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Diseases caused by intestinal parasites impose a substantial burden on the population of middle-income countries, including Pakistan. This research aimed to assess the risk factors for intestinal parasites in Malakand, Pakistan, school children. Three hundred sixty stool samples were collected from school children, of which 140 (39 %) tested positive for helminth, including taenids. The wet mount preparation in saline/iodine/methods was used for stool examination. The GraphPad Prism of version 5 was used to analyze the data, and the P value was considered significant when it was less than 0.05 % (at 95 % CI). Males were more infected at 40.7 % compared to female students at 33.3 %. (P>0.005 at 95 % CI). Among the helminth Ascaris lumbricoides was the most prevalent 30.71 % (n=43), taeniid species 22.85 % (n=32), Hookworms12.14 % (n=17), Hymenolepis nana 10 % (n=14), Enterobius vermicularis 7.85 % (n=1), Hymenolupis diminuta 6.42 % (n=9), and Trichuris trichiura 5.71 % (n=8) were reported. Age-wise prevalence was noted as the students aged 11 to 13 years were highly infected at 57.4 %, followed by 8 to 10 years at 48.8 %, while the least prevalence was noted in the age 5 to 7 years at 45.5 %. (P>0.005 at 95 % CI). Regarding the association of intestinal parasitic infection and nutritional status of the students, 53.0 % had 10 to 11 inches in diameter upper arm circumference, and 49.4 % had 8 to 9 inches in upper arm circumference (P>0.05). Information on the students’ locality and intestinal parasitic infection shows that students in rural areas were more infected, 54.1 %, compared to urban areas, 41.1 % (P value is 0.023 at 95 % CI). Based on the pattern of infection, 19.44 % (n=70/360) were single, 10.5 % (n=38/360) double, 6.11 % (n=22/360), and 2.77 % (n=10/360) quadruple infections had been recorded. The symptoms were abdominal pain, constipation, nausea or vomiting, stomach pain, blotting, and Diarrhea appearing after the taeniid infection. We conclude that since deworming is insufficient to control parasitic illnesses, there is a need for widespread campaigns to raise awareness about children’s health and hygiene, as well as the necessity for the creation of efficient poverty control programs.

The northern Patagonian lakes are located in the South American Andes between 38-41° of Argentina and Chile. In their original stage, these lakes were described as ultraoligotrophic due the presence of perennial native forest that avoided the nutrients inputs from surrounding basin. The first studies described low phytoplankton abundances, but in recent studies, the presence of mixotrophic ciliates has been reported that may be a basis on trophic webs under the ultraoligotrophic status. They can graze on heterotrophic bacteria and nannoflagellates and can also do photosynthesis. Under the ultraoligotrophic status, the bacteria would have the basis on pelagial food webs because these would be grazed by zooplankton and mixotrophic ciliates. Nevertheless, when the lakes have a transition from oligotrophy to mesotrophy, although the bacterial biomass increases, they would not have an exclusive role because of a complex interaction between phytoplankton and grazer zooplankton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aquatic insect communities in inland waters of Chile are characterised by the presence of certain species depending on water quality, but there is little information on statistical ecology in the structure of insect communities. The aim of the present study was to apply null models to explain the structure of aquatic insects in the middle zone of the Loa River, in the Atacama Desert (Antofagasta Region, Chile; 23° S). The results of the null models of species co-occurrence showed that species associations are random, while niche sharing showed that species share ecological niches and consequently there is interspecific competition. The reported taxa are similar to communities for other North Patagonian rivers in terms of community structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Araucania region (38° S, Chile) originally had native perennial forest in middle valleys regions, that was gradually replaced by towns and agricultural zones during the last century, nevertheless there is some relicts of these native forests that are preserved, one of these relicts is Rucamanque, a protected area in the surrounding of Temuco town. The aim of the present study was a first aquatic Arthropoda description in a stream of this protected area using species co-occurrence and niche overlap null models. The results of species co-occurrence null model revealed that species associations are random, whereas the results of niche sharing revealed that species reported have different ecological niches, and in consequence there is not interspecific competence. The exposed results revealed the presence of aquatic fauna representative for unpolluted streams; similar descriptions were found for other similar inland water ecosystems in Argentinean and Chilean Patagonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Iheringia. Série Zoologia is the property of Fundacao Zoobotanica do Rio Grande do Sul and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The 21st century will be indelible in the world as ruin of the outbreak of COVID-19 was arose in Wuhan, China has now spread all over the world, up to August 2020. This study was based on the factors affecting the epidemiology of this virus