Six adult female chimpanzees were shown video scenes of chimpanzees repeatedly yawning or of chimpanzees showing open-mouth facial expressions that were not yawns. Two out of the six females showed significantly higher frequencies of yawning in response to yawn videos; no chimpanzees showed the inverse. Three infant chimpanzees that accompanied their mothers did not yawn at all. These data are ...

When is a person with a cold contagious? A couple of friends, who are put off when I keep my distance from their sneezing and coughing, insist one is only contagious a week or so before symptoms appear. In the back of my memory is the idea that one remains contagious until a few days *after* primary symptoms disappear. I'm not usually so concerned about this, but I'm coping with a couple of oth...

Hemophilus pleuropneumoniae, the causative agent of porcine contagious pleuropneumonia (PCP) is an encapsulated organism that has the metabolic features of the parainfluenza group of Hemophilus in that it requires DPN but not hemin for growth. Its formation of nitrate reductase cytochrome a(1) and non-physiologically reducible cytochrome c(1) in the stationary phase, together with its requireme...

From the Medical Service, Infectious Disease Section, Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Departments of Medicine and Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine — both in Houston (D.M.M.); and the Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia (B.L.M.). Address reprint requests to Dr. Daniel Musher at the Infectio...

Orf is a common viral infection in sheep. It spreads to humans by direct contact. It is self-limiting, treatment having no beneficial effect. Misdiagnosis by those unfamiliar with its characteristic features is common, and may result in unnecessary treatment with antibiotics or surgery. We present a series of five cases of Orf in children of farmers in the west of Ireland, seen over a 10 year p...

Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) is one of the most important infectious diseases of cattle in Africa. Naïve herds can experience losses up to 80%, and many cattle that survive remain chronic carriers. These carriers may suffer from recurrent low-grade fever, loss of condition, and respiratory signs upon exercise, and might introduce the virus into uninfected herds. Although contagious ...