bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rainfall, ambient temperature, and Clethrionomys californicus capture frequency
Authors: Maguire Chris C. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractSixty Western Red‐backed Voles Clethrionomys californicus inhabiting an old‐growth mixed conifer forest in north‐western California (USA) were studied over 2 years to assess relationships among vole capture frequency, rainfall, and ambient temperature. Red‐backed Voles were encountered more often and recapture rates per vole doubled with the tripling of yearly rainfall. In addition, more voles were captured during wet months than dry months. Analysed over weekly intervals, captures were positively correlated with the amount of weekly rainfall, a greater proportion of the known vole population was encountered during wet weeks than dry weeks, and increased weekly rainfall resulted in an increased proportion of the vole population captured. Significant relationships were not found between daily rainfall and vole captures, but both minimum and maximum daily ambient temperatures were lower when voles were trapped. Vole captures increased with decreases in daily and weekly minimum and maximum ambient temperatures. Weekly rainfall in combination with minimum weekly temperatures accounted for the greatest explanation of variability in vole capture frequencies. These results document that rainfall and ambient temperature have an impact on Western Red‐backed Vole capture frequency; thus these weather variables should be addressed as covariates in analyses focused on capture data for this species.
Resistance management strategies in malaria vector mosquito control. Baseline data for a large‐scale field trial against Anopheles albimanus in Mexico
Authors: PENILLA PATRICIA R. , RODRÍGUEZ AMÉRICO D. , HEMINGWAY JANET , TORRES JOSÉ L. , ARREDONDO‐JIMÉNEZ JUAN I. , RODRÍGUEZ MARIO H. 
Published: March 2003

Abstract.A high level of DDT resistance and low levels of resistance to organophosphorus, carbamate and pyrethroid insecticides were detected by discriminating dose assays in field populations of Anopheles albimanus in Chiapas, southern Mexico, prior to a large‐scale resistance management project described by Hemingway et al. (1997) . Biochemical assays showed that the DDT resistance was caused by elevated levels of glutathione S‐transferase (GST) activity leading to increased rates of metabolism of DDT to DDE. The numbers of individuals with elevated GST and DDT resistance were well correlated, suggesting that this is the only major DDT resistance mechanism in this population.The carbamate resistance in this population is conferred by an altered acetylcholinesterase (AChE) ‐based resistance mechanism. The level of resistance observed in the bioassays correlates with the frequency of individuals homozygous for the altered AChE allele. This suggests that the level of resistance conferred by this mechanism in its heterozygous state is below the level of detection by the WHO carbamate discriminating dosage bioassay.The low levels of organophosphate (OP) and pyrethroid resistance could be conferred by either the elevated esterase or monooxygenase enzymes. The esterases were elevated only with the substrate pNPA, and are unlikely to be causing broad spectrum OP resistance. The altered AChE mechanism may also be contributing to the OP but not the pyrethroid resistance.Significant differences in resistance gene frequencies were obtained from the F1 mosquitoes resulting from adults obtained by different collection methods. This may be caused by different insecticide selection pressures on the insects immediately prior to collection, or may be an indication that the indoor‐ and outdoor‐resting A. albimanus collections are not from a randomly mating single population. The underlying genetic variability of the populations is currently being investigated by molecular methods.
Identification of five species of the Anopheles dirus complex from Thailand, using allele‐specific polymerase chain reaction
Authors: Walton C. , Handley J. M. , Kuvangkadilok C. , Collins F. H. , Harbach R. E. , Baimai V. , Butlin R. K. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryThe Anopheles dirus complex of mosquitoes contains some of the most important vectors of malaria in Southeast Asia. To distinguish five species of the complex that occur in Thailand, a method using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was developed. The method utilizes allele‐specific amplification to detect fixed differences between the species in the DNA sequence of the ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 2. Primers were designed to amplify fragments of diagnostic length from the DNA of the different species. The method was tested on 179 mosquitoes of the An. dirus complex from many parts of Thailand and shown to be effective. Every specimen was unambiguously identified as species A, B, C, D or F (i.e. An. dirus s.s. species B, C, D or An. nemophilous, respectively) by the PCR method, with confirmation of 58/61 identifications from polytene chromosome characteristics. For the other three specimens (3/44 from Kanchanaburi 5 locality), there was disagreement between the PCR and chromosomal methods of species identification (probably due to errors in the chromosomal identifications). Primers can be combined in a single PCR reaction providing a rapid, sensitive and straightforward method of species identification. Only small quantities of DNA are required, leaving most of the mosquito to be used for other analyses.
