Appropriateness of aspirin use among diabetic patients in primary prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases: an analysis of the ASSOS study

OBJECTIVE

Aspirin is an essential drug in the prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). It is ultimately indicated in a patient with ASCVD. However, its role is debated in primary prevention. We aimed to investigate the appropriateness of aspirin use in diabetic patients according to recommendations of recent guidelines.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

ASSOS was a multicenter observational study investigating aspirin use in cardiology outpatient clinics. We evaluated aspirin use in diabetic patients in primary prevention from the ASSOS study. We also assessed the appropriate use of aspirin according to the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA), American Diabetes Association (ADA), Consensus Statement of Endocrinology, Cardiology, and Nephrology (ENCARNE), and the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPTF).

RESULTS

A total of 5,007 patients of whom 1,537 had type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) were included in the study. 1,132 of the total participants used aspirin for primary prevention; 313 of them had type 2 DM. Only 248 (76.7%), 132 (40.8%), and 128 (39.6%) diabetic patients indicated aspirin use according to the ESC/INCARNE, ACC/AHA, and ADA/USPTF guidelines, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Inappropriate aspirin use was common among diabetic patients, according to clinical practice guideline recommendations. In addition, the differences between the indications for the use of aspirin in diabetic patients according to the guidelines were remarkable. Guidelines that minimize these differences are needed for clinicians, and compliance with these guidelines in clinical practice could reduce inappropriate aspirin use.

Prevalence, comorbidities and mediators of childhood anxiety disorders in urban Turkey: a national representative epidemiological study

PURPOSE

The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of anxiety disorders, its correlation with sociodemographic characteristics, its comorbidities with other psychiatric disorders and its predictors in school-aged children.

METHODS

This study is part of a representative, multi-centered national study that is planned by the Turkish Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health to evaluate the prevalence of psychopathology among elementary school students in Turkey between the years 2014-2015. Children are screened via Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Age Children Present and Lifetime Version. Impairment is assessed by a 3-point Likert type scale independently by the parent and the teacher. The final sample included 5842 children with the mean age of 8.7 years.

RESULTS

The prevalence of any anxiety disorder without considering impairment is 16.7% and considering impairment is 5.2% in children according to our study. We found significant differences for comorbid Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Disruptive Behavior Disorder, Mood Disorders, Tic Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Enuresis Nocturna, Encopresis, and Intellectual Disability. Having a history of paternal physical disorder, living in the regions of Marmara, Mediterranean and Black Sea were found to be the main predictors of having childhood anxiety disorders according to the logistic regression analysis.

CONCLUSION

Better understanding of childhood anxiety disorders, comorbid conditions and predictors will result in earlier diagnosis and more appropriate treatment.

Could serum ACE2 levels predict infarct size in acute phase of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: a comparative study with classical biomarkers

OBJECTIVE

Serum ACE2 level in the acute phase of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction may be an indicator of heart failure, however, limited studies have reported conflicting results. Therefore, in our study, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between serum ACE2 level and infarct size in the acute phase of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and compare the predictive value of ACE2 level with classical biomarkers.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Sixty-six patients after the primary percutaneous coronary intervention were included in the study. For the measurement of serum ACE2 levels, blood samples were taken twice from the patients: in the first 24 hours and on the 5th day of the infarction, and once from 30 healthy volunteers. hs-cTnT, BNP, and CRP levels were measured daily, and their peak values were taken. On the 7th day of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, gSPECT was used with the 99mTc-MIBI method for assessment of infarct size.

RESULTS

Baseline ACE2 values were found to be higher in patients compared to controls, and ACE2 values obtained on the 5th day were found to be higher than the baseline values in the patients. There was no significant correlation between serum ACE2 levels and the RSS (%), while peak levels of hs-cTnT, BNP, and CRP were assessed as predictive factors for the RSS (%).

CONCLUSIONS

Although serum ACE2 levels increased in the acute phase of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, this increase was not associated with infarct size. Serum ACE2 level did not provide additional benefit to classical biomarkers for infarct size-related prognosis prediction.

