Züchtung von Reinkulturen des Pilzes Lophodermium pinastri (Schrad.) Chev. zur Entstehung von sexuellen Fruchtkörpern (Hysterothecien)

Production of hysterothecia from pure cultures of Lophodermium pinastri (Schrad.) Chev. A method is described for the production of hysterothecia from pure cultures of L. pinastri. Previously sterilized needles of Finns sylvestris, after being overgrown on the culture dish are removed and put on living moss under natural conditions. In 2–2,5 months hysterothecia appear.     

Influence of sulfur fertilization on the amounts of free amino acids in wheat. correlation with baking properties as well as with 3-aminopropionamide and acrylamide generation during baking

Sulfur (S) fertilization has been long-known to influence the amounts of total free amino acids in plants. To determine the impact of S deficiency in wheat on the concentration of, in particular, free asparagine, the spring wheat cultivar 'Star' was grown in a laboratory scale (5 L pot) at five different levels of S fertilization. After maturity, the kernels were milled into white flours (1-5) and analyzed for their contents of total S and total nitrogen as well as for free amino acids and glucose, fructose, maltose, and sucrose. Extremely high concentrations of free asparagine (Asn; 3.9-5.7 g/kg) were determined in flours 1 and 2 (30 and 60 mg of S), whereas much lower amounts (0.03-0.4 g/kg) were present in flours grown at higher S levels. The amounts of the reducing carbohydrates were, however, scarcely affected by S fertilization. In agreement with the high amount of Asn in flours 1 and 2, heating of both flours led to the generation of very high amounts of acrylamide (1.7-3.1 mg/kg) as well as of 3-aminopropionamide (40-76 mg/kg). Similar concentrations were measured in crispbread prepared from both flours. Application of rheological measurements on doughs prepared from each flour and a determination of the loaf volume of bread baked therefrom clearly indicated that flours 1 and 2 would be excluded from commercial bread processing due to their poor technological properties. Two commercial flours showed relatively low concentrations of acrylamide after a thermal treatment.     

Induced multiple spawning of reared Siganus oramin (Schneider) (=S. canaliculatus Park)

Rabbit-fish, Siganus oramin, reared in a closed seawater system on an artificial diet, were brought to maturity and spawned artifically after human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) injections. Eggs were incubated under different salinity regimes. Hatching success between 20.9 and 32.2‰ S was ≥95%.     

Comparison of bronchoalveolar lavage and respiratory secretion cytology in horses with clinically diagnosed chronic pulmonary disease

Thirty-nine horses and 3 ponies underwent a thorough respiratory examination and were grouped as follows: healthy (4 horses and 1 pony); mild chronic pulmonary disease (CPD 11 horses); moderate CPD (16 horses and 1 pony); and severe CPD (8 horses and 1 pony). Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid collected from all animals and respiratory secretions (RS) obtained from 39 of these animals were evaluated cytologically and the results were compared. It was concluded that cytological examination of either BAL fluid or RS was useful in diagnosing various equine pulmonary diseases. The only advantage that BAL offered over RS sampling was in cases in which there was no RS available in the trachea. In addition, the severity of the CPD did not always correlate with either RS or BAL cytology.     

Einfluß von alimentärem Zn-Mangel auf die Stickstoffelimination und Enzymaktivitäten des Harnstoffzyklus

Influence of alimentary zinc deficiency on nitrogen elimination and activities of urea cycle enzymes
This study was conducted to investigate whether the hyperammonaemia shown in earlier zinc-deficiency experiments was the result of disturbed enzyme activities of the urea cycle. For this study 36 male Sprague-Dawley rats with an average body weight of 85 g were divided into three experimental groups of 12 animals each. Group 1 received the semisynthetic zinc-deficient diet (AIN-93G; 1.2 mg Zn/kg DM) ad libitum over 33 experimental days. Group 2 received the zinc-sulphate-supplemented control diet (60 mg Zn/kg DM) ad libitum and group 3 received the same diet matched to the feed intake of the zinc-deficient rats. Alimentary zinc deficiency reduced the zinc concentration and the activity of the alkaline phosphatase in serum by 75 and 67%, respectively. The activity of the glutamate dehydrogenase and the concentrations of ammonia and urea in the serum of the zinc-deficient rats showed no significant differences compared with pair-fed control rats. On the other hand the hepatic activity of the mitochondrial localized glutamate dehydrogenase of the zinc-deficient rats was significantly increased and the carbamoylphosphate synthetase and ornithine carbamoyltransferase were reduced about half in comparison with both control groups. The activities of the cytosolic liver enzymes such as argininosuccinate synthetase, argininosuccinase and arginase were again significantly increased in zinc-deficient rats compared with both control groups. The increased hepatic activity of the glutamate dehydrogenase possibly led to an enhanced NH₃ elimination in addition to urea synthesis. The typical reduction of feed intake in consequence of zinc deficiency is therefore not the cause of hyperammonaemia due to disturbed urea synthesis, as has been hypothesized in earlier studies.     

Die Stoffbilanzierung landwirtschaftlicher Böden - Eine Methode zur Früherkennung von Bodenveränderungen

Material balances of agricultural soil - A method for early recognition of soil alterations For agricultural soils of a lowland region in Switzerland the input and output of the elements nitrogen, phosphorus, copper, zinc, cadmium and lead were measured over two years. In spite of the fact that the emission standards are met there is a slow and steady increase of the P, Cu, Zn and Pb concentrations found in the plough layer. In accordance with the principle of prevention the metabolism of the soil should be controlled on a large scale in such a way that this concentration increase can be substantially reduced within decades. With the available analytical methods the observed concentration increases in the soil are clearly detectable only after decades. Regional annual material balancing of the relevant anthropogenic processes (farming, private households, industry and trade), however, allows early detection of small changes in concentration. Consequently, a soil protection strategy which obeys the principle of early prevention should be completed by regional material balances.     

Impaired immunoproteasome assembly and immune responses in PA28-/- mice

In vitro PA28 binds and activates proteasomes. It is shown here that mice with a disrupted PA28b gene lack PA28a and PA28b polypeptides, demonstrating that PA28 functions as a hetero-oligomer in vivo. Processing of antigenic epitopes derived from exogenous or endogenous antigens is altered in PA28-/- mice. Cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses are impaired, and assembly of immunoproteasomes is greatly inhibited in mice lacking PA28. These results show that PA28 is necessary for immunoproteasome assembly and is required for efficient antigen processing, thus demonstrating the importance of PA28-mediated proteasome function in immune responses.     

Mutations in dynein link motor neuron degeneration to defects in retrograde transport

Degenerative disorders of motor neurons include a range of progressive fatal diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinal-bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA), and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Although the causative genetic alterations are known for some cases, the molecular basis of many SMA and SBMA-like syndromes and most ALS cases is unknown. Here we show that missense point mutations in the cytoplasmic dynein heavy chain result in progressive motor neuron degeneration in heterozygous mice, and in homozygotes this is accompanied by the formation of Lewy-like inclusion bodies, thus resembling key features of human pathology. These mutations exclusively perturb neuron-specific functions of dynein.