Behavioural mode of action of deet: inhibition of lactic acid attraction
Authors: Dogan E. B. , Ayres J. W. , Rossignol P. A. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryUsing the mosquito Aedes aegypti in a novel olfactometer that measures movement towards and away from a stimulus, we could not confirm that ‘deet’ is a repellent of mosquitoes. In the absence of a host, deet was an attractant and in the presence of a host, it was an inhibitor of attraction. This inhibition occurred in the gaseous phase and was therefore not the result of the physical properties of deet. We determined that
l‐lactic acid, a component of human sweat that is an attractant to mosquitoes, is the target of this inhibition, implying that lactic acid may be a bottleneck in the behavioural cascade preceding blood‐sucking.
Morphology of a newly discovered sensory array on the mouthhooks of Gasterophilus larvae
Authors: Cogley T. P. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryThe distal mouthhooks of Gasterophilus intestinalis (DeGeer) (Diptera: Gasterophilidae) and G. nasalis (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Gasterophilidae) larvae were studied with scanning electron microscopy to determine the morphology of a previously unknown sensory array. The design of the 3rd stage G. intestinalis sensory array was used as the model for comparison to the 2nd stage of this species and the 2nd and 3rd stadia of G. nasalis. Some components forming the sensory array of the 3rd stage G. intestinalis mouthhook were found in 3rd stage G. nasalis. A major difference between these species was the replacement of shallow pits with sensilla‐laden troughs in G. nasalis. Second‐stage G. intestinalis has a distal mouthhook that varies considerably from the model type, lacking shallow pits and associated peg‐like sensilla. By contrast, the sensory array of the 2nd stage G. nasalis larva is the most elaborate yet encountered, with extensive sensilla and troughs. The existence of other types of sensilla on the mouthhook is proposed, as well as a sensory role for the unsculptured surface. Possible uses of the sensory array by the parasite are discussed.
Selection of Anopheles dirus for refractoriness and susceptibility to Plasmodium yoelii nigeriensis
Authors: Somboon P. , Prapanthadara L. , Suwonkerd W. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryTwo lines of the Oriental malaria vector mosquito Anopheles dirus species A (Diptera: Culicidae), one fully refractory and one fully susceptible to Plasmodium yoelii nigeriensis (an African rodent malaria parasite), were established after 17 generations of mass selection, followed by single female selection for one or two generations. Prior to selection, the stock colony of An. dirus was 17% refractory. Both lines of An. dirus produced abundant ookinetes that started to invade the midgut within 24 h post‐infection, as seen in histological sections. In most of the refractory mosquitoes, oocysts stopped development < 12 h post‐invasion, indicating a rapid defence mechanism. Dead P. y. nigeriensis parasites were apparently localized as small melanized spots (2–5 μm) seen in wet preparations of mosquito midguts dissected 5–7 days post infective bloodmeal. In some refractory An. dirus females, apart from the spots, a small number of totally encapsulated oocysts (c. 10 μm) were also present. These larger melanized parasites predominated in a few females: they appeared 2–3 days post‐infection as a secondary delayed defence mechanism. The progeny of reciprocal matings between susceptible and refractory lines had ∼50% susceptibility. Backcrosses of F1 hybrids with susceptible or refractory lines increased or decreased the susceptibility of backcross progeny accordingly. Overall, these results suggest polygenic control of susceptibility to P. y. nigeriensis infection. The refractory line of An. dirus showed normal susceptibility to natural infections of the human malarias P. falciparum and P. vivax from local patients.
