In many societies, the majority of adults regularly consume alcohol. However, only a small proportion develops alcohol addiction. Individuals at risk often show a high sensation-seeking/low-anxiety ...behavioural phenotype. Here we asked which role EF hand domain containing 2 (EFhd2; Swiprosin-1) plays in the control of alcohol addiction-associated behaviours. EFhd2 knockout (KO) mice drink more alcohol than controls and spontaneously escalate their consumption. This coincided with a sensation-seeking and low-anxiety phenotype. A reversal of the behavioural phenotype with β-carboline, an anxiogenic inverse benzodiazepine receptor agonist, normalized alcohol preference in EFhd2 KO mice, demonstrating an EFhd2-driven relationship between personality traits and alcohol preference. These findings were confirmed in a human sample where we observed a positive association of the EFhd2 single-nucleotide polymorphism rs112146896 with lifetime drinking and a negative association with anxiety in healthy adolescents. The lack of EFhd2 reduced extracellular dopamine levels in the brain, but enhanced responses to alcohol. In confirmation, gene expression analysis revealed reduced tyrosine hydroxylase expression and the regulation of genes involved in cortex development, Eomes and Pax6, in EFhd2 KO cortices. These findings were corroborated in Xenopus tadpoles by EFhd2 knockdown. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in mice showed that a lack of EFhd2 reduces cortical volume in adults. Moreover, human MRI confirmed the negative association between lifetime alcohol drinking and superior frontal gyrus volume. We propose that EFhd2 is a conserved resilience factor against alcohol consumption and its escalation, working through Pax6/Eomes. Reduced EFhd2 function induces high-risk personality traits of sensation-seeking/low anxiety associated with enhanced alcohol consumption, which may be related to cortex function.
Within a 4-year surveillance period for influenza A virus in pelagic birds, 351 influenza A strains were isolated from the trachea or cloaca of 3344 apparently healthy ducks, gulls, swans, terns and ...geese. The isolated influenza A viruses represent 14 subtypes. Their haemagglutinins (HA) were mainly related to avian HA, but also to the human HA H2 and to the swine HA Hswl. The neuraminidases (NA) were identified as avian, equine and human NA. The isolated influenza A strains include fowl plague-like viruses Havl Neql, strains with the surface antigen Hswl Nav4 and the subtype Hav7 Navl isolated from unconcentrated water samples. A subtype unknown to date, with the antigen formula H2 Nav4, was isolated from ducks. 8.2% of pekin ducks showed dual infections.
Field experiments with domestic ducks as sentinels and virological and serological population observations on wild pelagic birds on a seabird-breeding island in the Baltic sea and on rivers and lakes ...near Berlin were conducted to detect the influenza A virus circulation and epidemics in wild pelagic bird populations. Influenza A virus isolates were detected in tracheal and cloacal swabs from sentinel ducks and from healthy pelagic birds. Influenza A virus epidemics with different subtypes in an influenza season beginning in July/August occurred approximately monthly. According to serological population studies in wild pelagic birds there were some epidemics with influenza A viruses, also related to Fowl Plaque Virus (Hav1) and Swine influenza virus (Hsw1). It is possible to recognize epidemics among wild birds by sentinels and by periodic serological observations of wild pelagic bird populations. One isolate from sentinel ducks - A/duck/Potsdam/81 (Hav8 Nav5) - had an hitherto undescribed combination of the surface antigens.
From 1960 to 1990, attempts to isolate TBE virus from ticks and small mammals were made and investigations to detect TBE antibody in small mammals, game and humans were performed in the five new ...federal Länder of Germany. The confirmed TBE cases for which the site of exposure could be determined were also registered. As a result of these epidemiological and ecological investigations, a map is presented showing the natural foci of TBE which are primarily located in the subatlantic and mountainous climatic regions. TBE was endemic in the area of investigation from 1960 to 1990 showing a morbidity of up to 0.7 per 100,000 inhabitants which decreased in recent years to 0.02 per 100,000 inhabitants. The natural foci of TBE virus in eastern Germany showed a high activity between 1960 and 1970. Since that time, there have hardly been any cases of human disease and TBE virus could no longer be detected, neither in ticks nor in small mammals. Taking the natural focus on the Island of Usedom as an example, attempts have been made to elucidate whether such foci have become extinct or whether they have persisted. From 1983 to 1989, a surveillance programme was performed to detect antibodies to TBE virus in small mammals and game and to attempt to culture virus from ticks and small mammals. The attempts to isolate virus from a total of 8200 ticks were negative. Attempts to isolate virus from the brains of small mammals were also negative. Antibody prevalence in 446 small mammals and 500 animals of game was ca. 1%. At one site, the sero-positive reactions converted from 0% (1983-1988) to 4.5% (1989) among small mammals population. The investigations performed on the Island of Usedom have shown that this natural focus has not disappeared but is in a state of endemic latency. Moreover, the seroconversion observed in the small mammals population shows that further surveillance of such foci is necessary. This becomes obvious by the sporadic occurrence of single TBE cases as well as by a low antibody prevalence of 1% in small mammals and game. The epidemiological situation in eastern Germany is thus completely different from that in western Germany where an average of 70-120 TBE cases per year are registered, occurring mainly in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
In the last years, the occurrence of influenza viruses A/H1N1 (Hsw1N1) in pig stocks of different countries has been increasingly reported. In general, the isolated viruses were related to the ...influenza virus A/New Jersey/8/76 H1N1 (Hsw1N1). Human infections were not reported in these outbreaks. Since March 1981, very limited influenza outbreaks in several pig stocks of the GDR with high morbidity and very low lethality have been observed. The illness took an uncomplicated path and generally subsided after 3 days. Some of the virus isolates were examined and typed as influenza virus A/swine/Potsdam/81/H1N1 (Hsw1N1). By serological examinations of convalescent pigs the aetiologic importance of the isolates was confirmed. Infection of the contact persons by the influenza virus A/swine/Potsdam/81 is to be regarded as likely according to the serological results.
Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBE) in the GDR Sinnecker, R; Apitzsch, L; Berndt, D ...
Zentralblatt fur Bakteriologie, Parasitenkunde, Infektionskrankheiten und Hygiene. Erste Abteilung Originale. Reihe A: Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Parasitologie
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Journal Article
In den neuen Bundeslaendern Deutschlands wurden im Zeitraum von 1960 bis 1990 Zecken und Kleinsaeuger mit dem Ziel der Isolierung des Zeckenenzephalitisvirus (ZEV) untersucht. Der Antikoerpernachweis ...wurde an Wildtieren, Menschen und Kleinsaeugern durchgefuehrt. KLinisch und diagnostisch gesicherte Erkrankungen von Menschen wurden erfasst und diese epidemiologischen und oekologischen Untersuchungsergebnisse als Karte der Naturherdgebiete der Zeckenenzephalitis vorgelegt. Seit 1970 treten in Ostdeutschland kaum noch Erkrankungen auf und das Virus konnte weder in Zecken noch in Kleinsaeugern nachgewiesen werden. Ein Ueberpruefungsprogramm wurde 1983 bis 1989 durchgefuehrt, mit dem Ergebnis, dass weder Antikoerper gegen das ZEV bei Wildtieren und Kleinsaeugern, noch Virusisolierungsversuche an 8200 Zecken positiv verliefen. Die Antikoerper-Praevalenz lag bei 1%. Die epidemiologische Situation in Ostdeutschland unterscheidet sich damit wesentlich von der in Westdeutschland, speziell Bayern und Baden-Wuertemberg, wo pro Jahr 70 bis 120 Enzephalitis-Faelle registriert werden.
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