Differences in lectin-binding properties between the common mucosal epithelium and follicle-associated epithelium in the rabbit small intestine

Differences in sugar distribution between the villous epithelium and follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) were compared using lectins in the rabbit small intestine. In every portion, villous columnar epithelial cells primarily exhibited a positive reaction to the GalNAc, GlcNAc, galactose, and oligosaccharide. In the ileal Peyer's patch (PP), whereas microvillous epithelial cells exhibited positive reactions, M cells tended to be negative. The villous epithelial reaction to the fucose group was negative, but M cells and microvillous epithelial cells showed a positive to the fucose. No epithelium had a positive reaction to the mannose and glucose. The variety of lectin-binding properties of villous epithelial cells and M cells may reflect specificity for the recognizing luminal substances such as antigenic molecules and bacterial elements.     

Synthesis and insecticidal activity of benzoheterocyclic analogues of N'-benzoyl-N-(tert-butyl)benzohydrazide: Part 3. Modification of N-tert-butylhydrazine moiety

Nineteen analogues were synthesized by modifying the tert-butylhydrazine moieties of N'-tert-butyl-N'-(3,5-dimethylbenzoyl)-5-methyl-2,3-dihydro-1,4-benzodioxine-6-carbohydrazide and N'-tert-butyl-N'-(3,5-dimethylbenzoyl)-5-methylchromane-6-carbohydrazide (chromafenozide), and the synthesized analogues were evaluated for their insecticidal activity against Spodoptera litura F. While all of the synthesized analogues had insecticidal activity inferior to those of the lead compounds, several of the analogues nonetheless showed high insecticidal activity. Chromafenozide has shown very high selectivity toward lepidopteran species.     

Evaluation of the drug sensitivity and expression of 16 drug resistance-related genes in canine histiocytic sarcoma cell lines

Canine histiocytic sarcoma (HS) is an aggressive tumor type originating from histiocytic cell lineages. This disease is characterized by poor response to chemotherapy and short survival time. Therefore, it is of critical importance to identify and develop effective antitumor drugs against HS. The objectives of this study were to examine the drug sensitivities of 10 antitumor drugs. Using a real-time RT-PCR system, the mRNA expression levels of 16 genes related to drug resistance in 4 canine HS cell lines established from dogs with disseminated HS were determined and compared to 2 canine lymphoma cell lines (B-cell and T-cell). These 4 canine HS cell lines showed sensitivities toward microtubule inhibitors (vincristine, vinblastine and paclitaxel), comparable to those in the canine B-cell lymphoma cell line. Moreover, it was shown that P-gp in the HS cell lines used in this study did not have enough function to efflux its substrate. Sensitivities to melphalan, nimustine, methotrexate, cytarabine, doxorubicin and etoposide were lower in the 4 HS cell lines than in the 2 canine lymphoma cell lines. The data obtained in this study using cultured cell lines could prove helpful in the developing of advanced and effective chemotherapies for treating dogs that are suffering from HS.     

Aerosol and Precipitation Chemistry during the Summer at the Summit of Mt. Fuji, Japan (3776m a.s.l.)

Aerosol and precipitation samples were obtained at the summit of Mt. Fuji, the highest peak (3776m a.s.l.) in Japan, in the summers of 1997, 1998, and 1999. The mountaintop might be affected by valley wind during the afternoon, but is located in the free troposphere during the morning. The temporal variations of chemical species in the aerosol and precipitation samples correspond with meteorological conditions. The SO₄ ^2? in the aerosol and precipitation exhibits high concentration with low temperature air mass, indicating the influence of long range transport from the Asian Continent. The contribution of the free troposphere to the chemical species obtained at the summit is estimated to be at least 30% during the summer season.     

Wind erosion and airborne dust deposition in farmland during spring in the Horqin Sandy Land of eastern Inner Mongolia, China

In the Horqin Sandy Land of eastern Inner Mongolia in northern China, wind erosion in farmland is very common in a period from thawing of frozen surface soil in mid-March to sowing of crops in the end of April, largely because of dry and windy weather. However, little is known about the magnitude of wind erosion and associated nutrient losses due to erosion and the addition of nutrients by airborne dust deposition to farmlands during this period. A field experiment was conducted in an Entisol with sand origin under corn (Zea mays L.) production to investigate daily changes in wind speed and wind erosion intensity (as measured by soil transport rate) over a period from 20 March to 30 April 2001. We also measured daily rates of airborne dust deposition during the spring seasons with the high frequency of dust storm occurrence. The rates of soil transport by wind varied greatly from 13.2 to 1254.1 kg ha⁻¹ per day, averaging 232.1 kg ha⁻¹ per day, largely attributable to great variation between days in wind speed within the study period. The potential losses of nutrients through wind erosion were 0.26–24.95 kg ha⁻¹ per day (averaging 4.62 kg ha⁻¹ per day) in organic matter, 0.02–1.64 kg ha⁻¹ per day (averaging 0.31 kg ha⁻¹ per day) in nitrogen and 0.01–0.7 kg ha⁻¹ per day (averaging 0.13 kg ha⁻¹ per day) in phosphorus. The mean rates of airborne dust deposition ranged from 4.0 to 48.9 kg ha⁻¹ per day, averaging 19.9 kg ha⁻¹ per day, during the spring seasons. The potential addition of organic matter, nitrogen and phosphorus by dust input to the experimental field was, on average, 0.54, 0.04 and 0.02 kg ha⁻¹ per day, respectively. Although the addition was a fraction of the losses due to erosion, nevertheless, dust input in the spring seasons is one of the major suppliers of soil nutrition. The fact that the addition of nutrients by dust is about 1/10 of the losses of soil nutrients through wind erosion suggests that developing and adopting more effective management practices to reduce soil erosion losses and to improve soil fertility are crucial to achieve a sustainable agricultural system in a fragile, semiarid sandy land environment.     