Disgust sensitivity relates to attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women across 31 nations

Previous work has reported a relation between pathogen-avoidance motivations and prejudice toward various social groups, including gay men and lesbian women. It is currently unknown whether this association is present across cultures, or specific to North America. Analyses of survey data from adult heterosexuals ( N = 11,200) from 31 countries showed a small relation between pathogen disgust sensitivity (an individual-difference measure of pathogen-avoidance motivations) and measures of antigay attitudes. Analyses also showed that pathogen disgust sensitivity relates not only to antipathy toward gay men and lesbians, but also to negativity toward other groups, in particular those associated with violations of traditional sexual norms (e.g., prostitutes). These results suggest that the association between pathogen-avoidance motivations and antigay attitudes is relatively stable across cultures and is a manifestation of a more general relation between pathogen-avoidance motivations and prejudice towards groups associated with sexual norm violations.

Endothelin receptor inhibition with bosentan delays onset of liver injury in streptozotocin-induced diabetic condition

BACKGROUND

This study was designed to investigate the protective effects of bosentan an orally active non-peptide mixed ETA/ETB receptor antagonist, on liver injury in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

METHODS

24 Albino-Wistar rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: healthy (Group 1), diabetic (Group 2) (60 mg/kg of streptozotocin i.p.), diabetic treated with bosentan 50 mg/kg (Group 3) and diabetic treated with bosentan 100 mg/kg (Group 4). The treatment of bosentan was initiated after streptozocin injection and continued for 60 days.

RESULTS

Liver from diabetic rats showed significant increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) level and significant decrease in glutathione (GSH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity. Endothelin (ET-1), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) gene expression significantly increased in the diabetic groups in the rat liver tissue. Bosentan treatment showed a significant up-regulatory effect on ET-1, TNF-α and TGF-β mRNA expression. Results from histopathological evaluation of the liver were in accordance with our biochemical and molecular results.

CONCLUSIONS

These data provide clear evidence that bosentan treatment is associated with promising hepatoprotective effect against diabetes-induced liver damage via reduction of cell inflammation and oxidative damage. These data suggest that ET receptors may be an important actor in diabetes-related liver damage, and blockage of these receptors may become a target for preventing diabetic complications in the future.

Reliability of MDCT, with MPR and hydro-CT technique, in resectability and lymphnode staging of gastric cancer

AIM

The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of thin-slice hydro-multidetector row computed tomography (MDCT) in assessing resectability and lymph node staging of gastric cancer.

METHODS

Sixty-one patients (37 males, 24 females; mean age 61 years) with gastric cancer, and whose surgery was planned, underwent preoperative abdominopelvic hydro-MDCT at slice thickness of 5 mm. We evaluated the tumor stage, depth of tumor invasion into the gastric wall, metastasis of lymph node, and presence/absence of distant metastases on the CT images produced with multiplanar reconstruction (MPR) and hydro-CT technique. The results were compared with pathological and surgical findings. Diagnostic accuracy was also analyzed.

RESULTS

Of 61 patients with gastric cancer, 6 (14%) were inoperable, 45 (68%) were advanced stage, and 10 (16%) were early stage gastric cancer patients. The detection rate of the primary tumor was 97% for MDCT; the overall accuracy of MDCT in the determination of the depth of invasion and serosal involvement when compared with pathological staging were 84% and 95%, respectively; the overall accuracy rate in lymph node staging was 73.5%.

CONCLUSION

MDCT can improve the accuracy of preoperative T and N staging of gastric cancer and will contribute to treatment strategies for patients with advanced stage gastric cancer.

