Mentha spp. essential oils: toxicity to Alphitobius diaperinus, activity against poultry pathogenic bacteria, and Beauveria bassiana compatibility.

The botanical insecticide market is growing because of limitations placed on the use of certain synthetic chemical insecticides. In this sense, the lesser mealworm Alphitobius diaperius (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is the main poultry pest. The insect causes weight loss and damage to the digestive system of poultry, and it is a vector and reservoir of pathogens. Consequently, this study explored the following hypotheses: (i) essential oils (EOs) derived from Mentha spp. are toxic to A. diaperius; (ii) these EOs are compatible with Beauveria bassiana, the natural enemy of the poultry pest, that parasite A. diaperinus; (iii) these EOs also exhibit activity against bacteria that are pathogenic to poultry. In topical applications and ingestion tests, EOs from Mentha arvensis, Mentha spicata, and Mentha piperita were toxic to A. diaperinus. Chromatographic analyses revealed that menthol is the predominant compound in M. arvensis and M. piperita, whereas carvone is the major compound in M. spicata. Both (-)- and (+)-menthol, along with (-)- and (+)-carvone, underwent testing with A. diaperinus. Nevertheless, their activity was not as potent as those of the EOs, suggesting a possible synergistic and/or additive effect. The EOs did not have any adverse effects on the conidial germination, vegetative growth, or conidia production per colony of the entomopathogenic fungus B. bassiana. Consequently, these EOs are compatible with this natural enemy. The EO extracted from M. spicata exhibited significant toxicity against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), whereas the remaining EOs displayed moderate toxicity against this bacterium. The EOs derived from Mentha spp., as assessed in this study, hold promise for the development of botanical insecticides tailored for the control of A. diaperinus. These insecticides are selective in favor of the natural enemy B. bassiana and can also serve as effective sanitizers, thanks to their antibacterial properties.

Phytochemical screening of Podocarpus lambertii Klotzch ex Endl. leaf extracts and potential antimicrobial, antioxidant and antibiofilm activity.

Species of the genus Podocarpus L'Hér. ex Pers.present biological activities, such as analgesic, antioxidant, antifungal, acting in the fight against anemia, depurative and fortifying. Podocarpus lambertii Klotzch ex Endl. is a Brazilian native species popularly known as maritime pine and lacks information about its phytochemical profile and possible biological activities. The study was conducted to determine the phytochemical composition of soluble plant extracts of acetone (EA), ethyl acetate (EAE) and hexane (HE) from leaves of P. lambertii; evaluate the antimicrobial potential by the broth microdilution technique; antioxidant potential by the DPPH method, as well as to evaluate the biofilm inhibition capacity by the crystal violet assay and reduction of the yellow tetrazolium salt (MTT). Phytochemical screening detected the presence of flavonoids, triterpenoids, steroids, tannins, alkaloids and saponins. All extracts showed antimicrobial activity on the microorganisms tested, and the EA showed the best results. High free radical scavenging potential was observed only in EAE (96.35%). The antibiofilm potential was observed in the EAE extract. The results contribute to the knowledge of the species and indicate the potential of P. lambertii extracts as a source of plant bioactives for the development of new alternative strategies to control resistant microorganisms.

West Nile virus surveillance, Brazil, 2008-2010.

BACKGROUND: West Nile virus (WNV) is an emergent pathogen that is widely distributed in North and Central America. The recent introduction in South America has focused attention on the spread of WNV across Southern American countries. The transmission network involves mosquitoes, birds, horses and humans. METHODS: The serological evaluation of sera from 678 equids and 478 birds was performed using a WNV-specific blocking ELISA, and only the positive results were confirmed by plaque reduction neutralisation tests (PRNTs). Molecular analysis was performed on sera from 992 healthy equids and on 63 macerates of brains from equids that died of encephalitis and had previously tested negative for other pathogens. We also tested swabs from 928 birds. The samples analysed were collected in different biomes of Brazil. RESULTS: We identified WNV antibodies by ELISA in thirteen equids and five birds, and PRNT90 confirmed WNV positivity in four equid samples collected in 2009 in an area between the Amazon and the Pantanal. None of the ELISA positive bird samples were confirmed by PRNT90, and all samples tested by RT-PCR were negative. CONCLUSION: WNV circulation is confirmed by this large scale survey even in the absence of detection of clinical cases.

Alteraçäo da funçäo hipofisária associada a mucocele gigante / Pituitary function change associated with giant mucocele

Este relato mostra o caso de uma paciente com mucocele gigante do seio esfeinodal, apresentando-se como massa intracraniana,, invadindo a tela túrsica e levando à disfunçäo hipofisária com deficiência córtico e somatotrófica. Revendo a literatura, näo foram encontrados casos semelhantes. Desta forma, seräo discutidos alguns relatos de caso de mucoceles que se apresentaram como massa intracraniana e a reversibilidade da funçäo hipofisária após a cirurgia descompressiva.