bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Colletotrichum simmondsii Causing Anthracnose on Safflower in the Czech Republic
Authors: Víchová J. , Vejražka K. , Cholastová T. , Pokorný R. , Hrudová E. 
Published: November 2010

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) is an oil crop that is suitable for dry growing conditions in the Czech Republic. Most of the Czech production is used as bird feed. Typical anthracnose symptoms were observed at one safflower field in the Moravia Region of the Czech Republic during the 2005 growing season. Since then, the disease has become widespread with 100% yield losses observed in several locations in 2009. Symptoms consisted of circular spots on leaves and stem blight characterized by dark-colored stem lesions bearing salmon-colored conidia masses in acervuli. A fungus was isolated from symptomatic safflower plants (cv. Sabina) on potato dextrose agar and incubated at 25°C as described by Kwon et al. (3). The color of fungal colonies changed from white to gray with age with salmon-orange pigmentation on the reverse side of plates. Similar observations had been reported by Jelev et al. (1). Conidia were colorless, fusiform, and measured 10 to 17 μm (mean 13.59) × 4 to 8 μm (mean 5.98). Morphology suggested a Colletotrichum sp. To fulfill Koch' postulates, safflower plants at the BBCH 12 growth stage (second leaf fully expanded) were spray inoculated with a conidia suspension (1 × 105 conidia/ml). Growth chamber conditions were temperature 20 ± 1°C, relative humidity 70 ± 5%, with a 16-h photoperiod. Control plants were treated with sterile distilled water. Typical anthracnose symptoms were observed 1 week after inoculation. Control plants were symptomless. The pathogen was reisolated from infected stems and leaves. PCR with primers CaInt2 and ITS4 was used to confirm the identification of a Colletotrichum sp. Reaction products obtained with these primers were approximately 500 bp long. The ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer region containing ITS1, 5.8S, and ITS2 of the isolate from safflower was sequenced and identified with the BLASTn program. The sequence matches with 100% similarity to the sequence of the Glomerella acutata teleomorph of Colletotrichum acutatum (GenBank Accession No. AB548282) and 100% similarity to C. simmondsii (GenBank Accession No. GU183359). C. acutatum and C. simmondsii can be distinguished from each other by pigment color (4), with the safflower isolate matching the description of C. simmondsii. Kim et al. (2) recorded C. acutatum on safflower fields in the Euiseong area of Korea in 1997. To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. simmondsii causing safflower anthracnose in the Czech Republic. References: (1) Z. J. Jelev et al. Plant Dis. 92:172, 2008. (2) W. G. Kim et al. Plant Pathol. J. 15:62, 1999. (3) J. H. Kwon et al. Plant Pathol. J. 15:172, 1999. (4) R. G. Shivas and Y. P. Tan. Fungal Divers. 39:111, 2009.
First Report of Damping-Off Caused by Rhizoctonia solani AG-4 on Pink Ipê (Tabebuia impetiginosa) in Italy
Authors: Polizzi G. , Aiello D. , Vitale A. , Guarnaccia V. , Panebianco A. , Cirvilleri G. 
Published: November 2010

