Performance of a ring-shaped emitter for subsurface irrigation in bell pepper (Capsicum annum L.) cultivation

Paddy and Water Environment - A low-cost subsurface irrigation system with ring-shaped emitters has been applied and considered as a way to improve water irrigation efficiency in a region where...     

First report of viruses infecting Vigna marina and Vigna riukiuensis in Japan

Journal of General Plant Pathology - Mosaic, chlorosis, brown spots, or roughness were found on Vigna marina and V. riukiuensis, which are salt-resistant wild relatives of cowpea (V. unguiculata)...     

Heated Leaf Extract of Coriandrum sativum L. Protects Nigral Dopaminergic Degeneration in Rats

Coriandrum sativum L. (coriander), which is an annual herb of the Apiaceae family, has been traditionally used as a remedy. Here we tested whether heated extract of coriander leaf protects nigral dopaminergic neurodegeneration after exposure to 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). After injection of 6-OHDA into the rat substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc), dopaminergic degeneration, which was determined by tyrosine hydroxylase immunostaining, was rescued by co-injection of CaEDTA, an extracellular Zn²⁺ chelator, suggesting that extracellular Zn²⁺ influx is involved in neurodegeneration. Both intracellular Zn²⁺ dysregulation determined by ZnAF-2 fluorescence and dopaminergic degeneration in the SNpc induced by 6-OHDA were rescued by co-injection of 0.25% coriander extract, which also reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in the SNpc determined by aminophenyl fluorescein fluorescence. The present study suggests that coriander leaf extract protects nigral dopaminergic neurodegeneration induced by intracellular Zn²⁺ dysregulation. It is likely that the nutraceutical property of coriander leaf extract contributes to the protection via reducing ROS production.

     

The Immunomodulating Effect of Phlorotannins from a Brown Alga,Eisenia nipponica,on Mice Stimulated with Ovalbumin through T Cell Regulation

Plant Foods for Human Nutrition - The immunomodulating effect of phlorotannin was investigated in mice stimulated by ovalbumin. When analyzing the main components of phlorotannin concentrate (PTC)...     

Tracheal chondrosarcoma in a blue tegu (Salvator merianae)

An 8-year-and-1-month-old female blue tegu (Salvator merianae) was brought to a clinician with severe cough. The patient died 11 days later despite supportive care, and necropsy was performed by a clinician. The lumen of the distal trachea was almost completely occluded by a milk-white, hard mass measuring 1 cm in diameter. Histopathologically, the mass comprised spindle-shaped to polygonal cells arranged in a loose sheet with abundant production of basophilic cartilaginous matrix, consistent with chondrosarcoma. Reports of tracheal neoplasms in reptiles are limited, and to the best of our knowledge this represents the first pathological documentation of tracheal chondrosarcoma in a reptile.     

Synthesis of β-O-4 type oligomeric lignin model compound by the nucleophilic addition of carbanion to the aldehyde group

A synthetic method for obtaining lignin oligomer that contains only the β-O-4 structure is described in detail. This method consists of three reaction steps: (1) the synthesis of t-butoxycarbonylmethyl vanillin (2), (2) the nucleophilic addition oligomerization of compound 2, and (3) the reduction of the oligomeric β-hydroxyl ester. In the first step, compound 2 was synthesized from vanillin in 96.8% yield. In the second step, compound 2 was oligomerized with commercial lithium diisopropylamide (LDA) to obtain oligomeric β-hydroxyl ester (3) in 87.2% yield; the repeating units of this oligomer were joined only by β-O-4 linkages as confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. In the third step, the oligomeric β-hydroxyl ester (3) was reduced with LiAlH₄ to give compound 4 in 42.4% yield. On the basis of NMR, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and gel permeation chromatography analyses of compound 4, it was concluded that compound 4 was an oligomeric lignin model compound containing only β-O-4 interunit linkages. The number average degree of polymerization (DPn) of obtained compound 4 was about 7.0 (M _w/M _n = 1.42). Using this oligomeric lignin model compound, conventional degradation and analytical methods will give new information.     

Clinical and histopathological features and prognosis of gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas in Jack Russell Terriers

There has been an increase in the number of Jack Russell Terriers (JRTs) diagnosed with adenomas and adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract in Japan. This study retrospectively investigated the clinical and histopathological features and prognosis of adenocarcinomas arising in the gastrointestinal tract in JRT dogs. Seven JRTs and 39 dogs of other breeds diagnosed with gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma were included in the study. The most common sites of gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma in JRTs were the pylorus and rectum. On histopathological examination, these adenocarcinomas showed a papillary or tubular growth pattern, and the lesions were confined within the mucosal epithelium and poorly invasive. Among all dogs with gastric adenocarcinoma, the median survival time (MST) for five of the JRTs could not be determined because more than half of the cases remained alive, while the MST for nine non-JRT dogs was 34 days. Among all dogs with adenocarcinoma in the large intestine, the MST for three of the JRTs could not be determined, while the MST for nine non-JRT dogs was 1,973 days. The difference in MST between JRT and non-JRT dogs with gastric adenocarcinoma was significant (P=0.0220). Since gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas in JRTs show distinct characteristics with respect to their clinical features, treatment course, and prognosis, a different surgical and medical treatment plan should be considered compared to the management of gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas in other dog breeds.     

Determination of acetamiprid,imidacloprid, and nitenpyram residues in vegetables and fruits by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection

Determination of 3 neonicotinoid insecticides, nitenpyram, imidacloprid, and acetamiprid, was studied. Vegetables and fruits were extracted with acetonitrile. The crude extract was passed through a weak anion-exchange cartridge (PSA). The effluent was subjected to silica gel cartridge. Imidacloprid and acetamiprid were eluted with 10 mL of 4:6 (v/v) acetone/hexane, followed by nitenpyram with acetone (20 mL). Pesticides were determined by HPLC with a C-18 column and diode-array detection system. Imidacloprid and acetamiprid were recovered at about 90% at the spike levels with 0.2 and 2 mg/kg in cucumber, potato, tomato, eggplant, Japanese radish, and grape. Nitenpyram was recovered at 64-80%. Relative standard deviations were less than 10% throughout all the recovery tests. In the residue analysis, agriculturally incurred pesticides at 0.08-0.14 mg/kg were designated with UV spectra compared with respective reference standards.     

Prevalence of a fish pathogen, Listonella anguillarum, in the intestinal tract of fish collected off the coast of Japan

This study evaluates the influence of temperature manipulation on circulating levels of sex steroids and gonadal maturation in F1 generation Senegalese sole Solea senegalensis breeders kept under either continuous light (LL) or natural photoperiod (NP). Under LL, progressive water temperature reduction during early winter [treatment MT (modified temperature)] significantly elevated [compared with exposure to LL and constant temperature (CT)] plasma steroid levels in females (January–February) and males (January) and proportion of females initiating maturation (January), suggesting a modulatory role of decreasing temperature in the early phases of sole gonadal recrudescence. Under NP, treatment MT did not stimulate female gonadal maturation despite the significantly higher plasma testosterone levels (February) compared with exposure to NP and CT, which may indicate that females at early‐intermediate phases of ovarian development, the predominant stages of maturation at early winter, were less responsive to the treatment. Conversely, treatment MT significantly enhanced male androgen production from January onwards, together with an increase in proportions of running individuals (March), indicating that males were also responsive to this treatment at mid‐late phases of testicular development. Our data further support the strong influence of water temperature on the overall control of gonadal maturation in Senegalese sole.