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Interviews with local people have been widely used by biologists as a cost-effective approach to studying certain topics in wildlife ecology and conservation. However, doubts still exist about the validity and quality of the information gathered, especially in studies targeting cryptic or elusive species, such as carnivores. We assessed the reliability of interviews (n = 155) in detecting the presence of three species of carnivores with different characteristics, by comparing interview results with data obtained through camera trapping surveys at 52 sites in central Argentina. The degree of concordance between methods was low for Geoffroy's cat Leopardus geoffroyi and especially for the puma Puma concolor. However, Geoffroy's cats were detected more frequently by camera traps than interviews, whereas the opposite was true for pumas. For the pampas fox Pseudalopex gymnocercus, a less elusive species, we observed a high degree of concordance and a similar probability of occurrence between methods. Our results indicate that data obtained by interviewing local inhabitants should be used with caution because the information about species presence provided by local people may be inaccurate and biased. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

For some years now our research group deals with self-building, which is a subject that is particularly topical today. Its benefits are now known to everybody: the economy of expenditure, the response to the specific needs of users but also ethical reasons concerning ecology, respect for nature and the attention to the recycling and reuse of materials. Working in this field we have been able to establish what the most common limits of the process are: the inadequacy of the legislation (especially in Italy) of the rules and regulations; the unpreparedness of the productive sector; the guarantee of acceptable levels of quality of what is built (training for auto-builders, process control, and security). Just this last point is dealt with in this study. It aims to identify what the most effective information systems are for the self-builders in order to assure the quality of the product (the building) and the process. The current means of spreading turned to self-builder often give only general information. This work aims to offer an analysis and evaluation of the effectiveness of different forms of communication in this sector (training courses, videos, textual printouts, graphic printouts, etc..) through which an easy, immediate and complete understanding of the setting of the project and the way in which it must be realized (use of materials, application techniques, phases of the work) can be guaranteed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report new occurrence records of Puma yagouaroundi (É. Geoffroy, 1803), a widely distributed but little known Neotropical carnivore, obtained over the last 10 years in Buenos Aires province, central Argentina. The records were collected by camera trapping surveys (n = 384 stations) and 195 interviews with local inhabitants. Our results improve our understanding of this species' geographic range, especially its southernmost limit, and abundance, and confirm the need for more detailed studies to better assess the conservation status of this species in central Argentina and other parts of its range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Muscle development and diversity require a large number of spatially and temporally regulated events controlled by transcription factors (TFs). Drosophila has long stood as a model to study myogenesis due to the highly conserved key TFs involved at all stages of muscle development. While many studies focused on the diversification of Drosophila larval musculature, how distinct adult muscle types are generated is much less characterized. Here, we identify an essential regulator of Drosophila thoracic flight muscle development, the Hox TF Antennapedia (Antp). Correcting a long-standing belief that flight muscle development occurs without the input of Hox TFs, we show that Antp intervenes at several stages of flight muscle development, from the establishment of the progenitor pool in the embryo to myoblast differentiation in the early pupa. Furthermore, the precisely regulated clearance of Hox in the developing flight muscle fibers is required to allow for fibrillar muscle fate diversification, setting these muscles apart from all other adult tubular muscle types.

Acute renal failure (AKI) is a high-prevalence complication in patients with cancer. The risk of AKI after cancer diagnosis is 18% in the first year, 27% in the fifth year, and 40% of critically ill patients with cancer require renal replacement therapy. The causes of AKI may be pre-renal due to hemodynamic problems, related to the cancer, metabolic complications, and drug or surgical treatment. One must preventively protect renal function by hydration, use of non-nephrotoxic drugs, correction of anemia, prevention of contrast agent-induced AKI (CI-AKI), and adjustment of cancer therapy in patients with CKD. It is essential to check basal renal function, creatinine trend, electrolytes, urinalysis and proteinuria, perform imaging, renal biopsy if necessary. The evaluation of patients should be multidisciplinary and timely including the initiation of renal replacement treatment (RRT). There are different modalities of replacement treatment depending on the clinical picture of the patient with AKI and cancer: intermittent hemodialysis (IHD), intermittent prolonged replacement therapy (PIRRT), and continuous replacement therapy (CRRT). The concept of dose administered, as opposed to prescribed dose, as well as the anticoagulation of extracorporeal circuits, which must be regional with citrate (RCA) as the first choice in the management of CRRT, turns out to be fundamental in order to achieve optimal circuit anticoagulation, with reduction of coagulation episodes and downtime, while maintaining the patient's coagulation status. The onco-nephrologic multidisciplinary approach is crucial to reduce the mortality rate, which is still high in this category of patients., (Copyright by Società Italiana di Nefrologia SIN, Rome, Italy.)

