bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ophthalmology hospital wards contamination to pathogenic free living Amoebae in Iran
Authors: Lasjerdi Zohreh , Niyyati Maryam , Lorenzo-Morales Jacob , Haghighi Ali , Taghipour Niloofar 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe present study was conducted to determine the occurrence of potentially pathogenic free-living amoeba in ophthalmology wards in reference hospitals in Iran. Since an increasing number of Acanthamoeba Keratitis cases after eye surgery and eye trauma have been recently observed in this country, it could be possible that the disinfection procedures undertaken in the clinical setting may not have a good hygiene and disinfection procedures, hence the aim of this study. Therefore, 42 dust and biofilm samples were collected from different areas of ophthalmology wards and checked for the presence of FLA using morphological criteria, PCR based analysis and DNA sequencing. Of the 42 samples from dust and biofilm sources, 18(42.86%) isolates were found to contain FLA and 12(92.3%) isolates belonged to Acanthamoeba T4 genotype. Isolation of the pathogenic genotype T4 from medical instruments, including slit lamp in corneal wards, may be a threat for patients undergoing eye surgery in these wards. Other FLA isolated in this study included Acanthamoeba genotype T5, Vahlkampfia sp, Naegleria australiensis, Vermamoeba vermiformis and Echinamoeba exudans. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the presence of potentially pathogenic FLA in ophthalmology wards in Iran. Improved disinfection methods and monitoring of hospitals ward are thus necessary in this area in order to minimize the risk of infection in patients.
Supplementary data of Henneguya leporinicola (Myxozoa, Myxosporea) a parasite of Leporinus macrocephalus from fish farms in the state of São Paulo, Brazil
Authors: Capodifoglio Kassia Roberta Hygino , Adriano Edson Aparecido , Silva Marcia Ramos Monteiro da , Maia Antônio Augusto Mendes 
Published: June 2015

AbstractHenneguya leporinicola is a parasite of the gill filament of Leporinus macrocephalus, a characiform fish belonging to the Anostomidae family, which is of major economic importance. Despite the damage it causes in fish, little is known about this parasite. Therefore, a study was undertaken with fourteen specimens of L. macrocephalus taken from fish farms in the state of Sao Paulo. The fish were collected and examined searching for lesions and/or myxosporean plasmodia. One of the specimens (7.14%) contained white elongated plasmodia in the gill filament. The mature spores had elongated bodies with polar capsules of equal size and a caudal length greater than body length. Morphological characteristics identified the parasite as H. leporinicola. Molecular analysis of the 18S rDNA sequence resulted in a 1954 bp, demonstrating significant genetic differences with previously described species of Henneguya/Myxobolus. Phylogenetic analysis comparing the 18S rDNA sequence of H. leporinicola with other species, previously described in South America, and the 20 closest species as indicated by BLASTn Max Score showed H. leporinicola as a basal branch of a subclade composed by Henneguya spp. parasite of characiform hosts.
A new species of Isospora (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from eastern coachwhip, Coluber flagellum flagellum (Reptilia: Ophidia) from Oklahoma
Authors: McAllister Chris T. , Seville R. Scott , Connior Matthew B. 
Published: June 2015

