Description of two new species of allocreadiid trematodes (Digenea: Allocreadiidae) in middle American freshwater fishes using an integrative taxonomy approach

Parasitology Research - Integrative taxonomy uses several sources of information to establish more robust species delimitation criteria. In this study, we followed that approach to describe two new...     

Taxonomic status of Rhabdochona ictaluri (Nematoda: Rhabdochonidae) based on molecular and morphological evidence

The genus Rhabdochona includes more than 100 species infecting freshwater fishes in all zoogeographical regions of the world. In Mexico, 12 nominal species of Rhabdochona have been recorded. Of these, Rhabdochona ictaluri was originally described as a parasite of endemic catfishes of the family Ictaluridae; however, the species was later considered on morphological grounds as a junior synonym of Rhabdochona kidderi. In this study, newly sampled specimens of R. ictaluri were obtained from the type host and type locality and were used to perform a detailed morphological analysis and molecular phylogenetic inferences through one mitochondrial and two nuclear genes; data were used in an integrative taxonomy context to test the taxonomic status of R. ictaluri. This approach proved to be very useful to confirm the validity of this species, and robust species limits were established between these two putative species considering morphology, molecular data, host association, and biogeography.

     

How does the bopyrid isopod Gyge branchialis interfere with trace metal bioaccumulation in the mud shrimp Upogebia cf. pusilla?

Parasitology Research - Parasites are widespread in natural environments, and their impacts on the fitness of their host and, at a broader scale, on ecosystem functioning are well recognized. Over...     

Eryptosis of non-parasitized erythrocytes is related to anemia in Plasmodium berghei low parasitema malaria of Wistar rats

Parasitology Research - It is known that premature elimination of non-parasitized RBCs (nRBCs) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of malarial anemia, in which suicidal death process...     

6,7-Dehydroroyleanone diterpene derived from Tetradenia riparia essential oil modulates IL-4/IL-12 release by macrophages that are infected with Leishmania amazonensis

Parasitology Research - The treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis in associated with several adverse effects and therapeutic failure, resulting in patients’ abandonment of treatment. Research...     

Detection of “Candidatus Rickettsia wissemanii” in ticks parasitizing bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) in the northern Brazilian Amazon

A total of 482 bats representing 32 species and two families were captured in the Amazon forests of the Amapá state in northern Brazil. Nineteen Artibeus planirostris bats (3.9 %) were infested with 160 ticks, all identified as Ornithodoros hasei. Three pools of larvae were screened for rickettsial DNA via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting three rickettsial genes: gltA, ompA and htrA. Only one of them yielded an amplicons of the expected size for all three molecular assays. Comparisons of the obtained sequences including a phylogenetic analysis confirmed the occurrence of “Candidatus Rickettsia wissemanii” in Brazil.

     

Eucalyptol-based green extraction of brown alga Zonaria tournefortii

A green extraction method, based on the use of 1,8-cineole (eucalyptol) as biosolvent, has been developed to prepare crude extracts from the brown alga Zonaria tournefortii characterized by chemical composition, particularly dominated by phenolic compounds derived from phloroglucinol. The main advantage of the developed technique are the recovery of eucalyptol, based on multistep liquid-liquid extraction with distilled water, followed by centrifugation and elimination of the aqueous phase, and the complete recycling of biosolvent by steam distillation. A comparative study between the proposed green extract and the conventional extract, prepared by solvent maceration using the mixture CH₂Cl₂/MeOH (1/1:v/v), was performed in terms of qualitative and quantitative determination of several parameters as:(i) the total phenolic content determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu assay, (ii) the presence of phenols determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and (iii) the antioxidant activity assessed by the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging assay. In short, eucalyptol provides a safe and selective extraction of phenolic compounds from Zonaria tournefortii with no environmental side effects and a good recovery of the solvent.     

Debating social egg freezing: arguments from phases of life

So-called “social egg freezing” allows a woman to retain the possibility of trying to have a child with her own oocytes later in life, even after having become infertile in the strict sense of the word (that is, infertile without assistance in reproduction).There is a debate about whether it is morally permissible at all, the extent to which it should be permitted legally or even supported, and whether it is ethically desirable. This paper contributes some thoughts to the issue of ethical desirability. More precisely it deals with the question of whether there is any valuable argument to be made on the basis of the idea of life phases and normative expectations related to them. So the question is: Is there a right time in life to have a child, and does this speak against or in favor of social freezing? This question is answered in three steps. First, I will give an overview of ethical arguments that are mostly put forward in favor or against the use of social egg freezing and show that and why the question of life phases should be taken into account. Second, I will sketch what I understand by phases of life, more precisely, what I understand by normatively conceptualized life stages, that are to be distinguished from other kinds of life phases, and how they relate to a good life. Third, I will present two arguments that rely on the idea of life stages and speak against social egg freezing. However, I will criticize them and instead show that from the perspective of life stages nothing speaks against using the technique within certain limits.