Lipid distribution in branching coral Montipora digitata

>ABSTRACT: The lipid profile was studied along the branch length, from the top, middle to base portion, of coral Montipora digitata to gain more insight into the physiological significance of lipids in the coral energy budget. The lipids of M. digitata consisted of seven major lipid classes: polar lipid, sterol, free fatty acid, unknown lipids 1 and 2, triacylglycerol (TG), and wax ester. The concentration of storage lipids, TG, and wax ester showed a top–base gradient along the length, whereas the levels of free fatty acid and unknown lipids showed a base–top gradient. The proportions of polar lipid and sterol in the top portion of the branch were slightly higher than those in the base portion. This observation appeared to be compatible with the view that the increased energy expenditure for proliferation enhanced the mobilization of the storage fuel lipids of wax ester and TG rather than the structure lipids of polar lipids and sterols at the top portion of the branch. Compositions of fatty acid also showed a length-wise diversity. The top portion had a lower proportion of palmitic acid (16   :   0) in all lipid classes of fatty acid ester, suggesting that this fatty acid was preferentially mobilized at the top portion, probably for the growth of coral cells.     

Development of wood and wood ash-based hydroxyapatite composites and their fire-retarding properties

For making efficient use of waste wood ash emitted from wood biomass plant, the wood and wood ash-based hydroxyapatite (HAp) composite was produced and their flammability characterization was studied by thermogravimetric (DTA-TG) analysis, oxygen index (OI) measurement and cone calorimeter test. The results show that the exothermic and weight loss peaks in DTA-TG combustion profiles due to their significant thermal decomposition were weakened by the HAp agent impregnation. In addition, the OI value of HAp composites was increased by the HAp combining and the OI showed a correlation with the HAp contents. Also, the cone calorimeter study revealed that the heat release rates were decreased with increasing amount of HAp injection and accordingly their total heat release has an inverse relationship to the HAp contents. These results indicate that the treatment with wood ash-based HAp agents can enhance the flame retardancy of the treated woods.     

Inter-tree and intra-tree variations in ring width and wood density components in balsam fir (Abies balsamea)

This study quantified and compared intra-tree and inter-tree variations in ring width and wood density components in balsam fir (Abies balsamea) grown in Quebec, Canada. In addition, the study examined correlations between ring width and wood density components at different stem positions from the stump level to the stem top. Ring width and wood density components of individual rings were measured by X-ray densitometry. Both the intra- and inter-tree variations in balsam fir are large, but the inter-tree variation is relatively smaller than the intra-tree variation. Much of the intra-tree variation is due to the radial variation, whereas the axial variation is much smaller. Compared to ring width and its components, wood density characteristics show a considerably smaller variation at both the inter- and intra-tree level. In almost all wood characteristics studied (except for latewood width), the intra- and inter-tree variations are more or less influenced by tree age. Cambial age explains more intra-tree variation in wood density components than ring width, whereas more intra-tree variation in ring width components is due to ring width. Cambial age and ring width explain a comparable percentage of variation in ring density. Only a few of the correlations between ring width and wood density components vary significantly with stem position from the stump to the stem top at the inter-tree level. In balsam fir, a negative correlation between ring density and ring width is significant in the butt log, but the correlation decreases to an insignificant level at and above a height of 3.0 m.     

Effects of Garcinia cambogia extract on serum sex hormones in overweight subjects

(-) Hydroxycitric acid (HCA), an active ingredient extracted from the Garcinia cambogia fruit rind, has been commonly used as a dietary supplement for weight management. Given the controversy over HCA related testicular toxicity in animal studies, we investigated changes in serum sex hormones levels as an extension of our previous double-blind placebo-controlled trial in human subjects, in which 44 participants received either G. cambogia extract (1667.3 mg/day equivalent to 1000 mg HCA/day) or placebo for 12 weeks. Compared to the placebo group, administration of the extract did not significantly alter the serum testosterone, estrone, and estradiol levels. Similarly, hematology, serum triacylglycerol and serum clinical pathology parameters did not reveal any significant adverse effects. The results of this preliminary investigation indicate that ingestion of G. cambogia extract at dose levels commonly recommended for human use does not affect serum sex hormone levels and blood parameters.     

Nematocidal activities of thiabendazole and ivermectin against the larvae of Strongyloides ratti and S. venezuelensis

With the aim of developing therapeutic agents for strongyloidosis, the disease caused by infection with Strongyloides stercoralis, we established a novel assay technique using S. ratti and S. venezuelensis as models for S. stercoralis. The newly developed assay technique was found to more accurately represent treatment-induced larval paralysis than existing assays. Our method uses paper disks impregnated with the test solution, which even allows materials that are sparingly soluble in water to be tested. An inverted microscope was used to observe the larval states, and these states were recorded using a digital camera. We observed the activities of ivermectin and thiabendazole against larvae and calculated larval motility and velocity. These two factors were then combined to determine the overall viability of larvae at selected concentrations. The activities of the anthelmintics were compared by calculating the concentrations at which 50% viability was demonstrated, or in other words, the concentration at which paralysis was caused in 50% of the individuals (50% paralysis concentration; PC(50)). Evaluations after 24h of exposure yielded the following reproducible PC(50) values for ivermectin and thiabendazole, respectively: S. ratti, 2.4 and 140 microM; and S. venezuelensis, 2.3 and 190 microM. After treatment with ivermectin, there was a tendency for larval motility to be greater than that of the controls at low concentrations, a result that might be associated with its mechanism of action.     

