Effects of Climate on the Variation in Abundance of Three Tick Species in Illinois.

The range of ticks in North America has been steadily increasing likely, in part, due to climate change. Along with it, there has been a rise in cases of tick-borne disease. Among those medically important tick species of particular concern are Ixodes scapularis Say (Acari: Ixodidae), Dermacentor variabilis Say (Acari: Ixodidae), and Amblyomma americanum Linneaus (Acari: Ixodidae). The aim of this study was to determine if climate factors explain existing differences in abundance of the three aforementioned tick species between two climatically different regions of Illinois (Central and Southern), and if climate variables impact each species differently. We used both zero-inflated regression approaches and Bayesian network analyses to assess relationships among environmental variables and tick abundance. Results suggested that the maximum average temperature and total precipitation are associated with differential impact on species abundance and that this difference varied by region. Results also reinforced a differential level of resistance to desiccation among these tick species. Our findings help to further define risk periods of tick exposure for the general public, and reinforce the importance of responding to each tick species differently.

The effects of herbivory on paternal fitness in scarlet gilia: better moms also make better pops.

Whether plants can benefit from the direct effects of herbivory has been contentious among ecologists and evolutionary biologists. Although previous studies have provided experimental evidence of enhanced maternal fitness following herbivory in a natural system, an accurate depiction of plant-herbivore interactions must include the effects of herbivory on male as well as female fitness. Here we show that ungulate herbivory on scarlet gilia results in an increase in paternal as well as maternal fitness. This study represents the first evidence of overcompensation in a natural system where both paternal and maternal components of fitness have been assessed.

Takayasu's disease with aneurysm of right common iliac artery and iliocaval fistula in a young infant: case report and review of the literature.

Takayasu's arteritis or nonspecific arteritis is a term used to designate a primary arteries of unknown etiology involving the aorta and its major branches at any level. Generally, the lesions are obliterative; however, aneurysms and saccular dilations have also been described. The arteritis was originally believed to be limited to the aortic arch; however, involvement of the descending thoracic and abdominal aorta has been reported. In fact, the majority of cases of Takayasu's disease in children involve the descending thoracic and abdominal aorta. A case of Takayasu's disease in a 7-month-old black male infant involving the right common iliac artery with development of a large aneurysm and an iliocaval fistula is reported. This child is the youngest to be affected by the disease as reported in the literature. Although Takayasu's disease is rare, it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of children with an abdominal mass.

Purulent pericarditis complicating systemic infection with Candida tropicalis.

A patient with a purulent pericarditis due to Candida tropicalis is described. A 77-year-old woman undergoing chemotherapy for Hodgkin's disease was admitted to the hospital with a history of several febrile episodes. She was thought to be septic and was begun on broad-spectrum antibiotics, despite treatment, however, the patient expired. Among the multiple premortem blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid cultures, one blood culture yielded C. tropicalis 2 days postmortem. Autopsy revealed purulent pericarditis accompanied by endocarditis and myocarditis due to culture-proven C. tropicalis. This is the first reported case of purulent pericarditis complicating systemic infection with this organism and is indicative of the fulminant course of fungal pericarditis.

Unilateral white matter necrosis following carotid endarterectomy.

The authors report the first known example of hypoxic-ischemic white matter necrosis limited to one cerebral hemisphere. The patient was a 63-year-old man who developed signs of a stroke following a myocardial infarct after a left carotid endarterectomy and died seven days later. At autopsy, extensive necrosis of centrum semiovale was found only in the cerebral hemisphere supplied by the endoarterectomized carotid artery. A recent thrombus was found at the site of the endarterectomy, and the right common carotid artery was completely occluded by an old thrombus. This observation probably is explained by a well-established collateral blood supply to the right cerebral hemisphere, which protected it from the effects of the hypotension that accompanied the myocardial infarct.

Corynebacterium group JK bacterial infection in a patient with an epicardial pacemaker.

Septicemia caused by Corynebacteria group JK bacterium has previously been reported to occur in patients who have predisposing illness, such as neoplasms, ventriculoatrial shunt, or prosthetic valve. This study documents the case of an epicardial abscess caused by a Corynebacterium group JK organism in a 69-year-old woman who had an epicardial pacemaker.