Variegate porphyria (VP) is an autosomal dominant disorder of porphyrin metabolism. We report a case of a 21-year-old male collegiate athlete who complained of recurrent headache and fatigue. Extensive testing after initial presentation failed to identify a cause. Months later, his grandmother was diagnosed with VP after being hospitalized; hence, he was tested. He was positive for a heterozygo...

The direct toxicity of insecticidal soap, horticultural oil, Azatin, an extract from the Neem tree containing azadiractin, and BotainiGard, a commercial formulation of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana, was assessed on adults of four species of coccinellids--Hippodamia convergens (Guérin-Ménéville), Coleomegilla maculata (DeGeer), Harmonia axyridis Pallas, and Cryptolaemus montrouz...

In this study, the orientation of two different predator species [(Coccinella septempunctata L., Hippodamia variegata (Goeze) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)) to aphids [Aphis fabae Scopoli and Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris (Hemiptera: Aphididae)] was investigated. Y-type olfactometer which made glass material with one entrance exit openings used in study. Different applications were applied ends pred...

Among the predatory ladybird beetles (Coccinellidae: Coleoptera), members of Coccinellini, predators aphids and psyllids, stand out. Although beneficial status these has been acknowledged by biological control researchers, there are no keys or detailed studies on immature stages South American Coccinellidae, especially Coccinellini. We provide descriptions illustrations immatures adults major C...

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) consists of a broad spectrum of liver lesions ranging from fatty liver (FL), through nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), up to cirrhosis. The incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease has increased in recent years due to the high rate of obesity in developed countries. Although the dogma "simple steatosis - benign prognosis, nonalcoholic steatohepat...

We studied the mechanical process of seed pods opening in Bauhinia variegate and found a chirality-creating mechanism, which turns an initially flat pod valve into a helix. We studied configurations of strips cut from pod valve tissue and from composite elastic materials that mimic its structure. The experiments reveal various helical configurations with sharp morphological transitions between th...

We describe a case of a giant conjunctival nevus presented in a 12-year-old girl with suspicious clinicomorphological appearance. The lesion was noticed by the parents at the age of 3 years as a "fleshy spot" on the bulbar conjunctiva. The lesion remained unchanged until approx. 6 months before recent admission. On slit-lamp examination, a large conjunctival lesion with variegate pigmentation a...

The production of video games is a complex process, which involves several disciplines, spanning from art to computer science. The final goal is to keep entertained the players, by continuously providing them novel and challenging contents. However, the availability of a large variety of pre-produced material is often not possible. A similar problem can be found in many single-player game genre...