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Featured articles from Cave & Karst Science Journals
Characterization of minothems at Libiola (NW Italy): morphological, mineralogical, and geochemical study, Carbone Cristina; Dinelli Enrico; De Waele Jo
Chemistry and Karst, White, William B.
The karst paradigm: changes, trends and perspectives, Klimchouk, Alexander
Long-term erosion rate measurements in gypsum caves of Sorbas (SE Spain) by the Micro-Erosion Meter method, Sanna, Laura; De Waele, Jo; Calaforra, José Maria; Forti, Paolo
The use of damaged speleothems and in situ fault displacement monitoring to characterise active tectonic structures: an example from Zapadni Cave, Czech Republic , Briestensky, Milos; Stemberk, Josef; Rowberry, Matt D.;
Featured articles from other Geoscience Journals
Karst environment, Culver D.C.
Mushroom Speleothems: Stromatolites That Formed in the Absence of Phototrophs, Bontognali, Tomaso R.R.; D’Angeli Ilenia M.; Tisato, Nicola; Vasconcelos, Crisogono; Bernasconi, Stefano M.; Gonzales, Esteban R. G.; De Waele, Jo
Calculating flux to predict future cave radon concentrations, Rowberry, Matt; Marti, Xavi; Frontera, Carlos; Van De Wiel, Marco; Briestensky, Milos
Microbial mediation of complex subterranean mineral structures, Tirato, Nicola; Torriano, Stefano F.F;, Monteux, Sylvain; Sauro, Francesco; De Waele, Jo; Lavagna, Maria Luisa; D’Angeli, Ilenia Maria; Chailloux, Daniel; Renda, Michel; Eglinton, Timothy I.; Bontognali, Tomaso Renzo Rezio
Evidence of a plate-wide tectonic pressure pulse provided by extensometric monitoring in the Balkan Mountains (Bulgaria), Briestensky, Milos; Rowberry, Matt; Stemberk, Josef; Stefanov, Petar; Vozar, Jozef; Sebela, Stanka; Petro, Lubomir; Bella, Pavel; Gaal, Ludovit; Ormukov, Cholponbek;
Journal of Cave and Karst Studies, 2013, Vol 75, Issue 1, p. 1-10
Evaluation of Strategies for the Decontamination of equipment for Geomyces destructans, the Causative Agent of the White-Nose Syndrome (WNS)
Shelley V. , Kaiser S. , Shelley E. , Williams T. , Kramer M. , Haman K. , Keel K. , Barton H. A.
Abstract:
White-nose syndrome is an emerging infectious disease that has led to a
dramatic decline in cave-hibernating bat species. White-nose syndrome is caused by the
newly described fungal pathogen Geomyces destructans, which infects the ear, muzzle,
and wing membranes of bats. Although the exact mechanism by which the fungus causes
death is not yet understood, G. destructans leads to a high mortality rate in infected
animals.While the primary mechanism of infection appears to be bat-to-bat transfer, it is
still unclear what role human activity may play in the spread of this pathogen. Here we
evaluate the effectiveness of decontamination protocols that can be utilized by
speleologists to reduce the likelihood of spreading this dangerous pathogen to naı¨ve
bats or uninfected hibernacula. Our results show that pre-cleaning to remove muds and/
or sediments followed by the use of commercially available disinfectants can effectively
remove G. destructans from caving fabrics. Alternatively, immersion in water above
50 uC for at least 20 minutes effectively destroys the fungal spores. These results have
allowed the development of a decontamination protocol (http://www.fws.gov/
WhiteNoseSyndrome/cavers.html) that, when appropriately followed, can greatly
reduce the likelihood of the human mediated transfer of G. destructans from an
infected to uninfected site.
White-nose syndrome is an emerging infectious disease that has led to a
dramatic decline in cave-hibernating bat species. White-nose syndrome is caused by the
newly described fungal pathogen Geomyces destructans, which infects the ear, muzzle,
and wing membranes of bats. Although the exact mechanism by which the fungus causes
death is not yet understood, G. destructans leads to a high mortality rate in infected
animals.While the primary mechanism of infection appears to be bat-to-bat transfer, it is
still unclear what role human activity may play in the spread of this pathogen. Here we
evaluate the effectiveness of decontamination protocols that can be utilized by
speleologists to reduce the likelihood of spreading this dangerous pathogen to naı¨ve
bats or uninfected hibernacula. Our results show that pre-cleaning to remove muds and/
or sediments followed by the use of commercially available disinfectants can effectively
remove G. destructans from caving fabrics. Alternatively, immersion in water above
50 uC for at least 20 minutes effectively destroys the fungal spores. These results have
allowed the development of a decontamination protocol (http://www.fws.gov/
WhiteNoseSyndrome/cavers.html) that, when appropriately followed, can greatly
reduce the likelihood of the human mediated transfer of G. destructans from an
infected to uninfected site.