Immunostaining in clinical routine and research highly depends on standardized staining methods and quantitative image analyses. We qualitatively and quantitatively compared antigen retrieval methods (no pretreatment, pretreatment with pepsin, and heat-induced pretreatment with pH 6 or pH 9) for 17 antibodies relevant for placenta and implantation diagnostics and research. Using our newly established, comprehensive automated quantitative image analysis approach, fluorescent signal intensities were evaluated. Automated quantitative image analysis found that 9 out of 17 antibodies needed antigen retrieval to show positive staining. Heat induction proved to be the most efficient form of antigen retrieval. Eight markers stained positive after pepsin digestion, with β-hCG and vWF showing enhanced staining intensities. To avoid the misinterpretation of quantitative image data, the qualitative aspect should always be considered. Results from native placental tissue were compared with sections of a placental invasion model based on thermo-sensitive scaffolds. Immunostaining on placentas in vitro leads to new insights into fetal development and maternal pathophysiological pathways, as pregnant women are justifiably excluded from clinical studies. Thus, there is a clear need for the assessment of reliable immunofluorescent staining and pretreatment methods. Our evaluation offers a powerful tool for antibody and pretreatment selection in placental research providing objective and precise results.

In this Research Communication we evaluate the use of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) to identify 380 bacteria isolated from cases of bovine mastitis in Brazil. MALDI-TOF MS identifications were compared to previous identifications by biochemical tests and 16S rRNA sequencing. MALDI-TOF MS achieved a typeability of 95.5%. The accuracy of MALDI-TOF MS for the identification of Staphylococcus isolates was 93.2%. The agreement between MALDI-TOF MS and biochemical identification of Streptococcus agalactiae was 96%, however, the agreement between these techniques for identifying other catalase-negative, Gram-positive cocci was lower. Agreement in identifying Gram-negative bacteria at the genus level was 90.5%. Our findings corroborate that MALDI-TOF MS is an accurate, rapid and simple technique for identifying bovine mastitis pathogens. The availability of this methodology in some research institutions would represent a significant step toward increasing the diagnosis and epidemiological studies of bovine mastitis and other animal infectious diseases in Brazil.

Paleoprecipitation reconstructions on the basis of pollen are well known, but they do not provide high temporal resolution for glacial periods. High-resolution paleoprecipitation reconstructions for the last glaciation based on the isotopic record organic matter in loess from Nussloch (Rhine Valley, Germany) are consistent with paleoprecipitation inferred from peat in the same area using an independant method. Thus, δ13C of loess organic matter can be used as a proxy for paleoprecipitation.

Two randomly sampled groups of subjects were endowed with real budgets and placed in 5 different budget/price situations. In each situation they had to evaluate 6 orange juices and complete a demand table. At the end of the experiment, one demand table was randomly selected and participants had to buy the corresponding products. In one group, participants choose after looking at the packaging in the other they could also taste the products. Results show that participants who chose without tasting, made quicker decisions, selected a larger number of variants and were more influenced by prices than those who could taste the products. Although choices appeared very heterogeneous, most participants exhibit coherent behaviors. (JEL classification: C91, D12)

Two series of Vickrey auctions have been performed to assess the effect of packaging information (bottle and label) on the reservation prices of ordinary consumers for five brut non-vintage Champagnes. As in other studies on wine tasting, packaging information is found to explain much more of the variation in willingness to pay than sensory information. Participants are unable, or unwilling, to put different values on the Champagnes after blind tasting, but significant differences in reservation prices appear when labels are disclosed. Detailed analysis of choices reveals a large heterogeneity in individual behaviors and valuations of the Champagnes included in this study. (JEL Classification: C91, D12)

Due to very high accumulation rates, loess sequences are best suited archives for the continental paleoclimate of glacial periods. Accurate chronologies cannot be easily established by radiocarbon-dating, because of the lack of organic macrorests, the only material for reliable 14C dating so far. A chemical protocol is reported to extract the organic matter of loess (organic carbon content lower than 0.1% by weight) for accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C dating. Sediments were taken from the loess sequence of Nussloch, for which a large dataset of luminescence ages (TL, IRSL/OSL) is available. The 14C chronology of the organic matter extracted from loess is in good agreement with the corresponding luminescence ages. It allows high resolution correlations with climatic proxy signals (magnetic susceptibility, malacological assemblages, δ13C on organic matter, etc.) derived from the loess sequence and global environmental proxy records.