Pink ipê or pink lapacho (Tabebuia impetiginosa Martius ex DC., family Bignoniaceae) is one of the most attractive blooming trees in the world. In Europe, pink ipê is widely used as an ornamental tree in landscaped gardens and public areas. In August 2010, a widespread damping-off was observed in a stock of approximately 100,000 potted 2-month-old seedlings in a nursery in eastern Sicily (Italy). The seedlings were being watered with overhead irrigation. More than 5% of the seedlings showed disease symptoms. Initial symptoms were black lesions at the seedling crown that expanded rapidly to girdle the stem. On infected seedlings, leaves turned black and gradually died. Black extended stem lesions were followed by death of the entire seedling in a few days. A fungus with mycelial and morphological characteristics of Rhizoctonia solani Kühn was consistently isolated from crown and stem lesions when plated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) amended with streptomycin sulfate at 100 μg/ml. Fungal colonies were initially white, turned brown with age, and produced irregularly shaped, brown sclerotia. Mycelium was branched at right angles with a septum near the branch and a slight constriction at the branch base. Hyphal cells removed from cultures grown at 25°C on 2% water agar were determined to be multinucleate when stained with 1% safranin O and 3% KOH solution (1) and examined at ×400. Anastomosis groups were determined by pairing isolates with tester strains AG-1 IA, AG-2-2-1, AG-2-2IIIB, AG-2-2IV, AG-3, AG-4, AG-5, AG-6, and AG-11 on 2% water agar in petri plates (4). Anastomosis was observed only with tester isolates of AG-4, giving both C2 and C3 reactions (2). Pathogenicity tests were performed on container-grown, healthy, 3-month-old seedlings. Forty seedlings of T. impetiginosa were inoculated near the base of the stem with two 1-cm2 PDA plugs from 5-day-old mycelial cultures. The same number of plants only inoculated with PDA plugs served as controls. Plants were incubated in a growth chamber and maintained at 25°C and 95% relative humidity on a 12-h fluorescent light/dark regimen. Crown and stem lesions identical to those observed in the nursery appeared 5 days after inoculation and all plants died within 25 days. No disease was observed on control plants. R. solani AG-4 was reisolated from symptomatic tissues and identified as previously described. R. solani AG-4 was previously detected in the same nursery on Chamaerops humilis (3). To our knowledge, this is the first report of R. solani causing damping-off on T. impetiginosa. References: (1) R. J. Bandoni. Mycologia 71:873, 1979. (2) D. E. Carling. Page 37 in: Grouping in Rhizoctonia solani by Hyphal Anastomosis Reactions. Kluwer Academic Publishers, the Netherlands, 1996. (3) G. Polizzi et al. Plant Dis. 94:125, 2010. (4) C. C. Tu and J. W. Kimbrough. Mycologia 65:941, 1973.
Increased Anxiety‐Like Behavior and Ethanol Self‐Administration in Dependent Rats: Reversal via Corticotropin‐Releasing Factor‐2 Receptor Activation
Authors: Valdez Glenn R. , Sabino Valentina , Koob George F. 
Published: November 2010

Background: Corticotropin‐releasing factor (CRF) has been hypothesized to be one of the main regulators of the stress response observed during alcohol withdrawal. The CRF receptor subtypes seem to have a differential role in the regulation of stress‐related behavior. Given the behavioral characterization of these receptors, the objective of the following experiments was to characterize the role of CRF2 receptors in the interaction between alcohol and stress by examining the effects of CRF2 receptor activation in the behavioral stress response and ethanol self‐administration during early ethanol withdrawal in dependent rats.Methods: Male Wistar rats were made dependent on ethanol via chronic exposure to an ethanol containing liquid diet. Behavior in the elevated plus maze and ethanol self‐administration were measured at 2 hr after removal of the diet. The role of the CRF2 receptor in the regulation of these behaviors during the early stages of withdrawal was examined via central injection of the highly selective CRF2 receptor agonist urocortin 3.Results: Rats showed decreased exploration of the open arms of the elevated plus maze, an indication of a heightened behavioral stress response, after chronic ethanol exposure. This effect was attenuated by central injection of urocortin 3. In addition, urocortin 3 injections reversed the increase in ethanol self‐administration observed during early withdrawal in dependent rats.Conclusions: Reversal of the increased stress‐related behavior in the elevated plus maze observed after injections of urocortin 3 indicates that the decreased responding for ethanol also seen after urocortin 3 administration is likely due to a diminished anxiety‐like state. These data suggest that activation of the CRF2 receptor may provide a novel target in the attenuation of the stress response characteristic of the early stages of ethanol withdrawal.
Heightened Ethanol Intake in Infant and Adolescent Rats After Nursing Experiences With an Ethanol‐Intoxicated Dam
Authors: Pepino Marta Yanina , Abate Paula , Spear Norman E. , Molina Juan Carlos 
Published: November 2010

