Academic literature on the topic 'Lom vln'

Five trichodinid ectoparasites (Ciliophora: Peritrichida) were isolated from two freshwater fishes, Carassius auratus and Aristichthys nobilis collected from Chongqing, China. Trichodina subtilihamata sp. nov. is described from the gills of Carassius auratus and characterized by a slender hooked blade. The other four species of trichodinids are: Trichodina mutabilis Kazubski & Migala, 1968, Trichodina uniforma Van As & Basson, 1989, Trichodina nigra Lom, 1960 and Trichodina kazubski Van As & Basson, 1989. Comparative descriptions, with photomicrographs and morphometric data, are presented of these trichodinids to establish locality records. Descriptions presented here were obtained by examinations of specimens prepared using the dry silver nitrate impregation and the methyl green-pyronin staining. Comparisons with closely related species are provided for the new species.

Background Loa loa and Mansonella perstans–the causative agents of loiasis and mansonellosis—are vector-borne filarial parasites co-endemic in sub-Saharan Africa. Diagnosis of both infections is usually established by microscopic analysis of blood samples. It was recently established that the odds for detecting Plasmodium spp. is higher in capillary (CAP) blood than in venous (VEN) blood. In analogy to this finding this analysis evaluates potential differences in microfilaraemia of L. loa and M. perstans in samples of CAP and VEN blood. Methods Recruitment took place between 2015 and 2019 at the CERMEL in Lambaréné, Gabon and its surrounding villages. Persons of all ages presenting to diagnostic services of the research center around noon were invited to participate in the study. A thick smear of each 10 microliters of CAP and VEN blood was prepared and analysed by a minimum of two independent microscopists. Differences of log2-transformed CAP and VEN microfilaraemia were computed and expressed as percentages. Furthermore, odds ratios for paired data were computed to quantify the odds to detect microfilariae in CAP blood versus in VEN blood. Results A total of 713 participants were recruited among whom 52% were below 30 years of age, 27% between 30–59 years of age and 21% above 60 years of age. Male-female ratio was 0.84. Among 152 participants with microscopically-confirmed L. loa infection median (IQR) microfilaraemia was 3,650 (275–11,100) per milliliter blood in CAP blood and 2,775 (200–8,875) in VEN blood (p<0.0001), while among 102 participants with M. perstans this was 100 (0–200) and 100 (0–200), respectively (p = 0.44). Differences in linear models amount up to an average of +34.5% (95% CI: +11.0 to +63.0) higher L. loa microfilaria quantity in CAP blood versus VEN blood and for M. perstans it was on average higher by +24.8% (95% CI: +0.0 to +60.5). Concordantly, the odds for detection of microfilaraemia in CAP samples versus VEN samples was 1.24 (95% CI: 0.65–2.34) and 1.65 (95% CI: 1.0–2.68) for infections with L. loa and M. perstans, respectively. Conclusion This analysis indicates that average levels of microfilaraemia of L. loa are higher in CAP blood samples than in VEN blood samples. This might have implications for treatment algorithms of onchocerciasis and loiasis, in which exact quantification of L. loa microfilaraemia is of importance. Furthermore, the odds for detection of M. perstans microfilariae was higher in CAP than in VEN blood which may pre-dispose CAP blood for detection of M. perstans infection in large epidemiological studies when sampling of large blood quantities is not feasible. No solid evidence for a higher odds of L. loa microfilariae detection in CAP blood was revealed, which might be explained by generally high levels of L. loa microfilaraemia in CAP and VEN blood above the limit of detection of 100 microfilariae/ml. Yet, it cannot be excluded that the study was underpowered to detect a moderate difference.

An 80-kDa protein, prominently expressed in smooth muscle, was microsequenced and identified as LPP, the product of the lipoma-preferred partner gene (Petit MMR, Mols R, Schoenmakers EFPM, Mandahl N, and Van de Ven WJM. Genomics 36: 118–129, 1996). Using a specific anti-LPP antibody, we showed, in Western blots and with immunofluorescence microscopy, the selective expression of LPP in vascular and visceral smooth muscles (∼0.5–1 ng/μg total protein). In other mature (noncultured) tissues, including heart and skeletal muscle, the protein is present only in trace amounts and is closely correlated with the levels of the smooth muscle marker α-actin. In freshly isolated guinea pig bladder smooth muscle cells, immunofluorescence images showed LPP as linear arrays of punctate, longitudinally oriented staining superimposed with vinculin staining on the plasma membrane surface. A corresponding pattern of periodic labeling at the membrane in transverse sections of bladder smooth muscle suggested an association of LPP with peripheral dense bodies. In cultured rat aortic smooth muscle cells, LPP colocalized with vinculin at focal adhesions but not with p120 catenin or α-actinin. Overexpression of the protein increased EGF-stimulated migration of vascular smooth muscle cells in Transwell assays, suggesting the participation of LPP in cell motility. The Rho-kinase inhibitor Y-27632 dissociated focal adhesions and LPP staining at the cell periphery and enhanced the nuclear accumulation of LPP induced by leptomycin B, indicating that LPP has a potential for relocating to the nucleus through a shuttling mechanism that is sensitive to inhibition of Rho-kinase.