The prevention of ischemia/reperfusion induced oxidative damage by venous blood in rabbit kidneys monitored with biochemical, histopatological and immunohistochemical analysis

The purpose of this study was to investigate the biochemical, histopathological and immunohistochemical effects of venous blood on ischemia/reperfusion-induced oxidative DNA damage and mutation in rabbit kidneys in comparison to melatonin treatment, which has a known protective effect against ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury. The rabbits were divided into five groups: renal ischemia (RI), renal ischemia-reperfusion (RIR), renal ischemia-venous blood-reperfusion (RIVR), melatonin + renal ischemia-reperfusion (MRIR), and the healthy sham control group (HG). Melatonin (2.5 mg/kg delivered intraperitoneally) was administered one hour prior to ischemia. In the RIVR group, 1 ml of venous blood was administered 5 minutes before the reperfusion. The xanthine oxidase activity in the kidney tissue was determined as 53.50 ± 1.72, 31.00 ± 6.39, 45.66 ± 9.20, 28.66 ± 6.05 and 14.33 ± 1.28 U/g protein; the MDA levels were 6.32 ± 0.02, 19.50 ± 1.33, 7.00 ± 0.96, 7.50 ± 0.76 and 4.75 ± 0.34 mmol/g protein; and the GSH levels were 4.50 ± 1.08, 2.76 ± 0.13, 5.48 ± 0.22, 4.93 ± 0.55 and 6.98 ± 0.33 nmol/g protein in the RI, RIR, RIVR, MRIR and HG groups, respectively. Blood, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine levels were classified as high only in the RIR group. The MRIR and RIVR groups, in which oxidative stress was best suppressed, had much milder histopathological and immunohistochemical findings compared to the RIR group. This study has revealed that it is useful to initiate reperfusion of the ischemic tissue with venous blood.

How olfaction disorders can cause depression? The role of habenular degeneration

The removal of bilateral olfactory bulbs (OBs) can result in serious behavioral, neurochemical, neuroendocrine, and neuroimmune alterations in depressed patients. However, there is little information on how olfactory bulbectomy (OBX) leads to depression. Habenular nuclei and their connections are important in the regulation of psychomotor and psychosocial behaviors through afferent impulses of the olfactory system. Therefore, we investigated whether OB lesions lead to habenular degeneration. We used a sample of 50 rats (25 female and 25 male) for this study. Of these rats, five male and five female rats were taken as the control group. The remaining 40 rats (20 male and 20 female rats) constituted the study group, and frontal burr holes were performed at the OB level on these rats. OB cauterization was applied to 10 male and 10 female rats (n=10, 10; study group 1), mechanical OBX was applied to five male and five female rats (n=5, 5; study group 2), and no procedure was performed on the remaining 10 rats (n=5, 5). The psychomotor movements; pregnancy rates; and sexual, feeding, maternal, social, and grooming behaviors for both study groups were observed daily for 3 months. Their OBs, olfactory cortices, and habenular complexes were examined using stereological methods. All of the animals in the study groups, especially in the cauterization group, demonstrated anorexia, nutritional disorders, weight loss, psychomotor retardation, sexual aversion, decreased grooming behavior, and reduced social interaction similar to depression symptoms. As compared to the control group, the pregnancy rates, number of offspring per mother rat, and birth weights in the study groups were lower, whereas the number of stillbirths was higher. Gross anatomical examinations revealed that the OBs of all of the animals in the study groups were atrophied. Histopathological examinations detected prominent neuronal loss due to apoptosis in the habenular structures in the study groups. We detected a relationship between a decreased healthy neuronal density of the habenula and depressive symptomatology in rats with OBX. We suggest that olfaction disorders might cause neuropsychiatric disorders by affecting neuronal degeneration in habenular nuclei.

