Cetylpyridinium Chloride Mouthwash to Reduce Shedding of Infectious SARS-CoV-2: A Double-Blind Randomized Clinical Trial

The airborne transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) via respiratory fluids and droplets suggests that mouthwashes containing substances with virucidal activity can help reduce viral spread. We conducted a multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial to assess the virucidal activity of cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) mouthwashes. Outpatients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection with or without symptoms were randomized to perform washes and gargles for 1 min with 15 mL of either colored distilled water or 0.07% CPC (Vitis CPC Protect) mouthwash. The study outcomes were the SARS-CoV-2 log₁₀ viral RNA load and the nucleocapsid protein levels, both in saliva at 1 and 3 h after the intervention. In total, 118 patients were enrolled and randomized (mean [SD], age 46 [14] y). Thirteen of 118 participants (11%) did not complete follow-up or had insufficient sample volume for testing and were excluded from the analysis. The assessment of the viral load showed no significant differences between groups at any of the investigated points. However, the levels of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein of lysed viruses were significantly higher in the CPC group compared with the control group at 1 h (adjusted difference 269.3 pg/mL; 95% confidence interval [CI], 97.1-441.5) and at 3 h postintervention (561.1 pg/mL; 95% CI, 380.0-742.2). In nonhospitalized patients with asymptomatic or mild symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, a 0.07% CPC mouthwash, compared to placebo, was associated with a significant increase of nucleocapsid protein levels in saliva, indicating enhanced disruption of viral particles.

Gregariousness and intraspecific aggression in Iberian bullfinches (Pyrrhula pyrrhula iberiae) throughout the year

This study provides novel information about gregariousness and intraspecific aggression in Iberian bullfinches (Pyrrhula pyrrhula iberiae) in northwestern Spain. Small monospecific parties never exceeding 10 individuals were seen throughout the year, larger in winter on average. Males considerably outnumbered females within the groups. Adult flocks were frequent only in winter. In spring, many of the adult groups were mixed-sex assemblages composed of pairs plus supernumerary males. Sightings of juvenile groups, up to seven individuals, were common in summer–autumn. The vigilance role in mixed-sex assemblages, including pairs, appeared to be the responsibility of males based on sex-specific vigilance rates. The highest frequency of aggressive encounters, mainly male against male, occurred during the breeding season, associated with mate defence. Females attacked males, not the contrary, which supports reversed sexual dominance in bullfinches. Gregariousness probably acted as an anti-predatory and foraging strategy.

Age- and Sex-Related Modifications of Hematology in Spanish Purebred Horse

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that age and sex significantly modulate the changes in hematological parameters of physiologically healthy Spanish Purebred horse, establishing the reference values. Blood samples were obtained on a total of 159 horses (n = 77 males and n = 82 females), classified in four age groups: group A (1-2 years; n = 39), group B (>2-3 years; n = 38), group C (>3-4 years; n = 41), and group D (>4-7 years; n = 41). By means ADVIA 2020i, red blood cell (RBC), hemoglobin concentration (HB), packed cell volume, mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, platelets (PLTs), as well as total and differential white blood cells (WBCs) were determined. Total plasma protein was determined by spectrophotometry. Results obtained showed that sex had a limited influence on these parameters, being the HB higher in males and WBC higher in females (P = .047). Age caused a reduction in RBC, with a compensatory increase of MCV and MCH, decrease in WBC, PLT, lymphocytes (LYMPs), as well as an increase of N/L ratio (P = .047). Interactions between age and sex showed higher RBC in males than in females of the group B, and higher HB and WBC in males than in females of the group D. According to hematological data, Spanish Purebred horse was classified as a warm- or cold-blooded horse. Decline of RBC, WBC, and PLT parameters is a natural condition of horse with the advance of age, indicating a decrease of the narrow bone response.

Diagnostic Accuracy of QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus Assays in Children and Adolescents with Tuberculosis Disease

In 2016, a new interferon-gamma release assay, QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus, was introduced. We conducted a cross-sectional multicenter study, involving 158 children and adolescents with tuberculosis disease. The overall sensitivity of the assay was 82.9% (IQR 77.0%-88.8%), indicating that in children this test does not have higher sensitivity than previous generation interferon-gamma release assays.

[Usefulness of diaphragmatic ultrasound in predicting extubation success]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of diaphragmatic ultrasound in predicting extubation success.

DESIGN

A diagnostic accuracy study was carried out.

SCOPE

Intensive Care Unit of an Academic hospital in the city of Bogotá (Colombia).

PATIENTS OR PARTICIPANTS

A consecutive sample of patients >18 years of age subjected to invasive mechanical ventilation for >48h.

INTERVENTIONS

Diaphragmatic ultrasound evaluation at the end of spontaneous ventilation testing.

MAIN VARIABLES OF INTEREST

Diaphragmatic excursion (DE, cm), inspiration time (TPIA_dia, s), diaphragm contraction speed (DE/TPIA_dia, cm/s) and total time (Ttot, s) were evaluated, together with thickening fraction (TF_di, %).