AbstractBetween June 2013 and August 2014, four eastern coachwhips, Coluber flagellum flagellum were collected from Arkansas (n = 2) and Oklahoma (n = 2) and their faeces examined for coccidian parasites. One (25%) harboured an isosporan that we describe here as new. Oocysts of Isospora kiamichiensis sp. n. were spheroidal to subspheroidal with a uni-layered wall and measured (length × width, L × W) 25.0 × 22.2 μm, with an L/W ratio of 1.1. A micropyle, oocyst residuum and polar granule were absent. Sporocysts were ovoidal, 13.9 × 9.4 μm, with an L/W ratio of 1.5. A pronounced, button-like Stieda body was present as well as a substieda body. A sporocyst residuum was present as dispersed granules. This is the first isosporan and fourth coccidian reported from eastern coachwhip snakes. In addition, a single oocyst of an unknown choleoeimerian was recovered from this host.
Metazoan parasite infracommunities of Mycteroperca bonaci (Poey, 1960) (Pisces: Epinephelidae) in reef and coastal environments off the coast of Yucatán, México
Authors: Espínola-Novelo Juan F. , González-Salas Carlos , Guillén-Hernández Sergio , MacKenzie Ken 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe black grouper Mycteroperca bonaci is a commercially important fish off the coast of Yucatan, Mexico. To investigate possible differences between parasite communities in two different environments, 60 fish were collected from two areas during 2010 and 2011 and examined for parasites. The fish were classified into two age groups, in each of which the parameters of parasitic infection - prevalence, abundance and intensity - were determined. Parasite faunas were further described at the infracommunity level. Using both univariate (PERMANOVA) and multivariate statistical methods, the values of richness, abundance, diversity and Brillouin evenness as well as the Index values of Bray-Curtis and Jaccard for similarity were calculated and compared. The results of these tests and of CAP discriminant analyses at the two sites showed the existence of two distinct parasite communities. The parasite taxa mainly responsible for the differences were the digeneans Dollfustrema sp., Prosorhynchus spp., Lepidapedoides epinepheli and Hamacreadium mutabile, and the nematode Philometra salgadoi. The potential for some of these parasites to be used as biological tags for stock identification of M. bonaci is discussed.
Two new picobiin mite species (Acari: Cheyletoidea: Syringophilidae) parasitizing passerine birds in Guyana
Authors: Glowska Eliza , Laniecka Izabella , Milensky Christopher M. 
Published: June 2015

AbstractTwo new picobiin mite species (Cheyletoidea: Syringophilidae) are described from passeriform birds in Guyana, Rafapicobia automoli sp. nov. parasitizing two furnariid species Automolus ochrolaemus (Tschudi) (type host) and Automolus rufipileatus (Pelzeln) (Passeriformes: Furnariidae) and Neopicobia herbicolae sp. nov. from Emberizoides herbicola (Vieillot) (Thraupidae). Additionally, Picumnus exilis (Lichtenstein) (Piciformes: Picidae) is recorded as a new host species for Neopicobia hepburni Glowska et Laniecka, 2014
Chimeric DNA vaccines encoding Eimeria acervulina macrophage migration inhibitory factor (E.MIF) induce partial protection against experimental Eimeria infection
Authors: Song Xiaokai , Zhang Ruirui , Xu Lixin , Yan Ruofeng , Li Xiangrui 
Published: June 2015

