Diving into the zebrafish brain: exploring neuroscience frontiers with genetic tools, imaging techniques, and behavioral insights.

The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is increasingly used in neuroscience research. Zebrafish are relatively easy to maintain, and their high fecundity makes them suitable for high-throughput experiments. Their small, transparent embryos and larvae allow for easy microscopic imaging of the developing brain. Zebrafish also share a high degree of genetic similarity with humans, and are amenable to genetic manipulation techniques, such as gene knockdown, knockout, or knock-in, which allows researchers to study the role of specific genes relevant to human brain development, function, and disease. Zebrafish can also serve as a model for behavioral studies, including locomotion, learning, and social interactions. In this review, we present state-of-the-art methods to study the brain function in zebrafish, including genetic tools for labeling single neurons and neuronal circuits, live imaging of neural activity, synaptic dynamics and protein interactions in the zebrafish brain, optogenetic manipulation, and the use of virtual reality technology for behavioral testing. We highlight the potential of zebrafish for neuroscience research, especially regarding brain development, neuronal circuits, and genetic-based disorders and discuss its certain limitations as a model.

Characterization of the gut microbiota in early life stages of pikeperch Sander lucioperca.

This study characterized the gastrointestinal microbiome of nine juvenile farmed pikeperch Sander lucioperca using a metagenomics approach based on bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Potential changes in the gut microbiota during 2 months of S. lucioperca juvenile life were investigated. Results revealed that gut microbiota was dominated by Proteobacteria (95-92%), while other phyla Firmicutes (1-1·5%) and Actinobacteria (0·9-1·5%) were less abundant. At the family level, fish-gut microbiota were dominated by Enterobacteriaceae, which constituted c. 83% of all DNA sequence reads. Such a situation was present in all of the examined fish except one, which showed a different proportion of particular microbial taxa than the other fish. In this fish, a higher relative abundance (%) of Fusobacteria (21·0%), Bacteroidetes (9·5%) and Firmicutes (7·5%) was observed. There were no significant differences in the gut microbiome structure at different stages of development in the examined fish. This may indicate that Proteobacteria inhabiting the gut microbiota at an early stage of life are a necessary component of the pikeperch microbiome that may support proper nutrition of the fish. The information obtained on the gut microbiome could be useful in determining juvenile S. lucioperca health and improving rearing conditions by welfare monitoring in aquaculture.

Varicella zoster virus in American Samoa: seroprevalence and predictive value of varicella disease history in elementary and college students.

The epidemiology of varicella is believed to differ between temperate and tropical countries. We conducted a varicella seroprevalence study in elementary and college students in the US territory of American Samoa before introduction of a routine varicella vaccination programme. Sera from 515 elementary and 208 college students were tested for the presence of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) IgG antibodies. VZV seroprevalence increased with age from 76·0% in the 4-6 years group to 97·7% in those aged ⩾23 years. Reported history of varicella disease for elementary students was significantly associated with VZV seropositivity. The positive and negative predictive values of varicella disease history were 93·4% and 36·4%, respectively, in elementary students and 97·6% and 3·0%, respectively, in college students. VZV seroprevalence in this Pacific island appears to be similar to that in temperate countries and suggests endemic VZV circulation.

Post-Earthquake Injuries Treated at a Field Hospital ù Haiti, 2010

La "University of Miami Global Institute/Project Medishare" (UMGI/PM) a créé le premier hôpital de campagne à Port-au-Prince, en Haïti, après le séisme. Afin de caractériser les blessures et les interventions chirurgicales effectuées par l'UMGI/PM et d'évaluer les besoins spéciaux médicaux, chirurgicaux et de réadaptation, l'UMGI/PM et le "Centers for Disease Control and Prevention" (CDC) mènent une analyse rétrospective de tous les dossiers médicaux de malades disponibles pour la période du 13 janvier au 28 mai 2010. Le premier article de cette revue décrit les résultats de cette analyse et présente les données quantitatives obtenues.

A rapid procedure for the simultaneous determination of zirconium and hafnium in high-temperature alloys by means of a spectrophotometric masking approach.

Data are presented for a refined spectrophotometric procedure for the simultaneous determination of zirconium and hafnium based on the combined effects of hydrogen peroxide, sodium sulphate, and excess of zirconium ion on the hafnium and zirconium complexes with Xylenol Orange in 0.2M perchloric acid. Isolation procedures for the hafnium/zirconium content of complex high-temperature alloys which result in an ionic substrate compatible with the spectrophotometric masking method were devised.