Using an enzyme linked immuno-assay (ELISA) and spectrophotometry, we determined levels of secretory IgA and lysozyme in tears of 69 patients with Graves' ophthalmopathy and 28 controls. The quantitative determination of secretory IgA and lysozyme in tears provided an impression of the functioning of the lacrimal gland in the two groups. An IgA/lysozyme ratio was calculated in both patients and controls as a parameter for the activity of the secretory IgA-producing plasma cells in the lacrimal gland. An increase in the IgA/lysozyme ratio was observed in 23 patients (33%) and one control (3%). Half of the patients who had suffered from the disease for more than 5 years showed a raised IgA/lysozyme ratio. No correlation was found between the IgA/lysozyme ratio and the NOSPECS classification. Our findings suggest that the lacrimal gland is involved in the orbital condition produced by Graves' ophthalmopathy. In most cases the involvement occurs in patients with a long history of the disease.

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The anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) consists on the biological conversion of ammonium (NH4+) into dinitrogen gas under absence of oxygen. Nitrite (NO2-) is a substrate of the anammox reaction, but also an inhibitor at high concentrations. This study investigates the effect of nitrite on the microbial community during the batch enrichment of anammox sludge. Six inoculums collected from different environments were enriched after a conditioning pretreatment and under controlled conditions during 4 months. Concerning the mineral medium used, two different nitrite supply strategies were applied; i.e., (i) initially low concentration at 25 mg NO2-–N/L and progressive increase to 150 mg NO2-–N/L, and (ii) constant high concentration at 150 mg NO2-–N/L. All tested inoculums developed anammox activity but only when the enrichment was started at low nitrite concentration. In such case, the specific ammonium conversion rates finally obtained ranged from 21 ±1 to 118 ±1 mg NH4+–N/g VS/d (VS, volatile solids). Abundance of the functional gene encoding for the enzyme hydrazine oxidoreductase (hzo) was assessed using the real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR) showing positive correlation with the anammox activity finally reported. In addition, high-throughput DNA sequencing helped to elucidate the underlying microbial community dynamics. The raw inoculum source, the conditioning pretreatment, and the cultivation conditions applied were jointly determinants of the final microbial community structure of the enrichments despite a clear convergence at the end of the experimental period. On the other hand, the cultivation conditions alone determined the selection of anammox species belonging to the genus Candidatus Brocadia.Postprint (updated version

The present study was conducted to determine the effects of chronic Dexamethasone (DEX) administration on physiological traits and semen characteristics in male Japanese quail breeders. Forty five 20 week old male quail were distributed into 3 experimental groups. All groups were fed on the same basal diet and administered with different levels of DEX, at 0 (as a control group), 0.25 and 0.50 mg/bird/day orally for 14 consecutive days. Body weight, feed intake, cloacal gland area and fertility percentage were recorded. Also, male genital organs were investigated and semen characteristics were estimated at the end and after 28 days of administration ended. Serum testosterone and corticosterone levels were analyzed by ELISA. The results revealed that, there were no significant effects of ingested DEX at different levels on body weight, feed intake and testes weight of the male Japanese quail breeders. However, the administration of DEX at 0.25 and 0.50 mg/bird decreased significantly cloacal gland area, foam production, sperm motility and viability and testosterone level. Also, treatments with DEX increased Time of Sexual Libido (TSL), Methylene Blue Reaction Time (MBRT) and serum corticosterone level compared with control group. Also, significant decrease in fertility percentage was observed after male exposure to DEX. Even after 4 weeks from administration ended, libido and sperm motility were significantly impaired. Also, significant negative correlations were found between serum corticosterone level and most studied traits. Our results indicated that chronic DEX administration had markedly effects on the reproductive performance of male quail for several weeks even after exposure to a stressors ends.

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