Effect of pregnancy and foetal number on diameter of corpus luteum, maternal progesterone concentration and oxidant/antioxidant balance in ewes

The aim of this study was to determine the changes in diameter of corpus luteum (CL), maternal progesterone (P) concentration, lipid peroxidation and non-enzymatic antioxidant levels along with enzymatic antioxidant activities in pregnant ewes bearing single and twin foetuses. The ewes were selected from healthy animals that were brought to the abattoir for slaughtering. The ewes were divided into three groups: Group 1 (non-pregnant, non-oestrous, n = 30), Group 2 (pregnant bearing a single foetus, n = 30) and Group 3 (pregnant bearing twin foetuses, n = 12) after they were slaughtered. Pregnant ewes were in the first half of the pregnancy. The diameter of CL and P concentration of pregnant ewes bearing a single foetus or twin foetuses were found higher than that found in non-pregnant ewes. Similarly, the P concentration of pregnant ewes bearing twin foetuses was higher than that found in pregnant ewes bearing a single foetus. Malondialdehyde (MDA) level in pregnant ewes bearing twin foetuses was higher than that found in both non-pregnant and pregnant ewes bearing a single foetus. The serum glutathione (GSH) level and glutathione-peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity of pregnant ewes bearing twin foetuses were found lower than that found in non-pregnant ewes. Additionally, the GSH-Px activity of pregnant ewes bearing twin foetuses was found lower than that found in pregnant ewes bearing a single foetus. No significant difference was found between pregnant ewes bearing female and male foetus with respect to diameter of CL, P concentration and oxidative stress parameters. There were significant positive correlations between foetal number (0, 1, 2) and diameter of CL, P concentration, MDA level, and between P concentration and diameter of CL, MDA level. However, significant negative correlations were found between foetal number (0, 1, 2) and GSH level, GSH-Px activity, and between P concentration and GSH-Px activity. In conclusion, the diameter of CL enlarges, P production increases and oxidant/antioxidant balance impairs because of the gestation stress in ewes during pregnancy.

Liver function tests and one year risperidone treatment in children and adolescents

Objective

Risperidone is an atypical antipsychotic agent, despite its many advantages and widespread use, there is increasing attention to the adverse effects associated with long-term exposure to this drug.We aimed to investigate the changes in the liver function tests (LFTs) associated with one year risperidone treatment in children and adolescents.

Methods

One hundred youths who treated with risperidone more than one year were included in the study. For this study, patients’ baseline and follow-up weight and hepatobiliary function tests including alanine aminotransferases(ALT) and aspartat aminotransferases (AST), gamma gluatamyl transerase (GGT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and serum bilirubin levels were measured baseline, after the treatment period of six months and one year.

Results

Asymptomatic liver function test abnormalities mostly ALP elevation was found in subjects treated with risperidone. The mean levels of liver enzymes and billuribin of the patients were significantly higher after one year of treatment than the baseline. Also the mean levels of liver enzymes and billuribin of the patients were significantly higher after one year of treatment than the six months. There was significant association between changes in weight, risperidone dose and liver enzymes and billuribin levels.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that risperidone treatment in the long term commonly leads to liver function changes however it rarely may induce a serious hepatic toxicity at therapeutic doses in children and adolescents.

Finite element analysis of stress distribution on modified retentive tips of bar clasp

This study used finite element analysis to evaluate the retentive tips of bar clasps made from different alloys and using different designs in order to determine whether or not different materials and tip forms are suitable for bar clasp applications. Co-Cr, Ti and Type IV Au alloys were selected based on their physical and mechanical properties. The 3D finite element models of three different bar clasp retentive tip geometries prepared from Co-Cr, Ti and Type IV Au alloys were constructed using the finite element software package MSC.Marc. Analysis of a concentrated load of 5 N applied to the removable partial denture approach arms in an occlusal direction was performed. Although stress distribution and localisation within bar clasps with different retentive tips were observed to be similar and were concentrated in the approach arm, stress intensities differed in all models.

Reaction of molecular and atomic deuterium with methanol on Pd(111)

Multiplexed thermal desorption spectroscopy was used to study the influence of preadsorbed and postadsorbed deuterium on a methanol monolayer on Pd(111). In particular, the effect of atomic deuterium exposure on the reaction products was examined in detail. Preadsorbed deuterium hinders the formation of chemisorbed methanol and favors physisorption of methanol. This leads to a strong reduction of methanol dehydrogenation during sample heating. Postadsorption of molecular deuterium also changes partially chemisorbed to physisorbed methanol. No deuteration of methanol is found under these conditions. With atomic deuterium exposure, however, significant amounts of deuterated methanol, from methanol-D1 through methanol-D4, can be produced. In addition, D exposure also causes an increased dehydrogenation probability during sample heating. The probabilities for methanol deuteration, for methanol dehydrogenation, and for D-atom bulk absorption have been determined quantitatively.

