气动真空发生器系统背压与抽吸性能关系分析

对气动系统中常用的真空发生器样机,采用有限体积法对其内部流场进行数值计算,分析了背压不同时内部压力分布和吸入流速改变情况。以此为基础,测量系统背压升高时吸入流量变化量,绘制了背压与吸入流量关系曲线,提出了通过判断系统背压防止逆流现象的方法。在真空发生器系统的设计和应用中,需要在理论计算的基础上,根据试验得出系统正常工作的背压范围,防止逆流现象,保证系统工作。     

Evaluation of cytokine messenger RNA expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from dogs with canine demodicosis

Using RT-PCR and semi-quantitative PCR, mRNA expression for canine interferon (IFN)-gamma, interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was examined in dogs with or without demodicosis. mRNA expression for IFN-gamma as well as TNF-alpha in dogs with demodicosis (localized (LD) and generalized (GD)) was slightly lower than those in dogs without demodicosis (healthy controls). Expression of IL-5 mRNA in dogs with demodicosis was higher than that in control dogs, but there were no significant differences in IL-4 and IL-10 mRNA expression levels among the three groups. On the other hand, expression levels of TGF-beta mRNA in dogs with GD were higher than those in control dogs and dogs with LD. The expression levels of IL-5 and TGF-beta mRNA decreased in all three dogs with GD which showed resolution of the clinical signs. Taken together, these results suggest that the Th2-like response in PBMCs from dogs with demodicosis is up-regulated, and that subsequent increased expression of IL-5 and TGF-beta mRNA in dogs with GD is reversible after treatment. Therefore, these cytokines, particularly IL-5, might be a useful clinical index of the clinical course in demodicosis. Also, increased TGF-beta mRNA expression might be a key factor for revealing the difference in the mechanism of onset between LD and GD.     

Development of a high-throughput screening method using a cell-based, lawn format assay for the identification of novel plant defense activators from combinatorial peptide libraries

Plants respond to attack by pathogens through various defense mechanisms. These defense responses are triggered by a variety of molecules derived from pathogenic microorganisms as well as host plants. In this study, we developed a high-throughput screening method using a cell-based lawn format assay for the identification of novel peptides that can induce plant defense responses from combinatorial peptide libraries. Solid-phase peptide libraries were synthesized using a photocleavable linker and immobilized using agarose gel. The peptides were partially cleaved from beads, and the agarose gel was layered on the tobacco cells. The defense response was then observed by detecting the generated H2O2 using a sensitive H2O2 indicator dye, N-(carboxymethylaminocarbonyl)-4,4'-bis(dimethylamino)diphenylamine sodium salt (DA-64). Using this assay format, a 6859-member peptide library based on the sequence of flagellin-derived peptides was screened, and several structural features important for the activity were obtained.     

Effect of dietary sorbitol on the performance of broilers

1. The effect of dietary sorbitol on the performance of broilers was investigated. Male and female broilers were given a control diet or a sorbitol diet (100 g/kg diet) ad libitum from 29 to 57 d of age. 2. Body weight gain, food intake, food efficiency and the ME values of the diets were not significantly different. Absolute and relative weights of abdominal fat were significantly reduced in birds given the sorbitol diet. 3. Compared to the control diet, the diet containing sorbitol lowered the serum glucose, total cholesterol and very low density lipoprotein concentrations.     

Experimental studies on sulfur dioxide injuries in higher plants

Photosynthesis is reversibly inhibited by exposing plants to SO₂. The formation of α-hydroxy sulfonate in the exposed plants is suggested as one of the effects, because this compound inhibits glycolic oxidase which is necessary in the glycolic acid pathway. The suppression of the glycolic acid path should affect various aspects of metabolism in plants, particularly the reduction of the biosynthesis of glycine and serine. In this paper, the biosynthesis of these amino acids in plants exposed to SO₂ was investigated to estimate the significance of the formation of α-hydroxy sulfonate in the plants. The results show that photosynthetic formation of serine was reduced in the exposed plants, and that α-hydroxy sulfonate was formed.     

Axle-less F1-ATPase rotates in the correct direction

F1-adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) is an ATP-driven rotary molecular motor in which the central gamma subunit rotates inside a cylinder made of three alpha and three beta subunits alternately arranged. The rotor shaft, an antiparallel alpha-helical coiled coil of the amino and carboxyl termini of the gamma subunit, deeply penetrates the central cavity of the stator cylinder. We truncated the shaft step by step until the remaining rotor head would be outside the cavity and simply sat on the concave entrance of the stator orifice. All truncation mutants rotated in the correct direction, implying torque generation, although the average rotary speeds were low and short mutants exhibited moments of irregular motion. Neither a fixed pivot nor a rigid axle was needed for rotation of F1-ATPase.     

Synergism and stability of acetamiprid resistance in a laboratory colony of Plutella xylostella

The involvement of metabolic enzymes in the resistance of a laboratory colony of diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L), to the neonicotinoid insecticide acetamiprid was determined with the synergists piperonyl butoxide (PBO), which suppresses the activity of cytochrome P-450 monooxygenases, and S,S,S-tributyl phosphorotrithioate (DEF), an inhibitor of esterases, using the leaf-dipping method. Both PBO and DEF enhanced the insecticidal activity of acetamiprid significantly in the resistant P. xylostella strain but not in a reference strain, suggesting that cytochrome P-450 monooxygenases and esterases play an important role in the resistance of P. xylostella to acetamiprid. The resistant P. xylostella strain was also reared without further exposure to acetamiprid to determine the stability of resistance. Maintaining the resistant strain for seven generations in the absence of selection pressure resulted in a drop in resistance ratio from 110 to 2.42, indicating that acetamiprid resistance in P. xylostella is not stable.