Larval pesticide exposure impacts monarch butterfly performance.

The long-term decline of monarch butterflies has been attributed to loss of their milkweed (Asclepias sp.) host-plants after the introduction of herbicide-tolerant crops. However, recent studies report pesticide residues on milkweed leaves that could act as a contributing factor when ingested as part of their larval diet. In this study, we exposed monarch larvae to six pesticides (insecticide: clothianidin; herbicides: atrazine, S-metolachlor; fungicides: azoxystrobin, pyraclostrobin, trifloxystrobin) on their primary host-plant, A. syriaca. Each was tested at mean and maximum levels reported from published analyses of milkweeds bordering cropland and thus represent field-relevant concentrations. Monarch lethal and sub-lethal responses were tracked over their complete development, from early instar larvae to adult death. Overall, we found no impact of any pesticide on immature development time and relatively weak effects on larval herbivory or survival to adulthood. Comparatively stronger effects were detected for adult performance; namely, a 12.5% reduction in wing length in response to the fungicides azoxystrobin and trifloxystrobin. These data collectively suggest that monarch responses to host-plant pesticides are largely sublethal and more pronounced in the adult stage, despite exposure only as larvae. This outcome has important implications for risk assessment and the migratory success of monarchs in North America.

Serosurveillance for vaccine-preventable diseases: A look inside the pertussis experience / Serovigilancia de enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación: una mirada desde la experiencia con la tosferina

INTRODUCTION: Serological surveillance (serosurveillance) provides the most direct measure of herd immunity of vaccine-preventable diseases. Little is known about the opportunities and challenges of serosurveillance experiences, particularly pertussis. OBJECTIVE: To describe the process of serosurveillance for vaccine-preventable diseases with an emphasis on the experience of pertussis in the metropolitan area of Antioquia (Valle de Aburrá) in 2015 and 2016 and analyze the contributions and challenges for its sustainability. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We described the planning and conduction of serosurveillance of pertussis antibodies of mothers and in the umbilical cord at the time of delivery in eight hospitals based on random sampling and their capacity to advance the serosurveillance periodically. We compared the contributions and the challenges of this experience with other probabilistic and non-probabilistic programs. RESULTS: We achieved the participation of hospitals and mothers respecting the delivery care process. We established a serum bank following ethical and technical guidelines. This program based on the random selection of hospitals and mothers has enabled the estimation of antibodies prevalence in mothers and in the umbilical cord, which has been possible given the high coverage of hospital care during childbirth at a lower cost and fewer risks than a population-based survey in conflictive areas. The main challenges for the sustainability of this program are the creation of stable jobs and access to funding and legal and methodological long-term frameworks. CONCLUSIONS: Hospital serosurveillance as described is an option to monitor the impact of vaccination on the population. Our experience could be reproduced in other regions under similar conditions if the above-mentioned challenges are solved.

Introducción. La vigilancia serológica es la forma más directa de medir la inmunidad de rebaño frente a las enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación. Poco se sabe acerca de las oportunidades y los desafíos de las experiencias de serovigilancia, en general y, específicamente, la de la tosferina.Objetivo. Describir el proceso de serovigilancia de enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación con énfasis en la experiencia en el caso de la tosferina en el área metropolitana de Antioquia (Valle de Aburrá) en el 2015 y el 2016 y analizar lo que dicha experiencia ha aportado y los desafíos que persisten para su sostenibilidad.Materiales y métodos. Se describió el proceso de planeación y el desarrollo de la serovigilancia de tosferina en el momento del parto en ocho hospitales seleccionados al azar, así como la capacidad para adelantar el programa de manera periódica. Se compararon los aportes y los desafíos en el curso de esta experiencia con los de otros programas poblacionales probabilistas e institucionales no probabilistas.Resultados. Se logró la participación de los hospitales y de las madres con pleno respeto del proceso de atención del parto, y se conformó un banco de sueros siguiendo lineamientos éticos y técnicos. El programa permitió estimar la prevalencia de anticuerpos en la madre y en el cordón umbilical, lo que se facilitó por la alta cobertura de atención hospitalaria del parto, a un menor costo y menos riesgos que los programas poblacionales en zonas conflictivas. Los principales desafíos para la sostenibilidad del programa son la estabilidad laboral del personal de salud, así como normas y una financiación de largo plazo.Conclusiones. La serovigilancia hospitalaria es una opción para monitorizar el impacto poblacional de la vacunación. Esta experiencia se podría extender a otras regiones en condiciones similares si se resuelven los retos mencionados.