Methanol adsorption on Cu(110) and the angular distribution of the reaction products

Integral and angle resolved thermal desorption spectroscopies were used to study methanol adsorption and oxidation on clean and oxygen covered Cu(110) surfaces. Special emphasis was put on the Cu-CuO stripe phase, which forms when the Cu(110) surface is covered with 0.25 ML of oxygen. In the temperature regime between 200 and 300 K associative desorption of methanol and water takes place, showing a normal desorption character with peaks shifting to lower temperature with increasing coverage and with a nearly cosine angular desorption distribution. In the temperature range of about 350 K formaldehyde, hydrogen, and again methanol desorb nearly concomitantly in the form of a very narrow peak (full width at half maximum=10 K), with peaks shifting to higher temperature with increasing methanol coverage. The angular distribution of these peaks is strongly forward focused, indicating activation barriers being involved. In the case of the Cu-CuO stripe phase the angular distribution of the desorption products is clearly different in the [110] and [001] azimuthal directions, demonstrating the influence of the border lines between the copper and the copper oxide stripes on the desorption process.

Pathogenicity of Beauveria bassiana (Deuteromycotina: Hypomycetes) to larvae of the small poplar longhorn beetle, Saperda populnea (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)

The small poplar longhorn beetle, Saperda populnea is an important pest of Lombardy poplars (Populus nigra L.) in Turkey. A survey for natural entomopathogenic fungi of S. populnea larvae was made in Erzurum, Turkey, during the period 2004-2005. Larvae (13.5%) infected with a strain of the fungus Beauveria bassiana were found. The pathogenicity of B. bassiana strain 46 was conducted with different concentrations of conidia (10(6), 10(7) and 10(8) conidia/ml) of this isolate on S. populnea larvae. The lowest concentration (10(6) conidia/ml) caused about 56% mortality within 6 days. One hundred percent mortality was achieved after median lethal time (LT(50)) of 4.6 and 4.4 days for 10(7) and 10(8) conidia/ml, respectively. There were no significant differences between median lethal times. This is the first record of natural infection of S. populnea larvae by B. bassiana.

First Report of Crown and Stem Rot of Orchid (Orchis palustris) Caused by Sclerotinia minor

Orchis palustris Jacq. is a wild orchid native to wetlands in eastern Anatolia. During June of 2003, near Erzurum, Turkey, a decline of this orchid was observed in several meadows that had been irrigated for forage production. Stems were chlorotic, wilted, and collapsed. There was a soft, watery rot at the crowns and lower stems. White mycelium and black sclerotia formed on necrotic stem and crown tissues. The fungus was isolated from sclerotia on potato dextrose agar (PDA) and identified as Sclerotinia minor Jagger on the basis of small sclerotia (0.5 to 2.5 mm long) scattered throughout the colonies (2). Pathogenicity was confirmed by inoculating stems of 8-week-old plants with mycelial plugs from 5-day-old PDA cultures and enclosing inoculated plants in transparent plastic bags for 3 days. After 2 weeks, symptoms similar to those in the field were observed, and S. minor was reisolated from inoculated plants. Noninoculated control plants remained asymptomatic. The disease was previously observed on O. laxiflora Lam. in Turkey (1), but to our knowledge, this is the first report of S. minor infecting O. palustris References: (1) C. Eken et al. Plant Pathol. 52:802, 2003. (2) L.M. Kohn. Phytopathology 69:881, 1979.