AbstractChimeric DNA vaccines co-expressing Eimeria acervulina macrophage migration inhibitory factor (E.MIF) and chicken IL-2 (IL-2) or interferon-γ (IFN-γ) were constructed and their efficacies against E. acervulina were evaluated. The open reading frame (ORF) of E.MIF was cloned from E. acervulina merozoites and subcloned into the eukaryotic expression vector pVAX1 with chicken cytokine gene IFN-γ or IL-2 to construct the DNA vaccines pVAX-E.MIF-IFN-γ, pVAX-E.MIF-IL-2 and pVAX-E.MIF. The in vivo transfection of the target genes was detected by use of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot. Immunizations were carried out by vaccinating chickens twice with a dose rate of 100 μg intramuscularly. Seven days post second immunization, all chickens except the unchallenged control group were challenged orally with 1 × 105 sporulated oocysts of E. acervulina. Seven days later, the duodenum was collected. The results showed that the target genes were expressed effectively in vivo. DNA vaccines and the recombinant E.MIF protein could alleviate body weight loss and duodenal lesions significantly compared to the control groups. Furthermore, pVAX-E.MIF-IL-2 and pVAX-E.MIF-IFN-γ induced anticoccidial indexs (ACIs) of 179.12 and 170, respectively, which were significantly higher than that of pVAX-E.MIF (ACI = 162.31). Our results demonstrated that E.MIF is a potential vaccine candidate against E. acervulina and chicken IFN-γ or IL- 2 may be used as genetic adjuvants to improve the efficacies of DNA vaccines against avian coccidiosis.
Sperm transfer in monogenean (platyhelminth) parasites
Authors: Kearn Graham , Whittington Ian 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThere are three major groups of parasitic platyhelminths (flatworms). The digeneans and cestodes are endoparasites, while the monogeneans are ectoparasites mostly on the gills or skin of fishes. Monogeneans are hermaphrodite and, with the exception of the gyrodactylids, mostly protandrous, the male reproductive system maturing before the female system. Their ectoparasitic life-style provides unique opportunities to observe the reproductive biology of living platyhelminths, opportunities restricted in digeneans and cestodes by their endoparasitic habits. Moreover, the male copulatory organs (MCOs) of monogeneans are of special interest because of their perplexing diversity, ranging from sclerotised penis tubes, many with accessory sclerites, to cirruses and genital atrium armature (hooks and spines). The relatively few accounts in the literature of mating in monogeneans are reproduced in this review, together with consideration of the following aspects of sperm transfer: structure and function of MCOs; self-insemination; spermatophores and pseudospermatophores; “hypodermic” and transtegumental insemination; tissue fusion; glands associated with MCOs and vaginae; finding a mating partner.
A history of urine microscopy
Authors: Cameron J. Stewart 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe naked-eye appearance of the urine must have been studied by shamans and healers since the Stone Age, and an elaborate interpretation of so-called Uroscopy began around 600 AD as a form of divination. A 1000 years later, the first primitive monocular and compound microscopes appeared in the Netherlands, and along with many other objects and liquids, urine was studied from around 1680 onwards as the enlightenment evolved. However, the crude early instruments did not permit fine study because of chromatic and linear/spherical blurring. Only after complex multi-glass lenses which avoided these problems had been made and used in the 1820s in London by Lister, and in Paris by Chevalier and Amici, could urinary microscopy become a practical, clinically useful tool in the 1830s. Clinical urinary microscopy was pioneered by Rayer and his pupils in Paris (especially Vigla), in the late 1830s, and spread to UK and Germany in the 1840s, with detailed descriptions and interpretations of cells and formed elements of the urinary sediment by Nasse, Henle, Robinson and Golding Bird. Classes were held, most notably by Donné in Paris. After another 50 years, optical microscopy had reached its apogee, with magnifications of over 1000 times obtainable free of aberration, using immersion techniques. Atlases of the urinary sediment were published in all major European countries and in the US. Polarised light and phase contrast was used also after 1900 to study urine, and by the early 20th century, photomicroscopy (pioneered by Donné and Daguerre 50 years previously, but then ignored) became usual for teaching and recording. In the 1940s electron microscopy began, followed by detection of specific proteins and cells using immunofluorescent antibodies. All this had been using handheld methodology. Around 1980, machine-assisted observations began, and have dominated progress since.
The relationship between the Shang and the ethnic groups on the Northern Frontiers as reflected in the northern-style bronzes unearthed in Yinxu Site
Authors: Zhu Fenghan 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThrough an analysis of oracle bone inscriptions relating to attacks on the northern and western borders of the Shang Kingdom by various ethnic groups living in the Northern Frontier Zone, this paper suggests that the members of northern chiefdoms such as the Qiong Fang, Tu Fang, or Fang Fang mainly lived in the mountainous areas of present-day western and northwestern Shanxi, northeastern Shaanxi, and northern Hebei Provinces. The paper analyzes the characteristics of northern frontier-style bronzes unearthed from this region and suggests to which cultures they may have belonged. Based on these suggestions and analyses, this paper discusses the northern-style bronzes unearthed from offering pits, sacrificial pits and tombs at the Yinxu Site and reveals that the northern-style bronzes frequently seen at Yinxu, especially the ones dating to the late stage of Phase I and Phase II of Yinxu Period (i.e., those dating to the reigns of Kings Wu Ding and Zu Jia), are a sign of frequent warfare between the Shang people and the ethnic groups inhabiting the Northern Frontier Zone, warfare having been the main form of the contact between them. Moreover, this paper discusses the significance of the communication of the Shang with these northern ethnic groups for establishing exchange between the Shang and the people in the Eurasian Steppe.
The motivic Thom–Sebastiani theorem for regular and formal functions
Authors: Lê Quy Thuong 
Published: June 2015

Abstract
Thanks
to the work of Hrushovski and Loeser on motivic Milnor fibers, we give a model-theoretic proof for the motivic Thom–Sebastiani theorem in the case of regular functions. Moreover, slightly extending
Hrushovski–Loeser’s construction adjusted to Sebag, Loeser and Nicaise’s motivic integration for formal schemes and rigid varieties, we formulate and prove an analogous result for formal functions. The latter is meaningful as it has been a crucial element of constructing Kontsevich–Soibelman’s theory of motivic Donaldson–Thomas invariants.
Decapod Crustacea of the Central Paratethyan Ottnangian Stage (middle Burdigalian): implications for systematics and biogeography
Authors: Hyžný Matúš , Harzhauser Mathias , Danninger Wolfgang 
Published: June 2015

