scholarly journals Metabolism and Defluorination of Fluoroacetate in the Brush-Tailed Possum (Trichosurus Vulpecula)

1979 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
RJ Mead ◽  
AJ Oliver ◽  
DR King
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Acetone Powder ◽  
Trichosurus Vulpecula ◽  
Aconitate Hydratase ◽  
Partial Protection ◽  
Hydratase Activity ◽  
Western Australian

The brush-tailed possum (T. vulpecula) from Western Australia was found to be nearly 150 times more resistant to fiuoroacetate intoxication in vivo than the same species from South Australia. Acetone powder preparations from the liver of animals from both populations showed similar abilities to convert fiuoroacetate into fiuorocitrate. Aconitate hydratase activity in liver preparations from both Western Australian and South Australian animals was similarly and competitively inhibited by fiuorocitrate. Both animals were capable of defiuorinating fiuoroacetate at similar rates by a glutathione-dependent enzymic mechanism resulting in the formation of free fiuoride ion and S-carboxymethylcysteine. Glutathione was also capable of partial protection against the toxic effects of fiuoroacetate in vitro by a further unelucidated mechanism.

scholarly journals Long-Term Progestin-Only Contraceptives Result in Reduced Endometrial Blood Flow and Oxidative Stress

2006 ◽  
Vol 91 (9) ◽  
pp. 3633-3638 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Hickey ◽  
G. Krikun ◽  
P. Kodaman ◽  
Frederick Schatz ◽  
C. Carati ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Abnormal Uterine Bleeding ◽  
Yale University ◽  
Discontinue Therapy ◽  
Endometrial Blood Flow

Abstract Context: Because of their safety and efficacy, long-term progestin-only contraceptives (LTPOCs) are well-suited for women with restricted access to health care. However, abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) causes half of all users to discontinue therapy within 12 months. Endometria of LTPOC-treated patients display aberrant angiogenesis with abnormally enlarged, thin-walled, fragile blood vessels, inflammation, and focal hemorrhage. In this study, similar effects were observed with a new third-generation implantable LTPOC. Objective: We hypothesized that LTPOC reduces uterine and endometrial blood flow, leading to hypoxia/reperfusion, which triggers the generation of reactive oxygen species. The latter induce aberrant angiogenesis, causing AUB. Design: Endometrial perfusion was measured by laser-Doppler fluxmetry in women requesting LTPOCs. Endometrial biopsies were obtained for in vivo and in vitro experiments. Setting: The study was conducted in the Yale University School of Medicine and Family-Planning Center in Western Australia. Patients: Seven women 18 yr or older requesting implantable LTPOCs were recruited in Western Australia. Intervention: Women received etonorgestrel implants. Main Outcome: LTPOC treatment resulted in reduced endometrial perfusion and increased endometrial oxidative damage. Conclusions: We propose that LTPOCs result in hypoxia reperfusion, which leads to aberrant angiogenesis resulting in AUB.

A new dieback disease of Acacia cyclops in South Africa caused by Pseudolagarobasidium acaciicola sp.nov.

2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. 750-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan R. Wood ◽  
J. Ginns
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Dieback Disease ◽  
Acacia Cyclops ◽  
Environmental Weed

Acacia cyclops A. Cunn. ex G. Don (Fabaceae, Mimosoideae), originating from Western Australia, is a serious environmental weed in South Africa. A dieback disease of A. cyclops occurring in South Africa is described, and a fungus herein named Psuedolagarobasidium acaciicola Ginns sp.nov. (Basidiomycetes, Polyporales, Hyphodermataceae) was consistently isolated from diseased roots of A. cyclops trees showing early dieback symptoms. Isolates of P. acaciicola caused 100% mortality in pathogenicity screening tests using seedlings of A. cyclops. Saplings of A. cyclops were inoculated with one isolate of P. acaciicola, and all plants were killed within 2–3 months. No control plants died. Psuedolagarobasidium acaciicola was reisolated from all inoculated plants that died. Trees growing in the field were inoculated at two sites on two occasions. Most inoculated trees died within 2 years, whereas no control plants died. Eventually P. acaciicola fruited in vitro and in vivo allowing the basidiomes and cultures to be described. This fungus has potential to be developed as a bioherbicide to aid in the control of this serious environmental weed.