in human societies of global concern. We studied the articles published in journals on various aspects of nCoVID19. The Wikipedia and WHO situation reports have also been searched out for related information. Outcomes were followed up until 2020. The COVID-19 is a virus with pandemic potential which may continue to cause regular infection in human. The pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 threatened public health across the globe in form of system as reflected in the shape of emergency. Approximately 21 million humans are infected and 759,400 have lost their lives till 2020 in all over the world. We have described epidemiological features, reservoirs, transmission, incubation period, rate of fatality, management including recent clinical chemotherapeutic approach and preventive measurements and masses which are at risk of COVID19. This virus causes viral pneumonia when it attacks on respiratory system and multiple failure which can leads to life threatening complications. It is believed to be zoonotic importance although it is not clear from which animal and how it is transmitted. Zoonotic transmission of COVID-19 has not yet known by science. The current study will help to establish a baseline for early effective control of this rapidly spreading severe viral illness. The available data on COVID-19 indicates that older males with comorbidities would have been more infected, which can result in severe respiratory complications. Implementation of preventive measurements, investigation of proper chemotherapeutics and detection of cross species transmission agents must be ensured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is a review of literature records on diversity, distribution and ecology of the Chilean inland water zooplankton including microcrustaceans (Copepoda, Branchiopoda), rotifera (Bdelloida and Monogononta) and ciliated protozoa. For that, several databases were consulted, and about 239 records were analysed and evaluated. The results revealed that in total about 109 water bodies have been sampled in Chile. Crustacea are well studied in the entire Chilean territory, whereas records on Rotifera and Ciliata are more restricted to the Central and Southern zones. Within Crustacea calanoid copepods of the genus Boeckella and to lower degree Cladocera (Branchiopoda) predominate. Anostraca are reported for hypersaline waterbodies and ephemeral pools, whereas Laevicaudata and Spinicaudata (Branchiopoda) are only found in shallow ephemeral pools. Regarding rotifers, 121 species were identified, whereas 46 species of ciliated protozoa were registered in lentic water bodies of the Southern zone. Ecological studies included different aspects as population dynamics, vertical migration, diapause, role of ultraviolet radiation among others. We discuss also shortcomings and future studies. Future studies should consider more in detail population dynamics, molecular topics to better assess taxonomical determinations, trophic interactions within the food webs and effects of global changes at population and community level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The southern South American inland waters have many endemic species and some of them are considered as endangered for IUCN, that inhabits in unpolluted ecosystems, one of these ecosystems are the sub-Antarctic perennial forests located in the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve at 54° S. The aim of the present study is to analyze the spatial patterns of Pisidium chilense Ituarte, 1999 (Mollusca Bivalvia) and Hyalella patagonica (Cunningham, 1871) (Crustacea, Amphipoda) in an unpolluted stream. Both species had aggregated spatial distribution, both have a negative binomial distribution pattern, and both are associated. The present results would agree with similar patterns in Patagonian rivers where both species coexist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The benthic crustaceans do not have random spatial distribution under natural conditions, this means that these species can have a determined pattern such as associated or uniform. In this work we studied a non-random spatial pattern in two freshwater malacostracan species, Aegla cholchol (Decapoda) from Cautin river, and Hyalella patagonica (Amphipoda) from Quillelhue lake (38°S, Araucania Region, Chile) respectively. The data revealed that both species have an associated pattern, and negative binomial distribution. These results agree with similar observations for other inland water benthic species from Southern Chilean rivers and streams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the past three decades, various methods have been developed to improve the classification accuracy in very high resolution (< 2 m) satellite data. This study's main goal was to evaluate and select the most suitable classification approach for detecting deadwood potentially useful for energy projects that would satisfy part of the demand for heating in the area. We compare five classification approaches using a WorldView-2 (Digital Global, Ins) standard, an orthorectified image of the Aysén region of the Chilean Patagonia. The five classifiers were evaluated and selecting the best one was carried out through a confusion matrix and Kappa coefficient. The results showed that the two non-parametric classifiers used (neural net and support vector machine) offered the best performance (98%) and the best Kappa coefficient (0.97). We conclude that it is essential to promote the development