scholarly journals Evaluation of bat adenoviruses suggests co-evolution and host roosting behaviour as drivers for diversity

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nkom F. Ntumvi ◽  
Joseph Le Doux Diffo ◽  
Ubald Tamoufe ◽  
Valantine Ngum Ndze ◽  
Jean-Michel Takuo ◽  
...  

Adenoviruses (AdVs) are diverse pathogens of humans and animals, with several dozen bat AdVs already identified. Considering that over 100 human AdVs are known, and the huge diversity of bat species, many bat AdVs likely remain undiscovered. To learn more about AdV prevalence, diversity and evolution, we sampled and tested bats in Cameroon using several PCR assays for viral and host DNA. AdV DNA was detected in 14 % of the 671 sampled animals belonging to 37 different bat species. There was a correlation between species roosting in larger groups and AdV DNA detection. The detected AdV DNA belonged to between 28 and 44 different, mostly previously unknown, mastadenovirus species. The novel isolates are phylogenetically diverse and while some cluster with known viruses, others appear to form divergent new clusters. The phylogenetic tree of novel and previously known bat AdVs does not mirror that of the various host species, but does contain structures consistent with a degree of virus–host co-evolution. Given that closely related isolates were found in different host species, it seems likely that at least some bat AdVs have jumped species barriers, probably in the more recent past; however, the tree is also consistent with such events having taken place throughout bat AdV evolution. AdV diversity was highest in bat species roosting in large groups. The study significantly increased the diversity of AdVs known to be harboured by bats, and suggests that host behaviours, such as roosting size, may be what limits some AdVs to one species rather than an inability of AdVs to infect other related hosts.

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (27) ◽  
pp. eabb9153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojun Li ◽  
Elena E. Giorgi ◽  
Manukumar Honnayakanahalli Marichannegowda ◽  
Brian Foley ◽  
Chuan Xiao ◽  
...  

COVID-19 has become a global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Understanding the origins of SARS-CoV-2 is critical for deterring future zoonosis, discovering new drugs, and developing a vaccine. We show evidence of strong purifying selection around the receptor binding motif (RBM) in the spike and other genes among bat, pangolin, and human coronaviruses, suggesting similar evolutionary constraints in different host species. We also demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2’s entire RBM was introduced through recombination with coronaviruses from pangolins, possibly a critical step in the evolution of SARS-CoV-2’s ability to infect humans. Similar purifying selection in different host species, together with frequent recombination among coronaviruses, suggests a common evolutionary mechanism that could lead to new emerging human coronaviruses.


Author(s):  
P.H. Simmins ◽  
S. Malkin

Inadequate feeding space allowance could limit the performance of the early-weaned pig. No information is available on the amount of space required as group size increases; this is now more typical for some of the novel welfare systems. It has been suggested that the early-weaned pigs tend to feed together for an initial period. Indications exist that, if inadequate feeding space is provided post-weaning, a proportion of piglets may suffer.The objective of the experiment was to investigate the effect of restricting access to feed on the performance of the early-weaned pig housed in large groups in a novel sloping bed weaner pen.


Metals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 1225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Johanes ◽  
Sravya Tekumalla ◽  
Manoj Gupta

Magnesium nanocomposites, with nano-scale ceramic reinforcements, have attracted a great deal of attention for several engineering and biomedical applications in the recent past. In this work, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles, Fe3O4, with their unique magnetic properties and the ability of being bio-compatible and non-toxic, are reinforced to magnesium to form Mg/(1, 2, and 3 wt %) Fe3O4 nanocomposites. These nanocomposites were fabricated using the conventional disintegrated melt deposition (DMD) technique followed by extrusion. Further, the materials were also processed using the novel turning-induced-deformation technique where the chips from turning process are collected, cold compacted, and hot extruded. The materials processed via the two techniques were compared in terms of microstructure and properties. Overall, the Mg/Fe3O4 nanocomposites, processed via both routes, exhibited a superior property profile. Further, the turning-induced deformation method showed promising results in terms of improved properties of the nanocomposites and serves as a great route for the recycling of metallic materials.


