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Comparative Immunology
Published in Julius P. Kreier, Infection, Resistance, and Immunity, 2022
The animals called fish include three very different classes of vertebrates. They include the Agnatha, jawless fish such as the lampreys, and the hagfish. A more developed class is the Chondrichthyes. These are fish with cartilaginous skeletons and include the elasmobranchs such as the skates, rays, and sharks. The most complex are the bony fish of the class Osteicthyes. These include the overwhelming majority of modern fish, the teleosts. Significant differences exist between the immune systems of each of these three classes.
Cinchona officinalis (Cinchona Tree) and Corylus avellana (Common Hazel)
Published in Azamal Husen, Herbs, Shrubs, and Trees of Potential Medicinal Benefits, 2022
Sawsan A. Oran, Arwa Rasem Althaher, Mohammad S. Mubarak
During the cold season, the nuts are an important food source for several deer species, the edible dormouse, squirrels, and birds (Vander Wall, 2001). In addition, several animals, including invertebrates like Lepidoptera spp., feed on the leaves during the growing season. The findings showed that hazel could be a viable alternative for producing taxol, one of the most expensive anti-cancer drugs on the market (Wang et al., 2007). Furthermore, hazelnut is valued as an ornamental shrub, particularly the form with an unusual leaf morphology namely cutleaf hazelnut (C. avellana L. f. heterophylla (Loud.) Rehder) (Mehlenbacher and Smith, 2006).
Animals as companions
Published in Clive R. Hollin, An Introduction to Human–Animal Relationships, 2021
There are vaccines available for the treatment of allergies, which can cause skin problems and breathing difficulties, although the simple solution for those who are strongly allergic to cats is to find another companion animal. Zoonotic diseases are brought about by bacteria, parasites, and viruses which cross between animals and humans (Murugan et al., 2015). These diseases can be serious, such as with the Ebola virus and salmonellosis, or more manageable as with “cat scratch disease,” a bacterial infection of an open wound caused by a scratch or bite. The risk of ill-health can be managed close to home, as with other pets, by a good health-care regime for the cat including regular vaccinations. On a larger scale, coordinated initiatives such as instigating and maintaining comprehensive records and standardised education for professionals working with animals may bring widespread benefits (Sterneberg-Van der Maaten, Turner, Van Tilburg, & Vaarten, 2016).
Antinociceptive peptides from venomous arthropods
Published in Toxin Reviews, 2023
Jessica A. I. Muller, Lai Y. Chan, Monica C. Toffoli-Kadri, Marcia R. Mortari, David J. Craik, Johannes Koehbach
Hymenoptera is an order that belongs to the class of insects. Well-known examples of animals of this order are ants, bees and wasps. Although they represent one of the largest order of insects in terms of individual species, they are little studied and to date, the only published structure of an antinociceptive peptide from Hymenoptera is the major component of bee venom, melittin (Duffy et al.2020). This peptide lacks cysteines in the sequence and is unstructured in water. In 30% 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE) it was shown to adopt an α-helical structure (Ramirez et al.2018) (Figure 3(F)). These characteristics are also observed with other small peptides from bees and wasps as well as many antimicrobial peptides (Yeaman and Yount 2003), allowing speculations that the other antinociceptive peptides isolated from this group may adopt a similar structure or similar short and helical peptides may have antinociceptive activity. Albeit their potential antinociceptive activity, due to their linear nature and lack of disulfide bonds these peptides are likely to have low stability. To date, only three analgesics peptides have been described with no reported studies from ants thus far (Table 1).
Variant influenza: connecting the missing dots
Published in Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy, 2022
Vivek Chavda, Rajashri Bezbaruah, Tutumoni Kalita, Anupam Sarma, Juti Rani Devi, Ratnali Bania, Vasso Apostolopoulos
The World Health Organization (WHO) recognized zoonosis as any infection or illness that could spontaneously be transmitted either from non-human vertebrates to humans or from the human population to animal species [1-3]. The word ‘zoonoses’ was derived using the Greek words ‘zoon,’ which denotes animal, and ‘nosos,’ which implies disease. Approximately 61% of the human pathogens are zoonotic [4,5]. Since all living beings, including both animals and humans as well as the environment, contribute to the pathogenesis and prevalence of the disease, it was reported that a significant percentage of infectious diseases that impact people are caused by animals [6]. In recent decades, human diseases of animal origin have evolved, and these diseases have been linked to animal origin diets. Some diseases, such as HIV infection, start out as zoonosis, but later the strains mutate and affect only humans. Zoonoses are a notable health concern as well as a direct human health risk that can cause death [7]. Additionally, the 13 most frequent zoonoses have had the greatest impact on poor livestock workers in economically developing countries, causing an estimated 2.4 billion infected cases of the disease and 2.7 million human deaths per year [8]. The majority of these diseases have a negative influence on animal health and reduce animal productivity considerably [4].
Effect of combined calcium, magnesium, vitamin C and E supplementation on seminal parameters and serum oxidative stress markers in fructose-induced diabetic Wistar rats
Published in Archives of Physiology and Biochemistry, 2022
Iya Eze Bassey, Daniel Ewa Ikpi, Idongesit Kokoabasi Paul Isong, Uwem Okon Akpan, Chibuzor Charles Onyeukwu, Nnenna Princess Nwankwo, Inyene Gordon Udofia
Thirty (30) male rats of the Wistar strain weighing between 150 and 180 g body weight were procured from the University of Calabar Animal House in the Department of Agriculture and taken to the animal facility of the Department of Physiology, University of Calabar, Calabar where they were acclimatised for 14 days at 28 ± 2° C temperature maintaining 12 h night and dark cycle. The rats were then randomly assigned to 5 groups of 6 rats each. Group one which served as control received normal rat chow and water ad libitum. Diabetes was induced in Groups 2–5. Group 2 served as the untreated diabetic group while Group 3 received magnesium and calcium at the doses of 400 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg body weight respectively. Group 4 received vitamins C and E at the doses of 100 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg body weight, respectively. Group 5 received a combination of magnesium, calcium, vitamins C and E at the doses of 400 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg, respectively. They were allowed free access to food and water. The ethical procedures guiding the use of animals for experiment were followed. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Animal Research Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medical Sciences University of Calabar.