A releaser pheromone that attracts methyltestosterone- treated immature fish in the urine of ovulated female rainbow trout

SUMMARY: Behavioral experiments concerning a releaser pheromone in the urine of female rainbow trout were performed using immature fish administered orally with 17α-methyltestosterone (MT) during the non-spawning season. The urine was collected by catheter. The frequency of entries of test fish was recorded in each channel scented by test and control solutions in a Y-maze trough. The behavior of both MT-treated and control fish demonstrated that they could not discriminate the differences between distilled and environmental water as control solutions. There was also no difference between MT-treated and control fish when distilled and environmental water were introduced. The MT-treated immature fish were attracted to the channel scented by ovulated female urine. Neither coelomic fluid nor the immature female urine had any effect on the behavioral responses of MT-treated fish, while immature control fish had no preference for the urine of ovulated females. These results suggest in rainbow trout that ovulated female urine contains a releaser pheromone to attract mature males, and that androgens are involved in the sensory mechanisms detecting the releaser pheromone in fish.     

Apocrine adenocarcinoma in a golden hamster.

An apocrine adenocarcinoma was observed in the subcutis of the abdomen of golden hamster. Histologically, the tumor cells irregularly formed multiple layers of cysts and some detached cells were presented in the cystic space. PAS stain with alpha-amylase digestion revealed PAS-positive alpha-amylase-resistant granules in the cytoplasm. Immunohistochemically, cytokeratin was demonstrated in the tumor cells. By electron microscopy, the tumor cells had an oval nucleus with invagination, abundant cytoplasmic organelles and microvilli protruding into the intercellular spaces.     

Mycobacterium avium infection through the alimentary tract in mice

Intestinal infection by Mycobacterium avium was investigated in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mouse strains. Single intragastric administration of a massive dose (10(8] or multiple administration of a lower dose (10(7), 10 times) established infection principally in the mesenteric lymph-node (MLN); a continuous or intermittent fecal excretion of the bacilli was detected by 6-8 weeks after the administration. Based on three criteria--isolation of the organisms from the MLN and from feces, and detection of acid-fast bacilli in sections of the MLN--germ-free (GF) BALB/c mice exhibited clearer dose-effect relations than the flora-bearing (FB) counterparts. After intragastric administration, the organisms were probably trapped in the Peyer's patch and then transferred to the MLN at an early period (by 4-7 days), persistent infection thus being established in the MLN. Systemic involvement evolved both in athymic and euthymic mice after a prolonged period of time (more than 40 weeks) showing far more severe involvement in the former regardless of the presence of floral organisms.     

Competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of the antibodies specific to akabane virus.

A competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (C-ELISA) using neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against Akabane virus (AKAV) was developed to detect antibodies to AKAV in cattle sera. The performance of the test using 7 different competitor MAbs was evaluated in sequential serum samples and sera from cattle infected with various bovine arboviruses. The dynamics of the antibody response expressed by percentage of inhibition (PI) in C-ELISA coincided with those of neutralizing antibody titers in sequential serum samples from 2 cattle experimentally infected with AKAV. The value of PI in C-ELISA for convalescent sera from cattle infected with arboviruses correlated with the neutralizing antibody titer to AKAV but was unaffected by the antibodies to other arboviruses. In the validation experiment of C-ELISA using 286 bovine sera previously examined for the AKAV antibody by serum neutralization (SN) test, the relative specificity of C-ELISA was more than 98%, whereas the relative sensitivities of individual MAbs ranged from 49% to 82.2%. Overall agreement between C-ELISA and the SN test varied from 72% to 90% depending on the MAb. These results suggest that the C-ELISA is acceptable as a rapid and specific method for detecting antibodies to AKAV and is a potential alternative to the SN test.     

Myofibrillar proteolysis in chick muscle cell cultures during heat stress

The effect of heat stress on protein oxidation and myofibrillar proteolysis in chick myotubes was investigated. Myotubes were incubated at 37 or 41°C for 6 and 24 h. Protein carbonyl content, as an index of protein oxidation, increased more at 41°C than at 37°C for 6 and 24 h incubations. N^τ‐methylhistidine release as an index of myofibrillar proteolysis also increased more at 41°C than at 37°C for 6 and 24 h incubations. Proteasome activity also increased more under those same conditions. Calpain and cathepsin D but not B + L activities showed a greater increase at 41°C than at 37°C for 24 but not the 6 h incubation. These results indicate that heat stress increases protein oxidation and proteasome activity, resulting in an increase in myofibrillar proteolysis for short‐term incubation and, for long‐term incubation, it increases calpain, proteasome and cathepsin D activities, finally accelerating myofibrillar proteolysis in chick myotubes.     

Mesh-like vascular changes in copper deficiency-induced rat cardiomyopathy

The pathological effects of copper deficiency (COD) are well known. However, the pathogenesis of cardiomyopathy resulting from COD remains unclear. In this study, aimed to elucidate the pathogenesis of COD-induced cardiomyopathy by examining the morphology of the cardiovascular system in copper-deficient rats using histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Changes detected in the myocardium and interstitium were consistent with those reported for COD. Morphological changes included mesh-like changes in the capillary endothelial cells that appear to be a novel finding in COD-induced cardiomyopathy. These changes are hypothesized to result from abnormal vascular remodeling following damage to the basement membrane and due to the mechanical effects of myocardial contractions. Although cardiomyopathy may be associated with microcirculatory disorders arising from these lesions, further investigations are necessary to demonstrate a causal relationship between the pathogenesis of cardiomyopathy and the contribution of these lesions to disease progression.     

Time-course comparison of pulmonary inflammation induced by intratracheal instillation of four different nickel oxide nanoparticles in male Fischer rats

Occupational exposure to nickel oxide (NiO) is an important cause of respiratory tract cancer. Toxicity is known to be associated with the dissociated component, i.e. nickel (II) ions. To address the relationship between physicochemical properties, including solubility in artificial lysosomal fluid, of NiO and time-course changes in the pulmonary response, we conducted an intratracheal instillation study in male Fischer rats using four different well-characterized NiO products, US3352 (NiO A), NovaWireNi01 (NiO B), I small particle (NiO C), and 637130 (NiO D). The NiOs were suspended in purified water and instilled once intratracheally into male F344 rats (12 weeks old) at 0 (vehicle control), 0.67, 2, and 6 mg/kg body weight. The animals were euthanized on days 3, 28, or 91 after instillation, and blood analysis, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) testing, and histopathological examination were performed. The most soluble product, NiO B, caused the most severe systemic toxicity, leading to a high mortality rate, but the response was transient and surviving animals recovered. The second-most-soluble material, NiO D, and the third, NiO A, caused evident pulmonary inflammation, and the responses persisted for at least 91 days with collagen proliferation. In contrast, NiO C induced barely detectable inflammation in the BALF examination, and no marked changes were noted on histopathology. These results indicate that the early phase toxic potential of NiO products, but not the persistence of pulmonary inflammation, is associated with their solubility.