Biochemical screening for chromosomal disorders and neural tube defects (NTD): is adjustment of maternal alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) still appropriate in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM)?

Maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) has been reported to be decreased in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). The objective of the present study was to reinvestigate this finding in detail. Maternal serum levels of AFP, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), and unconjugated estriol (uE3) in 114 diabetic women, of whom 84 had IDDM, were compared to those of 19,251 control pregnancies in the second trimester (15th to 20th gestational weeks). The mean body weight at the date of sampling was 73.7 kg in all diabetic women, 72.7 kg in women with IDDM and 68.3 kg in non-diabetic women, respectively. Body weights were significantly (p<0.001) elevated in all diabetic pregnancies. Using weight-adjusted MoM (multiple of the median) values no statistical difference of serum levels in diabetic and non-diabetic pregnant women was found. Median MoM levels were 1.01 (hCG), 1.01 (uE3), 1.06 (AFP) in all diabetic women, and 0.95 (hCG), 0.96 (uE3), 0.96 (AFP) in women with IDDM, respectively. Ignoring adjustment for maternal weight leads to a reduction of all serum parameters in diabetic pregnancies. However, median MoM values of all three analytes are not statistically different when compared to non-diabetic pregnancies. This finding is contrary to the results of former studies from the 1970s and 1980s. It is concluded that progress in insulin adjustment and blood glucose surveillance of diabetic patients on the whole has balanced out serum levels. Therefore adjustment of serum AFP values for diabetic status no longer seems reasonable. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Communally breeding bats use physiological and behavioural adjustments to optimise daily energy expenditure

Small endotherms must change roosting and thermoregulatory behaviour in response to changes in ambient conditions if they are to achieve positive energy balance. In social species, for example many bats, energy expenditure is influenced by environmental conditions, such as ambient temperature, and also by social thermoregulation. Direct measurements of daily fluctuations in metabolic rates in response to ambient and behavioural variables in the field have not been technologically feasible until recently. During different reproductive periods, we investigated the relationships between ambient temperature, group size and energy expenditure in wild maternity colonies of Bechstein’s bats (Myotis bechsteinii). Bats used behavioural and physiological adjustments to regulate energy expenditure. Whether bats maintained normothermia or used torpor, the number of bats in the roosts as well changed with reproductive status and ambient temperature. During pregnancy and lactation, bats remained mostly normothermic and daily group sizes were relatively large, presumably to participate in the energetic benefits of social thermoregulation. In contrast, smaller groups were formed on days when bats used torpor, which occurred mostly during the post-lactation period. Thus, we were able to demonstrate on wild animals under natural conditions the significance of behavioural and physiological flexibility for optimal thermoregulatory behaviour in small endotherms.     

Uptake and transformation of arsenic during the reproductive life stage of Agaricus bisporus and Agaricus campestris

Fruiting bodies from the Agaricus genus have been found to contain non-toxic arsenobetaine (AB) as a major compound. It is unknown whether AB is formed during the vegetative or reproductive life stages of the fungus, or by the surrounding microbial community, but AB''s structural similarity to glycine betaine has led to the hypothesis that AB may be adventitiously accumulated as an osmolyte. To investigate the potential formation of AB during the reproductive life stage of Agaricus species, growth substrate and fungi were collected during the commercial growth of Agaricus bisporus and analyzed for arsenic speciation using HPLC-ICP-MS. AB was found to be the major arsenic compound in the fungus at the earliest growth stage of fruiting (the primordium). The growth substrate mainly contained arsenate (As(V)). The distribution of arsenic in an A. bisporus primordium grown on As(V) treated substrate, and in a mature Agaricus campestris fruiting body collected from arsenic contaminated mine tailings, was mapped using two dimensional XAS imaging. The primordium and stalk of the mature fruiting body were both found to be growing around pockets of substrate material containing higher As concentrations, and AB was found exclusively in the fungal tissues. In the mature A. campestris the highest proportion of AB was found in the cap, supporting the AB as an osmolyte hypothesis. The results have allowed us to pinpoint the fungus life stage at which AB formation takes place, namely reproduction, which provides a direction for further research.     

A barrier to metal movement: Synchrotron study of iron plaque on roots of wetland plants

正A wetland with attractive plants hosting birds and other wildlife is an esthetically pleasing prospect that is gaining popularity as a way of stabilizing or remediating metalcontaminated soils and sediment(Weber and Gagnon,2014;     

Methods for selenium removal from contaminated waters: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Worldwide contamination of waters by metals, metalloids, and organometallic pollutants is a major health issue. In particular, the occurrence of the selenium...     

The interplay between exposure to PAHs and MTHFR C677T polymorphism on cardiovascular risk biomarkers in Mexican women

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Environmental and genetic factors are recognized as risk...