Cladistics, Phenetics and Biogeography of Populations of Boronia inornata Turcz. (Rutaceae) and the Eucalyptus diptera Andrews (Myrtaceae) Species Complex in Western Australia

1985 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 419 ◽  
Author(s):  
MA Burgman
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Species Complex ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Morphometric Data ◽  
Species Overlap ◽  
Replacement Pattern ◽  
Western Australian

Numerical cladistic and phenetic analyses were undertaken on morphometric data from 22 Western Australian populations of the southern Australian shrub Boronia inornata and from the southern Western Australian tree Eucalyptus diptera and its unnamed allies. The E. diptera species complex includes four taxa, three of which are at present unnamed. These species are largely allopatric, although in one location the ranges of two species overlap. Two subspecies of Boronia inornata are described and one of them, subsp. leptophylla, contains three informal variants. Subsp. inornata and two of the variants of subsp. leptophylla are restricted to Western Australia. One variant of subsp. leptophylla is sympatric with subsp. inornata in Western Australia and also occurs in southern South Australia. The events which gave rise to the four species of the E. diptera complex and to the subspecies and variants of B. inornata occurred within the semiarid mallee zone of Western Australia, probably during the Quaternary. Speciation has occurred in a replacement pattern across the southern transitional rainfall zone, which is reflected in at least one other, unrelated taxon.

scholarly journals The Immunogenic and Immunoprotective Activities of Recombinant Chimeric T. gondii Proteins Containing AMA1 Antigen Fragments

Vaccines ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 724
Author(s):  
Justyna Gatkowska ◽  
Katarzyna Dzitko ◽  
Bartłomiej Tomasz Ferra ◽  
Lucyna Holec-Gąsior ◽  
Malwina Kawka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Chimeric Proteins ◽  
Universal Vaccine ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Partial Protection ◽  
Cellular Immune Responses ◽  
Specific Igg ◽  
Cellular Immune

Toxoplasmosis, one of the most common parasitoses worldwide, is potentially dangerous for individuals with a weakened immune system, but specific immunoprophylaxis intended for humans is still lacking. Thus, efforts have been made to create an efficient universal vaccine for both animals and humans to overcome the shortcomings of currently used treatment methods and protect all hosts against toxoplasmosis. The current work represents a relatively new approach to vaccine development based on recombinant chimeric Toxoplasma gondii antigens. In the present research, three tetravalent chimeric proteins containing different portions of the parasite’s AMA1 antigen—AMA1domainI-SAG2-GRA1-ROP1L (ANSGR), AMA1domainsII,III-SAG2-GRA1-ROP1L (ACSGR) and AMA1fullprotein-SAG2-GRA1-ROP1L (AFSGR)—were tested for their immunogenic and immunoprotective capacities. All tested proteins were immunogenic, as evidenced by the triggering of specific humoral and cellular immune responses in vaccinated C3H/HeOuJ mice, defined by the production of specific IgG (IgG1/IgG2a) antibodies in vivo and synthesis of key Th1/Th2 cytokines by Toxoplasma lysate antigen-stimulated splenocytes in vitro. Although all tested preparations provided partial protection against chronic toxoplasmosis in immunized and T. gondii-challenged mice, the intensity of the generated immunoprotection depended on the fragment of the AMA1 antigen incorporated into the chimeric antigen’s structure.

A General Account of the Intertidal Ecology of South Australian Coasts

1958 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 217 ◽  
Author(s):  
HBS Womersly ◽  
SJ Edmonds
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Littoral Zone ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Transitional Region ◽  
The South ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Marine Angiosperms ◽  
Rocky Coast ◽  
Warm Temperate ◽  
Western Australian

An account is given of the environmental features. the intertidal ecology. and the biogeographical relationships of the coast of the State of South Australia . The central and western coasts of South Australia are similar ecologically in comparable areas . In the supralittoral Melaraphe unifasciata (Gray) is dominant (except where conditions are very calm) and at high levels on very exposed coasts Calothrix fasciculata C. Agardh is found. The littoral zone where the coast is most exposed consists of barnacles-Chamaesipho in the upper littoral, Catophragmus in the mid littoral, and Balanus in the lower littoral-but where the coast is more sheltered it consists of molluscs in the upper and mid littoral and algae (Corallina, Gelidium, or Hormosira) in the lower littoral. In the upper sublittoral fucoid algae or in calm regions marine angiosperms are dominant. The south-east coast, however, differs in some respects from the central and west coasts. The number of barnacles found in the littoral zone is much reduced and the giant brown algae, Durvillea potatorum Areschoug and Macrocystis angustifolia Bory, are dominant in the upper sublittoral. This is associated with slightly lower sea temperatures. Sheltered coasts are more prominent in South Australia than in the eastern States of Australia. These include the shores of Spencer and St. Vincent Gulfs, the northern shores of Kangaroo I., and a number of scattered bays. The similarities between the coasts of South Australia and Victoria (Bennett and Pope 1953) are greater than the differences. Consequently the proposal of Bennett and Pope to recognize the Victorian and Tasmanian coasts as the Maugean Biogeographical Provinoe and the South Australian and the south-west Western Australian coasts as the Flindersian Province appears to be unjustified. It is suggested that the Naugean is best regarded as a subprovince with the Flindersian. The latter includes most of the coast of southern Australia. Considerable differences are noticeable between the organisms which inhabit the rocky coast of South Australia and the south coast of Western Australia. The available evidence indicates that a transition from the Flindersian to the tropical Dampierian Province occurs along the south and west coasts of Western Australia. The terms "Indo-Australian Province" and "Baudinian Province" have been proposed by previous authors to describe this transitional region. The Flindersian Province appears to be intermediate between cold-temperate and warm-temperate regions, becoming distinctly cool-temperate in Tasmania. It is relatively distinct from the warm-temperate Peronian Province of the coast of New South Wales.