The use of direct sequencing of dengue virus cDNA from individual field‐collected Aedes aegypti for surveillance and epidemiological studies
Authors: Romero‐Vivas C. M. E. , Sutherland C. J. , Falconar A. K. I. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryThe relative efficiencies of four methods to extract viral RNA from individual dengue‐2 virus (D‐2V)‐infected mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti (L.) (Diptera: Culicidae), were compared. The most efficient of these methods was then used to extract viral RNA for the preparation of cDNA from the abdomens of six engorged D‐2V‐infected mosquitoes and sera from three dengue fever (DF) patients collected in an isolated rural town in Colombia. Comparisons of viral envelope (E) gene sequences from each of these strongly suggested that the D‐2V population which circulated in this study area was a homogeneous genotype which was unrelated to any of the D‐2 viruses isolated from elsewhere in the world. When coupled with our rapid method to identify viruses in individual mosquitoes (
Romero‐Vivas et al. (1998)
Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 12, 101–105), the methodology we describe should be useful for epidemiological and surveillance studies of dengue viruses and other arboviruses.
Phosphoglucomutase and trehalase isoenzymes of Venezuelan Simulium vectors of Onchocerca volvulus
Authors: Davies J. B. , Basáñez M. G. , Frontado H. , Villamizar N. , Raybould J. N. , Petralanda I. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryPhosphoglucomutase (PGM) and trehalase (Tre) isoenzymes of five species of Simulium blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae), vectors of onchocerciasis in Venezuela, were investigated by means of a portable electrophoresis field kit. Tre differed between S. incrustatum and S. oyapockense s.l. Electrophoretic variation of Tre in other members of the S. amazonicum and S. incrustatum groups merit further investigation. PGM appears to be more useful for separating populations within species complexes. Multiple populations and/or seasonal changes in population structure of S. guianense s.l., S. exiguum s.l. and S. metallicum s.l. were inferred from elecrophoretic variation of PGM.
DNA in situ hybridization on polytene chromosomes of Simulium sanctipauli at loci relevant to insecticide resistance
Authors: Boakye D. A. , Cornel A. J. , Meredith S. E. , Brakefield P. M. , Collins F. H. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryA DNA technique for in situ hybridization developed by
Kumar & Collins (1994) for use on polytene chromosomes of adult Anopheles mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) was modified for use with Simulium larval salivary gland chromosomes (Diptera: Simuliidae). Cloned fragments of several Simulium genes (coding for aspartate amino transferase, cytochrome P450 and DNA polymerase) were successfully mapped physically by assigning specific band locations in Simulim sanctipauli V. & D. This represents the first attempt at locating genes beyond the resolution of linkage to inversions in any blackfly species.
Genetic differentiation of Anopheles claviger s.s. in France and neighbouring countries
Authors: Schaffner F. , Raymond M. , Pasteur N. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryAn investigation of polymorphism of 11 autosomal and one sex‐linked allozyme loci was made on 18 samples of Anopheles claviger Meigen (Diptera: Culicidae) from localities across France and neighbouring sites in Germany and Switzerland, plus one sample of Anopheles petragnani Del Vecchio from the French Pyrénées. Genetic differentiation between these two sibling species was confirmed (Nei genetic distance 0.33–0.44) and two genetically distinct groups of populations were identified within An. claviger. These two forms of An. claviger showed contiguous geographical distributions, Group I found across western and Central France, Group II in eastern France and nearby parts of Germany and Switzerland. The two groups were in contact in a region near the Rhone Valley where two intermediate samples were found. The taxonomic significance of this finding is discussed in the context of the recent climatic history of Europe and in relation to the vector potential of each member of the An. claviger complex.
