Environment in general and social signals in particular could alter development. In Caenorhabditis elegans, male pheromones hasten development of hermaphrodite larvae. We show that this involves acceleration of growth and both somatic and germline development during the last larval stage (L4). Larvae exposed to male pheromones spend more time in L3 and less in the quiescent period between L3 and L4. This behavioral alteration improves provision in early L4, likely allowing for faster development. Larvae must be exposed to male pheromones in late L3 for behavioral and developmental effects to occur. Latter portions of other larval stages also contain periods of heightened sensitivity to environmental signals. Behavior during the early part of the larval stages is biased toward exploration, whereas later the emphasis shifts to food consumption. We argue that this organization allows assessment of the environment to identify the most suitable patch of resources, followed by acquisition of sufficient nutrition and salient information for the developmental events in the next larval stage. Evidence from other species indicates that such coordination of behavior and development may be a general feature of larval development.

Horses can become obese and develop related health issues such as laminitis from excessive grazing on high-quality pasture grass; limiting pasture intake can allow weight loss to occur. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of space-restricted rotational grazing on body weight (BW) and time budgets in horses. Eight mature geldings and mares with maintenance-only requirements were randomly assigned to either a space-restricted rotational grazing group (SRG; BW 512 ± 6 kg; n = 4) or a continuous grazing group (CG; BW 517 ± 49 kg; n = 4) for 42 d SRG horses grazed an area with dimensions to provide 80-90 % of mean digestible energy requirement for the 4 horses over a 7-d grazing period; whereas, the CG horses continuously grazed similar non-toxic endophyte-infected tall fescue pasture providing greater than maintenance requirements for the 42 d Horses in the SRG group were moved to a new area every 7 d for 6 weeks. On d 7 at 1600 h of each week, horses were brought inside, and feed was withheld overnight. At 0700 h the next day, BWs were recorded prior to turnout. Observers recorded behaviors simultaneously on SRG and CG horses every six minutes throughout the day three days per week according to an ethogram. This included 30 s scans of all horses. Proportion of grazing and standing had an inverse relationship. Proportion of grazing was affected by the treatment by time interaction, which grazing was displayed more in SRG than CG during weeks 2 and 3, and then reversed weeks 4, 5 and 6.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to assess whether children and adolescents with epilepsy are at higher risk of behavioral disturbances when they have concomitant cognitive disturbances.
METHODS: Behavioral scores were generated using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Cognitive evaluation was applied by using different age appropriate versions of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale. CBCL scores (total, externalizing, internalizing) were compared between patients with and without intellectual disability (IQ score < 70 and ≥70, respectively).
RESULTS: 144 (10.2 mean age, 6.0-17.9 range) patients were recruited for the study. Patients with mild to moderate intellectual disability (full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) < 70) were not at higher risk of behavioral disturbances (total CBCL score ≥ 63) than patients without cognitive impairment. The mean total CBCL score was 62.0 ± 10.6 (range 42.0-83.5, 95% CI 57.9-62.0) and 59.3 ± 10.3 (range 38.0-80.0, CI 57.4-61.2) for patients with FSIQ < 70 and ≥70, respectively. There was no correlation between FSIQ and total CBCL scores. These findings were true for all IQ subcategories.
CONCLUSIONS: Behavioral disturbances among children and adolescents with epilepsy occur despite the presence or absence of intellectual dysfunction with respect to full-scale IQ.

Parkinson\'s disease is a neurological disorder characterized by reduced motility, depression and dementia. Guamanian parkinsonism dementia with amyotrophic sclerosis is a local case of Parkinson\'s disease reported in the Western Pacific Islands of Guam and Rota as well as in the Kii Peninsula of Japan. A previous genetic study has suggested that Guamanian parkinsonism is attributable to a variant of the TRPM7 gene, which encodes for melastatin-related transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels. But the link between parkinsonism and the TRPM7 gene remains elusive. Previous studies have addressed that trpm7-deficient zebrafish embryos showed defects in pigmentation and touch-evoked motor response. In this study, we identified a new viable allele of trpm7 mutant causing an I756N amino acid substitution in the first transmembrane domain. Behavioral analyses revealed that trpm7 mutants showed compromised motility with their movement distance shorter than wild-type larvae. The velocity of the movement was significantly reduced in trpm7 mutants than in wild-type larvae. Along with a previous finding of reduced dopaminergic neurons in zebrafish trpm7 mutants, reduced motility of trpm7 mutants can suggest another similarity between trpm7 phenotypes and Parkinson\'s disease symptoms.