Serosurveillance for vaccine-preventable diseases: A look inside the pertussis experience / Serovigilancia de enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación: una mirada desde la experiencia con la tosferina

Abstract Introduction: Serological surveillance (serosurveillance) provides the most direct measure of herd immunity of vaccine-preventable diseases. Little is known about the opportunities and challenges of serosurveillance experiences, particularly pertussis. Objective: To describe the process of serosurveillance for vaccine-preventable diseases with an emphasis on the experience of pertussis in the metropolitan area of Antioquia (Valle de Aburrá) in 2015 and 2016 and analyze the contributions and challenges for its sustainability. Materials and methods: We described the planning and conduction of serosurveillance of pertussis antibodies of mothers and in the umbilical cord at the time of delivery in eight hospitals based on random sampling and their capacity to advance the serosurveillance periodically. We compared the contributions and the challenges of this experience with other probabilistic and non-probabilistic programs. Results: We achieved the participation of hospitals and mothers respecting the delivery care process. We established a serum bank following ethical and technical guidelines. This program based on the random selection of hospitals and mothers has enabled the estimation of antibodies prevalence in mothers and in the umbilical cord, which has been possible given the high coverage of hospital care during childbirth at a lower cost and fewer risks than a population-based survey in conflictive areas. The main challenges for the sustainability of this program are the creation of stable jobs and access to funding and legal and methodological long-term frameworks. Conclusions: Hospital serosurveillance as described is an option to monitor the impact of vaccination on the population. Our experience could be reproduced in other regions under similar conditions if the above-mentioned challenges are solved.

Resumen Introducción. La vigilancia serológica es la forma más directa de medir la inmunidad de rebaño frente a las enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación. Poco se sabe acerca de las oportunidades y los desafíos de las experiencias de serovigilancia, en general y, específicamente, la de la tosferina. Objetivo. Describir el proceso de serovigilancia de enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación con énfasis en la experiencia en el caso de la tosferina en el área metropolitana de Antioquia (Valle de Aburrá) en el 2015 y el 2016 y analizar lo que dicha experiencia ha aportado y los desafíos que persisten para su sostenibilidad. Materiales y métodos. Se describió el proceso de planeación y el desarrollo de la serovigilancia de tosferina en el momento del parto en ocho hospitales seleccionados al azar, así como la capacidad para adelantar el programa de manera periódica. Se compararon los aportes y los desafíos en el curso de esta experiencia con los de otros programas poblacionales probabilistas e institucionales no probabilistas. Resultados. Se logró la participación de los hospitales y de las madres con pleno respeto del proceso de atención del parto, y se conformó un banco de sueros siguiendo lineamientos éticos y técnicos. El programa permitió estimar la prevalencia de anticuerpos en la madre y en el cordón umbilical, lo que se facilitó por la alta cobertura de atención hospitalaria del parto, a un menor costo y menos riesgos que los programas poblacionales en zonas conflictivas. Los principales desafíos para la sostenibilidad del programa son la estabilidad laboral del personal de salud, así como normas y una financiación de largo plazo. Conclusiones. La serovigilancia hospitalaria es una opción para monitorizar el impacto poblacional de la vacunación. Esta experiencia se podría extender a otras regiones en condiciones similares si se resuelven los retos mencionados.

Caracterización de los procedimientos para la realización de hemocultivos en pacientes adultos, en instituciones hospitalarias del Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá / Characterization of procedures for performing blood cultures in adult patients, in hospitals of the Metropolitan Area of Aburrá Valley

