Efficacy of praziquantel againstSchistosoma nasale infection in cattle

Summary Cattle naturally infected with nasal schistosomiasis were treated with a single oral dose of praziquantel at 20mg/kg body weight. The drug was highly effective causing a considerable reduction in egg counts, cessation of clinical signs and progressive regression of the nasal granulomatous growths.

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Eficacia Del Praziquantel Contra Infecciones DeSchistosoma Nasale Del Ganado Bovino

Resumen Se trató ganado bovino con esquistosomiasis nasal natural, con una dosis sencilla de praziquantel, 20 mg/kg de peso corporal. La droga fue altamente efectiva, causando una reducción considerable en el conteo de huevos, desaparición de los síntomas clínicos y regresión progresiva de los granulomas nasales.

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Efficacite Du Praziquantel Contre l'Infection ASchistosoma Nasale Chez Les Bovins

Résumé Des bovins naturellement infestés de schistosomose nasale ont été traités par une dose orale unique de Praziquantel à la dose de 20 mg/kg de poids corporel. Le médicament s'est avéré être très efficace, avec une réduction considérable du nombre d'oeufs, une cessation des signes cliniques et une régression progressive des excroissances granulomateuses nasales.

     

A Quantitative Trait Locus for Chlorophyll Content and its Association with Leaf Photosynthesis in Rice

Leaf photosynthesis, an important determinant of yield potential in rice, can be estimated from measurements of chlorophyll content. We searched for quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for Soil and Plant Analyzer Development (SPAD) value, an index of leaf chlorophyll content, and assessed their association with leaf photosynthesis. QTL analysis derived from a cross between japonica cultivar Sasanishiki and high-yielding indica cultivar Habataki detected a QTL for SPAD value on chromosome 4. This QTL explained 31% of the total phenotypic variance, and the Habataki allele increased the SPAD value. Chromosomal segment substitution line (CSSL) with the corresponding segment from Habataki had a higher leaf photosynthetic rate and SPAD value than Sasanishiki, suggesting an association between SPAD value and leaf photosynthesis. The CSSL also had a lower specific leaf area (SLA) than Sasanishiki, reflecting its thicker leaves. Substitution mapping under Sasanishiki genetic background demonstrated that QTLs for SPAD value and SLA were co-localized in the 1,798-kb interval. The results suggest that the phenotypes for SPAD value and SLA are controlled by a single locus or two tightly linked loci, and may play an important role in increasing leaf photosynthesis by increasing chlorophyll content or leaf thickness, or both.     

Overwintering of brown leaf spot fungus, Mycochaetophora gentianae, in infected gentian leaves as the primary inoculum source

Overwintering of the brown leaf spot fungus, Mycochaetophora gentianae, in infected gentian leaves was studied in Iwate, northern Japan. Sporophores were produced on overwintered, infected leaves when they were sampled from January to July, but not in August after incubation in high humidity at 15 °C. Symptoms developed on gentian plants grown in soil artificially infested with overwintered, infected leaves that were either left throughout the experiments or removed before planting. Few lesions developed when plants were grown in soil infested with conidia. These results indicate that M. gentianae can overwinter in infected leaves, which act as the primary inoculum source.     

Mechanism underlying potato spindle tuber viroid affecting tomato (Solanum lycopersicum): loss of control over reactive oxygen species production

Journal of General Plant Pathology - Severe infection of the tomato cultivar ‘Rutgers’ with potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) variants resulted in systemic stunting, leaf...     

Assessment of Alloxan-Induced Diabetic Rats as a Periodontal Disease Model Using a Selective Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 Inhibitor

Several recent studies have reported that alloxan-treated rats with long-term hyperglycemia can develop naturally occurring periodontal disease (PD). Our previous studies detected dental caries in the same model. Therefore, these two lesions of different etiologies are expected to occur concurrently. In this study, we evaluated the use of diabetic rats as a PD model by employing a selective COX-2 inhibitor reported to be effective against PD. Six-week-old female F344 rats were divided into 3 groups: intact rats (control), alloxan-induced diabetic rats fed a standard diet (AL) and alloxan-induced diabetic rats fed a diet containing 0.01% etodolac (AL+Et). The animals were euthanized at 26 weeks of age, and their oral tissues were examined histopathologically. Gingivitis, marginal periodontitis and alveolar bone resorption were markedly enhanced along with dental caries in the AL group compared with the control group. However, the COX-2 inhibitor had no effect on periodontal inflammation in the AL+Et group. In addition, in the AL group, periodontitis was notably nonexistent around the normal molars, and gingivitis was scarcely worse than that in the control group. In the diabetic rats, the progression of periodontal inflammation was closely correlated with the severity of adjacent dental caries, and marginal periodontitis was frequently continuous with apical periodontitis. In conclusion, an alloxan-induced diabetic rat is not a model of PD but of dental caries. It is probable that in this model, hyperglycemia may enable crown caries to progress to apical periodontitis, while the associated inflammation may rostrally expand to surrounding periodontal tissue.     

Identification of angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitory peptides derived from salmon muscle and their antihypertensive effect

ABSTRACT:   The salmon peptide digested from salmon muscle showed a strong inhibitory activity against the angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE). The antihypertensive effect of the salmon peptide on spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) was examined. After the single intravenous administration of the salmon peptide at a dose of 30 mg/kg body weight, the systolic blood pressure (SBP) was significantly reduced against the control. Further, a double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study determined the efficacy of the salmon peptide in mild hypertensive subjects. The SBP, after a 1.0 g of salmon peptide intake, was significantly reduced at 4 weeks after the intake, and 2 weeks after the intake finished, compared to the value before ingestion. Bioassay-guided separation of the salmon peptide, using a combination of column chromatographic techniques, led to the identification of 20 active di- and tri-peptides, including Ile-Val-Phe and Phe-Ile-Ala as two new ACE inhibitory tripeptides. Ile-Trp had the strongest ACE inhibitory activity (IC₅₀ = 1.2 μM) in vitro , and contributed 5.2% to the total ACE inhibitory activity. The salmon peptide and Ile-Trp showed a digestive resistance by in vitro assay, which mimicked the digestive organ, and had no affinity for factors related to blood pressure regulation, except for the ACE inhibitory activity.     

