Vaccination against Fowlpox virus via drinking water

The oral vaccination against Fowlpox was investigated via drinking water containing the F132-c strain of Fowlpox virus to be effective even though the vaccine virus-titer was 10(4) TCID (50)/dose each time. When the virus-titer of the F132-c strain was 10(4-5 )TCID(50)/dose per single drinking water vaccination, 90% or more of chickens were not protected, however, they were protected when vaccinated twice via drinking water. A weak immune response occurred by a slight infection after the first vaccination, and due to memory cells, a booster could work well after the second vaccination. These results suggest the possibility of reducing both the amount of virus required for a vaccine via drinking water and the labor cost in the field.     

Physical, chemical, and biological properties of s-allylcysteine, an amino acid derived from garlic.

Physical, chemical, and biological properties of S-allylcysteine (SAC) were investigated. SAC showed stable properties under tested conditions, and its acute/subacute toxicity was very minor in mice and rats (LD(50) value >54.7 mM/kg po; >20 mM/kg ip). The pharmacokinetics of SAC was investigated after oral administration of garlic supplement containing SAC to human volunteers. SAC from garlic consumption was rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, however, the half-life and excretion time were more than 10 h and 30 h, respectively.     

Ant nestmate and non-nestmate discrimination by a chemosensory sensillum

In animal societies, chemical communication plays an important role in conflict and cooperation. For ants, cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) blends produced by non-nestmates elicit overt aggression. We describe a sensory sensillum on the antennae of the carpenter ant Camponotus japonicus that functions in nestmate discrimination. This sensillum is multiporous and responds only to non-nestmate CHC blends. This suggests a role for a peripheral recognition mechanism in detecting colony-specific chemical signals.