The Gram-negative bacteria-binding protein gene family: its role in the innate immune system of anopheles gambiae and in anti-Plasmodium defence.

Gram-negative bacteria-binding proteins (GNBPs) are pattern recognition receptors which contribute to the defensive response against Plasmodium infection in Anopheles. We have characterized the GNBP gene family in Anopheles gambiae at the molecular level, and show that they are functionally diverse components of the A. gambiae innate immune system. GNBPB4 is a major factor in the defence against a broad range of pathogens, while the other GNBPs have narrower defence specificities. GNBPB4 is associated with the regulation of immune signalling pathways and was found to interact with the Gram-negative Escherichia coli and weakly co-localized with Plasmodium berghei ookinetes in the mosquito midgut epithelium.

A tapeworm molecule manipulates vitellogenin expression in the beetle Tenebrio molitor.

Metacestodes of Hymenolepis diminuta secrete a molecule that decreases vitellogenin (Vg) synthesis in the beetle host, Tenebrio molitor. The 5608 bp T. molitor Vg cDNA represents a single-copy gene encoding a single open reading frame of 1821 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 206 kDa. Northern blot analysis revealed detectable levels of transcripts only in adult females. In vivo, Vg mRNA abundance was significantly higher in fat bodies from infected females compared with control females at all but the earliest time point. In vitro, Vg mRNA abundance was significantly increased in fat bodies incubated with live stage I-II parasites. The apparent conflict between increased Vg mRNA abundance and decreased Vg protein in fat bodies from infected females is discussed.

Outcomes of digital X-ray mini-panel examinations for patients having mental retardation and developmental disability.

OBJECTIVES: Severely and profoundly mentally retarded and developmentally disabled (MR/DD) patients are unable to communicate disease symptoms, and radiographic examinations are often difficult to perform on non-sedated patients. This clinical trial evaluated the impact on dental treatment planning of radiographic mini-panels for MR/DD patients. METHODS: With Institutional Review Board approval and informed consent of the legal guardian of each patient, a digital series of six periapical radiographs was achieved without sedation on 72 MR/DD inpatients (the survey was attempted on 74 patients). RESULTS: The average number of teeth included in each mini-panel was 20.4 compared with 22.2 teeth found clinically and 22.7 teeth determined combining both clinical and radiographic findings. Individual mini-panel images were judged technically excellent in 65% of cases, diagnostically satisfactory in 26% of cases and suboptimal in 9%. The radiographic panels were judged to affect treatment planning for more than 60% of the patients included in the trial. In 32% the detected condition was one or more periapical radiolucency. Several radiographic findings indicated potentially painful conditions that perhaps explained patient actions previously attributed to behavioural problems. Potential sources of dental pain and sepsis were treated by endodontic therapy or dental extractions on a case-by-case basis with or without general anesthesia. The trial also demonstrated a need that has translated into increased state allocations for dental treatment of MR/DD patients resident in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. CONCLUSIONS: Dental inspections of MR/DD patients are incomplete if radiographs are excluded. Whilst the mini-panel approach could be considered incomplete, it is better than no radiographs at all. 91% of images were excellent to satisfactory in diagnostic quality and a majority of patients' treatments were modified because of the radiographic information.

A parasite that increases host lifespan.

Tenebrio molitor is an intermediate host for the rat tapeworm, Hymenolepis diminuta. Parasite oncospheres hatch in the beetle midgut and burrow through into the haemocoel, where they rapidly grow and mature into metacestodes. Repair of damage incurred during invasion and the nutritional demands of the parasites are likely to impose costs on the host. Despite these costs, there is an overall very highly significant difference in survival time (p < 0.001) between infected and control populations of beetles, with a hazard ratio of 2.35 (control versus infected). Infected females showed a 40% increase in survival time to 50% mortality and males showed a 25% increase in survival time to 50% mortality. This parasite-induced increase in host longevity is discussed in the light of changes in resource allocation that may occur in infected beetles. Previous findings have demonstrated that reproductive success is significantly reduced in infected females. The outcome of changes in the reproductive effort made by male beetles is less clear. We suggest that the optimum trade-off between reproduction and longevity may be altered to favour longer host survivorship, which is likely to enhance parasite transmission.