From a previous large epidemiological survey, we randomly selected 474 serum samples (463 horses and 11 mules) distributed among four municipalities of Pará state, Amazon region, Brazil, and from three types: farm animal, urban carthorse, and sport horse. Samples were tested by indirect fluorescence antibody test (IFAT ≥ 64) for antibodies reactive to spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsiae using Rickettsia rickettsii as crude antigens. From the 474 equids tested, 149 (31.4%) had ticks attached during sampling, belonging mostly to the species Dermacentor nitens. The overall seroprevalence for SFG rickettsiae was 31.4% (95% confidence interval: 27.3-35.9%) with 149 seropositive animals out of 474 screened. Notably, 77 equids (16.2%) had high endpoint titers ranging from 512 to 16,384, indicating that they had been exposed to SFG rickettsiae not long before sampling. Animal type affected rickettsial seroprevalence, with significantly higher values among farm horses when compared with urban and sport animals. Presence of dogs and tick infestation were negatively associated with equid seropositivity to R. rickettsii. This is the first report of SFG rickettsiae-reactive antibodies in equids from Pará state, Brazilian Amazon., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

There is limited information on the resistance to acaricidal drugs of the cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus in the Lower Amazon region. Thus, we aimed to determine the efficiency of three widely used acaricide products (Amitraz, Cypermethrin, and Deltamethrin) in the control of this tick species. The adult immersion test was used on engorged female ticks sampled on farms in the Lower Amazon region, Brazil. For the test, homogeneous batches of 10 engorged females were placed in Petri dishes and immersed in the tested acaricidal drugs, using four replicates of each acaricide and three replicates as a negative control, immersed in distilled water. The acaricides were diluted as recommended by the manufacturers, and the ticks were submerged for five minutes. Mortality of engorged females, production of eggs, and percentage of larval hatching were evaluated. Tick mortality was 2.5%, 7.5%, and 0% for Amitraz, Cypermethrin, and Deltamethrin, respectively. The percentage of larval hatching was 53.7% for Amitraz, 88.7% for Cypermethrin, and 80.0% for Deltamethrin. As recommended by the FAO, for the acaricide to be considered effective, it must have a control rate ≥95%. Among the tested acaricides, Amitraz showed an efficacy of 90.5%, Cypermethrin 10.4%, and Deltamethrin 26.6%. Ticks from the lower Amazon showed marked resistance to Cypermethrin and Deltamethrin and mild resistance to Amitraz. This is the first report of acaricidal resistance in the region.

This study aimed to evaluate follicular dynamics and pregnancy rates in Nellore heifers submitted to fixed-time artificial insemination (FTAI) protocols associated with equine chorionic gonadotrophin (eCG) or follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). Nellore heifers (n = 259) were used, divided into two studies. Experiment I evaluated the ovarian follicular dynamics in 64 Nellore heifers submitted to different FTAI protocols (n = 32/group) using either FSH or eCG. In Experiment II, the pregnancy rate was evaluated in 195 heifers submitted to FTAI protocols and divided into two groups: FSH (n = 97) and eCG (n = 98). In Experiment I, the ultrasound examination showed that the maximum diameter of the dominant and preovulatory follicles and the ovulation time were similar between the FSH and eCG groups (p > 0.05). However, the ovulation rate was higher in the eCG group when compared to FSH (p = 0.014). In Experiment II, females that received eCG presented a higher pregnancy rate (58.1%) when compared to FSH (40.2%) (p = 0.012). The use of eCG in the FTAI protocol in Nellore heifers promoted a higher ovulation rate and increased pregnancy rate and may be the most suitable alternative to increase conception rates in animals that are raised in an extensive system under tropical conditions in the Amazon.

