Erythrocyte sedimentation rate in the dog and cat: Comparison of two methods and influence of packed cell volume, temperature and storage of blood

Erythrocyte sedimentation rates of canine and feline blood were measured by the Wintrobe method and by a capillary method utilizing 75 times 1 mm microhaematocrit tubes. Results obtained with each method were generally similar for both species.
The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) with the Wintrobe method as well as with the capillary method was inversely related to the packed cell volume (PCV), i. e., the lower the PCV, the higher the ESR. However, there was no consistent relationship between the ESR values obtained by the two methods at all levels of PCV. Wintrobe ESR values were slightly higher than capillary tube values for canine blood having a PCV of 36-60% and for 'reconstituted' canine and feline bloods having a high PCV. In contrast, capillary tube ESR values were slightly higher than Wintrobe values for 'reconstituted' canine blood having a PCV of 8-38 % and for feline blood with a PCV below 30%. It was, therefore, concluded that ESR values obtained by the two methods cannot be considered equivalent.
Only a slight decrease occurred in the ESR of blood held at 4°C for 2-6 hours, whereas the ESR of blood held at room temperature dropped markedly and blood stored for 24 hours at either temperature consistently gave lower values. Therefore, it is recommended that if the ESR cannot be determined soon after sampling, the blood should be stored at 4°C and the test conducted within 6 hours.     

Effects of acid extracts of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) and carrot (Daucus carota L.)wastes from the food industry on the growth of some crops and weeds

The effects of acid extracts of tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) and carrot ( Daucus carota L.) juice wastes from the food industry on the growth of five species of crops and four weeds were examined. The acid extract of the tomato juice waste promoted the shoot and root growth of tomato, Chinese cabbage, corn, and radish, but not the growth of oat seedlings. The extract did not promote the shoot growth of weeds tested, and it inhibited the root growth of the weeds that included barnyardgrass ( Echinochloa oryzicola Ohwi), southern crabgrass ( Digitaria ciliaris Koel.) and Japanese barnyard millet ( Echinochloa utilis Ohwi). The carrot juice waste was also examined as another waste from the food industry. The effect of the acid extract of carrot juice waste showed significant promoting effects on the root growth of Chinese cabbage; however, the effects on other plants were lower than that of tomato juice waste. It also did not inhibit the growth of weeds. These results suggested that the acid extract from tomato juice waste is useful as plant-growth substances because they have a promoting effect on the shoot and root growth of crops, and an inhibitory effect on the root growth of some weeds.     

Establishment of a Conditional Transgenic System Using the 2A Peptide in the Female Mouse Germline

Transgenic mice are essential research tools in developmental biology studies. The 2A peptide allows multiple genes to be expressed simultaneously at comparable levels in somatic cells, but there are no reports of it being used successfully in germ cells. We constructed a Cre/loxP-based conditional vector containing the 2A peptide to significantly enhance the expression of a reporter and target gene from a constitutive promoter in oocytes. Mice with a transgene insertion containing the chicken β-actin promoter, floxed EGFP-polyA cassette, mCherry reporter, 2A peptide and target gene DNA methyltransferase 3A2 (Dnmt3a2) were crossed with TNAP- or Vasa-Cre mice to produce offspring, in which mCherry and DNMT3A2 proteins were highly expressed in oocytes upon Cre-mediated removal of EGFP-polyA. This novel transgenic mouse line based on the 2A expression system can serve as a useful tool for examining gene function during oogenesis.     

Horizontal distribution and seasonal variability of the epipelagic chaetognath Sagitta elegans in relation to hydrography in the western subarctic Pacific Ocean

The spatial distribution and seasonal variability of epipelagic chaetognaths along the Kurile Islands and off south-east Hokkaido, in the western subarctic Pacific Ocean. were investigated during the period from May 1990 to October 1992. Sagitta elegans was the dominant species among the epipelagic chaetognaths in the study area. Juvenile S. elegans were distributed mainly along the path of the mixed water which was determined by the acceleration potential anomaly (APA) at the iso-pycnal density surface of 26.6 σθ. The location of the path of The mixed water meandered around cyclonic and anticyclonic eddies. Catches of S. elegans were made at temperatures ranging from 4.5 to 22.2C. The juvenile distribution, however, was mostly restricted to between 1 and 4C of the potential temperature determined at the isopycnal density surface of 26.6 σθ. Variability in the juvenile abundance within the path of the mixed water could be caused by predation rather than by food limitation because microzooplankton, which are known to he prey for juveniles, were abundant enough to meet the food requirements of juveniles in the study area. Adults occurred in spring (April-May) and young individuals (juvenile and stage 1) were abundant in summer (June-July), when a strong thermocline developed. The main spawning period appears to be during April-May, with a possible second spawning period in the autumn.     