Objetivo: Caracterizar procedimientos para la toma, análisis, reporte y aseguramiento de la calidad en hemocultivos en pacientes adultos, en instituciones hospitalarias. Material Y método: Estudio descriptivo en 15 Hospitales de Medellín y alrededores. Se empleó un formulario semiestructurado para recolectarla información, se utilizó SPSS(r) para el análisis. Resultados: Todas las instituciones tienen protocolos basados en fuentes de autoridad reconocida; con diferencias importantes en procesos pre-analíticos y postanalíticos. Los Productos más empleados para la antisepsia fueron gluconato declorhexidina al 2-4%(66,7%) Y alcohol isopropílico o etílico al 70% (20,0%),Con discrepancias en los tiempos de acción. El 73,3% emplea guantes estériles y la misma proporción usa sistema abierto (jeringa) para la venopunción. En el 46,6% se toman dos botellas aerobias y una anaerobia por episodio y en 33,3% dos botellas aerobias. El 66,6% lleva un indicador de contaminación, 53,3% de positividad y 26,6% de volumen de sangre. La tasa promedio de hemocultivos contaminados durante el semestre de seguimiento fue 1,61%. Conclusión: Se observa heterogeneidad en los procedimientos, especialmente en fases pre-analítica y post-analítica. En La búsqueda de la excelencia y la seguridad del paciente son necesarios protocolos estandarizados e indicadores para medir y controlar el desempeño de los hemocultivos.

Objective: To characterize the procedures that are performed for the collection, analysis, reporting and quality assurance of blood cultures in adult patients in hospital institutions. Material and Methods: Descriptive study in 15 hospitals of Medellin and its surroundings. A semi-structured collection instrument was used to collect the information provided by each hospital; SPSS(r) was used for the analysis. Results: All Institutions have protocols based o nauthorized sources; there were important differences in the pre-analytic and post-analytic processes. The Products employed for skin antisepsis were2-4% Chlorhexidine gluconate (66.7%)And70% Isopropyl or ethyl alcohol(20.0%), with discrepancies in product action times. 73.3% use sterile gloves and an equal proportion uses an open system (syringe) for venipuncture. Two aerobic and one anaerobic bottles are taken per episode in adult patients in 46.6% of institutions and only two aerobic bottles in 33.3% of them. Indicators of contamination were used by 66.6 % of institutions, of positivity in 53.3% and of blood volume in 26.6%. The average rate of contaminated blood cultures during the follow-up period was 1.61%. Conclusion: Heterogeneity in the procedures was observed especially in the pre-analytic and post-analytical phases. In the pursuit of excellence and patient safety, standardized protocols and the use of indicators to measure and control the performance of blood cultures are needed.

Eco-friendly synthesis and antiproliferative evaluation of some oxygen substituted diaryl ketones.

A broad variety of oxygen-substituted diaryl ketones has been synthesized by solar energy-induced Friedel Crafts acylations of 1,4-benzo- and 1,4-naphthoquinones with benzaldehydes. The in vitro antiproliferative properties of the photoproducts were assessed on prostate (DU-145), bladder (T24) and breast (MCF7) human-derived tumor cell lines and compared to non-tumor mouse fibroblasts (Balb/3T3). Among the tested compounds, it was found that those containing a 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl A-ring, such as 12 and 22 are more active on DU-145, with EC50 values of 1.2 and 5.9 µM, respectively. By comparing their effects on the three cancer cell lines, the analogue 22 has the best mean selective index (2.4).

Tendencias epidemiológicas en el comportamiento de la infección por VIH/SIDA en el municipio Pereira, Colombia, 1998-2011 / Trends in the epidemiology of HIV infection/AIDS in the municipality Pereira, Colombia, 1998-2011

Introducción: La infección VIH/SIDA continúa siendo un grave problema de salud pública mundial. Colombia es uno de los países considerablemente afectado en Latinoamérica, con municipios de alta incidencia, entre los cuales se encuentra Pereira. Materiales y métodos: Evaluación de los principales indicadores epidemiológicos (estimaciones de incidencia, mortalidad y letalidad) de la infección VIH/SIDA, período 1998-2011, Municipio Pereira, Risaralda, Colombia. Resultados: Durante el período se registraron 1471 casos (promedio 105,1±27,6/año, intervalo 51-159); tendencia al incremento (r2=0,3028; p=0,0415), especialmente entre 2006-2011 (r2=0,845; p=0,0095). La incidencia osciló entre 11,8 (2001) a 34,6 (2011) casos/100.000 hab (IC95% 29,0-40,0), sin tendencia al incremento entre 1998-2005 (r2=0,0351; p=0,6567), y aumentando significativamente de 2006-2011 (r2=0,8318; p=0,0113). Se registraron 631 muertes (promedio 45,1±8,9/año, intervalo 32-64), sin variación significativa entre 1998-2005 (r2=0,042; p=0,6262); de 2006-2011 se redujeron significativamente (r2=0,7016; p=0,0374). La mortalidad osciló entre 7,0 (2010) a 14,3 (2006) muertes/100.000 hab (IC95% 11,0-18,0), disminuyendo significativamente de 2006-2011 (r2=0,7251; p=0,0314). La letalidad en el período osciló entre 21,9% (2010) a 88,2% (2001) (IC95% 78,41-98,06). Discusión: A pesar que la incidencia del VIH/SIDA aun va en aumento, la letalidad y la mortalidad van disminuyendo progresivamente. Esto obedece a múltiples factores que incluyen mejor cobertura diagnóstica y terapéutica, mayor acceso al sistema de salud, más disponibilidad de información, manejo multidisciplinario apropiado y mejor capacitado. Sin embargo, en promoción y prevención aun quedan grandes retos por asumir, que incluyen más participación comunitaria en los procesos de acceso a la información, de vigilancia epidemiológica, de evaluación en la calidad de la prestación y satisfacción en el uso de servicios relacionados al programa de VIH/SIDA.

