Planning STI/HIV prevention among refugees and mobile populations: situation assessment of Sudanese refugees

This article reflects an investigation of knowledge, attitudes and behaviours and HIV/STI prevalence of Sudanese refugees and Ethiopian sex workers in 1992. It represents one of the earliest such investigations within an African refugee population. The investigation took place in the Dimma refugee settlement in south-western Ethiopia and study participants included Sudanese refugee men and women and Ethiopian female sex workers. Methods used for this investigation included focus group discussions, behavioural surveys and serologic testing. The main outcome measures of the investigation were HIV/STI knowledge, attitudes and behaviours and biological markers for HIV, syphilis and herpes simplex 2. The study findings indicate that in the early 1990s, knowledge about AIDS and condom use was low among Sudanese refugee women and not one reported having ever used a condom. Furthermore, sexual contact between refugee men and sex workers was frequent during the time of this study and the prevalence of HIV and other STIs was high. The results confirm a widely held assumption that highly mobile and transient populations in Africa are susceptible to STIs and HIV, in large part due to their knowledge, attitudes and behaviours.     

Effects of chronic exposure to nonylphenol on locomotor activity and social behavior in zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Nonylphenol(NP),a xenoestrogen ubiquitously found in aquatic ecosystems,is of high environmental concern.The present work assessed the effects of exposure to NP on locomotor activity and social behavior in male and female zebrafish(Danio rerio),to evaluate the possible hazard of NP to fish behavior and to pursue a potential biomarker of NP contamination.Fish were randomly divided into six groups.Five groups were receiving 0.1,1,10,50 and 100 μg/L nominal concentrations of NP for 60 days,respectively.A sixth control group was given the same treatment as the other five groups,but no NP.Locomotor activity,aggressive behavior,group preference and leaving shoal were examined.NP exposure showed marked influence on locomotor activity of the male zebrafish,whereas that of the female was not significantly affected by NP.Aggressive behavior and group preference were significantly affected by NP exposure in both male and female groups.Locomotor activity and aggressive behavior of the male and group preference of both male and female zebrafish were clearly inhibited at 100 μg/L NP.No significant alteration in leaving shoal was observed under NP exposure.The results suggested that changes in locomotor activity and aggressive behavior of the male and group preference of both male and female may be used as an ecologically relevant integrative biomarker of NP contamination.     

水溶性CdTe量子点对斑马鱼胚胎发育的影响

本试验以巯基乙酸 (TGA)作为稳定剂合成水溶性CdTe量子点,采用斑马鱼胚胎发育技术,观测0、1、25、50、100、200、300、400 nmol/L各浓度的水溶性CdTe量子点对斑马鱼胚胎发育的影响．记录胚胎发育过程中具有代表性的毒理学终点(自主运动频率、内心率、体长)．结果表明：在胚胎受精后120小时（hours post fertilization）CdTe量子点半数致死浓度（LC50）为185.9 nmol/L．CdTe量子点对斑马鱼胚胎24hpf时1min自主运动频率、48hpf时10s内心率、体长都存在剂量-效应关系．TGA-CdTe能引起斑马鱼胚胎发生各种中毒症状,如心包囊肿、卵黄囊肿、脊柱弯曲、体节减少、心率减慢、黑色素沉积少等异常现象．     

福美双对斑马鱼胚胎Ⅲ型脱碘酶基因表达的影响

福美双是一种二硫代甲氨基甲酸盐类农药,在我国应用较为广泛,但其残留毒性引起广泛重视。试验采用斑马鱼胚胎作为动物模型,探讨了福美双对斑马鱼胚胎的毒性。结果表明福美双导致斑马鱼胚胎孵化率下降,在受精后72 h(72 hpf),对照组的孵化率是100%,1×10-7mol·L-1福美双染毒组的孵化率降至46%,而1×10-6mol·L-1福美双染毒致使孵化率降到0%。III型脱碘酶与斑马鱼的发育和变态息息相关,以上2种浓度的福美双在24 hpf分别增高了III型脱碘酶基因的表达6.71和14.84倍,结果表明福美双具有一定的内分泌搅乱作用,也表明斑马鱼胚胎作为农药安全评价模型的理论可行性。     

双酚AF对雄性斑马鱼卵黄蛋白原水平与芳香化酶基因表达的影响

双酚AF(4,4'-六氟-2-二酚,BPAF)对生物有机体具有内分泌干扰作用。为研究低剂量BPAF对水生生物的效应,本研究选择成年雄性斑马鱼为研究对象,考察了0.005、0.05和0.5 mg·L~(-1)3种浓度BAPF暴露30 d对血浆中卵黄蛋白原(VTG)含量、2种卵黄蛋白原基因(vtg~(-1)和vtg-3)表达和2种芳香酶基因(cyp 19a与cyp 19b)表达的影响。结果表明:在0.005 mg·L~(-1)浓度暴露30 d后,血浆中VTG含量显著升高,随着暴露浓度的升高,促进作用不显著;BPAF暴露对不同组织中的4种基因存在不同的影响,0.005 mg·L~(-1)BPAF暴露可诱导脑部cyp19b、肝脏中cyp19a和性腺中vtg~(-1)、vtg-3和cyp19b基因表达;0.5 mg·L~(-1)BPAF暴露可导致肝脏中vtg~(-1)、vtg-3、性腺中cyp19a等基因显著上调。实验结果表明,BPAF具有雌性激素样效应,可诱导雄性斑马鱼体内部分组织卵黄蛋白原基因和芳香酶基因的表达。BPAF可引起斑马鱼血浆中的VTG含量的上升,从而干扰由VTG所参与的下丘脑-垂体-性腺轴与免疫系统的正常生理过程。     