Author(s):  
Nicole Nova

Coronaviruses cause respiratory and digestive diseases in vertebrates. The recent pandemic, caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, is taking a heavy toll on society and planetary health, and illustrates the threat emerging coronaviruses can pose to the wellbeing of humans and other animals. Coronaviruses are constantly evolving, crossing host species barriers, and expanding their host range. In the last few decades, several novel coronaviruses have emerged in humans and domestic animals. Novel coronaviruses have also been discovered in captive wildlife or wild populations, raising conservation concerns. The evolution and emergence of novel viruses is enabled by frequent cross-species transmission. It is thus crucial to determine emerging coronaviruses’ potential for infecting different host species, and to identify the circumstances under which cross-species transmission occurs in order to mitigate the rate of disease emergence. Here, I review (broadly across several mammalian host species) up-to-date knowledge of host range and circumstances concerning reported cross-species transmission events of emerging coronaviruses in humans and common domestic mammals. All of these coronaviruses had similar host ranges, were closely related (indicative of rapid diversification and spread), and their emergence was likely associated with high-host-density environments facilitating multi-species interactions (e.g., shelters, farms, and markets) and the health or wellbeing of animals as end- and/or intermediate spillover hosts. Further research is needed to identify mechanisms of the cross-species transmission events that have ultimately led to a surge of emerging coronaviruses in multiple species in a relatively short period of time in a world undergoing rapid environmental change.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
Yohanes Eko Rubiyanto ◽  
Restu Arini

The writer conducts the research related to class conflict which is presented in Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner” novel. This qualitative research is written to analyze the conflicts that happen in Afghan society which is mainly caused by difference of social class. The research is conducted by using library research. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative method as the data are described in the form of sentences. The steps of collecting the data in this research are reading both the novel and the supporting theories related, analyzing, organizing and displaying the data to allow conclusions to be drawn. The results show that the society in the twentieth is fundamentally separated by two large groups namely Pashtun and Hazara. They are inhabit Afghanistan as told in The Kite Runner. The Pashtuns act as the dominant upper class and the Hazaras fill the society of the lower class which fits the theory of Marxism.


2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 529-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilka Engelmann ◽  
Enagnon Kazali Alidjinou ◽  
Mouna Lazrek ◽  
Jean-Marie Pouillaude ◽  
Judith Ogiez ◽  
...  

Literator ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Nyambi

Some contemporary Zimbabwean literature demonstrates a discernible resistance thread. These literary works create fictional life-worlds in which the ambivalence of colonial land and economic injustices are exposed as potentially mutating and threatening the independent nation. In this way, such works validate ‘nationalist’ corrective measures through inserting a narrative that implicitly refers back to past colonial imbalances. In the choreographed discourses of national sovereignty that characterise the Third Chimurenga – epitomised by Mugabe’s book Inside the Third Chimurenga – there are perceived dangers from infiltrating forces which pose a threat to the nation’s sovereignty. Britain’s refusal to fund land reform in Zimbabwe is viewed as an implicit declaration of that country’s intention to derail the Zimbabwean people’s movement towards total independence and the ‘fast track land reform’ of the Third Chimurenga. The anti-Britain campaign is inextricably linked to the land question. The cultural sphere (especially its literary, theatrical and musical dimensions) in Zimbabwe’s recent past has been faced with the political urgency of (re)defining the land question. Literary texts such as Nyaradzo Mtizira’s novel The Chimurenga Protocol, theatre performances such as Christopher Mlalazi’s ‘Election Day’ and musical compositions by the war veteran singer Dickson Chingaira are some of the artistic productions that reveal conflicting perspectives on the land and its significance in the people’s search for selfdetermination and national identity. Using the example of Nyaradzo Mtizira’s novel The Chimurenga Protocol, this article argues that whilst many Zimbabwean writers published in the post-2000 period have attempted to imagine ‘alternative’ national identities, the text’s anti-West thematic and aesthetic texture resonates with the state’s post-2000 ideological grand narratives of the nation and can therefore be read as the newest form of resistance literature in Zimbabwe’s postcolonial literary oeuvre.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Heneghan ◽  
Immo A. Hansen ◽  
William J. Boecklen ◽  
Avis C. James

Wolbachia is a genus of intracellular alpha-Proteobacteria that is maternally inherited and is capable of inducing a variety of reproductive alterations in host species. The host range of Wolbachia is not determined completely but is known to contain a number of arthropod taxa, including crustaceans. Wolbachia has not been reported in crayfish, but sampling has been limited to date. We examine a species of crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, for Wolbachia infection using a suite of Wolbachia-specific primers in PCR assays. All specimens yielded negative results for Wolbachia infection and mathematical analysis of sample size shows a near 100% probability of detection for populations with greater than 0.1% infection rate.


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