Locally produced mucosal IgG in chickens immunized with conventional vaccines for Newcastle disease virus

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) is the causative agent of an economically important disease, which affects all species of birds worldwide. Current vaccination programs for NDV include the use of either low-virulent live-virus vaccines or inactivated vaccines to induce protective immunity while producing minimal adverse effects in birds. In order to further characterize the immune response elicited by live virus and inactivated NDV conventional vaccines in chickens, we evaluated the presence of specific antibodies in different secretions and in tissue culture supernatants of immunized birds. To this end, we analyzed all the samples by ELISA, using an indirect assay set up in the laboratory. Specific anti-NDV IgG antibodies were detected in tracheal and cloacal swabs and tracheal and intestinal washes of immunized animals. We also found specific anti-NDV IgG antibodies in tracheal and intestinal tissue culture supernatants, indicating that the IgG found in swabs and washes was not transudated from serum or, at least, was not all transudated from serum. Knowledge about the mechanisms involved in the immune response of chickens to different NDV vaccines should increase our understanding of the mucosal response against the virus and, eventually, provide new useful information for the development and evaluation of synthetic vaccines.

Gastropods and bivalves of commercial interest from the continental shelf of Jalisco and Colima, México

The distribution and abundance with respect to depth and type of substratum of 20 species of gastropods and four species of bivalves of economic importance were examined in the continental shelf of Jalisco and Colima, MÚxico. These species were taken with net trawls at depths from 24 to 83 m in August, 1988. Most individuals and species of gastropods were collected in stations with sandy silt substratum. Bivalves were collected in sandy silt and medium sand substrata. The six most abundant species represented 81.2 of all gastropods and bivalves collected. These species are: Cantharus pallidus, Fusinus dupetittouarsi, Ficus ventricosa, Hexaplex brassica, Harpa conoidalis and Arca pacifica.

Programa de pesquisa del cáncer gástrico en el Estado Táchira, Venezuela

Por la alta incidencia de cáncer gástrico, similar a la de otros estados andinos de Venezuela, se ha establecido, a partir de 1980, un Programa Piloto de Pesquisa del Cancer Gástrico en el Estado Táchira (PCG) y cuya secuencia ha consistido en planificación, motivación, radiología indirecta, segunda exploración (con fibrogastroscopia y radiología directa) histopatología, tratamiento y registro-seguimiento. Se presentan los resultados obtenidos en 429 casos avanzados y 129 precoces, observándose en los últimos años una moderada reducción en la mortalidad global.