科尔沁沙地不同下垫面风沙流结构与变异特征

对流动、半流动、半固定和固定沙地 4种不同下垫面 0～ 2 0 cm气流层的风沙流结构与变异特征研究表明 :(1 )不同退化沙地在总输沙量及各层输沙量上存在明显的差异 ,在 5月 1 5日的测定中 ,流动沙地的总输沙量是 83 .1g/ cm2 .h,分别是半流动、半固定和固定沙地的 2 .1倍、9.2倍和 33 .9倍 ;而在 5月 1 5日的测定中 ,流动沙地的总输沙量 1 0 5.7g/ cm2 .h,分别是半流动、半固定和固定沙地的 5.6倍、1 4.1倍和 75.6倍。(2 )总输沙量的 60以上分布在 1 0cm的高度内 ,随高度的增加 ,输沙量呈负指数函数下降。(3)风蚀物中粗粒 (粒径 1 .0～ 0 .5mm )与极细颗粒 (粒径0 .1～ 0 .0 5mm)和粉、粘粒 (<0 .0 5mm)的含量均很低 ,而细颗粒 (粒径 0 .2 5～ 0 .1 mm)的含量很高 ,占风蚀物的73 %～ 91 %,说明近地表层沙粒的运动以跃移为主。随高度的增加 ,风蚀物中中颗粒 (粒径 0 .5～ 0 .2 5mm)的含量下降 ,而极细颗粒和粉、粘粒含量增加 ,但其增幅因下垫面不同而异。(4) 0～ 2 0 cm总输沙量及各层输沙量与植被盖度呈显著负相关 ,与植株高度、地表紧实度和地表粗糙度长度呈微弱负相关     

退化沙质草地自然恢复过程中土壤-植物系统的变化特征

研究了科尔沁沙地封育5a后退化沙质草地自然恢复过程中土壤—植物系统的变化特征,同时分析了土壤性状与植物特征之间的相互影响程度。(1)从流动沙地恢复到固定沙地,沙质草地植物群落的物种多样性、植被盖度、地下根量和地表枯落物残留量均趋于增大。β多样性测度值表明,在半流动沙地恢复到半固定沙地阶段,植物种周转速率大,群落结构变化明显。(2)在退化沙质草地的自然恢复过程中,表层土壤的结构性能明显改善,土壤养分的有效性相应提高。(3)相关分析显示,沙质草地表层土壤的理化性状与植物特征值之间存有密切的相关性(R2=0.33～0.84,P<0.01,n=20),表明退化沙质草地的恢复过程实质上是土壤—植物系统协同演变的过程,在该过程中,植物多样性的关键恢复期滞后于土壤环境的关键恢复期。     

Increased expression of fractalkine and its receptor CX(3)CR1 in canine inflammatory bowel disease and their possible role in recruitment of intraepithelial lymphocytes

The interaction between fractalkine/CX(3)CL1 and its receptor CX(3)CR1 has been reported to play an important role in various human inflammatory diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) mediated by lymphocyte chemoattraction. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 in lymphocyte migration in canine IBD. IBD was diagnosed in 34 dogs, and 19 healthy beagles were used as normal controls. We quantified intestinal mRNA and protein expression of fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 by real-time RT-PCR and ELISA, respectively, and examined the localization of fractalkine in canine intestine by immunohistochemistry. The expression of CX(3)CR1 and surface antigens on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) was analyzed by flow cytometry. Intestinal fractalkine and CX(3)CR1 mRNA was significantly up-regulated in IBD dogs compared with the healthy control dogs. In addition, fractalkine expression on intestinal epithelial cells was significantly increased in the intestinal mucosa of IBD dogs compared with the healthy dogs. CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs were significantly elevated in IBD dogs and positively correlated with the histopathological severity of IELs infiltration. These CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs predominantly expressed markers for cytotoxic T cells. Almost all IELs expressed CD3, and the majority of cells expressed CD8 rather than CD4, which was analogous to the CX(3)CR1(+) PBMCs. These results suggest that the fractalkine-CX(3)CR1 interaction may contribute to the pathogenesis of canine IBD through migration of IELs.