UNASSIGNED: Both ketamine (KET) and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) deep brain stimulation (DBS) are emerging therapies for treatment-resistant depression, yet our understanding of their electrophysiological mechanisms and biomarkers is incomplete. This study investigates aperiodic and periodic spectral parameters, and the signal complexity measure sample entropy, within mPFC local field potentials (LFP) in a chronic corticosterone (CORT) depression model after ketamine and/or mPFC DBS.
UNASSIGNED: Male rats were intraperitoneally administered CORT or vehicle for 21 days. Over the last 7 days, animals receiving CORT were treated with mPFC DBS, KET, both, or neither; then tested across an array of behavioral tasks for 9 days.
UNASSIGNED: We found that the depression-like behavioral and weight effects of CORT correlated with a decrease in aperiodic-adjusted theta power (5-10 Hz) and an increase in sample entropy during the administration phase, and an increase in theta peak frequency and a decrease in the aperiodic exponent once the depression-like phenotype had been induced. The remission-like behavioral effects of ketamine alone correlated with a post-treatment increase in the offset and exponent, and decrease in sample entropy, both immediately and up to eight days post-treatment. The remission-like behavioral effects of mPFC DBS alone correlated with an immediate decrease in sample entropy, an immediate and sustained increase in low gamma (20-50 Hz) peak width and aperiodic offset, and sustained improvements in cognitive function. Failure to fully induce remission-like behavior in the combinatorial treatment group correlated with a failure to suppress an increase in sample entropy immediately after treatment.
UNASSIGNED: Our findings therefore support the potential of periodic theta parameters as biomarkers of depression-severity; and periodic low gamma parameters and cognitive measures as biomarkers of mPFC DBS treatment efficacy. They also support sample entropy and the aperiodic spectral parameters as potential cross-modal biomarkers of depression severity and the therapeutic efficacy of mPFC DBS and/or ketamine. Study of these biomarkers is important as objective measures of disease severity and predictive measures of therapeutic efficacy can be used to personalize care and promote the translatability of research across studies, modalities, and species.

BACKGROUND: There is limited evidence on effective health systems interventions for preventing female genital mutilation (FGM). This study tested a two-level intervention package at primary care applying person-centred communication (PCC) for FGM prevention.
METHODS: A cluster randomised trial was conducted in 2020-2021 in 180 antenatal care (ANC) clinics in Guinea, Kenya and Somalia. At baseline, all clinics received guidance and materials on FGM prevention and care; at month 3, ANC providers at intervention sites received PCC training. Data were collected from clinic managers, ANC providers and clients at baseline, month 3 and month 6 on primary outcomes, including delivery of PCC counselling, utilisation of level one materials, health facility preparedness for FGM prevention and care services and secondary outcomes related to clients\' and providers\' knowledge and attitudes. Data were analysed using multilevel and single-level logistic regression models.
RESULTS: Providers in the intervention arm were more likely to deliver PCC for FGM prevention compared with those in the control arm, including inquiring about clients\' FGM status (adjusted OR (AOR): 8.9, 95% CI: 6.9 to 11.5; p<0.001) and FGM-related beliefs (AOR: 9.7, 95% CI: 7.5 to 12.5; p<0.001) and discussing why (AOR: 9.2, 95% CI: 7.1 to 11.9; p<0.001) or how (AOR: 7.7, 95% CI: 6.0 to 9.9; p<0.001) FGM should be prevented. They were more confident in their FGM-related knowledge (AOR: 7.0, 95% CI: 1.5 to 32.3; p=0.012) and communication skills (AOR: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.0 to 3.2; p=0.035). Intervention clients were less supportive of FGM (AOR: 5.4, 95% CI: 2.4 to 12.4; p<0.001) and had lower intentions of having their daughters undergo FGM (AOR: 0.3, 95% CI: 0.1 to 0.7; p=0.004) or seeking medicalised FGM (AOR: 0.2, 95% CI: 0.1 to 0.5; p<0.001) compared with those in the control arm.
CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to provide evidence of an effective FGM prevention intervention that can be delivered in primary care settings in high-prevalence countries.
UNASSIGNED: PACTR201906696419769 (3 June 2019).