Detection of QTLs for white-back and basal-white grains caused by high temperature during ripening period in japonica rice

There is increasing evidence that global warming affects the development of rice. High temperatures during ripening increase the ratio of undesirable chalky grains followed by deteriorating grain appearance quality. In order to detect quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling the occurrence of white-back and basal-white chalky grains of brown rice, QTL analysis was performed using recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between two strains, ‘Tsukushiroman’ (sensitive to heat stress) and ‘Chikushi 52’ (tolerant of heat stress). The F₇ and F₈ lines were exposed to heat stress during the ripening period in two locations, Fukuoka and Kagoshima, in Japan. QTLs for white-back grains and basal-white grains were detected on chromosomes 1, 3, and 8, and those for basal-white grains were detected on chromosomes 2, 3, and 12. QTLs on chromosome 8 for white-back grains were shared in the plants grown in both locations. Near-isogenic lines (NILs), which harbored a segment from ‘Chikushi 52’ on chromosome 8 with the genetic background of ‘Tsukushiroman’, showed relatively lower ratios of white-back grains than ‘Tsukushiroman’. Therefore, insertion of the ‘Chikushi 52’ genomic region of the QTL on chromosome 8 can improve the quality of rice when it is grown under heat stress conditions.     

Interspecific cytoplasm substitutions of an Indica strain of Oryza sativa L. and O. Glaberrima Steud

Summary To study differential nucleus-cytoplasm interactions between the two cultivated rice species, Oryza sativa and O. glaberrima, cytoplasmic substitution lines were made by using a glaberrima strain (G) and an Indica strain of sativa (S). The G cytoplasm had no adverse effect on pollen development when combined with the nucleus of S. On the other hand, when the S cytoplasm was combined with the G nucleus, the substitution line showed no seed set because of male sterility although the pollen grains were normally stained with I₂-KI solution. A dominant gene derived from S strain seemed to cause anther indehiscence in the substitution line. Further, a restorer gene (Rf _j)from Akebono of Japonica type was effective on pollen restoration in the male sterile line, suggesting that the S cytoplasm is the same as those of Japonica type in terms of a fertility-restoring system.This paper is Genetic studies of speciation in cultivated rice. 4.     

Isolation,structural elucidation,and inhibitory effects of terpenoid and lipid constituents from sunflower pollen on Epstein-Barr virus early antigen induced by tumor promoter,TPA

Eight fatty acid esters of triterpene alcohols (1-8), four free triterpene alcohols (9, 12, 17, and 18), four diterpene acids (19-22), two tocopherol-related compounds (23 and 24), four estolides (25-28), three syn-alkane-4,6-diols (29-31), one 1,3-dioxoalkanoic acid (32), and one aliphatic ketone (33), along with the mixture of free fatty acids, were isolated from the diethyl ether extract of the pollen grains of sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Among these compounds, 14 (2-8, 12, 23, 25-28, and 33) were new naturally occurring compounds, and their structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic methods. Twenty-four terpenoids and lipids (1-4, 6-9, 12, and 19-33) and six free triterpene triols (10, 11, and 13-16), derived from their fatty acid esters (2, 3, and 5-8) by alkaline hydrolysis, were evaluated with respect to their inhibitory effects on the induction of Epstein-Barr virus early antigen (EBV-EA) induced by the tumor promoter, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), in Raji cells, which is known to be a primary screening test for antitumor promoters. Among the 30 compounds tested, 21 compounds possessing a di- or a polycyclic ring system in the molecule (1-4, 6-16, and 19-24) showed potent inhibitory effects on EBV-EA induction (91-100% inhibition at 1 x 10(3) mol ratio/TPA).     

Inhibitory Effects of the C-2 Epimeric Isomers of Tea Catechins on Mouse Type IV Allergy

The inhibitory effects of C-2 epimeric isomers of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCG) and two O-methylated EGCG derivatives, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-O-(3-O-methyl)gallate (EGCG3'Me) and (-)-epigallocatechin-3-O-(4-O-methyl)gallate (EGCG4'Me), against oxazolone-induced type IV allergy in male mice were investigated. These compounds exhibited strong antiallergic effects by percutaneous administration at a dose of 0.13 mg/ear. The inhibition rates of (-)-gallocatechin-3-O-gallate (GCG), (-)-gallocatechin-3-O-(3-O-methyl)gallate (GCG3'Me), and (-)-gallocatechin-3-O-(4-O-methyl)gallate (GCG4'Me) on mouse type IV allergy were 52.1, 53.3, and 54.8%, respectively. However, the antiallergic effects were weaker than those of their corresponding original tea catechins (2R,3R type). The inhibition rates of those were 88.0, 73.2, and 77.6%, respectively. For all of the catechins tested, oral administration at a dose of 50 mg/kg body weight significantly suppressed the allergic symptoms. The inhibitory rates varied from 24.0 to 60.6%. No significant differences were observed between the effects of the epimers (2S,3R type) and their corresponding original catechins (2R,3R type). The antiallergic effects of tea catechins and their C-2 epimers observed in this study were dose-dependent. These results suggest that C-2 epimers of tea catechins, which are produced during heat processing at high temperatures, could be disadvantageous for the antiallergic effects on type IV allergy.