Setaria digitata was the main cause of equine neurological ataxia in Korea: 50 cases (2015–2016)

This study was performed to examine and clarify the cause of hindlimb ataxia and neuropathy seen in the South Korean horse population. Fifty horses diagnosed with hindlimb ataxia and neuropathy were referred for this study. Neurological examination was performed on 47 horses while necropsy was performed in all 50 animals. The occurrence of neurological diseases increased rapidly in the summer and 47 out of 50 horses were referred after the end of July. The incidence of neurological diseases started from the southern part of Korea in July and proceeded northward in August and September. Although there was no correlation with age, Thoroughbred and Warmblood horses showed a higher incidence rate than Halla and Jeju horses. The incidence rate was 5 times higher in geldings than in mares and stallions. Of the 20 cases, 16 were diagnosed with eosinophilic meningoencephalomyelitis in 2015. The most common lesions observed in 2016 were parasitic meningoencephalomyelitis (10 cases, 33%) and eosinophilic meningomyelitis (7 cases, 23%). Histopathological analysis of the brain and spinal cord revealed nematodes of approximately 100–200 µm in diameter, microcavitation and infiltrates of eosinophils, and brown pigmented macrophage infiltrates. The nematodes were identified as Setaria digitata via DNA sequencing, performed subsequent to polymerase chain reaction using DNA isolated from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections of the spinal cord. These results show that aberrant migration of Setaria digitata larva in the brain and spinal cord was a major cause for neurological signs in horses.     

核桃楸树皮的没食子酸、鞣花酸及水解单宁成分研究

研究了核桃楸树皮丙酮-水提取物的水溶性萃取部位的化学成分.采用Sephadex LH-20柱色谱及薄层色谱等方法进行分离,经波谱分析及理化性质测定,鉴定了6个化合物:没食子酸(1)、鞣花酸(2)、1,2,6-三没食子酰葡萄糖(3)、1,3,6-三没食子酰葡萄糖(4)、1,2,4,6-四没食子酰葡萄糖(5)及1,2,3,4,6-五没食子酰葡萄糖(6).化合物2、4、6为首次从该植物中分得.     

A Cathepsin B Inhibitor,E-64, Improves the Preimplantation Development of Bovine Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Embryos

Bovine somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is an important and powerful tool for basic research and biomedical and agricultural applications, however, the efficiency of SCNT has remained extremely low. In this study, we investigated the effects of cathepsin B inhibitor (E-64) supplementation of culture medium on in vitro development of bovine SCNT embryos. We initially used three concentrations of E-64 (0.1, 0.5, 1.0 μm), among which 0.5 μm resulted in the highest rate of blastocysts production after in vitro fertilization (IVF), and was therefore used for further experiments. Blastocyst development of SCNT embryos in the E-64 treatment group also increased relative to the control. Moreover, the cryosurvival rates of IVF and SCNT blastocysts were increased in E-64 treatment groups when compared with the control. On the other hand, we found that IVF and SCNT blastocysts derived from E-64-treated groups had increased total cell numbers and decreased apoptotic nuclei. Furthermore, assessment of the expression of apoptosis-related genes (Bax and Bcl-xL) in bovine IVF and SCNT blastocysts treated with E-64 by real-time RT-PCR analysis revealed suppressed expression of the pro-apoptotic gene Bax and stimulated expression of the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl-xL. Taken together, these finding indicate that addition of E-64 to embryo culture medium may have important implications for improving developmental competence and preimplantation quality in bovine IVF and SCNT embryos.     

泡桐（原变种）果实中抑菌性苯丙素苷成分的研究

研究了泡桐（原变种）果实的化学成分。采用Sephadex LH-20柱色谱及薄层色谱等方法进行分离．从其70％丙酮提取物水溶性部分分离得到4种苯丙素苷化合物，经波谱分析及理化性质分析，化合物分别鉴定为：毛蕊花苷（1）、异毛蕊花苷（2）、campneosideⅡ（3）和isocampneosideⅡ（4）。化合物1和2首次从该植物中得到。抑菌活性试验结果表明，泡桐（原变种）果实中分离得到的苯丙素苷化合物、丙酮提取物、乙酸乙酯溶及水溶性部分具有较高的抑菌活性，其中，对革兰氏阳性菌中表皮葡萄球菌的抑制能力最强。     

Fast neutron irradiation deteriorates hippocampus-related memory ability in adult mice

Object recognition memory and contextual fear conditioning task performance in adult C57BL/6 mice exposed to cranial fast neutron irradiation (0.8 Gy) were examined to evaluate hippocampus-related behavioral dysfunction following acute exposure to relatively low doses of fast neutrons. In addition, hippocampal neurogenesis changes in adult murine brain after cranial irradiation were analyzed using the neurogenesis immunohistochemical markers Ki-67 and doublecortin (DCX). In the object recognition memory test and contextual fear conditioning, mice trained 1 and 7 days after irradiation displayed significant memory deficits compared to the sham-irradiated controls. The number of Ki-67- and DCX-positive cells decreased significantly 24 h post-irradiation. These results indicate that acute exposure of the adult mouse brain to a relatively low dose of fast neutrons interrupts hippocampal functions, including learning and memory, possibly by inhibiting neurogenesis.     

Microscopic detection of IgY‐Fc binding signal in the inner layers of ovarian follicular tissue in quail

In avian species, it has been assumed that an Fc receptor in the ovarian follicles mediates immunoglobulin Y (IgY) transport into the yolk. However, no such receptor responsible for IgY has been identified to date. To examine potential IgY binding activity in the entire ovarian follicle, whole‐mount sections of quail ovarian follicle were incubated with the Fc fragment of chicken IgY (cIgY). Whole‐mount frozen sections of the second largest ovarian follicle were prepared, and then the sections were incubated with digoxigenin‐labeled Fc or Fab fragments of cIgY. Microscopic observation revealed that incubation with the cIgY‐Fc fragment produced a binding signal in the inner layer of the ovarian follicular tissues, most likely in the granulosa cell layer. However, no such signal was detected when the sections were incubated with cIgY‐Fab. Coincubation of the ovarian sections with Alexa488‐labeled cIgY‐Fc and antiserum raised against ZP1, an envelope protein specifically localized in the perivitelline layer, demonstrated that the source of the Fc binding signals partly coincided with the perivitelline layer. In conclusion, our data suggest that potential IgY binding substances interacting with the Fc domain are present in the inner layers of ovarian follicular tissues, most likely in the granulosa cell layer and/or in the perivitelline layer.     

核桃楸树皮提取物的化学成分及其抗氧化活性研究

研究了核桃楸树皮的化学成分及其抗氧化活性.采用Sephadex LH-20柱色谱及薄层色谱等方法进行分离,从其70%丙酮提取物乙酸乙酯及水溶性部分中分到11种化合物,经波谱分析及理化性质鉴定化合物分别为:短叶松素(1)、花旗松素(2)、蛇葡萄素(3)、山奈酚(4)、槲皮素(5)、杨梅素(6)、阿福豆苷(7)、紫云英苷(8)、槲皮苷(9)、异槲皮苷(10)、杨梅苷(11).化合物1、3、5、6、8、10为首次从该植物中分得.经DPPH试验,测定了正己烷溶性、二氯甲烷溶性、乙酸乙酯溶性和水溶性部分以及粗提物和分得化合物的抗氧化活性.其中乙酸乙酯和水溶性部分及化合物1～6与对照组相比具有很强的抗氧化活性.