Monitoring of QoI fungicide resistance in Plasmopara viticola populations in Japan

BACKGROUND: The increasing occurrence of QoI fungicide resistance in Plasmopara viticola (Berk. & MA Curtis) Berl. & DeToni populations is becoming a serious problem in the control of grapevine downy mildew. In Japan, the existence of QoI‐fungicide‐resistant P. viticola was reported in 2009. RESULTS: The QoI fungicide resistance in P. viticola samples collected from vineyards in Japan in 2008 and 2009 was monitored. Resistant P. viticola were detected in the regions where QoI fungicides have been introduced in accordance with the pest management programme, whereas in Hokkaido vineyards, where QoI fungicides have not yet been introduced, QoI‐fungicide‐resistant P. viticola were not found. CONCLUSION: Japan comprises thousands of islands and is physically isolated from other countries by the sea. Monitoring the emergence, incidence and distribution of QoI fungicide resistance in P. viticola populations in Japan is necessary to improve pest management strategies for downy mildew disease in Japanese vineyards. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of Application of Acidified Porous Hydrate Calcium Silicate and Porous Hydrated Calcium Silicate on the Growth of Rice Plants (Oryza sativa L.)

The effect of the application of acidified porous hydrate calcium silicate (APS) in nursery bed soil and porous hydrate calcium silicate (PS) in paddy fields on the growth of rice plants ( Oryza sativa L. cv. Hitomebore) was examined in 2002 and 2003. The results revealed the following: 1) Shoot dry weight of rice seedlings increased by APS treatment in nursery bed soil. The tiller number of rice plants after transplanting in both years also increased by APS treatment in nursery bed soil, and in 2003, the tiller number in the treatment with a combination of APS in nursery bed soil and PS in paddy fields was significantly higher than that in the other treatments until the maximum tiller number stage. Furthermore, the root length of rice plants 14 d after transplanting increased by APS treatment in nursery bed soil. 2) Silicon concentration in the soil solution significantly increased by PS treatment in paddy fields, and the concentration of dissolved carbon oxide increased by APS treatment in nursery bed soil. 3) Only in the APS treatment the rice yield was 341 g m⁻², while 400 and 450 g m⁻² in the PS and both APS and PS treatments, respectively, in 2003. Percentages of ripened grains in the plots without PS treatment ranged from 57 to 63%, respectively, while, those in the PS treated plots were 82%. The numbers of panicles and ripened grains in both APS and PS treatments were the highest among the treatments. Based on the above results, we concluded that both APS in nursery bed soil and PS in paddy field treatments were effective in improving the silicon nutrition and growth of rice plants, and that this effect was enhanced by a combination of treatments with the two.     

Stage‐specific effects of osmolarity of a culture medium on development of pig oocytes and miniature pig somatic cell nuclear transfer embryos activated by ultrasound treatment

Whether high osmolarity of a culture medium at the early culture stage affects the development of pig oocytes and miniature pig somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos activated by ultrasound was examined. When oocytes were cultured in modified porcine zygote medium‐3 (mPZM‐3) with increased NaCl to 138 mmol/L (mPZM‐3+NaCl; 326 mOsm) or 50 mmol/L sucrose (mPZM‐3+sucrose; 318 mOsm) for the first 2 days and then cultured in normal mPZM‐3 (273 mOsm) for 5 days, the cleavage and blastocyst formation rates were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than those of oocytes cultured in mPZM‐3 for 7 days. The cleavage and blastocyst formation rates of SCNT embryos cultured in mPZM‐3+NaCl for the first 2 days and then cultured in mPZM‐3 for 5 days were also significantly (P < 0.05) higher than those of embryos cultured in mPZM‐3 for 7 days. These results showed that the high osmolarity of a culture medium induced by increasing NaCl concentration during the first 2 days improves the development of pig oocytes and miniature pig SCNT embryos activated by ultrasound.     

Intraspecies genetic variability of Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale in commercial birds in Peru

Strains of the bacterium Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT), a causal agent of respiratory diseases in birds, were microbiologically isolated, identified, and molecularly characterized. Blood-enriched culture media and biochemistry tests were used for microbiologic identification. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and repetitive extragenic palindromic PCR (rep-PCR) techniques were used for molecular identification and characterization, respectively, of the microorganism. ORT strains were isolated in enriched media from the trachea and air sacs of broilers, breeders, and layers from several geographic zones of Peru. Of the original 75 strains isolated from 75 clinical samples from which ORT was recovered during 1998-2000, 25 were selected for further study based on ORT as the primary pathogenic isolate (no other pathogens were detected). Selected isolates were molecularly identified and characterized by PCR using specific primers designed from the conserved zones of the 16S ribosomal genes. Primers used for the identification of ORT produced a specific fragment of 784 base pair (bp), which did not appear in Haemophilus paragallinarum or Pasteurella multocida, microorganisms with similar morphologic and biochemical characteristics that produce dinical signs identical to those of ORT. All 25 strains of ORT tested with rep-PCR had a genetic profile similar to that of ORT American Type Culture Collection 51463, indicating the presence of only one genotype in the ORT strains studied.     

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) activity in cultured canine bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs)

Autologous bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) infusion therapy improves the hepatic fibrosis. To investigate the mechanism of remission, we evaluated the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and -9 activity in canine BMSCs and the effect of pro-inflammatory cytokines on their expression. The activity and the gene expression of MMPs were analyzed by gelatin zymography and quantitative RT-PCR, respectively. The specific gelatinase bands were indicative effect of MMP-2 and -9 in canine BMSCs. MMP-2 expression seemed to be increased by TNF-α and IL-1β while MMP-9 was enhanced by TNF-α and IL-6. These results suggested that remissive effect on liver fibrosis might be partly attributable to the MMP-2 and -9 activity in BMSCs under the inflammatory condition.