This book is a set of expert contemporary reviews summarizing much current laboratory-based Leishmania research and will be of interest to many modern parasitologists. Image:GFP fusion proteins expressed in trans for the cellular localization of Leishmania major gene products identified in silico.
(Image supplied by Momodou Jobe and Kevin Tyler, University of East Anglia)
Canine leishmaniasis is endemic in the Mediterranean area, with a high percentage of infected asymptomatic animals. This paper suggests that nitric oxide released by dog macrophages is involved in the long-term protection against natural Leishmania infection. Image: Dog macrophage engulfing Leishmania amastigotes (Giemsa stain X 1000).
The effect of irradiation on the incidence of multiple insemination in a laboratory strain of Anopheles arabiensis is described. Multiple insemination was studied by labelling semen with different stable isotopes. Image: Spermatozoa inside the testes of An. arabiensis.
Tick-repelling efficacy of different topical formulations was compared by laboratory screening and in humans. By reducing the human-vector contact, repellents minimise the risk of acquiring tick-borne infections. Image: Nymphal tick climbing from the tip of a glass rod to the attractant.
Biochemical and cDNA profiling of peptidases in the gut of the tick Ixodes ricinus demonstrated the presence of cathepsins B, L, C, D and asparaginyl endopeptidase; this proves that blood digestion in ticks is based on an evolutionary older network of cysteine/aspartic peptidases similar to blood-flukes but different from insect blood-feeders. Image:Digestive cells in the gut of a partially engorged tick Ixodes ricinus; the cross-section of a tick gut caecum was stained with toluidine blue.
