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Corpus luteum cyst at term is a rare occurrence. It is unusual for these cysts to be bilateral. We report a case of massive bilateral corpus luteum cysts in a term singleton pregnancy. A 32-year-old gravid 2, para 1, known human immunodeficiency virus positive patient on highly active antiretroviral therapy had an elective cesarean section at term on account of a low CD4 count and ovarian cysts. At surgery, she was found to have massive bilateral ovarian cysts. Each of the cysts was about the size of a 20-week size gravid uterus, (Left side 20 cm × 23 cm×15 cm; Right side 22 cm × 24 cm ×10 cm). After the 3.4 kg male baby was delivered in a good condition, a bilateral cystectomy was performed. Subsequent histopathology confirmed the diagnosis of corpus luteum cyst of pregnancy.

Summary: Flavivirus (family Flaviviridae) and Alphavirus (family Togaviridae) are mosquito-borne viruses that poses a significant risk to public health worldwide. Examples of these viruses include Dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Flavivirus genus, and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in the Alphavirus genus. The potential contribution of bats in the mosquito-to-human transmission cycle of these viral genera in the tropics has not been studied. Here, a total of 144 bats belonging to three families (Emballonuridae, Phyllostomidae, and Molossidae) and six species were captured for one year using mist nets in sites with different landscapes (forest and grassland) in the state of Yucatan, southeastern Mexico. Blood samples and rectal and oral swabs were collected to detect Flavivirus and Alphavirus RNA genomes through RT-PCR. Flavivirus RNA was detected in 53 individuals (36.8%; 95% CI: 29.4%–44.9%), and Alphavirus RNA was detected in 59 individuals (40.1%; 95% CI: 33.2%–49.2%). The sequences obtained were consistent with ZIKV and DENV, into the Flavivirus, and CHIKV into the Alphavirus positive samples. The prevalence of both Flavivirus and Alphavirus was higher during the dry season compared with the rainy season. This high positivity rate, highlighted in both Flavivirus and Alphavirus, suggests a potential contribution of bats in the circulation of these viral genera in sylvatic environments. Seasonal variation in viral genera prevalence, with higher prevalence during dry seasons than rainy seasons, may suggest specific viral activity patterns in response to climatic conditions.

Dismiccoccus brevipes (Cockerell) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) es una de las plagas de mayor importancia de la piña a nivel mundial, no solo por los daños directos que ocasiona, si no por ser trasmisor del virus marchitez roja de la piña. Los hongos entomopatógenos son una alternativa para el manejo de este insecto. En un experimento preliminar se evaluó la patogenicidad y virulencia de dos aislamientos de Beauveria bassiana (BbCT, BbCa) y uno de Metarhizium anisopliae (Ma), sobre la mortalidad de hembras adultas de D. brevipes. Posteriormente, los aislamientos más virulentos y una cepa comercial de Paecelomyces fumosoroceus (PAE-SIN), fueron evaluados en otro experimento en condiciones de laboratorio e invernadero, solos o en combinación con aceite de soya y aceite de neem. Todos los aislamientos evaluados presentan diferente grado de patogenicidad; sin embargo, B. bassiana resultó ser el más patogénico. El aislamiento BbCa a una concentración inicial de 1×107 conidios mL-1 fue más efectivo contra adultos de D. brevipes comparado al control, causando mortalidad del 66% ± 6% a los 8 días pos inoculación a 26 ± 1°C. BbCa presentó la mayor virulencia con una CL50, de 3.45x107 conidios mL-1 y una CL95 de 2.29x108 conidios mL-1, bajo condiciones controladas. Sin embargo, la eficacia se incrementó para BbCa, cuando se combinó con aceite de neem, al causar el 100 % de mortalidad a los 6 días pos inoculación. Highlights: • The lethal effects ofisolatesofBeauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae (Ma) and Paecilomyces fumosoroceus against adult female of brevipes were evaluated both laboratory and greenhouse conditions. • All entomopathogenic fungi tested in this research kill adult females brevipes. • Isolates of bassina were the most virulent against adult females D. brevipes. • Combination of neem oil with entomopathogenic fungi are analternative management tool for this pest.