Background: Preweanling rats detect ethanol (175 mg/100 ml) in maternal milk when the dam is moderately intoxicated. Repeated experiences with the intoxicated dam facilitate subsequent recognition of ethanol's chemosensory attributes and promote ethanol‐related memories with a negative hedonic content. This memory has been attributed to the infant's acquired association between ethanol's chemosensory attributes and its disruptive effects on maternal care. In this study, infant and adolescent ethanol intake patterns were analyzed as a function of prior interactions, during early infancy, with their intoxicated dams.Methods: During postpartum days 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13, breast‐feeding dams received an intragastric administration of either 2.5 g/kg of ethanol or water. Pups whose dams had been given one of these two maternal treatments were tested on postnatal day 15 for ingestion of 0% (water), 2.5, 5.0, or 10% v/v ethanol solution. During adolescence, remaining animals from these litters were first adapted to ingest water from drinking tubes and then were given simultaneous access to tap water and a given ethanol solution. The first day, a 3% v/v ethanol solution was used. This solution was increased by 1% ethanol each following day until the solution was 6% v/v ethanol.Results: Maternal drug treatment did not affect the body weights of dams, infants, or adolescents. Water intake during infancy and adolescence also was unaffected by prior maternal treatment. However, infants that had previously interacted with ethanol‐intoxicated dams exhibited heightened ethanol intake scores (grams per kilogram and percentage body weight gains), especially when tested with 5 or 10% v/v ethanol solutions. Similarly, adolescent males (but not females) that had interacted with an intoxicated dam during infancy also had higher ethanol consumption levels than those that had interacted with a nonintoxicated dam.Conclusions: Contrary to what might be expected in animals that acquire an aversive memory for ethanol's chemosensory cues as a function of prior interactions with an intoxicated mother, these results indicate that such interactions promote a long‐lasting increase in ethanol intake. These results suggest that rats reared by intoxicated dams become sensitive to the negative reinforcing properties of ethanol.
Differential Effects of Chronic Ethanol Administration and Withdrawal on γ‐Aminobutyric Acid Type A and NMDA Receptor Subunit Proteins in Male and Female Rat Brain
Authors: Devaud Leslie L. , Alele Paul 
Published: November 2010

Background:Investigations have shown that chronic ethanol exposure results in selective alterations in levels of γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA)Aand NMDA receptor subunits. We previously reported significant sex differences in these chronic ethanol‐induced adaptations. Because we have more recently found important sex differences in timing for the development of and recovery from ethanol dependence, we wanted to ascertain whether there were associations between overt expression of withdrawal and neuroadaptations at the level of GABAAand NMDA receptors.Methods:Western blot analysis was used to assay protein levels for several GABAAand NMDA receptor subunits in rat cerebral cortex and hippocampus by using subunit‐selective antibodies. Rats were fed 6% ethanol in a liquid diet with pair‐fed controls. Feeding, harvesting of tissue, and Western blot experiments were all conducted while maintaining the paired design. Tissue was harvested after 3 days of ethanol exposure, 9 days of ethanol exposure, or 3 days of ethanol withdrawal after 14 days of liquid diet administration.Results:We again found sex‐, subunit‐, and brain region–selective effects of ethanol administration and withdrawal for GABAAand NMDA receptors. There was a strong association between increased GABAAreceptor α4subunit levels and previously determined withdrawal‐induced changes in seizure susceptibility, highlighted by the sex differences in ethanol exposure length required to cause withdrawal signs. In addition, results obtained after 9 days of ethanol administration were in general agreement with previous findings after 14 days of ethanol administration.Conclusions:These data further support the suggestion that alterations in subunit assembly of GABAAand NMDA receptors may have some mechanistic role in neuroadaptations underlying ethanol dependence and withdrawal. Furthermore, significant sex differences in these adaptations suggest that multiple types of adaptations may be elicited, depending on innate differences in the actions/effects of ethanol.
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Causes Long‐Term Serotonin Neuron Deficit in Mice
Authors: Sari Youssef , Zhou Feng C. 
Published: November 2010

Background: Previous work from this laboratory showed that prenatal alcohol exposure at approximately 100 mg/dl from embryonic day (E)7 to early midgestation reduced the number and retarded the migration of serotonin (5‐HT) neurons in the raphe nuclei in C57BL/6 mice. In this study, we report that the deficit of 5‐HT neurons found in midgestation persisted on E18 and into young adulthood.Methods: Pregnant dams were treated from E7 to E18 in three groups—(1) the alcohol group, fed with liquid diet with 25% ethanol‐derived calories; (2) the isocaloric pair‐fed group; and (3) the chow group for analysis of concentrations of active caspase‐3—to study apoptosis at E18 in the brainstem and the number of 5‐HT neurons at E18 and postnatal day 45. The concentrations of active caspase‐3 were determined by using a colorimetric assay, and the 5‐HT neurons were determined by immunocytochemistry.Results: Prenatal alcohol exposure increased the concentration of active caspase‐3 in the brainstem and caused reductions in brain weight by 20% and in the total number of 5‐HT–immunostaining neurons in the dorsal and median raphe nuclei by 20% at E18 as compared with those of the pair‐fed and chow controls. Continuous observation from prenatal to postnatal stages showed that the reduction of 5‐HT–immunostaining neurons in the dorsal and median raphe nuclei persisted in the young adult stage.Conclusions: Upon prenatal alcohol exposure, an increased concentration of active caspase‐3 and a decreased number of 5‐HT–immunostaining neurons in the brainstem were observed at E18. The decreased number of 5‐HT neurons persisted to the young adult stage of postnatal day 45. This suggests that ethanol has a long‐lasting effect on 5‐HT deficit. A fetal alcohol exposure–rendered lasting deficit of 5‐HT and other transmitter systems may underlie the neuropsychiatric deficits in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
Prolonged Exposure to Intermittent Alcohol Vapors Decreases the ACTH as Well as Hypothalamic Nitric Oxide and Cytokine Responses to Endotoxemia
Authors: Seo Dong O. , Lee Soon , Rivier Catherine 
Published: November 2010