Introduction: HIV infection/AIDS continue to be a highly relevant global public health problem. Colombia is one country, in Latinamerica, with a considerable epidemiology, with high incidence municipalities; among those is included Pereira. Materials and methods: Assessment of main epidemiological indicators (estimations of incidence, mortality and lethality) of HIV infection/AIDS, period 1998-2011, Municipality Pereira, Risaralda, Colombia. Results: During the period a total of 1471 cases were recorded (mean 105.1±27.6/year, range 51-159); increasing (r2=0.3028; p=0.0415), specially between 2006-2011 (r2=0.845; p=0.0095). Incidence oscillated between 11.8 (2001) to 34.6 (2011) cases/100,000 pop (95%CI 29.0-40.0), without a significant increase between 1998-2005 (r2=0.0351; p=0.6567), and increasing significantly between 2006-2011 (r2=0.8318; p=0.0113). A total of 631 deaths were recorded (mean 45.1±8.9/year, range 32-64), no significant variation between 1998-2005 (r2=0.042; p=0.6262); from 2006-2011 were significantly reduced (r2=0.7016; p=0.0374). Mortality oscillated from 7.0 (2010) to 14.3 (2006) deaths/100,000 pop (95%CI 11.0-18.0), significantl decreasing between 2006-2011 (r2=0.7251; p=0.0314). Lethality (CFR) in the period oscillated from 21.9% (2010) to 88.2% (2001) (95%CI 8.41-98.06). Discussion: Although HIV/AIDS incidence is increasing, lethality and mortality are progressively decreasing. This could be related to multiple factors that include a better diagnostic and therapeutic coverage, higher access to the health care system, more information availability, as well appropriate and skilled multidisciplinary management. However, at promotion and prevention there are still great challenges to achieve, that include more communitary participation in the processes of information access, epidemiological surveillance, quality assessment at the use of health care services related to HIV/AIDS, among others.

Demographic response by a small epiphytic orchid.

PREMISE OF THE STUDY: Biotic changes are an inevitable consequence of climate change. Epiphytes may be more susceptible to changes in climate variation, but data regarding responses to climate variability under field conditions are limited. We evaluated whether the abundance of demographic stages in the epiphytic orchid Lepanthes rupestris at the Luquillo Experimental Forest in Puerto Rico was associated with short-term changes in climate variation over an 8-yr period. METHODS: We used cross-correlation analyses to evaluate associations between the abundance of seedlings, juveniles, adults, and fruits per subpopulation, population growth, colonization and extinction rates in L. rupestris with variables related to precipitation and temperature, with and without lag- responses. KEY RESULTS: We detected significant negative correlations between the average number of seedlings and the number of dry days, between the average number of fruits and minimum average temperature with a 6-mo response lag, and between the average number of adults and the maximum temperature with a 1-yr response lag. Neither population growth rate nor probability of colonization and extinction were directly related to climatic variation between 2000 and 2007. CONCLUSIONS: Associations between climatic variables and demographic stages could have negative implications for this orchid within the context of expected drying trends in the Caribbean. Results argue for the establishment of long-term monitoring studies of orchid populations, because only long-term studies would provide the appropriate temporal scale to detect and predict climate change effects and adaptive management of orchid populations.