Monthly changes in some reproductive parameters and in testosterone and thyroxine values of rams throughout one year under continental climate conditions

Ten sexually mature rams were used in this study. Blood and semen was collected monthly from rams for one period of 12 months to study semen characteristics and to determine serum testosterone and thyroxine (T4) hormones. Results showed that all of the rams are continuous breeders as they show sexual desire and produce semen throughout the whole year. However, monthly variations in reproductive and semen characteristics were detected. Relative testes volume, ejaculate volume, sperm motility, sperm concentration and serum testosterone levels were higher during autumn months than at other months of the year. In addition, autumn months showed moderate percentage of abnormal spermatozoa. Furthermore, serum T4 was significantly higher in summer and autumn months than that observed in winter and spring. These results indicate that ram semen quality in Afyon continental climate conditions may be better during late summer and early autumn months than during other months of the year.

Long-term results of Burch colposuspension

The study included 220 women who had undergone Burch colposuspension. Group I (65 women) was studied prospectively and the mean follow-up was 1.5 years. Group II (155 women) was studied retrospectively and the mean follow-up was 4.5 years. The cure rate was 87.7% in group I and 77.4% in group II. The cure rate was significantly higher following the primary procedure than the secondary procedure. At follow-up, late complications in 220 women were: cystocele in 18; rectocele in 32; enterocele in 35; dyspareunia in 6, and groin or suprapubic pain in 15. In group I, of the 11 women with detrusor instability preoperatively, 10 were cured and in 1 detrusor instability persisted postoperatively. Two women had de novo detrusor instability. In conclusion, the cure rate of Burch colposuspension is satisfactory, although it declines a little with time. Women who had previous anti-incontinence surgery have a greater probability of recurrence. The procedure elevates the bladder neck into the abdominal cavity and stabilizes it. Surgical failure is related to inadequate elevation and stabilization of the bladder neck.

First Report of Colletotrichum truncatum on Alfalfa in Turkey

During the summer of 1997 and 1998, a pathogen identified as Colletotrichum truncatum (Schwein.) Andrus & W.D. Moore was isolated from lesions on stems of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) plants in Erzurum, Turkey. Typical symptoms on stems of mature plants were large, sunken, irregularly shaped black lesions. Twenty-eight cultures of C. truncatum were isolated from stem lesions. Acervuli containing spores and dark setae were observed within lesions. Conidia were hyaline, one-celled, falcate to nearly straight with a prominent clear area in the center of highly granular cytoplasm, and measured 16.3 to 20.6 × 3.1 to 4.5 μm. These morphological characteristics were consistent with the description of C. truncatum (1). The pathogenicity of two isolates was determined on alfalfa cv. Bilensoy. Alfalfa seedlings (6-week-old) were inoculated with a conidial suspension of the fungus (1.4 × 10⁷ conidia per ml), incubated in a moist chamber for 3 days, and subsequently transferred to growth chambers maintained at 25°C with a 12-h photoperiod. Ten plants were inoculated with each isolate. Symptoms first appeared on stems 12 days after inoculation. Sunken, irregularly shaped black lesions occasionally girdled stems of plants inoculated with C. truncatum. Symptoms did not appear on stems of control plants inoculated with sterile distilled water. C. truncatum was reisolated from symptomatic tissue. This is the first report of C. truncatum on alfalfa from Turkey. Reference: (1) B. C. Sutton. 1992. Pages 1-27 in: Colletotrichum Biology, Pathology and Control. J. A. Bailey and M. J. Jeger, eds. CAB International, Wallingford, U.K.

A retrospective review of perioperative complications in 360 patients who had Burch colposuspension

This retrospective study reviews intraoperative and early complications of Burch colposuspension of 360 patients. Ten patients had massive haemorrhage and 8 of them had a blood transfusion. Three patients had a haematoma. Bladder injuries were noticed in 10 patients, 3 of whom were diagnosed postoperatively. One patient had unilateral ureteral kinking. Urinary retention occurred in 20 patients for more than 10 days and 2 required catheterization for 26 and 32 days respectively. Eighteen patients had a wound infection and 4 had a wound abscess. Twenty nine patients had a urinary infection. Urinary tract injury, haemorrhage and blood transfusion were significantly more common in women having secondary surgery than those having primary surgery. Deep venous thrombosis was diagnosed in 3 patients who had a Burch colposuspension with concomitant abdominal hysterectomy. Knowledge of possible risks and complications of Burch colposuspension may help plan a better preoperative work-up of patients and may minimize the intraoperative complications and increase surgical success and patient satisfaction.

