Civet latrines in three habitats of a coffee dominated landscape of the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot.

Civets are frugivorous animals in the Order Carnivora. They are relatively less shy towards people and anthropogenic habitats. It has been reported that the civets' preference of defecating in open sites enable them to be important seed dispersers of degraded forests and urban ecosystems of Asia and Africa. We surveyed for scats of palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) in forest fragments of sacred groves (closed), coffee plantations (partly closed) and home gardens (relatively open) during the fruit ripening period of Coffee and Caryota urens - the two preferred fruits of civet - to report the microhabitat characteristics and seed composition of civet latrines. The microhabitat of each scat position - whether on or off the ground and the shade type - was recorded. The scat analysis showed the presence of 4234 seeds belonging to coffee (90.2%), C. urens (9.7%), and an anonymous Rubiacea species (0.10%) in a total of 105 scats collected from coffee plantations (55), home gardens (5), and sacred groves (45). The number of scats sampled from the three habitats was different, but not the number of seeds per scat. Overall, the number of scats increased with the canopy cover, but the trend was different for different habitats. In home garden and coffee plantations, it decreased, but in sacred groves, it increased with the canopy cover. The number of scats sampled above the ground - on tree branches, logs and built-up structures- was more than that was on the ground. The findings contradict the general belief that the civet latrines occur more in open areas than the shaded areas. Because the civet latrines are seen more above ground than on the ground, their efficiency as seed dispersal agent may be examined critically in different contexts.

Clinical manifestations and healthcare utilization before diagnosis of transthyretin amyloidosis.

Introduction: Initial clinical manifestations of transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) are not well understood, making timely diagnosis challenging. Methods: Patients aged ≥68 years newly diagnosed with ATTR were identified using Medicare Research Identifiable Files. Symptom manifestation and healthcare utilization were measured during 3 years pre-diagnosis; demographics and comorbidity index during 1-year pre-diagnosis. Controls (ATTR-free) were matched 1:1 to patients with ATTR based on age, sex and region; same index date and enrollment as match. Results: We identified 552 matched ATTR-control pairs: mean age 78.3 (standard deviation 6.3) and 64.5% male. Among patients with ATTR (vs controls), cardiovascular conditions (92.9 vs 75.9%) and hospitalization (54.0 vs 35.5%) were frequent during 3 years pre-diagnosis. Conclusion: Patients with ATTR have multiple symptoms and hospitalizations pre-diagnosis, recognition of which may facilitate earlier diagnosis and treatment.

Native and invasive ants affect floral visits of pollinating honey bees in pumpkin flowers (Cucurbita maxima).

Global pollinator decline is a major concern. Several factors-climate change, land-use change, the reduction of flowers, pesticide use, and invasive species-have been suggested as the reasons. Despite being a potential reason, the effect of ants on flowers received less attention. The consequences of ants being attracted to nectar sources in plants vary depending upon factors like the nectar source's position, ants' identity, and other mutualists interacting with the plants. We studied the interaction between flower-visiting ants and pollinators in Cucurbita maxima and compared the competition exerted by native and invasive ants on its pollinators to examine the hypothesis that the invasive ants exacerbate more interference competition to pollinators than the native ants. We assessed the pollinator's choice, visitation rate, and time spent/visit on the flowers. Regardless of species and nativity, ants negatively influenced all the pollinator visitation traits, such as visitation rate and duration spent on flowers. The invasive ants exerted a higher interference competition on the pollinators than the native ants did. Despite performing pollination in flowers with generalist pollination syndrome, ants can threaten plant-pollinator mutualism in specialist plants like monoecious plants. A better understanding of factors influencing pollination will help in implementing better management practices.

Direct radionuclide cystography by supra-pubic puncture: comparison with conventional voiding cystourethrography.

BACKGROUND: Vesicoureteric reflux (VUR) and its complications are common problems encountered in paediatric practice. Voiding cystourethrography (VCU) is the primary investigation of choice. Direct radionuclide cystography (DRC) is utilized in the follow-up evaluation of children diagnosed with VUR. However, VCU and DRC both require catheterization, which children do not tolerate well. OBJECTIVE: In this prospective study we evaluated radionuclide cystography by direct supra-pubic puncture (SDRC) and instillation of the radiotracer into the bladder, avoiding catheterization. The results of this procedure were then compared with those of VCU. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 43 children (eight females and 35 males; mean age, 5.73+/-3.28 years; range, 1.5-12 years) were studied. RESULTS: Out of the total 86 renal units, SDRC showed VUR in 22, whereas VCU showed VUR in 29. The SDRC and VCU results were concordant in 77 (90%) out of 86 renal units in the detection of VUR. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of SDRC when compared to VCU were 75.86%, 100%, 100% and 89%, respectively. The overall accuracy of SDRC was 91.86%. CONCLUSIONS: The supra-pubic direct radionuclide cystography is a simple technique for detecting as well as grading VUR. The technique avoids catheterization, is well tolerated by children and is without significant side effects.