Background: Prolonged exposure to alcohol blunts the response of the hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal (HPA) axis to various stressors, including the systemic injection of a lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We previously showed that decreased synthesis of the hypothalamic peptides corticotropin‐releasing factor (CRF) and vasopressin (VP) played a central role in this phenomenon. However, the mechanisms that lead to decreased hypothalamic neuronal activity have not been identified. In the present work, we tested the hypothesis that alcohol decreased signals that are elicited by LPS and that stimulate hypothalamic CRF and VP synthesis, namely nitric oxide (NO) and the proinflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) and interleukin‐6 (IL‐6).Methods: Adult male rats were exposed to intermittent (5 hr/day) alcohol vapors for 5 days. Control animals were kept in comparable chambers but not exposed to the vapors. On day 6, the animals received an injection of LPS through permanent indwelling intravenous cannulae. The dependent variables were plasma ACTH levels measured by IRMA (immunoradiometric assay); pituitary and hypothalamic TNF‐α and IL‐6 mRNA levels measured by RNase protection assay; basal activity of neuronal NO synthase measured by conversion of [14C]arginine to [14C]citrulline, the constitutive enzyme that synthesizes NO and modulates the influence of this gas on LPS‐induced HPA axis activity; and basal and LPS‐induced levels of citrulline (an index of NO formation) in the hypothalamus, measured by immunocytochemistry.Results: After injection with LPS, rats that were pretreated with alcohol exhibited a significantly (p < 0.01) decreased release of ACTH, compared with controls. There was no difference in basal NO synthase activity or hypothalamic citrulline levels. In contrast, LPS‐induced hypothalamic citrulline levels were significantly (p < 0.01) lower in alcohol‐exposed rats, as were pituitary TNF‐α and IL‐6 transcripts. In the hypothalamus, the TNF‐α but not IL‐6 response to LPS was also reduced.Conclusions: These results indicate that prolonged exposure to alcohol decreases the ACTH, hypothalamic NO and TNF‐α, and pituitary TNF‐α and IL‐6 responses to LPS. This suggests that altered NO and proinflammatory cytokine levels in the brain may modulate the inhibitory influence exerted by alcohol on the HPA axis response to endotoxemia.
Validity of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test in College Students
Authors: Kokotailo Patricia K. , Egan Judith , Gangnon Ronald , Brown David , Mundt Marlon , Fleming Michael 
Published: November 2010

Background: High‐risk alcohol use among college students is associated with accidents, partner violence, unwanted sexual encounters, tobacco use, and performance issues. The identification and treatment of high‐risk drinking students is a priority for many college campuses and college health centers. The goal of this study was to test the psychometric properties of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) in college students.Methods: A convenience sample of students coming into a college health clinic was asked to complete the 10‐question AUDIT and then participate in a research interview. The interview focused on assessing students for alcohol abuse and dependence by using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview Substance Abuse Module and timeline follow‐back procedures to assess a 28‐day drinking history.Results: A total of 302 students met the eligibility criteria and agreed to participate in the study. The sample consisted of 185 females (61%) and 117 males (39%), with a mean age of 20.3 years. Forty students were abstinent, 88 were high‐risk drinkers, and 103 met criteria for a 12‐month history of dependence. Receiver operator curves demonstrated that the AUDIT had the highest area under the cure for detecting high‐risk alcohol use (0.872) and the lowest for identifying persons with a lifetime history of alcohol abuse or dependence (0.775). An AUDIT cutoff score of 6 or greater demonstrated a sensitivity of 91.0% and a specificity of 60.0% in the detection of high‐risk drinkers.Conclusions: The AUDIT has reasonable psychometric properties in sample of college students using student health services. This study supports the use of the AUDIT in this population.
Laboratory Markers Carbohydrate‐Deficient Transferrin, γ‐Glutamyltransferase, and Mean Corpuscular Volume Are Not Useful as Screening Tools for High‐Risk Drinking in the General Population: Results From the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP)
Authors: Alte Dietrich , Luedemann Jan , Rose Hans‐Joachim , John Ulrich 
Published: November 2010