Anopheles funestus resistant to pyrethroid insecticides in South Africa
Authors: Hargreaves K. , Koekemoer L. L. , Brooke B. D. , Hunt R. H. , Mthembu J. , Coetzee M. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryNorthern Kwazulu/Natal (KZN) Province of South Africa borders on southern Mozambique, between Swaziland and the Indian Ocean. To control malaria vectors in KZN, houses were sprayed annually with residual DDT 2 g/m2 until 1996 when the treatment changed to deltamethrin 20–25 mg/m2. At Ndumu (27°02′ S, 32°19′ E) the recorded malaria incidence increased more than six‐fold between 1995 and 1999. Entomological surveys during late 1999 found mosquitoes of the Anopheles funestus group (Diptera: Culicidae) resting in sprayed houses in some sectors of Ndumu area. This very endophilic vector of malaria had been eliminated from South Africa by DDT spraying in the 1950s, leaving the less endophilic An. arabiensis Patton as the only vector of known importance in KZN. Deltamethrin‐sprayed houses at Ndumu were checked for insecticide efficacy by bioassay using susceptible An. arabiensis (laboratory‐reared) that demonstrated 100% mortality. Members of the An. funestus group from Ndumu houses (29 males, 116 females) were identified by the rDNA PCR method and four species were found: 74 An. funestus Giles sensu stricto, 34 An. parensis Gillies, seven An. rivulorum Leeson and one An. leesoni Evans. Among An. funestus s.s. females, 5.4% (4/74) were positive for Plasmodium falciparum by ELISA and PCR tests. To test for pyrethroid resistance, mosquito adults were exposed to permethrin discriminating dosage and mortality scored 24 h post‐exposure: survival rates of wild‐caught healthy males were 5/10 An. funestus, 1/9 An. rivulorum and 0/2 An. parensis; survival rates of laboratory‐reared adult progeny from 19 An. funestus females averaged 14% (after 1 h exposure to 1% permethrin 25 : 75 cis : trans on papers in WHO test kits) and 27% (after 30 min in a bottle with 25 μg permethrin 40 : 60 cis : trans). Anopheles funestus families showing > 20% survival in these two resistance test procedures numbered 5/19 and 12/19, respectively. Progeny from 15 of the families were tested on 4% DDT impregnated papers and gave 100% mortality. Finding these proportions of pyrethroid‐resistant An. funestus, associated with a malaria upsurge at Ndumu, has serious implications for malaria vector control operations in southern Africa.
Cultural sensitivity training among foreign medical graduates
Authors: Majumdar Basanti , Keystone  , Cuttress Lori A 
Published: March 2003

Objectives To examine the effectiveness of culture sensitivity training for foreign‐trained medical graduates licensed to practice in Ontario, Canada.Design A study of pretest–post‐test design was conducted to determine the effect of cultural sensitivity training on newly immigrated physicians licensed in Canada. Twenty‐four physicians, those who had passed the medical licensing exam in 1996 and had not yet started their residency program, were given 15 hours of cultural sensitivity training and were considered the experimental group. This group was compared with a control group of 24 physicians who had passed the licensing exam and were in the process of completing residency.Setting University of Toronto.Subjects Foreign‐trained medical graduates.Results Both groups completed the Cross‐Cultural Adaptability Inventory both before and after the training of the experimental group. Statistical significance in three subscales of the Open‐Mindedness/Flexibility, Emotional Resilience and Perceptual Acuity dimensions were demonstrated in the experimental group as compared with the control group.Conclusions In order for Canada to mould professional and effective physicians great care must be taken in the design and process of cultural sensitivity programmes to enhance both knowledge and skills. Follow‐up should be undertaken to compare their effectiveness with the control group.
Medication discussion groups in the Netherlands: five years of experience
Authors: Kocken Geert A L 
Published: March 2003

IntroductionNation‐wide implementation of medication discussion (MD) groups in the Netherlands was designed as a bottom‐up approach and has been in progress for five years. This invites a review of what has been achieved in these structured discussions between general practitioners and pharmacists.ContextEarly in 1997 the Dutch Foundation for Effective Use of Medication (DGV) initiated a fact‐finding exercise among general practitioners and pharmacists representing MD groups all over the country.ObjectiveDescription of the setting up and the operation of medical discussion groups. Comparison of the quality of the consultations between the start of the project (1992) and 1997.MethodsTwo surveys of medical discussion groups in 1992 and 1997, respectively.ResultsThe quality of the consultations was found to have improved in comparison with an evaluation shortly after the start of the project.ConclusionThe overwhelming majority of those interviewed were satisfied with the MD process, which they consider a useful effort. But there is also a wish for increased commitment to guidelines agreed in MD group consultations.
