Infectious ants become antisocial
2015-04-14
(Press-News.org) This news release is available in German.
Looking after yourself, and trying not to infect others, is a good strategy to prevent disease from spreading - not only if you are a considerate co-worker, but also if you are an ant, meerkat or other social animal, as revealed by an epidemiological model developed by the groups of Professor Fabian Theis from the Helmholtz Center Munich and Professor Sylvia Cremer from the Institute of Science and Technology (IST) Austria. In a Theme Issue of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B on "The Society-Health-Fitness Nexus" published on 13 April 2015, they combine observations of hygienic interaction networks within ant colonies with epidemiological modeling to conclude that this strategy is best to prevent disease spread in social animal groups.
Infectious diseases can spread quickly in societies, but mutual hygienic care may act as countermeasure. Taking care of diseased individuals is not restricted to human societies, but also occurs in social animal groups, such as primates, and social insects. Sylvia Cremer and Line Ugelvig at IST Austria, together with Fabian Theis and Carsten Marr at the Helmholtz Center Munich, use ant societies as a model system to observe ants' sanitary response to pathogen exposure in the laboratory, and to determine their effects on disease dynamics using epidemiological modeling. In their study, they observed how garden ants (Lasius neglectus) react to being exposed to the fungal pathogen Metarhizium by cleaning themselves (self-grooming) or other ants (allogrooming), and how much allogrooming they receive from their healthy nestmates The researchers then applied their theoretical model to determine whether the observed behavioral changes upon pathogen contact were adaptive in terms of reducing disease spread through the colony.
Cremer and colleagues observed that when exposed to the fungus, ants cleaned themselves more frequently, yet drastically diminished cleaning of their healthy group members. This lead to a social grooming asymmetry, where infectious ants received more sanitazing actions than they performed, yet this was not primarily due to increased received care, but by self-restriction of care performance. Epidemiological modeling predicts that the observed behavioral changes, i.e. increased self-grooming and decreased allogrooming by infectious ants helps to contain the pathogen's spread in the ant colony, being a generally beneficial strategy for all social animals threatened by an epidemic of whatever pathogen. Taking care of oneself but restricting contact to others in a phase where one may be a risk to the health of others is thus a strategy benefiting the whole society under pathogen attack.
Sylvia Cremer also co-authored the Theme Issue's introductory review paper on sociality and health.
INFORMATION:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2015-04-14
This news release is available in Spanish and Spanish.
Combination of the anticancer drug PM1183 with PARP inhibitors and doxorubicin results in a synergistic effect against breast cancer cell lines and a SCLC mouse tumor model, respectively.
The anticancer candidate plitidepsin binds to eEF1A2, a novel therapeutic target in multiple myeloma, and shows activity in patient-derived tumor mouse models from a wide range of solid tumors and hematological cancers.
The new antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), MI130004, shows in vivo potent and long-lasting anticancer effects ...
2015-04-14
New research from the University of Warwick and University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust could transform treatments and diagnosis for a common digestive condition which affects thousands of patients.
The oesophagus or food pipe (gullet) is part of the digestive system. It is the tube that carries food from your mouth to your stomach. Barrett's Oesophagus (also known as BE) and low-grade dysplasia affects approximately 2% of the adult population, particularly those with heartburn, as acid reflux from the stomach can, over time, damage the lining ...
2015-04-14
When it comes to supramolecular chemistry, the carboxylic acid group (and its conjugate carboxylate base) is one of the chemist's most flexible friends. In pairs, they act as supramolecular synthons from which more complicated structures might be built but also offer up complex hydrogen bond connectivity. Luigi D'Ascenzo and Pascal Auffinger of the University of Strasbourg, France [D'Ascenzo, L. & Auffinger, P. (2015), Acta Cryst. B71, 164-175; doi: 10.1107/S205252061500270X], point out that until now there has been no exhaustive classification of these carboxyl(ate) motifs ...
2015-04-14
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 14, 2015 - A team of Finnish scientists has found a new way to examine the ancient art of putting ink to paper in unprecedented 3-D detail. The technique could improve scientists' understanding of how ink sticks to paper and ultimately lead to higher quality, less expensive and more environmentally-friendly printed products.
Using modern X-ray and laser-based technologies, the researchers created a nano-scale map of the varying thickness of toner ink on paper. They discovered that wood fibers protruding from the paper received relatively thin coatings ...
2015-04-14
Among a group of more than 320,000 children, intrauterine exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus diagnosed by 26 weeks' gestation was associated with risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA. Maternal pre-existing type 2 diabetes was not significantly associated with risk of ASD in offspring.
Exposure of fetuses to maternal hyperglycemia may have long-lasting effects on organ development and function. Previous studies have revealed long-term risks of obesity and related metabolic disorders in offspring of women who ...
2015-04-14
Between 2010 and 2013, data breaches of protected health information reported by HIPAA-covered entities increased and involved approximately 29 million records, with most data breaches resulting from overt criminal activity, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.
Reports of data breaches have increased during the past decade. Compared with other industries, these breaches are estimated to be the most costly in health care; however, few studies have detailed their characteristics and scope. Vincent Liu, M.D., M.S., of the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, ...
2015-04-14
Among patients with atrial fibrillation who filled prescriptions for the anticoagulant dabigatran at Veterans Health Administration sites, there was variability in patient medication adherence across sites, with appropriate patient selection and pharmacist-led monitoring associated with greater adherence to the medication, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.
Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, affecting more than 3 million patients and necessitating treatment with oral anticoagulation in moderate- to high-risk patients to reduce ...
2015-04-14
In a comparison of mechanical prosthetic vs bioprosthetic mitral valves among patients 50 to 69 years of age undergoing mitral valve replacement, there was no significant difference in survival at 15 years, although there were differences in risk of reoperation, bleeding and stroke, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.
In patients with severe, symptomatic mitral valve disease unsuitable for surgical repair, mitral valve replacement reduces symptoms and improves survival. Bioprosthetic valves (made primarily with tissue) are recommended in patients older ...
2015-04-14
PASADENA, Calif., -- Children whose mothers developed gestational diabetes by the 26th week of pregnancy were at increased risk of developing autism later in life, according to a new Kaiser Permanente study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Researchers examined the electronic health records of more than 322,000 ethnically diverse children born between 28 and 44 weeks at Kaiser Permanente Southern California medical centers between January 1995 and December 2009. They followed the children for an average of 5.5 years and found that those ...
2015-04-14
Patients are more likely to take a new type of blood thinner correctly and without missing doses when they are managed by pharmacists, rather than only by doctors or nurses, according to a study co-authored by a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine.
Mintu Turakhia, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Stanford, and fellow researchers studied a new treatment for atrial fibrillation, a dangerous heart disorder that increases the risk of stroke and blood clots. The treatment, a drug called dabigatran, is one of a new class of twice-daily oral medications. ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Infectious ants become antisocial