A number of marine species in the Mediterranean are threatened by the presence of several pressure factors, which include climate change, collisions with vessels, entanglement and ingestion of marine litter, especially plastic. Risk reduction policies can only be conceived starting from an accurate analysis of the exposure to such pressure factors. To estimate spatial abundance of both marine species and plastic litter and to assess the exposure risk, a two-stage analysis approach was applied, using aerial survey data from the ACCOBAMS Survey Initiative (ASI), in synergy with the Plastic Busters MPAs (PB MPAs) project. First, a detection function was fitted to observation data to obtain detection probabilities for individuals, then a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) was employed to estimate the spatial distribution of relative abundance, based on survey observations. A bivariate Local Indicator of Spatial Association (LISA) was then applied to the maps of relative abundance to derive risk maps of exposure of marine species to marine litter. The maps, obtained with a spatial resolution of about 10 km, allow us to identify areas with the highest neighboring abundance of taxa and marine litter, in particular for the MPAs studied by the PB MPAs project, which include the North-Western Mediterranean (Pelagos Sanctuary and Tuscan Archipelago), the Ionian and Aegean Sea (Zakynthos), and the Strait of Sicily (Cabrera Archipelago).

Background: Rickettsioses are diseases caused by Rickettsia bacteria, transmitted through tick or mite bites, or through contact with feces from lice or fleas. In Mexico, these diseases are a major public health concern, particularly in the tropical states where they appear to be responsible for most cases and the highest mortality rates. In the epidemiology of rickettsiosis, domiciled dogs and rodents play a significant role in maintaining of biological vectors in the vicinity of dwellings and in domestic and companion animals that people live with. It has been determined that some characteristics of households in localities with some degree of social-economic marginalization increase the risk of occurrence of Rickettsia spp. in the occupants. Objective: To present a literature review on the epidemiology of rickettsiosis, delving into studies about the characteristics of the peridomiciliary space and the most common animals that live there involved in the occurrence of rickettsiosis in localities of the Mexican tropic. Methodology: Using keywords related to the objective, a search between November 2022 and April 2023 was carried out on digital sources of information from various types of scientific references. The search results were classified according to eligibility criteria. Results: The information generated in the Mexican tropic on the epidemiology of rickettsiosis involving synanthropic and domestic animals, as well as the characteristics of the peridomiciliary space, is more extensive and numerous than in other regions of the country. Implications: The present review includes part of the epidemiological panorama of endemic rickettsiosis in the Mexican tropics, which is not necessarily attributable to other regions where environmental and socioeconomic conditions can modify the behavior of these diseases. Conclusions: It has been documented that the transmission of zoonoses such as rickettsiosis is influenced by ecological or environmental conditions and the characteristics of anthropized environments such as the peridomicile, which represent factors related to the occurrence of these diseases in the households’ occupants of localities in the Mexican tropics. Several pathogenic species of Rickettsia are found in domesticated dogs and some species of wild and synanthropic rodents, indicating their significant epidemiological role in the tropical regions of Mexico.

Gelodok fish (mudskippers) are a subfamily of amphibian fish commonly found living in mangrove ecosystems, one of which is in Tabongo Village, Dulupi District, Boalemo Regency, Gorontalo Province. It is difficult to distinguish between species of this fish because they have very similar characteristics. This study aims to (1) determine the detailed morphological characteristics that distinguish gelodok fish species; and (2) determine the molecular characteristics of gelodok fish species found in coastal mangrove ecosystem of Tomini Bay, Tabongo Village, Boalemo Regency, Gorontalo. This research was conducted from 2022 to 2023 using purposive sampling method. Morphological characteristics were performed for 39 characters. Geometric-morphometric analysis was performed using ImageJ software with 10 land marks. Amplification of COI sequences was carried out with F1R1 and F2R2 primers. Based on morphological characteristics, it is known that two species of gelodok fish are found in the area, namely Periophthalmus argentilineatus and P. malaccensis. COI sequencing results of the samples confirmed one species of gelodok fish found in the area, namely P. argentilineatus. The other species cannot be definitively identified as P. malaccensis due to the absence of COI sequences for that species in GeneBank.

Plastic and microplastic pollution is a complex, muti-faceted challenge that has engaged a broad alliance of stakeholder groups who are concerned with environmental, biotic and human health [...]

