BACKGROUND

Ports are susceptible to the arrival of non-indigenous species (NIS) which can subsequently become invasive through maritime traffic. In the Philippines, few studies have been conducted about macrofouling communities in marine vessel-frequented areas. Batangas Port is an international port serving the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon, and docks vessels from areas around the globe. Baseline information of fouling communities in this area is essential as this can allow detection of NIS and alert the community about their presence. It can serve as basis for crafting of guidelines and mitigation measures for possible scenarios regarding the NIS' invasive potential.

METHODOLOGY

Three sampling sites in close proximity to Batangas Port in Brgy. Sta. Clara, Batangas City were studied using biofouling collectors. Fouler collector design was adapted from the North Pacific Marine Sciences Organization (PICES) design. Collectors were deployed in an unused pier, aquaculture pond and mangrove area from November 2014 to January 2015. Retrieved biofoulers were identified using taxonomic keys, and diversity indices were computed.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

A total of 1044 individuals were collected in the plates submerged at the sampling sites. These organisms belonged to six phyla and at least nine classes. The community included bivalves, gastropods, polychaetes, and tunicates. A nonindigenous polychaete, Eumida sanguinea, was detected in the retrieval. Values of biodiversity indices indicate low biodiversity, and species evenness values are low as well.

CONCLUSION

The study generated a baseline listing of organisms in the port area and showed a roster of indigenous invertebrates. However, a NIS has been detected. The list is essential as it can be used to alert communities surrounding the port about the presence of NIS so that ecological, economic, and health impacts can be minimized, and monitoring be done regularly.

Animals ; Biofouling ; Invasive Species ; Introduced Species

BACKGROUND: Tinea corporis includes all superficial dermatophyte infections of the skin other than those involving the scalp, beard, face, hands, feet, and groin. The most common lesion is an annular lesion with central clearing area. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the correlation of clinical and mycological features of tinea corporis. METHOD: We performed clinical and mycological study on 105 cases of tinea corporis at Department of Dermatology, Konkuk University Hospital from August 2002 to October 2003. RESULTS: The ratio of male to female was 1: 1.02. Tinea corporis was most prevalent in the twenties. Of the clinical variants of tinea corporis, the annular type was most commonly noted. Sixty-nine cases (66%) had the single lesion. In 71 cases (67.7%), the size of individual skin lesion was less than 5 cm in diameter. The unexposed area (55.7%) was more frequently affected than exposed area (44.3%) and the most common site was anterior chest (20.1%). Coexisting fungal infection was found in 60 cases (57.1%), and the cases of tinea pedis was the most common. Forty-five cases (42.9%) had a history of contact with animals that were thought be to infection source. Among 105 cases, dermatophytes were isolated in 73 cases. They were Trichophyton (T.) rubrum (58 cases), T. mentagrophytes (8 cases), Microsporum (M.) canis (5 cases), M. gypseum (1 case), and T. tonsurans (1 case). No species specificity was noted in annular type, and M. canis was more commonly isolated from the smaller lesion. CONCLUSION: Zoophilic dermatophyte infection associated with prior contacts with animals and infection caused by introduced species are increased by rise of families breeding animal pets and more frequent abroad interchanges.
Animals ; Arthrodermataceae ; Breeding ; Dermatology ; Female ; Foot ; Groin ; Hand ; Humans ; Introduced Species ; Male ; Microsporum ; Scalp ; Skin ; Species Specificity ; Thorax ; Tinea Pedis ; Tinea* ; Trichophyton

To study the genetic stability of Panax quinquefolium after introduced into China for 30 years, the samples of P. quinquefolium from 14 regions of China were studied. RAPD molecular marker technology was applied in this research, and POPGEN32 data analysis and NTSYS2. 10 cluster diagram were used to analyze the data. The results showed that there are abundant genetic diversity in the ginseng samples. There were 81 polymorphic bands based on the 13 random primers. The polymorphism was 83.51%, the effective number of alleles (N(e)) was 1.456 7; Nei's gene diversity index (H) was 0.274 8; Shannon's diversity index (H(o)) was 0.419 4. The clustering analyses indicated that P. quinquefolium and P. ginseng were classified into two obvious groups, especially, it was also found that the P. quinquefolium could be divided into two obvious groups based on whether the P. ginseng was cultivated in the same region or not, but it was thought that there was not genetically a qualitative difference. Thus it suggests that a good breeding field should be established in Jilin Province of China for the germplasm purification.
China ; DNA, Plant ; genetics ; Genetic Variation ; Introduced Species ; Panax ; classification ; genetics ; Phylogeny ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique ; United States

Ageratina adenophora is a noxious plant and it is known to cause acute asthma, diarrhea, depilation, and even death in livestock (Zhu et al., 2007; Wang et al., 2017). A. adenophora grows near roadsides and degraded land worldwide (He et al., 2015b). In the areas where it grows, A. adenophora is an invasive species that inhibits the growth of local plants and causes poisoning in animals that come in contact with it (Nie et al., 2012). In China, these plants can be found in Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, Chongqing, and other southwestern areas (He et al., 2015a) and they have become a dominant species in these local regions. It threatens the native biodiversity and ecosystem in the invaded areas and causes serious economic losses (Wang et al., 2017). It has been reported that A. adenophora can grow in the northeast direction at a speed of 20 km per year in China (Guo et al., 2009). Because of the damage caused by A. adenophora, it ranks among the earliest alien invasive plant species in China (Wang et al., 2017).
Adenosine Triphosphatases/metabolism* ; Ageratina/toxicity* ; Animals ; Biodiversity ; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury/pathology* ; China ; DNA, Mitochondrial/genetics* ; Ecosystem ; Introduced Species ; Liver/drug effects* ; Mice ; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission ; Mitochondria, Liver/pathology* ; Plant Extracts/toxicity*