Genetic relationship of 32 cell lines of the Euplotes octocarinatus species complex revealed by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprinting
Authors: Möllenbeck M. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractRandom amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprinting was used in this study to determine the genetic relationship of different cell lines of the hypotrichous ciliate Euplotes octocarinatus. Stocks isolated from different habitats in the USA, and from a group of genetically recombined laboratory strains, were characterized. Band‐sharing indices (D) for all possible pairwise comparisons revealed a remarkable genetic diversity between the different cell lines. Investigation of the genetic structure in natural populations found diversity — although to a different extent — in all populations investigated. No clonal structure could be observed, as proposed for several protozoa and recently shown for E. daidaleos. These findings suggest frequent conjugation in the populations of E. octocarinatus. No correlation between the genetic relationship of cell lines from different habitats and the distance between the corresponding sampling locations was found. Once separated geographically, the exchange of genetic material between populations appears to be nearly impossible. Therefore, these groups tend to separate into sibling species. The data generally support the occurrence of different syngens in the E. octocarinatus species complex. This finding is in accordance with our observation that the morphological ‘species’ of E. octocarinatus consists of several syngens or sibling species, similar to findings for the Paramecium aurelia‐, Tetrahymena pyriformis‐ and E. vannus‐species complexes.
PCR amplification of the mating‐type idiomorphs in Cryphonectria parasitica
Authors: Marra R. E. , Milgroom M. G. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractIn the laboratory, the ascomycete fungus Cryphonectria parasitica is rarely self‐fertile, and has a self‐incompatibility system that resolves into two intersterility groups, controlled by a single locus. In natural populations, however, self‐fertilization occurs frequently. In this report, we show that the C. parasitica self‐incompatibility locus (MAT) comprises two idiomorphs (alleles that are highly divergent in sequence), conforming to the paradigm of self‐incompatibility as described for other ascomycetes. Starting with a fragment putatively from the MAT‐2 idiomorph, we used a PCR‐based cloning approach to identify 3.5‐ and 2‐kb sequences unique to MAT‐1 and MAT‐2 isolates, respectively. These sequences were then used to design idiomorph‐specific PCR primer pairs, allowing us to efficiently identify the mating types of isolates, a crucial component of our research on the environmental and genetic factors underlying this mixed mating system.
A retrospective assessment of the accuracy of the paternity inference program cervus
Authors: Slate Jon , Marshall Tristan , Pemberton Josephine 
Published: March 2003

Abstract cervus is a Windows‐based software package written to infer paternity in natural populations. It offers advantages over exclusionary‐based methods of paternity inference in that multiple nonexcluded males can be statistically distinguished, laboratory typing error is considered and statistical confidence is determined for assigned paternities through simulation. In this study we use a panel of 84 microsatellite markers to retrospectively determine the accuracy of statistical confidence when
cervus was used to infer paternity in a population of red deer (Cervus elaphus). The actual confidence of
cervus‐assigned paternities was not significantly different from that predicted by simulation.
Are recession populations of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) remnants of past swarms?
Authors: Ibrahim Kamal M. , Sourrouille Patricia , Hewitt Godfrey M. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractThe desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) undergoes crowding‐induced phase transformation from solitary to gregarious, which involves changes in behaviour, colour, development, morphometry, fecundity and endocrine physiology. During recession, solitary locusts persist in the central, drier part of the species’ range in small pocket populations that are prone to extinction. During the intermittent upsurges and the subsequent plagues, gregarious swarms attain huge population size and invade a vast area causing major damage to agriculture. A highly variable nuclear DNA marker, a noncoding 3′ end fragment of an antennapedia‐class homeobox gene, was screened in locust samples from Eritrea. Despite the homogenizing potential of plague swarms, the last of which was in 1986–89 and originated in this region, the population genetic structure of solitary phase locusts along the Red Sea coast of Eritrea revealed significant divergence. The pattern of divergence indicated that the invasion of the western and northern plains in the summer of 1995 may not, as reported then, have originated in eastern Chad or western Sudan. A number of interrelated hypotheses have been presented to explain the observed genetic heterogeneity between the sampled populations. We conclude, with caution due to the limited sample sizes, that: (i) geographical isolation between breeding sites during plagues and recession; (ii) the marked differences in the flight behaviour of plague swarms and recession populations; (iii) possible failure of gregarious locusts to solitarize and re‐establish in recession areas; and (iv) the effect of repeated extinction and recolonization in the meta‐population contribute to the maintenance of the genetic structure of recession populations. Potentially productive future research has been identified.