Rhizoctonia Species and Anastomosis Groups from Corn Kernels in Turkey

In 1996, 165 samples of corn (Zea mays L.) kernels to be tested for seed-borne fungi were obtained from five provinces throughout the major corn-producing areas in the eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey: Artvin (41 samples), Rize (28 samples), Trabzon (32 samples), Giresun (30 samples), and Ordu (34 samples). A subsample of kernels (≈100 g each) from each sample was surface-disinfected in 3.5% NaOCl for 1 min. Kernels were washed in three changes of sterile water, and 100 kernels per subsample were placed in petri plates (5 kernels per plate) containing potato dextrose agar. After 5 to 7 days of incubation at 25°C in the dark, cultures were examined at 40× magnification for mycelia of Rhizoctonia spp. From 16,500 kernels examined, 40 isolates of Rhizoctonia spp. were recovered and characterized according to colony morphology and hyphal anastomosis using known tester isolates of Rhizoctonia spp. (1). Of these isolates, 10 were identified as R. solani, 18 as R. zeae, and 12 as binucleate Rhizoctonia sp. R. solani isolates were assigned to three anastomosis groups (AG): AG-4 (two isolates), AG-5 (two isolates), and AG-10 (six isolates). Binucleate Rhizoctonia sp. isolates were all assigned to AG-Ba. R. solani AG-4 and -5 and binucleate Rhizoctonia AG-Ba isolates were obtained from Artvin; R. solani AG-10 isolates were obtained from Ordu; and R. zeae isolates were obtained from Trabzon and Giresun. This is the first reported observation of Rhizoctonia spp. and anastomosis groups on corn kernels from Turkey. Reference: (1) B. Sneh et al. 1991. Identification of Rhizoctonia Species. The American Phytopathological Society, St. Paul, MN.

First Report of Rhizoctonia zeae in Turkey

In 1997, during a study to determine the pathogenic fungi on Johnsongrass (Sorgum halepense) in the Yusufeli District of Artvin Province, 10 isolates of a Rhizoctonia sp. were obtained from necrotic roots. In anastomosis tests, Johnsongrass isolates fused at low frequency with the Rhizoctonia sp. (teleomorph: Waitea circinata var. circinata) and R. oryzae (teleomorph: W. circinata var. oryzae), and at high frequency with R. zeae (teleomorph: W. circinata var. zeae). Test isolates of the Rhizoctonia sp. (W. circinata var. circinata), R. oryzae, and R. zeae (isolate nos. W616, 231, and 590, respectively) were provided by R. H. Leiner (University of Alaska Fairbanks). In addition, Johnsongrass isolates were identified as R. zeae based on colony morphology of the vegetative state. Pathogenicity of two isolates (JR-3 and JR-8) was determined on Johnsongrass seedlings at 25°C. Six seeds were sown in a 10-cm-diameter pot containing a sterile soil mixture of coarse sandy loam and sand (1:1, vol/vol). Each pot was a replicate and each treatment was replicated four times. Four-week-old Johnsongrass seedlings were inoculated by gently removing the soil mixture from one side of the stem, placing a colonized potato dextrose agar (PDA) 4-mm-diameter plug in direct contact with the base of the stem, and covering the inoculum with the soil mixture. A sterile, uncolonized PDA plug was used as a control. Disease symptoms were observed 2 weeks after inoculation. Brownish, sunken lesions were observed on the base of stems and roots of seedlings inoculated with R. zeae. Stems and roots of uninoculated seedlings were lesion free. Isolates JR-3 and JR-8 were reisolated from plants grown in their respective treatments. This is the first report of R. zeae from Turkey.