AbstractDecapod crustaceans from the Ottnangian (middle Burdigalian, Lower Miocene) of the Western and Central Paratethys remain poorly known. In this study, we review and re-describe mud shrimps (Jaxea kuemeli), ghost shrimps (Gourretiasp.,Calliax michelottii) and brachyuran crabs of the families Leucosiidae, Polybiidae and Portunidae. A dorsal carapace of the genusCalliaxis reported for the first time in the fossil record. Re-examination of the type material ofRandallia strouhali(Leucosiidae) andGeryon ottnangensis(Geryonidae) resulted in a transfer of these species intoPalaeomyra(Leucosiidae) andLiocarcinus(Polybiidae), respectively.Achelous vindobonensis, originally described as a chela of a portunid crab, probably belongs to a member of Polybiidae and is provisionally treated asLiocarcinussp. Only two species,J. kuemeliandC. michelottii, are also known from the Karpatian, the succeeding Paratethyan stage. In most cases, the decapod assemblages of the Ottnangian consist of rather shallow-water taxa whereas the assemblages of the Karpatian consist of deep-water taxa from the middle and outer shelf. The Central Paratethyan assemblages show similarities in genus composition to the Proto-Mediterranean and recent Indo-Pacific regions.Gourretiasp. represents the earliest occurrence of the respective genus in the fossil record. The Oligocene–Early Miocene appearance ofPalaeomyraandLiocarcinusin the circum-Mediterranean implies that sources of present-day diversity hotspots in the Indo-Pacific trace to the Western Tethys (as for other decapod genera), although coeval decapod assemblages in the Indo-Pacific remain poorly known.
The correlation of the Neogene of Central and Eastern Paratethys segments of Ukraine with the International Stratigraphic Chart based on planktonic microfossils
Authors: Gozhyk Petro , Semenenko Vladimir , Andreeva-Grigorovich Aida , Maslun Ninel 
Published: June 2015

Abstract
Detailed analysis of microplankton occurrence (planktonic foraminifera, nannoplankton, dinocysts) in Neogene sediments situated at the north-western and south-eastern margins of Ukraine enabled us to distinguish 10 associations of oceanic plankton which specified the relative age of lithostratigraphic units of various regions and were used as correlation levels within the Central and Eastern Paratethys strata. Moreover, an attempt to correlate regional stages and the International Stratigraphic Chart (ISC) is performed. The Oligocene/Miocene boundary (of ISC) represented by the correlation level I was placed within the Central Paratethys regional stage Egerian and in the middle part of the Eastern Paratethys regional stage Caucasian s.l. The latter regional stage is subdivided by the correlation level into two substages: Lower Caucasian (Chattian of ISC) and Upper Caucasian (Aquitanian of ISC). The correlation level II was placed within the upper part of the Eggenburgian and lower part of the Batisifonian (Sakaraulian) regional stages and is correlated approximately with the middle part of the Burdigalian (of ISC). The base of the Middle Miocene is marked by level IV and was recognized only in deposits of the Eastern Paratethys belonging to the Tarkhanian regional stage. This level corresponds to the lowermost Badenian and Langhian (of ISC) stages. Correlation level V is traced in the Konkian sediments of the Eastern Paratethys and is compared with the Upper Badenian and Lower Serravalian (of ISC) stages. Level VI at the Middle/Upper Miocene boundary is situated in the middle part of the Bessarabian regional substage of the Eastern Paratethys and enables its correlation with the Serravallian/Tortonian boundary (of ISC). Level VII is recognized in the Baherovo Member (Meotian stage), while level VIII is fixed at the top of the Meotian regional stage in the Azov and Black Seas, Crimea and adjacent region named Northern Prichornomorye. Both these levels are also identified in the Berezhnytsya Formation of the Eastern Carpathian Foredeep. Correlation of these sediments is similar to the correlation of sediments of Lake Pannon (Pannonian regional stage), hence with the Tortonian stage (of ISC). Level IX was recognized in sediments of the Azov Member belonging to the Kimmerian regional stage of the Eastern Paratethys and represents the top of the Miocene strata. Level X occurs within the Taman Member of the Black Sea shelf and is correlated with the upper part of Kuyalnikian regional stage; corresponding to the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary.
Quaternary faulting in the Tatra Mountains, evidence from cave morphology and fault-slip analysis
Authors: Szczygieł Jacek 
Published: June 2015