Background: Assessment of high‐risk drinking in the general population can be problematic: questionnaire‐based instruments may carry the problem of random or systematic recall bias, and the effectiveness of screening of single biomarkers has been shown to be insufficient. In this article, we analyze the alcohol intake/biomarker relationship of carbohydrate‐deficient transferrin (CDT), γ‐glutamyltransferase (GGT), and erythrocyte mean corpuscular volume (MCV). Specific aims were (1) screening effectiveness comparison of GGT, CDT, and MCV in terms of sensitivity, specificity, and positive (PPVs) and negative predictive values (NPVs) and the effect of covariates on these measures; (2) the comparison of summary measures for the effectiveness of screening: the receiver characteristic curve (ROC) and the area under the ROC; and (3) to answer the question of which covariates effect which biomarkers and whether accounting for relevant covariates increases the prognostic value of biomarkers to levels that allow for application in the general population.Methods: In a representative cross‐sectional health survey in northeast Germany with data collection from 1997 to 2001, 4310 men and women were asked for their recent alcohol consumption and smoking. Biomarkers were analyzed from blood samples. The effectiveness of screening of CDT, GGT, and MCV for high‐risk drinking (men: >60 g/day, women: >40 g/day) was analyzed with PPV and ROC curve analysis.Results: For all three biomarkers, PPVs for high‐risk drinking are very low (< 50%). There are some effects of covariates on screening effectiveness and on PPV, and knowledge of these covariates increases screening effectiveness, but no subgroup that had a combination of covariate levels and prevalence of high‐risk drinking that led to a PPV > 50% could be found.Conclusions: Accounting for covariates in the screening procedure does not lead to a sufficient increase in PPV. Screening effectiveness of laboratory markers CDT, GGT, and MCV is insufficient for their application as screening tools for high‐risk alcohol drinking in the general population. This was found using self‐reported alcohol consumption as an imperfect gold standard, which is a limitation of the study, although self‐reports are the standard instrument in comparable epidemiologic studies.
The Effect of Ethanol on Cell Fate Determination of Neural Stem Cells
Authors: Tateno Masaru , Ukai Wataru , Yamamoto Megumi , Hashimoto Eri , Ikeda Hiroshi , Saito Toshikazu 
Published: November 2010

Abstract: Background: Recent studies have described the possible relevance of impaired neural stem cell (NSC) functions to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders, including alcoholism. However, relatively little is known about ethanol's effects on the determination of cell fate in NSCs. In this study, we investigated the effect of ethanol on neuronal and glial differentiation of NSCs.Methods: Under neuron‐inductive culture conditions, NSCs were induced to differentiate and exposed to ethanol for 96 hr. Immunocytochemistry with cell‐type‐specific markers was performed (microtubule‐associated protein 2 (MAP2) for neurons, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) for astrocytes and O4 for oligodendrocytes). The cells positive to MAP2, GFAP or O4 were counted, and the number of MAP2‐positive cells was quantified by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) following immunostaining with anti‐MAP2 (MAP2‐ELISA). The alteration of MAP2, GFAP or myelin basic protein (MBP, a marker for oligodendrocytes) expression was evaluated by Western blot analysis.Results: Ethanol exposure increased astrocytic and oligodendrocytic differentiation with a statistically significant difference at 100mM, while 25 to 100 mM ethanol reduced neuronal differentiation without affecting the viability of NSCs. The enhanced expression of glial markers was revealed by Western blot analysis for GFAP or MBP.Conclusions: Glial cells are known to increase in response to various kinds of insults to the central nervous system. It is possible that the increase of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes after ethanol exposure is a compensatory mechanism to repair the impaired neural network by promoting neurite outgrowth and increasing newly generated neurons.