RESULTS

A total of 84 patients were included, 79.8% (n=67) with successful extubation and 20.2% (n=17) with failed extubation. The variable with the best discriminatory capacity in predicting extubation success was diaphragm contraction speed, with AUC-ROC 0.70 (p=0.008).

CONCLUSIONS

Diaphragm contraction speed exhibited acceptable discriminatory capacity. Ultrasound could be part of a multifactorial approach in the extubation process.

Ecology of stoats Mustela erminea in a valley of the Cantabrian Mountains, northwestern Spain

There is very little information on the ecology of stoats Mustela erminea in the Iberian Peninsula, the southwestern limits of their Eurasian range. The aim of this study is to gain more knowledge of some ecological aspects of Iberian stoats, principally habitat and diet, by direct observation and scat collection in a valley in the Cantabrian Mountains, northwestern Spain. Stoats were observed in all the elevation range of the valley (820 – 1350 m a.s.l.) in different habitats including hedgerows-meadows, river and mountain meadows, normally close to woody vegetation. The body size of individuals killed on the road was larger than that reported for stoats in the Spanish Pyrenees, and winter whitening was complete. Stoats coexisted with common weasels Mustela nivalis, but in different habitats. According to scat analysis, stoats had a relatively varied diet of small mammals, insects, eggs/birds, fruit, reptiles and earthworms. In autumn-winter, small mammals and fruit were clearly the most abundant items in their diet, but in spring-summer it included more food categories. In the upper valley, most of the food items were fruits, and in the middle and lower valley, small mammals. Amongst the small mammals, mostly Apodemus mice were consumed, followed by Microtus voles, and to a lesser extent, Arvicola water voles, Talpa moles and Crocidura shrews. Stoats ate the fruits of at least five plant species and defecated the seeds intact, thus acting as potential dispersers via endozoochory. Presumably, this diverse diet was favoured by the biogeographical complexity of the study area, where the Eurosiberian and Mediterranean regions meet, its wide elevation range and heterogeneous landscape. However, the highest percentages of biomass ingested corresponded to small mammals in any season and at any elevation, although they were slightly lower in spring-summer and in the upper valley.

Quantitative parameters and ecological implications of a specialized tritrophic interaction involving a seed-feeding tortricid, Pseudargyrotoza conwagana, a braconid parasitoid, Bracon otiosus, and the wild privet, Ligustrum vulgare

Little is known about tritrophic interactions involving seed-feeding insects, parasitoid wasps, and wild fleshy fruits. Here, we examine relationships between Pseudargyrotoza conwagana (F.) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), Bracon otiosus Marshall (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), and the wild privet, Ligustrum vulgare L. (Lamiales: Oleaceae), after collecting fruits in a hedgerow habitat in northwest Spain and rearing insects indoors. No other insect species was detected in this trophic system. Each fruit contained one to four seeds, each infested fruit contained only one seed-feeding tortricid caterpillar, and each parasitized caterpillar was affected by a single braconid individual, i.e., B. otiosus was a solitary parasitoid. Almost half of the wild privet shrubs were infested by P. conwagana, and infestation ranged from 2 to 32% of fruits per infested shrub. The general effect of P.conwagana on wild privet dispersal can be considered low, as the overall rate of seed infestation was low (6% of seeds). The infestation rate was higher in wild privet shrubs with a larger number of seeds per fruit, and tortricid caterpillars that left the fruits successfully ate >80% of seeds. In total, the parasitism rate was moderate (25% of caterpillars), but varied considerably (0‒75%) among shrubs where P. conwagana infestation was detected. Parasitism only occurred in shrubs showing high infestation rates (19‒32% infested fruits), i.e., with high host densities; however, the parasitism rate was density-independent in these shrubs. The wild privets benefited from the action of B. otiosus in two ways: the tortricid caterpillar population was partly eliminated, and the caterpillars were prevented from eating more than one seed per fruit. The B. otiosus sex ratio was very balanced (1 male to 1.18 females). Winter diapause and protandry were prevalent in B. otiosus.

Field-based evidence of rose seed-infesting wasps Megastigmus aculeatus (Swederus) surviving bird gut passage

Abstract

The survival of fruit-infesting insects after bird ingestion and gut processing has been verified in very few cases, and little is known about its ecological significance. It has already been reported that the torymid wasp Megastigmus aculeatus (Swederus) survives passage through the digestive tract of frugivorous birds in the larval stage in rose seeds, but now, for the first time this has been demonstrated in hips consumed by birds in a natural environment, after collecting droppings in the field during winter and verifying wasp survival and emergence almost two years later. The rate of rose seed infestation was c.5% and the survival rate c.88%. The adult emergence rate was noticeably lower in droppings collected in early winter (54.5%) than late winter (87.5%), probably because the seeds collected in early winter were kept at room temperature (approximately 22° C) before those collected in late winter and the minimum time of exposure to low temperatures needed by the larvae to complete the diapause and continue morphogenesis had not elapsed. The results support the hypothesis that the role of frugivorous birds, particularly Turdus blackbirds and thrushes in Europe, could facilitate the dispersion of this torymid species as adult wasps have very limited flight capacity.