1,2,4-三氯苯对斑马鱼生殖和胚胎发育毒性效应

采用斑马鱼胚胎早期发育技术研究了1,2,4-三氯苯(1,2,4-TCB)对成年斑马鱼(Danio retio)和斑马鱼受精卵染毒后胚胎生命早期阶段生长发育的影响.结果发现,大于5mg/L 剂量的1,2,4-TCB有明显发育毒性,会导致胚胎致畸,引起胚胎凝集或死亡.1,2,4-TCB对成年斑马鱼和斑马鱼受精卵染毒后,胚胎的致死率均与1,2,4-TCB处理之间呈现时间-效应和剂量-效应关系.高浓度的(15 mg/L) 1,2,4-TCB对成年斑马鱼的染毒,其平均产卵量和受精率均降低.成年斑马鱼或者受精卵接触1,2,4-TCB后,胚胎发育中典型的非致死效应—心包囊水肿和脊柱畸形的比例均随着1,2,4-TCB的浓度升高而逐渐升高.同浓度1,2,4-TCB处理后,斑马鱼胚胎直接染毒造成的非致死毒性效应更强.结果表明,水体中残留的1,2,4-TCB对于鱼类的生殖和发育具有潜在的危害.     

福美双对斑马鱼早期胚胎原始生殖细胞和形态发育的影响

福美双是一种二硫代甲氨基甲酸盐类农药,在我国有非常广泛的应用,但其高残留性受到广泛的重视。试验使用斑马鱼胚胎作为动物模型,探讨了福美双对生殖的毒性作用。结果表明福美双虽然没有引起原始生殖细胞表达量的变化,但造成原始生殖细胞移动分布的延迟,以及诱导细胞凋亡。试验表明福美双对胚胎发育以及生殖有显著的影响,进一步说明斑马鱼胚胎可作为农药毒性评价的模型。     

三氯生对斑马鱼发育和脂质代谢的影响

通过TCS(三氯生)亚致死剂量急性暴露斑马鱼胚胎至幼鱼,探究其对斑马鱼胚胎发育和脂质代谢的影响.结果表明,在体视显微镜下统计发现TCS在200μg/L浓度急性暴露延迟了 72hpf胚胎的孵化,孵化率下降13.24％,而畸形率提高80％以上.120hpf(受精后小时)幼鱼畸形表现为能量淤积、卵黄囊肿、吸收障碍而后延,游囊...     

Postcopulatory sexual selection favours intrinsically good sperm competitors

We used guppies to study repeatability in sperm competitiveness and postcopulatory sexual selection on male ornamentation. In a block design involving 25 pairs of males, artificial insemination was used to mate each pair (A and B) to four unrelated females—two that were mated with the combined ejaculates of both males (sperm-competition treatment) and two receiving sperm from each of the two males individually (single-male treatment). Our analysis revealed significantly repeatable patterns of paternity across females in the sperm-competition treatment, suggesting that certain males are intrinsically better sperm competitors than others, irrespective of female identity. Next, we compared mean brood success (number of offspring per brood) between sperm competition and single-male treatments. We found no significant effect of treatment on female fecundity, suggesting that the previously reported direct benefits of polyandry in this species may be due to factors such as differential maternal effects or differences in the number of inseminated sperm between treatments. Our artificial insemination assay was designed to control both factors. Finally, we determined whether variation in relative paternity was random with respect to male phenotype. Unlike previous work on Trinidadian populations, we found no significant relationship between male sexual ornamentation and sperm competitiveness in the focal population.     

Influence of male harassment and female competition on female feeding behaviour in a sexual–asexual mating complex of mollies (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Poecilia mexicana</Emphasis>, <Emphasis Type="Italic">P. formosa</Emphasis>)

Differential interests between the sexes regarding the number of copulations can result in sexual harassment. Hence, females may have less time available for foraging. Male sexual harassment often leads to fitness reduction in females. We used the mating complex of the bisexual fish Poecilia mexicana and the co-occurring all-female Poecilia formosa to study sexual harassment and its incurred cost on female feeding efficiency. P. formosa is a sperm-dependent parthenogen that requires mating with host males to induce embryogenesis, but the male genes are not used. We therefore predicted P. mexicana males to prefer conspecific females. Hence, costs of male sexual harassment should not occur in unisexuals. While P. formosa are at a disadvantage compared to P. mexicana females due to male mate choice (leading to sperm limitation), this could be traded-off by suffering less from sexual harassment. In our experiment, we found males to direct significantly more pre-copulatory mating behaviour towards conspecific females, whereas actual mating attempts did not differ between species. Contrary to our prediction, both types of females started feeding later and spent less time feeding in the presence of a male partner compared to the time spent feeding with another female, suggesting that females of both species suffer from male harassment. The focal females' feeding time declined with increasing body size of the female competitor, and the same pattern was found when a male was present. We discuss that—besides sexual harassment—other factors such as food competition and female mate choice may affect female feeding efficiency.