We suggest helminthological investigations of cod as a supplement to traditional biological and hydrographical methods for elucidation of ecological changes in the Baltic Sea. It is under discussion if oxygen deficit or seal abundance should explain the present critical situation of Baltic cod. A comparative investigation of endoparasitic helminths in Baltic cod (Gadus morhua), captured in the same marine habitat with an interval of 35 years (1983/2018) recorded 11 species of helminths comprising trematodes (Hemiurus luehei, Podocotyle atomon, Lepidapedon elongatum), nematodes (Contracaecum osculatum, Hysterothylacium aduncum, Capillaria gracilis, Cucullanus cirratus), cestodes (Bothriocephalus sp.) and acanthocephalans (Echinorhynchus gadi, Pomphorhynchus laevis, Corynosoma semerme). Significant prevalence and intensity increases were recorded for third-stage larvae of the nematode C. osculatum (liver location) and larvae of C. semerme (encapsulated in viscera). Both parasite species use grey seal as their final host, indicating the recent expansion of the Baltic seal population. A lower E. gadi intensity and an increased prevalence of L. elongatum of small cod (31–40 cm body length) suggest a lowered intake of amphipods (intermediate host) and elevated ingestion of polychaetes, respectively, but no significant changes were seen for other helminths.

Field experiments were conducted at Ashland Bottoms in northeastern Kansas and at Hays in western Kansas in 2001, 2002, and 2003 to determine the response of soil microbial and nematode communities to different herbicides and tillage practices under a glyphosate-resistant cropping system. Conventional herbicide treatments were a tank mixture of cloransulam plus S-metolachlor plus sulfentrazone for soybean and a commercially available mixture of acetochlor and atrazine for corn. Glyphosate was applied at 1.12 kg ai ha−1 when weeds were 10 or 20 cm tall in both corn and soybean. Soil samples were collected monthly at Ashland Bottoms during the growing period for soil microbial biomass (SMB) carbon determination. In addition, substrate-induced respiration (SIR) and BIOLOG substrate utilization were determined at the end of the growing season each year at Ashland Bottoms, and nematode populations were determined at the beginning and the end of the growing season at both sites. Direct effects of glyphosate rates on soil microbial and nematode communities were also studied in a controlled environment. Values for SMB carbon, SIR, and BIOLOG substrate utilization were not altered by glyphosate. Nematode community response to the glyphosate treatment was similar under both conventional tillage and no-till environments. Total nematode densities were similar with the glyphosate and conventional herbicide treatments. SMB carbon and BIOLOG substrate utilization did not differ between tillage treatments. Nematode densities were greater under conventional tillage than in the no-till system. This study showed that soil health when glyphosate was applied in a glyphosate-resistant cropping system was similar to that of cropping systems that used conventional herbicides.

This study provides the first comprehensive information on the parasite fauna of the white-streaked grouper Epinephelus ongus. A total of 35 specimens from the archipelago Karimunjawa, Java Sea, Indonesia were studied for metazoan parasites. For comparison, the documented parasite community of 521 E. areolatus, E. coioides and E. fuscoguttatus from previous studies were analysed. A total of 17 different parasite taxa were recognized for E. ongus, including 14 new host and four new locality records. This increases the known parasite taxa of E. ongus by more than 80%. The ectoparasite fauna was predominated by the monogenean Pseudorhabdosynochus quadratus resulting in a low Shannon index of species diversity of the entire parasite community (0.17). By contrast, the species diversity excluding the ectoparasites reached the highest value recorded for Indonesian epinephelids (1.93). The endoparasite fauna was predominated by generalists, which are already known from Indonesia. This demonstrates the potential risk of parasite transmission through E. ongus into mariculture and vice versa. One-way analyses of similarity revealed a significantly different parasite community pattern of E. ongus compared with E. areolatus and E. fuscoguttatus as well as minor differences with E. coioides. This finding refers to different habitat preferences of these epinephelids within the analysed size range.

Benthic macroinvertebrates are considered as a representative taxon that indicates the ecological status of freshwater ecosystems. Numerous indices derived from community data have been proposed to estimate either biological water quality or ecosystem health. In this study, metrics based on benthic macroinvertebrates at the family level were screened using ecological informatics to provide a multi-metric measurement that would be suitable for presenting ecological integrity across different levels of environmental impact. Benthic macroinvertebrates were collected at a total of 720 sample sites from river basins and streams in Korea in 2009. Based on four categories of community status (i.e., diversity, richness, tolerance, and composition), 37 metrics were selected as initial candidates according to the literature. The candidate metrics were evaluated according to parameters including discriminatory power, redundancy, and responsiveness to stressors. Self-organizing map was utilized to assist the screening procedure by providing ordination, clustering, and visualization of metric and environmental data. Six metrics were finally selected as a multi-metric and were compared with conventional indicators for presenting the ecological integrity of streams.

Le syndrome hématopoïétique induit par une irradiation accidentelle reste difficile à traiter, essentiellement du fait de l’hétérogénéité de l’irradiation. La conséquence est qu’il y a toujours un territoire médullaire partiellement protégé de l’irradiation. Le choix d’une stratégie thérapeutique va dépendre essentiellement de l’évaluation des dommages radio-induits à la moelle osseuse, telle qu’elle peut être faite à partir de différents bio-indicateurs de dose ou de dommages comme le suivi de la concentration sanguine de Flt3 ligand. Les options thérapeutiques restent limitées à la greffe de cellules souches hématopoïétiques ou aux traitements de soutien. Récemment, de nouvelles approches de thérapie cellulaire autologue ont été proposées, et ont apporté un éclairage nouveau sur le syndrome de défaillance multi-viscérale radio-induit. D’autres résultats récents du laboratoire montrent que parmi les choix possibles, la stimulation de l’hématopoïèse résiduelle par l’injection de cytokines telles que le G-CSF reste l’une des options thérapeutiques les plus intéressantes. Ces donnés nouvelles soulignent l’importance de la notion d’hématopoïèse résiduelle, mais aussi le fait que les mécanismes de régulation de l’hématopoïèse résiduelle après irradiation restent mal connus.