Accessory corpora lutea formation in pregnant Hokkaido sika deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis) investigated by examination of ovarian dynamics and steroid hormone concentrations

Generally, sika deer conceive a single fetus, but approximately 80% of pregnant females have two corpora lutea (CLs). The function of the accessory CL (ACL) is unknown; moreover, the process of ACL formation is unclear, and understanding this is necessary to know its role. To elucidate the process of ACL formation, the ovarian dynamics of six adult Hokkaido sika deer females were examined ultrasonographically together with peripheral estradiol-17β and progesterone concentrations. ACLs formed in three females that conceived at the first estrus of the breeding season, but not in those females that conceived at the second estrus. After copulation, postconception ovulation of the dominant follicle of the first wave is induced by an increase in estradiol-17β, which leads to formation of an ACL. A relatively low concentration of progesterone after the first estrus of the breeding season is considered to be responsible for the increase in estradiol-17β after copulation.     

Genetic information of three pure lines of Porphyra yezoensis (Bangiales, Rhodophyta) obtained by AFLP analysis

Porphyra (Bangiales, Rhodophyta), which includes several valuable marine crops, has recently received great interest as a model plant for fundamental and applied studies in marine sciences. Amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) are a robust and efficient means for genetic mapping, linkage analysis of genetic characters for breeding and population studies in land plant genomes. To examine whether AFLPs are applicable as genetic markers in the present study, we detected AFLP markers with three pure lines in order to promote genetic analysis in Porphyra yezoensis . The following five sets of AFLP primer pairs (E-AA, M-CAA) (E-AA, M-CAC) (E-AA, M-CAG) (E-AA, M-CAT) (E-AA, M-CTA) were tested with template DNAs from three pure lines and they showed a total of 227 bands. This suggests that AFLP markers are promising tools for genetic analysis in Porphyra .