OBJECTIVE: To describe the effect of two doses of maropitant on pain scores, food intake, and fecal output in domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) undergoing elective ovariohysterectomy or orchiectomy.
METHODS: 26 (11 female, 15 male) rabbits from three institutions.
METHODS: Rabbits were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: low-dose maropitant (LDM; 2 mg/kg SC once; n=8), moderate-dose maropitant (MDM; 4 mg/kg SC once; n=10), and control (saline equivalent to 4 mg/kg maropitant SC once; n=8), administered prior to surgery. Following surgery, all rabbits were provided buprenorphine (0.06 mg/kg q 8 hours) and meloxicam (1 mg/kg q 24 hours) intramuscularly. Rabbits were monitored using video surveillance postoperatively until 24 hours after surgery or discharge from the hospital, whichever came first. Pain scores were assessed by three blinded observers, and results were grouped into early (0-4 hours), mid (5-8 hours), and late (12-24 hours) time frames. Food intake and fecal output were compared between groups. Statistical analysis was performed using Chi square, Fisher\'s exact tests, and a mixed model approach.
RESULTS: There were no adverse effects with maropitant administration. Rabbits that received MDM had significantly lower pain scores in the mid-time frame and behavior scores in the late-time frame compared to controls. Male rabbits consumed more food than females and rabbits hospitalized longer than 12 hours consumed more food than those that were discharged prior. No significant differences were detected in facial grimace scale scores, food intake, or fecal production among treatment groups.
CONCLUSIONS: Moderate dose maropitant decreased pain related behaviors in the mid-time frame and behavior scores in the late-time frame after surgery. Further studies are necessary to better characterize the potential use of maropitant in postoperative analgesia.

UNASSIGNED: The present study aims to evaluate the impact of early exposure to brain injury and malnutrition on episodic memory and behavior.
UNASSIGNED: For this, a systematic review was carried out in the Medline/Pubmed, Web of Science, Scopus, and LILACS databases with no year or language restrictions.
UNASSIGNED: Initially, 1759 studies were detected. After screening, 53 studies remained to be read in full. The meta-analysis demonstrated that exposure to double insults worsens episodic recognition memory but does not affect spatial memory. Early exposure to low-protein diets has been demonstrated to aggravate locomotor and masticatory sequelae. Furthermore, it reduces the weight of the soleus muscle and the muscle fibers of the masseter and digastric muscles. Early exposure to high-fat diets promotes an increase in oxidative stress and inflammation in the brain, increasing anxiety- and depression-like behavior and reducing locomotion.
UNASSIGNED: Epigenetic modifications were noted in the hippocampus, hypothalamus, and prefrontal cortex depending on the type of dietetic exposure in early life. These findings demonstrate the impact of the double insult on regions involved in cognitive and behavioral processes. Additional studies are essential to understand the real impact of the double insults in the critical period.

The 4th Italian Zebrafish Meeting took place in Palermo from February 7 to 9, 2024. The primary aim of this meeting was to bring together a diverse group of principal investigators, young researchers, facility managers, commercial vendors, and others to provide an important forum for presentation and discussion of the most innovative and exciting scientific research currently ongoing in Italy using the zebrafish model. Nonetheless, the meeting program has been conceived to allow the dissemination of cutting-edge scientific research across a wide range of topics and to shed light on its future directions, without geographical boundaries. Indeed, people from various parts of the world joined the meeting, and 210 participants presented their latest work in talks and posters. Importantly, the meeting had designated time to foster open scientific exchange and informal networking opportunities among participants of all career stages, thus allowing initiation of new collaborations and strengthening of existing partnerships. The meeting was a tremendous success as testified by the highest participation ever since the first meeting of the series in 2017, coupled with the highly positive satisfaction rating expressed by the attendants. The full program and detailed information about the meeting can be found on the dedicated website at https://itazebrafishmeeting.wixsite.com/izm2024.

Harvester ants are one of the most extensively studied groups of ants, especially the group foraging ants, Messor barbarus (Linnaeus, 1767), which construct long-lasting trunk trails. Limited laboratory investigations have delved into head-on encounters along foraging trails involving workers moving in opposing directions, with fewer corresponding studies conducted in the natural environment. To address this gap, we devised an in-field experimental design to induce lane segregation on the foraging trunk trail of M. barbarus. Using an image-based tracking method, we analyzed the foraging behavior of this species to assess the costs associated with head-on encounters and to figure out the natural coexistence of outgoing and returning workers on a bidirectional route. Our results consistently reveal heightened straightness and speed in unidirectional test lanes, accompanied by an elevated foraging rate compared to bidirectional lanes. This suggests a potential impact of head-on collisions on foraging behavior, especially on foraging efficiency. Additionally, Kinematic analysis revealed distinct movement patterns between outbound and inbound flows, particularly low speed and sinuous trajectories of inbounding unladen workers. The study of encounter rates in two traffic systems hints at the plausible utilization of individual memory by workers within trails, underscoring the pivotal role of encounters in information exchange and load transfer.