Objective: This study explored the pathways to employment, education, and/or disability among young adults with First-Episode Psychosis (FEP) with the intent to reduce poverty and disability among this population., Method: Using a critical case design, 10 young adults (ages 21-28) completed two qualitative interviews exploring the key moments that influenced their pathway toward employment and education or disability after experiencing a first-episode of psychosis. Participants had lived experience of an FEP, had completed a Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC) program, and were members of the Early Assessment and Support Alliance's Young Adult Leadership Council (YALC). Qualitative analysis was completed using a four-step template approach and focus group., Results: Early stigmatizing behavior by hospital staff and the diagnostic label of psychosis challenged participants' self-identity and self-confidence which led to a pause in vocational activities. Meeting peers (i.e., other individuals who had experienced a first-episode of psychosis) through their CSC program normalized their psychosis diagnosis and alleviated feelings of self-stigma; this was integral in returning to and initiating new employment and education goals. YALC involvement provided opportunities for practicing work skills, such as public speaking, and additional peer support that further eradicated self-stigma and improved connection to employment., Conclusions and Implications for Practice: Implications for CSC models include broad consideration of the ways that early psychiatric labeling can construct self-stigma, and how this phenomenon stunts the self-confidence needed to pursue employment and education goals. Specific recommendations include utilizing peer connections, peer spaces, and peer-delivered anti-stigma interventions to enhance employment and education pathways. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The MAPK/ERK pathway regulates a variety of physiological cellular functions, including cell proliferation and survival. It is abnormally activated in many types of human cancers in response to driver mutations in regulators of this pathway that trigger tumor initiation. The early steps of oncogenic progression downstream of ERK overactivation are poorly understood due to a lack of appropriate models. We show here that ERK1/2 overactivation in the trunk neural tube of the chicken embryo through expression of a constitutively active form of the upstream kinase MEK1 (MEK1ca), rapidly provokes a profound change in the transcriptional signature of developing spinal cord cells. These changes are concordant with a previously established role of the tyrosine kinase receptor ligand FGF8 acting via the ERK1/2 effectors to maintain an undifferentiated state. Furthermore, we show that MEK1ca-transfected spinal cord cells lose neuronal identity, retain caudal markers, and ectopically express potential effector oncogenes, such as AQP1. MEK1ca expression in the developing spinal cord from the chicken embryo is thus a tractable in vivo model to identify the mechanisms fostering neoplasia and malignancy in ERK-induced tumorigenesis of neural origins., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no competing or financial interests., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

HOX transcription factors are members of an evolutionarily conserved family of proteins required for the establishment of the anteroposterior body axis during bilaterian development. Although they are often deregulated in cancers, the molecular mechanisms by which they act as oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes are only partially understood. Since the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway is deregulated in most cancers, we aimed at apprehending if and how the Hox proteins interact with ERK oncogenicity. Using an in vivo neoplasia model in the chicken embryo consisting in the overactivation of the ERK1/2 kinases in the trunk neural tube, we analyzed the consequences of the HOXB8 gain of function at the morphological and transcriptional levels. We found that HOXB8 acts as a tumor suppressor, counteracting ERK-induced neoplasia. The HOXB8 tumor suppressor function relies on a large reversion of the oncogenic transcriptome induced by ERK. In addition to showing that the HOXB8 protein controls the transcriptional responsiveness to ERK oncogenic signaling, our study identified new downstream targets of ERK oncogenic activation in an in vivo context that could provide clues for therapeutic strategies.