This paper aims to describe the natural infection with Dirofilaria immitis in Nasua narica (white-nosed coati) from Yucatán, Mexico. Two carcasses of N. narica were collected on a highway that crosses through a dense forest with patches used for agriculture and livestock activities. We performed necropsies, and two female adult nematode parasites from the heart of one specimen were collected and preserved for their molecular identification using a conventional PCR directed at a fragment of the small subunit (18S) ribosomal RNA (18S-rRNA) gene. Bioinformatic analysis showed a similarity of 99 % with three sequences from D. immitis (two from Japan). Additionally, we performed a phylogenetic tree with the recovered sequence. All these analyses showed that D. immitis is present in N. narica from Mexico. The transmission of D. immitis toward populations of Nasua sp. may be due to indirect and accidental contact with domestic dogs or wild canids that share the same environment.

Los registros de Leptospira spp. en murciélagos de México son escasos. Se conoce que varias especies de murciélagos son hospedadores de Leptospiras patógenas, por lo que participan en el ciclo epidemiológico y pueden generar escenarios de transmisión hacia personas y animales. El objetivo fue detectar ADN de Leptospira spp. en murciélagos capturados en cuatro sitios de la península de Yucatán, México. De los murciélagos se recolectó un fragmento de riñón que se usó para extraer ADN genómico. Por medio de PCR se detectó ADN de Leptospira spp. Se trabajaron 54 murciélagos de las especies Desmodus rotundus, Mimon cozumelae, Pteronotus mesoamericanus, Pteronotus fulvus, Nyctinomops laticaudatus, Peropteryx macrotis, Molossus nigricans, Molossus aztecus, Noctilio leporinus, Saccopteryx bilineata y Mormoops megalophylla. La PCR arrojó una frecuencia total de Leptospira spp. de 44,4 % (24/54, IC 95 % 36,2–71,7 %). Las especies con al menos un individuo positivo fueron D. rotundus, M. cozumelae, P. mesoamericanus, N. laticaudatus, P. macrotis, M. nigricans, N. leporinus, M. aztecus y S. bilineata. Se encontró una alta frecuencia de Leptospira spp. en distintas especies de murciélagos pertenecientes a varios gremios tróficos. La presencia de Leptospira spp. en murciélagos es importante para la salud pública y animal debido a que las evidencias señalan que pueden generar ciclos de transmisión zoonóticos.

Background: Adverse pregnancy outcomes occur more commonly in developing countries and are still prevalent in our sub-region. Microalbuminuria is a marker of endothelial dysfunction and has been proposed as an aetiological factor in the development of some adverse pregnancy outcomes such as pre-eclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and pre-term labour. Aim: The aim is to determine the prevalence of microalbuminuria and its association with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Methods: This was a prospective cross-sectional study with follow-up amongst women in early pregnancy presenting at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto. Three hundred and thirty women with singleton pregnancy at gestational age 0.05). Conclusion: There was a high prevalence of microalbuminuria amongst healthy pregnant women and pregnancy complications occurred more frequently in women with microalbuminuria than in those without. However, this association was not sufficient to predict adverse outcomes in pregnancy.

The hookworm Ancylostoma caninum is a common nematode of wild and domestic canids worldwide. In Mexico, there are few records of helminths in wild canids, especially in the southeastern region. The aim of the present study was to examine the helminths from a gray fox Urocyon cinereoargenteus in southeastern Mexico. A road-killed female gray fox found in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, was examined for helminths. Only nematodes were found in the intestine of the gray fox and identified using morphological studies and molecular analysis of 28S rRNA gene fragments. The characteristics exhibited by the nematode specimens were in accordance with descriptions of A. caninum: e. g. oral opening with a pair of prominent chitinous plates bearing three pairs of ventral teeth, lateral rays with a common trunk, dorsal ray divided into two branches with each branch terminating in three digitations. BLAST analysis of the 28S sequence showed similarity and coverage values of 99.8 % and 100 %, respectively, with a sequence of A. caninum from the domestic dog Canis familiaris in Australia. The genetic distance between the Australian specimen and the Yucatan specimen of A. caninum was 0.1 %, that is, they were only different in a single nucleotide. The gray fox examined in this study was found close to a rural community where A. caninum has been recorded from domestic dogs, which could be the source of infection. Our study increases the distribution of this nematode parasitizing the gray fox in Mexico and provides the first nucleotide sequence of A. caninum from the gray fox.

