Pyridinoline concentrations in muscular and skin collagen of fish and relationship between collagen solubility and pyridinoline concentration in fish muscular collagen

Pyridinoline (Pyr), one of the mature crosslinks of collagen, was determined in muscular collagen of three species of fish. The amounts of muscular Pyr in red sea bream, yellowtail, and tiger puffer were 3.4, 8.8, and 50.3 mmol/mol collagen, respectively, indicating that the Pyr concentration in muscular collagen differs greatly among fish species. The Pyr concentration in tiger puffer muscular collagen was the greatest, but it was only one-fourth that in rabbit muscle. As in mammalian skin collagen, Pyr was not detected in skin collagen of red sea bream and yellowtail. However, tiger puffer skin contained Pyr (3.75 mmol/mol collagen). The presence of Pyr would have a relationship to some features of tiger puffer skin, such as mechanical strength and thickness. Pyr concentrations in acid-soluble collagen (ASC), pepsin-solubilized collagen (PSC), and insoluble collagen (ISC) in muscles of three species of fish were determined. Pyr was found in ISC > PSC > ASC, from the highest to the lowest concentration, and the concentration in ISC was 45–200 times that in ASC. Therefore, Pyr crosslinks that are formed between collagen molecules would have a close relationship to collagen solubility.     

Possibility for decreasing of mercury content in bluefin tuna <Emphasis Type="Italic">Thunnus orientalis</Emphasis> by fish culture

ABSTRACT:   The bluefin tuna tested were reared for 22 months from eggs before the beginning of the experiment, and sampling was performed every 3 months over the following year. The experimental results showed that the mercury concentration in the muscle ranged from 0.32 to 0.85 μg/g, which is lower than that found in wild bluefin tuna of a similar size. Increase in the mercury concentration corresponding to the increase in body weight was not shown, and it was quite different with wild bluefin tuna. Furthermore, no significant relationship was found between the lipid concentration and the mercury concentration in muscle. Among the internal organs of cultured bluefin tuna, the heart (0.32–0.66 μg/g), liver (0.43–0.99 μg/g) and spleen (0.59–1.0 μg/g) contained higher concentrations of mercury. It was estimated that the full-cycle cultured bluefin tuna had been fed small fish containing lower concentrations of mercury, and that the mercury concentration of tuna would be almost equal throughout the year because the effect of mercury accumulation would be weakened by body growth. Therefore, it was concluded that selecting diet fish species might decrease mercury contents in cultured bluefin tuna.     

Time to recover the upright posture in juvenile abalones (Haliotis discus discus Reeve, H. gigantea Gmelin and H. madaka Habe)

The adoption of an upright posture in abalones is essential to enable them to use their foot, and hence to be able to move and seek shelter, as well as to avoid exposure of soft parts and possible predation. In mass restocking programs for abalone, juveniles are released by divers near the seabed, but without control over their posture when they reach the bottom. Thus, the time to recover the upright posture is an important consideration in abalone restocking programs as the quicker they assume this posture the higher the likelihood of survival. This study reports significant differences in the speed of recovering the upright posture between juveniles of the abalones Haliotis discus discus, H. gigantea and H. madaka and between tests conducted under stagnant and flowing water conditions. Longer times were required for recovery in all species in stagnant than flowing water. On average, juveniles of H. discus discus (17.16 and 10.43 s) and H. gigantea (22.54 and 11.89 s) recovered faster than those of H. madaka (161.13 and 49.02 s) under stagnant and flowing water conditions respectively. These results suggest that different species require different levels of care and that water flow or current at the time of release may affect post‐release survival.     

利用农杆菌介导Bar基因转化稻瘟病菌*

 用携带除草剂抗性基因（Bar基因）的质粒pBIG4MRBrev和农杆菌EHA105，建立了农杆菌介导Bar基因转化稻瘟病菌的转化体系，使稻瘟病菌菌株95－8－36得到高效转化，且能稳定表达。     

Mercury levels of small fishes: influence of size and catch area

In the present study, we assessed small fishes as potential feed fishes with the lowest mercury levels. The mercury levels of four small pelagic fishes and a benthic fish from the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, i.e., spotted chub mackerel Scomber australasicus, chub mackerel Scomber japonicus, horse mackerel Trachurus trachurus, round scad Decapterus punctatus, and bastard halibut Paralichthys olivaceus, were determined. Total mercury levels in fish muscle were measured using a reduction vaporizing atomic absorption method. There were no significant correlations between body weight and mercury levels for these species. However, significant differences were observed in the mercury levels of these species between the two catch locations, with fish caught in the Pacific Ocean having higher mercury levels. This difference may be due to the Pacific Ring of Fire, a highly seismically and volcanically active zone, which is located in the Pacific Ocean. Preference for these fishes for use in aquaculture should refer to the area where they are caught in addition to the species.     

Estimation of heritability of vertebral number in chum salmon <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oncorhynchus keta</Emphasis>

Hereditary causes of variation in the vertebral number of chum salmon were analyzed to estimate heritability for populations in the Chitose and Shikiu Rivers, Hokkaido Island, northern Japan. A total of 70 families were produced by diallel cross mating and then heritability was estimated using two statistical tests: a two-way ANOVA and a parent-offspring regression. Heritability estimates ranged from 0.26 to 1.91 and showed a strong correlation between the values from the two different tests. Estimates from female components were substantially higher than those from male components, which can be attributed to the maternal effect. Heritability in the Shikiu River population was shown to be higher than that in the Chitose River population. These results indicate that the heritability of vertebral number in chum salmon is generally high, and also that vertebral number is controlled by hereditary causes.     

Seroprevalence of antibodies against severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in household dogs in Japan

We investigated the seroprevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among dogs in the Tokyo area via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using the spike protein as the target antigen. Plasma samples from 494 household dogs and blood-donor dogs were tested from July 2020 to January 2021. Of these samples, three showed optical densities that were higher than the mean plus two standard deviations of the mean of the negative-control optical densities (ODs). Of these three samples, only the sample with the highest OD by ELISA was confirmed positive by virus neutralization testing. The positive dog presented no SARS-CoV-2-related symptoms. The positivity rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections among dogs in the Tokyo area was approximately 0.2%.