Amorphous clay materials of towada ando soils

Towada Ando soils consisted of five soils—Towada-a (1,000 years old), Towada-b (2,000 years old), Chuseri (4,000 years old), Nanbu (8,600 years old), and Ninokura soils (10,000 years Amorphous clay materials of these soils taken at different localities were studied by the combined use of selective dissolution and differential infrared spectroscopy, X-ray analysis, electron microscopy, etc.

The main clay minerals of Towada-a soils, present-day soils, were montmorillonite-vermic-ulite chloritic intergrades and opaline silica, or these minerals and allophane in the humus horizons, and allophane in the non-humus ones. Towada-b soils overlain by the Towada-a soils showed the clay mineralogical constituents similar to those of Towada-a soils. However, allophane was one of the main clay minerals in all the humus horizons as well as non-humus ones. The main clay minerals of Chuseri soils were allophane and layer silicates consisting chiefly of chloritic intergrades and chlorite in the humus horizons, and allophane in the non-humus ones. Opaline silica was present in minor amounts in the humus horizons of Chuseri soils, but nearly absent in Nanbu and Ninokura soils.

There were remarkable differences in the clay mineralogical composition of Nanbu and Ninokura soils with differences of their environmental conditions. Allophane and imogolite Were dominant in the clay fractions of both humus and non-humus horizons of very shallowly buried Nanbu soil which was subjected to the strong leaching process. Allophane was the main clay mineral of deeply buried Nanbu and Ninokura soils which showed the absence of notable accumulation of bases and silica. On the contrary, halloysite with a small amount of siliceous amorphous material appeared in very deeply buried Nanbu and Ninokura soils where bases and silica were distinctly accumulated. The amounts of halloysite in the clay fractions were larger in the humus horizons than non-humus ones, and in Ninokura soil than Nanbu soil.

Soil age, soil organic matter, and depositional overburden of tephras were observed to be conspicuous among various factors relating to the weathering of amorphous clay materials in Towada Ando soils.     

Apple procyanidin oligomers absorption in rats after oral administration: analysis of procyanidins in plasma using the porter method and high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

In this study, we investigated the absorption of apple procyanidins, namely, apple condensed tannins (ACTs), in rats using the Porter method and high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. The apple procyanidin concentrations in the rat plasma reached a maximum 2 h after administration and decreased thereafter. To investigate the limits of the absorption of apple procyanidins in the polymerization degree, we administered the procyanidin oligomer fraction, which was separated from ACT using normal-phase chromatography according to the degree of polymerization. Procyanidins from each dimer to pentamer group were detected in the plasma by the Porter method. Moreover, by the study using reconstituted procyanidins, polymeric procyanidins influenced the absorption of procyanidin oligomers. These results suggest that ACTs are absorbed and directly involved in physiological functions in the rats.     

Daily ration of Japanese Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus niphonius larvae

SUMMARY: Diel successive samplings of Japanese Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus niphonius larvae were conducted throughout 24 h both in the sea and in captivity in order to estimate their daily ration. Using the Elliott and Persson model, the instantaneous gastric evacuation rate was estimated from the depletion of stomach contents (% dry bodyweight) with time during the night for wild fish (3.0–11.5 mm standard length) and from starvation experiments for reared fish (8, 10, and 15 days after hatching (DAH)). Japanese Spanish mackerel is a daylight feeder and exhibited piscivorous habits from first feeding both in the sea and in captivity. Feeding activity peaked at dusk. The estimated daily ration for wild larvae were 111.1 and 127.2% in 1996 and 1997, respectively; and those for reared larvae ranged from 90.6 to 111.7% of dry bodyweight. Based on the estimated value of daily rations for reared fish, the total number of newly hatched red sea bream Pagrus major larvae preyed by a Japanese Spanish mackerel from first feeding (5 DAH) to beginning of juvenile stage (20 DAH) in captivity was calculated to be 1139–1404.     

Comparative observations on the growth changes of the histochemical property and collagen architecture of the Musculus pectoralis from Silky, layer-type and meat-type cockerels

Growth‐related changes in the histochemical properties and collagen architecture of the Musculus pectoralis were compared among Silky, layer‐type and meat‐type cockerels. Histochemical and immunohistochemical methods were used and collagen architecture was studied using scanning electron microscopy. The total amount of collagen present was also measured. The diameter of type IIB myofibers was similar or rather larger in the layer‐type birds compared with the meat‐type. The collagen content was generally low for 5–10 weeks across the breeds and then increased in the other breeds except for Silky. In the perimysium, the collagen bundles gradually increased in size and the density of the fibrils also increased during growth. At 30 weeks of age, the layer‐type birds showed compact collagen bundles while the meat‐type had loose bundles. The endomysial collagen network appeared relatively denser in the meat‐type chicks compared to the others at week 1. At 30 weeks of age, compact and felt‐like structure of endomysium was shown by Silky and layer‐type chickens, while the meat‐type showed a relatively loose arrangement of tissue in the endomysial collagen. From these results, it appears that the meat‐type chicken can produce a large M. pectoralis with many, relatively thinner myofibers and a relatively undeveloped form of intramuscular collagen structure.     