This study provides an assessment of the efficiency of the biofouler Lepas (Lepas) anatifera Linnaeus, 1758 in capturing microplastics and microfiber particles floating in the water column. In this context, we collected pelagic gooseneck barnacles at fixed moorings in the Capo Milazzo Marine Protected Area (MPA). Fibers and fragments were found in the digestive tract of 30% of the 120 specimens collected. The ingested debris were mainly fibers (85.9%) of synthetic (30.6%) and natural (11.7%) origin, with length ranging between 1 and 2 mm (33.3%) and transparent (47.2%). The highest concentration of fibers was recorded in barnacles collected in the western sector of the MPA that is more affected by the input of organic matter coming from several urban wastewaters. No correlation was found between the presence of artificial polymers in L. (Lepas) anatifera and the size of individuals. The great diversity of fibers and plastic fragments by typology, size, shape and color, as well as the large number of bivalve and ostracod shells found in the digestive tract of the samples, confirm the opportunistic diet of these organisms, which can indiscriminately ingest any type of prey and cannot distinguish between microplastics and food. The results obtained, as well as the wide distribution and abundance, and ease of sampling of these barnacle species in macrofouling suggest that including this species in monitoring programs could be a cost-effective and easy method for assessing the presence of microplastics and microfibers in coastal marine waters to monitor the ecological status of pelagic and coastal ecosystems, including MPAs.

Populations of killer whale (Orcinus orca) contain some of the most polluted animals on Earth. Yet, the knowledge on effects of chemical pollutants is limited in this species. Cell cultures and in vitro exposure experiments are pertinent tools to study effects of pollutants in free-ranging marine mammals. To investigate transcriptional responses to pollutants in killer whale cells, we collected skin biopsies of killer whales from the Northern Norwegian fjords and successfully established primary fibroblast cell cultures from the dermis of 4 out of 5 of them. Cells from the individual with the highest cell yield were exposed to three different concentrations of a mixture of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) that reflects the composition of the 10 most abundant POPs found in Norwegian killer whales (p,p’-DDE, trans-nonachlor, PCB52, 99, 101, 118, 138, 153, 180, 187). Transcriptional responses of 13 selected target genes were studied using digital droplet PCR, and whole transcriptome responses were investigated utilizing RNA sequencing. Among the target genes analysed, CYP1A1 was significantly downregulated in the cells exposed to medium (11.6 µM) and high (116 µM) concentrations of the pollutant mixture, while seven genes involved in endocrine functions showed a non-significant tendency to be upregulated at the highest exposure concentration. Bioinformatic analyses of RNA-seq data indicated that 13 and 43 genes were differentially expressed in the cells exposed to low and high concentrations of the mixture, respectively, in comparison to solvent control. Subsequent pathway and functional analyses of the differentially expressed genes indicated that the enriched pathways were mainly related to lipid metabolism, myogenesis and glucocorticoid receptor regulation. The current study results support previous correlative studies and provide cause-effect relationships, which is highly relevant for chemical and environmental management.

Abstract Background Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) has been developed to detect genetic disorders before pregnancy which is usually done on blastomeres biopsied from 8-cell stage embryos obtained from in vitro fertilization method (IVF). Here we report molecular PGD results for diagnosing of beta thalassemia (beta-thal) which are usually accompanied with evaluating chromosomal aneuploidies, HLA typing and sex selection. Methods In this study, haplotype analysis was performed using short tandem repeats (STRs) in a multiplex nested PCR and the causative mutation was detected by Sanger sequencing. Results We have performed PGDs on 350 blastomeres from 55 carrier couples; 142 blastomeres for beta-thal only, 75 for beta-thal and HLA typing, 76 for beta-thal in combination with sex selection, and 57 for beta-thal and aneuploidy screening. 150 blastomeres were transferable, 15 pregnancies were happened, and 11 babies born. We used 6 markers for beta-thal, 36 for aneuploidy screening, 32 for sex selection, and 35 for HLA typing. To our knowledge combining all these markers together and the number of STR markers are much more than any other studies which have ever done. Conclusions PGD is a powerful diagnostic tool for carrier couples who desire to have a healthy child and wish to avoid medical abortion.