Impact of direct dry seeding on rainfed paddy vegetation in north-east Thailand

In north-east Thailand where rainfed paddy cultivation is commonplace, direct dry seeding is replacing transplanting to increase the frequency of successful plantings and to save labor. The present study shows the impact of this change on paddy vegetation from agricultural and ecological viewpoints. One hundred and seventy-nine paddy fields from a wide range of climatic, topography, soil and hydrological conditions were used in this study. Authors visited these fields every 3 weeks during the rainy seasons of 1996–1998 to collect data about water conditions, rice growth, progress of cultivation, paddy vegetation and roughness (unevenness) of the soil surface. Analysis of this data revealed that direct dry seeded fields are resource-poor and have a wider range of water conditions within a field than transplanted fields due to a rougher soil surface. This results in lower productivity of total vegetation for rice growing in direct dry seeded fields. However, weed productivity was not significantly different between the direct dry seeding and transplanted fields. Direct dry seeded fields have more species-rich vegetation and greater diversity than the transplanted fields. Previous planting methods for particular fields did not influence productivity and diversity of paddy vegetation. It is concluded that the use of direct dry seeding increases biomass production of rice and the diversity of the paddy vegetation. The present results also suggest that an analytical framework be used to integrate agricultural and ecological studies of paddy vegetation in order to harmonize agricultural productivity with biological diversity.     

Primary analysis of DNA polymorphisms in the TRIM region (MHC subregion) of the Japanese quail,Coturnix japonica

Based on sequences of two cosmid clones from Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica, Coja), we confirmed that the syntenic cluster, GNB2L1～BTN1～BTN2, is located in the quail TRIM subregion of the quail major histocompatibility complex (MHC Coja) region. These cosmids also included four CjBG loci and one CjLEC locus; therefore, the quail TRIM subregion was thought to be adjacent to the BG/LEC subregion. We then identified three polymorphic markers – CjHEP21, CjTRIM39.2 and CjBTN2 – in the TRIM subregion that may be useful for the functional analysis of the MHC‐Coja region. We examined MHC‐Coja sequences from 321 individual quails sampled from 11 inbred strains, and we found eight alleles for each of the three genes – CjHEP21, CjTRIM39.2 and CjBTN2. These polymorphisms represent the first avian DNA markers in the TRIM subregion. Additionally, we discovered a quail‐specific VNTR (variable number of long tandem repeats, 133–137 bp) in intron 7 of CjBTN2. We identified 25 haplotypes in the sample of 321 quail; these haplotypes comprised combinations of all 24 alleles of the three polymorphic genes. We suggest that there are two recombination hotspots, one between each pair of adjacent loci. All strains, except AMRP, contained multiple haplotypes; the AMRP strain contained a single, apparently fixed haplotype.     

Mathematical models of population dynamics of the kelp Laminaria religiosa, with emphasis on temperature dependence

Theoretical and numerical models were developed to investigate the effects of water temperature on the population dynamics of the kelp, Laminaria religiosa . The models describe seasonal changes in the biomass of kelp by calculation of growth and grazing rates of sea urchins, Strongylocentrotus nudus . Using the theoretical model, conditions were obtained to satisfy the statistical analysis of a relationship between water temperature and kelp harvests from a fishery census. The conditions require the negative second derivative of the growth rate with respect to temperatures, or the positive second derivative of the grazing rate. By using the numerical model, harvests of kelp were calculated for a change in water temperature over a given period. The period of a temperature change giving the maximum effects on the harvest was determined primarily by temperature dependence on the growth rate. Grazing by sea urchins had large effects on the harvest of kelp. A value of 10⁴ was obtained for a ratio between harvests at the higher and the lower temperatures differing by ± 1^∘C.     

Relationship between daily survival rates of larval Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) and concentrations of copepod nauplii in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan

We attempted to estimate the survival rates of larval cohorts (3–15 mm in body length) of the Japanese anchovy Engraulis japonicus population in Hiuchi‐nada, Seto Inland Sea, Japan, and examined the relationship to their food availability. The survival rates were directly calculated from the change in larval density during the survey. The estimated daily survival rate ranged between 0 and 89% d⁻¹, but increased with the increase in the mean concentration of small‐sized copepod nauplii (<100 μm in body length) sampled at 10 m depth. When the food concentration was higher than about 5 nauplii L⁻¹, the daily survival rate of larval anchovy reached an asymptote of approximately 89% day⁻¹. It might be possible to provide a framework for the forecast for larval abundance immediately prior to recruitment size (10–15 mm SL), based on larval abundance of the monitored size (3–8 mm SL) and the survival rate which is estimated from the concentration of small‐sized nauplii.     

Deleting maternal Gtl2 leads to growth enhancement and decreased expression of stem cell markers in teratoma

The distal region of mouse chromosome 12 harbors the Dlk1–Dio3 domain, is essential for normal development and encodes maternally expressed noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs), including Gtl2 as well as paternally expressed proteins.Gtl2 works as a tumor suppressor in several types of human cancer cell lines; however, whether this reflects its function in vivo is unknown. Deleting Gtl2 from the maternal allele (Gtl2^(–/+)) results in loss of expression of Gtl2 and decreased expression of downstream ncRNAs, including many miRNAs. To determine the role of ncRNAs in tumorigenesis, we induced teratomas by engrafting E6.5 embryos (wildtype or Gtl2^(–/+)) under the kidney capsule of scid mice. Some teratomas derived from the Gtl2^(–/+) embryos exhibited hypertrophic growth, suggesting that ncRNAs, including Gtl2, may act as tumor suppressors in vivo. Microarray analysis of miRNAs expressed by Gtl2^(–/+) teratomas revealed decreased expression of 28 miRNAs encoded by the Dlk1–Dio3 domain, low expression of embryonic stem cell-specific miRNAs and dysregulation of miRNAs involved in tumorigenesis. This study suggests that downregulation of ncRNAs in the Dlk1-Dio3 domain leads to enhanced teratoma growth and repression of stem cell markers.