Fine mapping of the tomato I-3 gene for fusarium wilt resistance and elimination of a co-segregating resistance gene analogue as a candidate for I-3.

The I-3 gene from the wild tomato species Lycopersicon pennellii confers resistance to race 3 of the devastating vascular wilt pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici. As an initial step in a positional cloning strategy for the isolation of I-3, we converted restriction fragment length polymorphism and conserved orthologue set markers, known genes and a resistance gene analogue (RGA) mapping to the I-3 region into PCR-based sequence characterised amplified region (SCAR) and cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (CAPS) markers. Additional PCR-based markers in the I-3 region were generated using the randomly amplified DNA fingerprinting (RAF) technique. SCAR, CAPS and RAF markers were used for high-resolution mapping around the I-3 locus. The I-3 gene was localised to a 0.3-cM region containing a RAF marker, eO6, and an RGA, RGA332. RGA332 was cloned and found to correspond to a putative pseudogene with at least two loss-of-function mutations. The predicted pseudogene belongs to the Toll interleukin-1 receptor-nucleotide-binding site-leucine-rich-repeat sub-class of plant disease resistance genes. Despite the presence of two RGA332 homologues in L. esculentum, DNA gel blot and PCR analysis suggests that no other homologues are present in lines carrying I-3 that could be alternative candidates for the gene.

Once daily treatment with terbinafine 1% cream (Lamisil) for one week is effective in the treatment of tinea corporis and cruris. A placebo-controlled study.

Duration of therapy is an important factor in determining patients' compliance in dermatomycosis. Terbinafine (Lamisil) is an allylamine antifungal agent. Its fungicidal properties against dermatophytes should allow physicians to reduce treatment duration without affecting the cure rate. This study was carried out to determine the efficacy and tolerability of terbinafine 1% cream, applied once daily for 7 days, in adult patients with tinea corporis/cruris. In a multicentre, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study, patients with a clinical diagnosis of tinea corporis/cruris confirmed by microscopy and culture received treatment with either terbinafine 1% cream (n = 57) or placebo cream (n = 60). The patients applied the cream once daily for 7 days, and were then observed for a further 7 weeks. The efficacy was assessed at the end of the study by comparing the rates of mycological cure in the two treatment groups. Total clinical signs and symptoms scores, clinical response, and overall treatment efficacy were also measured and compared between the two groups. A 7-day once-daily course of terbinafine was significantly more effective than placebo in achieving and maintaining mycological cure (84.2 versus 23.3%, P< 0.001). Terbinafine was also significantly more effective than placebo in terms of clinical response, reduction in signs and symptoms scores, and overall efficacy. The short treatment regimen and the sustained high cure rate should contribute to making terbinafine a valuable treatment option in tinea corporis/cruris.

Field trials of a rapid test for G6PD deficiency in combination with a rapid diagnosis of malaria.

A rapid single-step screening method for detection of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6 PD) deficiency was evaluated on Halmahera Island, Maluku Province, Indonesia, and in Shan and Mon States, Myanmar, in combination with a rapid diagnosis of malaria by an acridine orange staining method. Severe deficiency was detected by the rapid test in 45 of 1126 volunteers in Indonesia and 54 of 1079 in Myanmar, but it was difficult to distinguish blood samples with mild deficiency from those with normal activity. 89 of 99 severely deficient cases were later confirmed by formazan ring method in the laboratory, but 5 with mild and 5 with no deficiency were misdiagnosed as severe. Of the samples diagnosed as mild and no deficiency on-site, none was found to be severely deficient by the formazan method. Malaria patients were simultaenously++ detected on-site in 273 samples on Halmahera island and 277 samples from Shan and Mon States. In Mon State, primaquine was prescribed safely to G6 PD-normal malaria patients infected with Plasmodium vivax and/or gametocytes of P. falciparum. The new rapid test for G6 PD deficiency may be useful for detecting severe cases under field conditions, and both rapid tests combined are can be useful in malaria-endemic areas, facilitating early diagnosis, prompt and radical treatment of malaria and suppression of malaria transmission.