The distribution and biology of the genus Coptotermes (Isoptera) in Western Australia.

1956 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
JH Calaby ◽  
FJ Gay
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Northern Territory ◽  
Biological Data ◽  
The State ◽  
Fourth Species ◽  
First Time ◽  
Western Australian ◽  
Wide Zone

Knowledge of the distribution and biology in Western Australia of species of Coptotermes has been very incomplete and in some respects erroneous, due partly to a lack of collecting and partly to the fact that the genus is notoriously difficult taxonomically. This genus, which includes the most destructive Australian termites, is represented in the State by four species and one subspecies. The form raffrayi previously thought to be a good species occurring sympatrically with acinaciformis is shown to be a subspecies of the latter form intergrading with it through a wide zone of intermediate forms and replacing it geographically in the wetter south-western corner of the State. C. michaelseni is restricted to south-western Australia and previous records from South Australia, Victoria, and Queensland are shown or considered to be misidentifications of C. frenchi. C. frenchi is definitely recorded from Western Australia for the first time. The separation of these two species by microscopical measurements is discussed. The fourth species is the recently discovered and described C. brunneus. The known Western Australian distributions of all species except C. brunneus are given. New biological data for all species are recorded, particularly on tree species attacked, dispersal of alates, and construction of mounds. C. acinaciformis builds symmetrical domed mounds in parts of southern Western Australia. Mound nests had not previously been recorded in 'the State and they differ considerably in construction from those recorded from the Northern Territory and north Queensland. C. frenchi is here definitely recorded as a mound builder. The mound-building habit erroneously attributed in the literature to C. michaelseni is shown to be due to the confusion of this species with frenchi. Photographs of mounds of C. acinaciformis raffrayi, C. frenchi, and C. brunneus are published for the first time.

The life history of Trichosurus vulpecula hypoleucus (Phalangeridae) in the jarrah forest of south-western Australia

2005 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 265 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Wayne ◽  
C. G. Ward ◽  
J. F. Rooney ◽  
C. V. Vellios ◽  
D. B. Lindenmayer
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
The Body ◽  
Summer Drought ◽  
Testis Size ◽  
Trichosurus Vulpecula ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Eucalyptus Marginata ◽  
Adult Females ◽  
Western Australian

The common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) is noted for its morphological, biological and ecological variability across its range. Despite having suffered substantial population declines since European settlement, relatively little has been published on the south-western Australian subspecies, the koomal (T. v. hypoleucus). This study reports morphological, reproductive and general life-history data from an 18-month study of a population in the southern jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest at Chariup (part of Perup), near Manjimup, in south-western Australia. As one of the smallest subspecies, adult males of T. v. hypoleucus averaged 1616 g and females averaged 1470 g. Sexual dimorphism also occurred with head length and pes length, but not tail length. A single autumn breeding season occurred in both 2002 and 2003, in which all adult females bred and produced a single young between February and May. The onset of autumn births was associated with the end of the summer drought. Unlike many other Trichosurus populations, no spring breeding pulse or ‘double-breeding’ events were observed. At least 83% of pouch young survived to pouch emergence. The growth rate of offspring was initially linear, but became curvilinear and approached an asymptote after ~5 months. Most females bred for the first time when they were 1 year old. On the basis of testis size, males also matured at 1 year old. The body condition of adult males, but not adult females, changed significantly over time and followed an apparently seasonal pattern in which their condition was poorest in winter and best in summer. While many of the life-history traits of the Chariup population were similar to those of other south-western Australian populations of T. v. hypoleucus, the most striking variations included age at maturity, extent of spring breeding pulse and female fecundity. Further comparisons with conspecifics elsewhere in Australia and New Zealand also highlight the variability exhibited by T. vulpecula across its range. Some aspects of the biology of T. v. hypoleucus were particularly similar to those observed for T. v. arnhemensis in northern Australia.