Gene Expression and Fungal Morphology in Submerged Culture Using Whole Barley of Aspergillus kawachii

The authors described a novel submerged batch culture system that produced high levels of amylase by Aspergillus kawachii using whole barley （WB）, the surface of which is covered by its husk. In this study, detailed analyses determining the amylase activities, residual sugars, fungal morphology and expression levels of genes were performed in a submerged culture using WB to address the mechanism underlying high amylase productivity in A. kawachii. High levels of glucoamylase and acid-stable u-amylase were produced in this culture, and expression levels of amylases, as well as glucose-repressive genes including high-affinity glucose transporter and peroxidase/catalase were also high. On the other hand, the morphology of mycelia was altered, with swollen, bulbous, multi-septum hyphae and conidiophores that normally form in a solid culture being partially generated. Furthermore, cell cycle and post-translational modification-related gene expression levels were altered, and were similar to those in the solid culture. These findings suggest that high amylase productivity in the submerged culture using WB is accompanied by both the up-regulation of amylase genes and activation of post-translational modifications due to fungal morphological changes being brought closer to those in the solid culture.     

Effects of genetic and environmental factors on muscle glycogen content in Japanese Black cattle

Monosaccharides such as glucose contribute to the development of meat flavor upon heating via the Maillard reaction; therefore, monosaccharide content is related to beef palatability. Here, we analyzed the effects of genetic and environmental factors on the content of glycogen, one of the precursors of monosaccharides, in the muscles of 958 fattened Japanese Black cattle from Yamagata Prefecture. Analysis of variance showed that muscle glycogen content was affected by the farm and postmortem periods, but not by sex, slaughter age, slaughter month or number of days detained at the slaughter yard. Additionally, consumption of digestible brown rice feed elevated muscle glycogen levels. Glycogen heritability was estimated to be 0.34, and genetic correlations between glycogen and carcass weight (CW) or beef marbling standard (BMS) were weak. The predicted breeding values varied among paternal lines. These results demonstrated that genetic factors might improve muscle glycogen content and therefore beef palatability, but do not influence CW or BMS.     

Allopatric distributions of tetraploid and hexaploid forms of Aegilops neglecta Req. ex Bertol.

The genus Aegilops L. comprises 22 annual wild species that are closely related to wheat (Hammer in Kulturpflanze 28: 33–180, 1980). Aegilops neglecta Req. ex Bertol. is a member of the Aegilops section of this genus and is distributed from Morocco and Spain in the west to Transcaucasia and western Iran in the east. This species includes tetraploid (2n = 28, genome UUMM) and hexaploid forms (2n = 42, UUMMNN). However, the geographical distributions of the two cytological forms remain unclear. Clarifying the distribution of the two cytological forms is essential for a better understanding of the diffusion of Ae. neglecta and its tetraploid and hexaploid forms. In the present study, chromosome numbers were determined for accessions of Ae. neglecta from a total of 137 populations, located in the western area of the species distribution from the Aegean Islands to Morocco. Taken together with previous studies, the present data reveal a difference in the geographical distribution of tetraploid and hexaploid forms: tetraploid form is distributed in the eastern part of the species area and hexaploid form predominantly occurs in the western part with their border on the western margin of the Aegean Sea. Near the border, tetraploid and mixed populations are sporadically found among hexaploid populations in the Balkan and Peloponnesus Peninsulas, while a few hexaploid and mixed populations are found among tetraploid populations in the East Aegean Islands and West Anatolia.     

The Dnmt3b splice variant is specifically expressed in in vitro-manipulated blastocysts and their derivative ES cells

Manipulation of preimplantation embryos in vitro, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), in vitro culture (IVC), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) and other assisted reproduction technologies (ART), has contributed to the development of infertility treatment and new animal reproduction methods. However, such embryos often exhibit abnormal DNA methylation patterns in imprinted genes and centromeric satellite repeats. These DNA methylation patterns are established and maintained by three DNA methyltransferases: Dnmt1, Dnmt3a and Dnmt3b. Dnmt3b is responsible for the creation of methylation patterns during the early stage of embryogenesis and consists of many alternative splice variants that affect methylation activity; nevertheless, the roles of these variants have not yet been identified. In this study, we found an alternatively spliced variant of Dnmt3b lacking exon 6 (Dnmt3bΔ6) that is specific to mouse IVC embryos. Dnmt3bΔ6 also showed prominent expression in embryonic stem (ES) cells derived from in vitro manipulated embryos. Interestingly, IVC blastocysts were hypomethylated in centromeric satellite repeat regions that could be susceptible to methylation by Dnmt3b. In vitro methylation activity assays showed that Dnmt3bΔ6 had lower activity than normal Dnmt3b. Our findings suggest that Dnmt3bΔ6 could induce a hypomethylation status especially in in vitro manipulated embryos.