The genetic analysis of faecal material represents a relatively non-invasive way to study animal diet and has been widely adopted in ecological research. Due to the heterogeneous nature of faecal material the primary obstacle, common to all genetic approaches, is a means to dissect the constituent DNA sequences. Traditionally, bacterial cloning of PCR amplified products was employed; less common has been the use of species-specific quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays. Currently, with the advent of High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) technologies and indexed primers it has become possible to conduct genetic audits of faecal material to a much greater depth than previously possible. To date, no studies have systematically compared the estimates obtained by HTS with that of qPCR. What are the relative strengths and weaknesses of each technique and how quantitative are deep-sequencing approaches that employ universal primers? Using the locally threatened Little Penguin (Eudyptula minor) as a model organism, it is shown here that both qPCR and HTS techniques are highly correlated and produce strikingly similar quantitative estimates of fish DNA in faecal material, with no statistical difference. By designing four species-specific fish qPCR assays and comparing the data to the same four fish in the HTS data it was possible to directly compare the strengths and weaknesses of both techniques. To obtain reproducible quantitative data one of the key, and often overlooked, steps common to both approaches is ensuring that efficient DNA isolation methods are employed and that extracts are free of inhibitors. Taken together, the methodology chosen for long-term faecal monitoring programs is largely dependent on the complexity of the prey species present and the level of accuracy that is desired. Importantly, these methods should not be thought of as mutually exclusive, as the use of both HTS and qPCR in tandem will generate datasets with the highest fidelity.

CyP inhibits cytokine production in an in vitro meningitis model and augments the anti-inflammatory response when combined with benzylpenicillin. Administration of an LPS antagonist with antibiotic merits consideration in the emergency treatment of patients presenting with meningococcal infection.

The emergence of the microvariant genotype of Ostreid herpesvirus 1 (OsHV-1 μVar) has caused mass mortalities of Pacific oysters Crassostrea gigas, resulting in significant economic losses in Europe, New Zealand and Australia. There is variability in the occurrence and severity of disease caused by OsHV-1, with the disease incompletely described by the known complex interactions between host, environment and pathogen. There is a need to evaluate the role of anthropogenic factors on this disease expression due to the number of interactions between humans and oysters. A controlled in vivo laboratory infection model was used to assess changes to the susceptibility of 6 mo old Pacific oysters to OsHV-1 challenge after pre-exposure to combinations of stressors. Pre-exposure of oysters to a concentration of the pesticide imidacloprid consistent with the higher range of environmental contamination in some estuaries had no impact on their survival or OsHV-1 viral load. Oysters pre-exposed to air for 24 h prior to OsHV-1 challenge by cohabitation were more resilient to infection. Moderate physical handling that simulated onfarm handling did not affect survival. This indicates that farm management practices implemented prior to OsHV-1 exposure might not specifically predispose oysters to more severe disease, and more complex confounding factors need to be considered. It is likely that changes in host physiology during emersion provide the host with increased resilience to disease caused by OsHV-1. Continued investigation of the effect of air exposure in the field will aid in validating the results from this laboratory experiment.