xpert Xpress, BioFire® Defense COVID19, and NECoV19), consistently detected viral RNA at the 10−7 dilution. Overall, these studies suggest that the BioFire® RP2.1 assay can be used to detect acute cases of SARS CoV2 in addition to patients with low viral titer later in disease presentation.
Gene Ontology annotations and resources Blake, J A; Dolan, M; Drabkin, H ...
Nucleic acids research,
01/2013, Letnik:
41, Številka:
Database issue
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
The Gene Ontology (GO) Consortium (GOC, http://www.geneontology.org) is a community-based bioinformatics resource that classifies gene product function through the use of structured, controlled ...vocabularies. Over the past year, the GOC has implemented several processes to increase the quantity, quality and specificity of GO annotations. First, the number of manual, literature-based annotations has grown at an increasing rate. Second, as a result of a new 'phylogenetic annotation' process, manually reviewed, homology-based annotations are becoming available for a broad range of species. Third, the quality of GO annotations has been improved through a streamlined process for, and automated quality checks of, GO annotations deposited by different annotation groups. Fourth, the consistency and correctness of the ontology itself has increased by using automated reasoning tools. Finally, the GO has been expanded not only to cover new areas of biology through focused interaction with experts, but also to capture greater specificity in all areas of the ontology using tools for adding new combinatorial terms. The GOC works closely with other ontology developers to support integrated use of terminologies. The GOC supports its user community through the use of e-mail lists, social media and web-based resources.
Allelic replacement mutants were constructed within arginine deiminase (arcA1 and arcA2) to assess the function of the arginine deiminase (ADI) pathway in organic acid resistance and biofilm ...formation of Staphylococcus epidermidis 1457. A growth-dependent acidification assay (pH ∼5.0 to ∼5.2) determined that strain 1457 devoid of arginine deiminase activity (1457 ΔADI) was significantly less viable than the wild type following depletion of glucose and in the presence of arginine. However, no difference in viability was noted for individual 1457 ΔarcA1 (native) or ΔarcA2 (arginine catabolic mobile element ACME-derived) mutants, suggesting that the native and ACME-derived ADIs are compensatory in S. epidermidis. Furthermore, flow cytometry and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy results suggested that organic acid stress resulted in oxidative stress that could be partially rescued by the iron chelator dipyridyl. Collectively, these results suggest that formation of hydroxyl radicals is partially responsible for cell death via organic acid stress and that ADI-derived ammonia functions to counteract this acid stress. Finally, static biofilm assays determined that viability, ammonia synthesis, and pH were reduced in strain 1457 ΔADI following 120 h of growth in comparison to strain 1457 and the arcA1 and arcA2 single mutants. It is hypothesized that ammonia synthesis via the ADI pathway is important to reduce pH stress in specific microniches that contain high concentrations of organic acids.
The BioFire FilmArray® Gastrointestinal Panel (GIP) was implemented to replace traditional stool culture and enzyme immunoassay (EIA) testing for stool pathogens. The purpose of this study was to ...evaluate the detection rate, incidence of coinfection, and culture recovery rate of gastrointestinal (GI) pathogens detected by the GIP over a 1-year period. A total of 2257 stools collected from January to December 2015 were tested using the GIP.
Clostridium difficile
colonization was also evaluated by an antigen/toxin EIA and confirmatory polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The GIP detected one pathogen in 911 (40.4%) specimens. Coinfections were detected in 176 (7.8%) of these specimens. The most frequently detected pathogens were
C. difficile
(15.2%), norovirus (8.9%), enteropathogenic
Escherichia coli
(7.1%), enteroaggregative
E. coli
(3.4%),
Campylobacter
spp. (2.3%), and sapovirus (2.0%). Each of the remaining GIP targets had a detection rate of ≤1.6%. The recovery of bacteria for public health investigations varied, with rates as high as 77% for
Salmonella
to as low as 30% for
Yersinia enterocolitica
. Of stools positive for
C. difficile
on the GIP that were tested by EIA, only 42.7% (88/206) were found to be producing detectable toxin. Overall, the implementation of the GIP resulted in high detection rates of GI pathogens, including the frequent detection of coinfections. This is a promising test to streamline the testing of agents causing infectious gastroenteritis from multiple tests down to a single order with limited hands-on time. Ongoing studies will need to assess the impact that the GIP has on downstream patient care and public health practices.
The possible effects of disruptions in the geomagnetic field caused by different man-made constructions have been increasing considerably in recent years. These include, among others, the development ...of wind farms located in the sea and increased numbers of underwater cables. The objective of this study was to determine whether a magnetic field (MF) of 10 mT or a 50 Hz electromagnetic field (EMF) of 1 mT affected the developmental instability of the inner ear organ, which is responsible in fish for hearing and balance, in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) reared in a laboratory for 37 days (13 days in egg stage and 24 days in larval stage). This was done by analyzing the fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of otolith size. The MF and EMF values applied in this study are those recorded in the vicinities of underwater alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) cables, respectively. The influence of MF on otolith FA was found to be statistically significant, with the highest significance occurring in the group of youngest larvae of 5 dph (compared to larvae 15 and 23 dph). Otolith FA was also higher in larvae exposed to the EMF compared to control conditions, but the differences were not statistically significant. Thus, we can conclude that underwater constructions and cables which emit a MF of 10 mT or higher can affect living organisms that are within a distance of a few meters, especially those (as in the case of trout) in settled life stages.
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•Trout embryos and larvae exposed to static magnetic field of 10 mT and a 50 Hz electromagnetic field of 1 mT.•Significant effect of magnetic field on otolith fluctuating asymmetry.•No effect of electromagnetic field on otolith fluctuating asymmetry.•Increased otolith fluctuating asymmetry indicates increased organism instability in stressful conditions.
The effect of sampling with bongo (0·6 m diameter frame with 500 µm mesh) and Methot Isaac Kidd (MIK) (2 m diameter frame with 2 mm mesh finished with 500 µm codend) nets on standard length (LS) ...range and growth rate differences was tested for larval Sprattus sprattus (n = 906, LS range: 7·0–34·5 mm) collected during four cruises in the summer months of 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010 in the southern Baltic Sea. Although the minimum size of larvae collected with the bongo and MIK nets was similar in each cruise (from c. 7 to 9 mm), the MIK nets permitted collecting larger specimens (up to c. 34 mm) than the bongo nets did (up to c. 27 mm). The growth rates of larvae collected with the bongo and MIK nets (specimens of the same size range were compared for three cruises) were not statistically different (mean = 0·55 mm day−1, n = 788, LS range: 7·0–27·4 mm), which means the material collected with these two nets can be combined and growth rate results between them were compared.
Of the estimated 1.4 million salmonella infections that occur each year in the United States, most are in children and the elderly and approximately 600 are fatal.
1
Septicemia complicates at least 7 ...percent of the 40,000 culture-confirmed infections that are reported each year.
1
,
2
Although antibiotics are not essential for the treatment of most cases of salmonellosis, they can be lifesaving in persons with invasive disease. Expanded-spectrum cephalosporins (e.g., ceftriaxone) are commonly used to treat salmonella infections in children because of their pharmacodynamic properties and the very low prevalence of resistance to these agents. Since 1991, salmonella species that are . . .
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