Abstract
Tectonically deformed cave passages in the Tatra Mts (Central Western Carpathians) indicate some fault activity during the Quaternary. Displacements occur in the youngest passages of the caves indicating (based on previous U-series dating of speleothems) an Eemian or younger age for those faults, and so one tectonic stage. On the basis of stress analysis and geomorphological observations, two different mechanisms are proposed as responsible for the development of these displacements. The first mechanism concerns faults that are located above the valley bottom and at a short distance from the surface, with fault planes oriented sub-parallel to the slopes. The radial, horizontal extension and vertical σ1 which is identical with gravity, indicate that these faults are the result of gravity sliding probably caused by relaxation after incision of valleys, and not directly from tectonic activity. The second mechanism is tilting of the Tatra Mts. The faults operated under WNW-ESE oriented extension with σ1 plunging steeply toward the west. Such a stress field led to normal dip-slip or oblique-slip displacements. The faults are located under the valley bottom and/or opposite or oblique to the slopes. The process involved the pre-existing weakest planes in the rock complex: (i) in massive limestone mostly faults and fractures, (ii) in thin-bedded limestone mostly inter-bedding planes. Thin-bedded limestones dipping steeply to the south are of particular interest. Tilting toward the N caused the hanging walls to move under the massif and not toward the valley, proving that the cause of these movements was tectonic activity and not gravity.
The synthesis of optically enriched 2-benzyl- 3-nitropropionic amide
Authors: Wang Si-Hong , Yin Xiu-Mei 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe present communication describes a valuable procedure for the short and facile synthesis of a thermolysin inhibitor, i.e. optically enriched 2-benzyl-3-nitropropionic amide, successfully synthesized by virtue of a diastereoisomeric mixture intermediate, starting from commercially available
Reducing Public Health Risk During Disasters: Identifying Social Vulnerabilities
Authors: Wolkin Amy , Patterson Jennifer Rees , Harris Shelly , Soler Elena , Burrer Sherry , McGeehin Michael , Greene Sandra 
Published: June 2015

Abstract
All regions of the US experience disasters which result in a number of negative public health consequences. Some populations have higher levels of social vulnerability and, thus, are more likely to experience negative impacts of disasters including emotional distress, loss of property, illness, and death. To mitigate the impact of disasters on at-risk populations, emergency managers must be aware of the social vulnerabilities within their community. This paper describes a qualitative study which aimed to understand how emergency managers identify social vulnerabilities, also referred to as at-risk populations, in their populations and barriers and facilitators to current approaches. Findings suggest that although public health tools have been developed to aid emergency managers in identifying at-risk populations, they are not being used consistently. Emergency managers requested more information on the availability of tools as well as guidance on how to increase ability to identify at-risk populations.
A stochastic rank ordered logit model for rating multi-competitor games and sports
Authors: Glickman Mark E. , Hennessy Jonathan 
Published: June 2015

AbstractMany games and sports, including races, involve outcomes in which competitors are rank ordered. In some sports, competitors may play in multiple events over long periods of time, and it is natural to assume that their abilities change over time. We propose a Bayesian state-space framework for rank ordered logit models to rate competitor abilities over time from the results of multi-competitor games. Our approach assumes competitors’ performances follow independent extreme value distributions, with each competitor’s ability evolving over time as a Gaussian random walk. The model accounts for the possibility of ties, an occurrence that is not atypical in races in which some of the competitors may not finish and therefore tie for last place. Inference can be performed through Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation from the posterior distribution. We also develop a filtering algorithm that is an approximation to the full Bayesian computations. The approximate Bayesian filter can be used for updating competitor abilities on an ongoing basis. We demonstrate our approach to measuring abilities of 268 women from the results of women’s Alpine downhill skiing competitions recorded over the period 2002–2013.