of innovative projects in native forests by local owners can contribute, to the formulation of public policies that directly benefit the Aysén region's inhabitants. [Display omitted] • Successful mapping of deadwood in a second-growth native forest • The basis for future estimation of the usable volume of biomass from deadwood • NN and SVM are the recommended methods for detecting deadwood. • Successful use of historical VHR images [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Biology is the property of Instituto Internacional de Ecologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Forest ecosystems provide services that are important for human use; one of the most critical ecosystem services is the provision and regulation of water. Basins with high forest improves hydrological functionality by promoting reduction in surface runoff, increase infiltration and aquifer recharge, and ensures base flow regulation amongst others. On the other hand, the conversion towards highly anthropized productive systems is usually accompanied by precarious environmental management that alters the hydrological cycle and reduction in water quality in basins. The goal of this study was to analyze land use changes and their effect on water efficiency index (WEI) in three sub-basins. The methodology included a multi-temporal analysis of satellite images to identify land uses, also the use of SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model for hydrological analysis in each sub-basin, information needed for calculating the WEI. The results revealed the existence of no significant difference in terms of WEI between the sub-basins with predominant tree cover of native or artificial, being higher (0.89) than the WEI values reported by the sub-basin with agricultural land use (0.65). It is concluded that hydrological functions are more efficient in basins with forest cover, made up of native or exotic species, than agricultural land use with annual crop rotations. The results contribute to decision making on public policies associated to the rural productive activities. Finally, we conclude the necessity of the promotion of forest plantation management techniques that avoid clear-cutting and multiple rotations in basin headwaters and riparian areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over recent decades, Northern Patagonia in Chile has seen significant growth in agriculture, livestock, forestry, and aquaculture, disrupting lake ecosystems and threatening native species. These environmental changes offer a chance to explore how anthropization impacts zooplankton communities from a molecular-ecological perspective. This study assessed the anthropogenic impact on Daphnia pulex by comparing its proteomes from two lakes: Llanquihue (anthropized) and Icalma (oligotrophic). Results showed substantial differences in protein expression, with 17 proteins upregulated and 181 downregulated in Llanquihue, linked to elevated levels of copper, manganese, dissolved solids, phosphate, and nitrogen. These stressors caused metabolic damage and environmental stress in D. pulex . Our findings highlight the importance of monitoring pollution's effects on Northern Patagonian ecosystems, especially on keystone species like D. pulex , essential for ecosystem stability. This research provides fresh molecular-ecological insights into pollution's impacts, a perspective rarely addressed in this region. Understanding these effects is critical for conserving natural resources and offers pathways to study adaptive mechanisms in keystone species facing pollution. This approach also informs strategies for ecosystem management and restoration, addressing both immediate and long-term challenges in Northern Patagonian aquatic environments.

Global access to clean and safe drinking water remains a formidable challenge, contributing to a myriad of health issues. This research exposes the existence of waterborne parasites in seemingly pristine spring waters, indicating potential contamination. Daily extensive sampling of Seventeen water sources was conducted in the untarnished freshwater streams of Tehsil Babuzai, District Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, from February to September 2021. Employing a stringent filtration process, the collected samples were effectively concentrated to detect any waterborne parasites. Subsequent application of the wet mount technique, combined with the capabilities of a compound microscope, revealed a disconcerting reality: all examined samples tested positive for various parasites. Identified parasites included Schistosoma species, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichiuria trichiuria, Taenia saginata, Entamoeba histolytica, Amoeba, Lacrymana olor, Tintinnids, Paramecium, Dileptus, Euglena, Loxodes striatus, Acanthocyclops lynceus, Spondylosium, Oscillatoria, Cyanobacteria, Cilindros, Cilindros cerro, Commensal amoeba mature cysts,, Filliform larva of Strongyloides, Cercaria larva, Larva of Taenia solium, Egg of Enterobius vermiculais, Egg of Isospora belli, Egg of Tapeworm, Egg of Schistosoma species, Egg of Toxocara, and Egg of Diphyllobothrium latum. These findings clearly demonstrate the presence of a diverse array of parasites in the freshwater springs of Tehsil Babuzai, Swat, Pakistan. Implementing robust water treatment protocols, conducting regular monitoring and testing, and raising awareness about the risks of waterborne parasites are crucial steps to safeguard public health in the region.