scholarly journals In Vivo-Selected Compensatory Mutations Restore the Fitness Cost of MosaicpenAAlleles That Confer Ceftriaxone Resistance inNeisseria gonorrhoeae

mBio ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah R. Vincent ◽  
Samuel R. Kerr ◽  
Yang Tan ◽  
Joshua Tomberg ◽  
Erica L. Raterman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neisseria Gonorrhoeae ◽  
Parent Strain ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Aconitate Hydratase ◽  
Growth Profile ◽  
Compensatory Mutations ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTResistance to ceftriaxone inNeisseria gonorrhoeaeis mainly conferred by mosaicpenAalleles that encode penicillin-binding protein 2 (PBP2) variants with markedly lower rates of acylation by ceftriaxone. To assess the impact of these mosaicpenAalleles on gonococcal fitness, we introduced the mosaicpenAalleles from two ceftriaxone-resistant (Cror) clinical isolates (H041 and F89) into a Crosstrain (FA19) by allelic exchange and showed that the resultant Crormutants were significantly outcompeted by the Crosparent strainin vitroand in a murine infection model. Four Crorcompensatory mutants of FA19penA41were isolated independently from mice that outcompeted the parent strain bothin vitroandin vivo. One of these compensatory mutants (LV41C) displayed a unique growth profile, with rapid log growth followed by a sharp plateau/gradual decline at stationary phase. Genome sequencing of LV41C revealed a mutation (G348D) in theacnBgene encoding the bifunctional aconitate hydratase 2/2 methylisocitrate dehydratase. Introduction of theacnBG348Dallele into FA19penA41conferred both a growth profile that phenocopied that of LV41C and a fitness advantage, although not as strongly as that exhibited by the original compensatory mutant, suggesting the existence of additional compensatory mutations. The mutant aconitase appears to be a functional knockout with lower activity and expression than wild-type aconitase. Transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis of FA19penA41 acnBG348Drevealed a large set of upregulated genes involved in carbon and energy metabolism. We conclude that compensatory mutations can be selected in Crorgonococcal strains that increase metabolism to ameliorate their fitness deficit.IMPORTANCEThe emergence of ceftriaxone-resistant (Cror)Neisseria gonorrhoeaehas led to the looming threat of untreatable gonorrhea. Whether Cro resistance is likely to spread can be predicted from studies that compare the relative fitnesses of susceptible and resistant strains that differ only in thepenAgene that confers Cro resistance. We showed that mosaicpenAalleles found in Crorclinical isolates are outcompeted by the Crosparent strainin vitroandin vivobut that compensatory mutations that allow ceftriaxone resistance to be maintained by increasing bacterial fitness are selected during mouse infection. One compensatory mutant that was studied in more detail had a mutation inacnB, which encodes the aconitase that functions in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. This study illustrates that compensatory mutations can be selected during infection, which we hypothesize may allow the spread of Cro resistance in nature. This study also provides novel insights into gonococcal metabolism and physiology.

Reproductive Periodicity in a Population of Crested Terns, Sterna bergii Lichtenstein in South Australia

1985 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
JN Dunlop
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Seabird Species ◽  
Sedentary Population ◽  
Breeding Cycles ◽  
Breeding Condition ◽  
Australian Coastline ◽  
Reproductive Cycles ◽  
Western Australian

Crested terns breeding in the Fremantle area of south-western Australia nest over an 8-month period, from early April to early November. However, laying is markedly bimodal, with subseasons in autumn and spring. Observations of individually marked breeding crested terns indicated a sedentary population utilizing a number of alternative, traditional colony sites all of which were within the study area. Individual crested terns tended to lay in the same part of the season as in the previous year. Colonies made up of terns with similarly phased reproductive cycles formed at different times within the protracted laying period. Individuals completed only one nesting cycle within a season, remaining in breeding condition for approximately 11-13 weeks. Breeding cycles were broadly circannual but potentially sub-annual. Despite superficial similarities at the populational level, this laying pattern differs markedly from that recorded for the silver gull in the same area. The pattern of breeding shown by crested terns therefore provides a second model to explain the double-nesting phenomenon observed in a number of seabird species on the western Australian coastline.

Studies in Australian Amphibia. 1. The genus Crinia Tschudi in South-western Australia and some species from south-eastern Australia.

1957 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 30 ◽  
Author(s):  
AR Main
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Undescribed Species ◽  
Life History Data ◽  
South West ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Western Australian ◽  
A New Species

The Western Australian representatives of the genus Crinia Tschudi are reviewed. On the basis of field observations and data from in vitro crosses it is concluded that the following species occur in south-western Australia: Crinia rosea Harrison, C. leai Fletcher, C. georgiana Tschudi, C. glauerti Loveridge, C. insignifera Moore, and a new species. From in vitro crosses, Moore's (1954) conclusion that C. signifera Girard does not occur in the south-west of Australia is confirmed. C. glauerti is regarded as a western representative of the C. signifera super-species. Collections in eastern Australia revealed the presence of an undescribed species which is a representative of the C. insignifera super-species. Life history data are presented.

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