Adaptation of the in vivo respiratory burst assay for fathead minnow larvae (Pimephales promelas).

Initial innate immune responses such as the respiratory burst response of phagocytes present the first line of defense in response to exposure to pathogens. Several respiratory burst assays have been developed in mammals, cell cultures, and whole zebrafish embryos as a reliable indicator of the innate immune response of a host, and these assays are being used to screen various environmental contaminants for their immunotoxic potential. While zebrafish are a common laboratory fish used in toxicology studies geared towards human health effects, fathead minnows are commonly used as an ecotoxicological indicator species for North America.

Binary mixtures of imidacloprid and thiamethoxam do not appear to cause additive toxicity in fathead minnow larvae ().

Considerable use of neonicotinoid insecticides has resulted in their detection in surface waters globally, with imidacloprid (IM) and thiamethoxam (TM) frequently found together. Neonicotinoids are selective agonists for invertebrate nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) leading to paralysis and death. While not overtly toxic to vertebrates, growing evidence suggests that chronic exposure to individual neonicotinoids can cause adverse health effects in fish.

Cardiac tamponade, an unusual and fatal complication of esophagus dilatation for benign stenosis: a case report.

Introduction: We present a patient with a fatal late esophago-pericardial fistula three months after dilatation for benign oesophagus stenosis

Case Presentation: A 71-year-old caucasian male with a known benign esophagus stenosis was referred to the ICU. On arrival an asystole developed which proved to be due to a large pericardial effusion. Pericardial fluids were drained, but the patients' condition worsened and he died due to multiple organ failure.