Inheritance of melanocytic lesions and their association with the white colour phenotype in miniature swine

A line of Munich Miniature Swine (MMS) Troll showing a high incidence of spontaneous benign and malignant cutaneous melanocytic lesions has been developed since 1986. The inheritance of cutaneous melanocytic lesions was studied by establishing the F₁-, F₂- and reciprocal B₁-generations with one melanoma MMS-Troll boar and four unaffected German Landrace sows as founders. A total of 176 animals were available, 27 in the F₁-, 111 in the F₂-, 19 in the B_1-DL-, and 14 in the B_1-Troll-generation. Benign melanocytic lesions were observed in 42% of F₁-, 18% of F₂-, 11% of B_1-DL- and 50% of B_1-Troll-animals. Malignant melanomas developed in 3.6% of F₂- and 7.1% of B_1-Troll-animals, although no animal with white coat colour was affected. A mixed major gene model with arbitrary gene action explained the segregation of benign lesions sufficiently well. For melanomas a mixed major gene model required additional dominant acting suppressor loci to obtain a sufficient fit to the data. An influence of SLA haplotypes on the penetrance of melanocytic lesions was not evident. The association analysis of the white phenotypes strongly indicated that the dominant allele I at the I-locus suppresses malignant melanocytic lesions. A possible explanation is the lack of melanocytes in the skin of dominant white pigs caused by a mutation of the KIT-gene, which leads to a failure of melanoblast migration and development.     

Autoimmune disease and impaired uptake of apoptotic cells in MFG-E8-deficient mice

Apoptotic cells expose phosphatidylserine and are swiftly engulfed by macrophages. Milk fat globule epidermal growth factor (EGF) factor 8 (MFG-E8) is a protein that binds to apoptotic cells by recognizing phosphatidylserine and that enhances the engulfment of apoptotic cells by macrophages. We report that tingible body macrophages in the germinal centers of the spleen and lymph nodes strongly express MFG-E8. Many apoptotic lymphocytes were found on the MFG-E8-/- tingible body macrophages, but they were not efficiently engulfed. The MFG-E8-/- mice developed splenomegaly, with the formation of numerous germinal centers, and suffered from glomerulonephritis as a result of autoantibody production. These data demonstrate that MFG-E8 has a critical role in removing apoptotic B cells in the germinal centers and that its failure can lead to autoimmune diseases.     

Microanatomic features of pancreatic islets and immunolocalization of glucose transporters in tissues of llamas and alpacas

OBJECTIVE: To describe the microanatomic features of pancreatic islets and the immunohistochemical distribution of glucose transporter (GLUT) molecules in the pancreas and other tissues of New World camelids. ANIMALS: 7 healthy adult New World camelids, 2 neonatal camelids with developmental skeletal abnormalities, and 2 BALB/c mice. PROCEDURE: Samples of pancreas, liver, skeletal muscle, mammary gland, brain, and adipose tissue were collected postmortem from camelids and mice. Pancreatic tissue sections from camelids were assessed microscopically. Sections of all tissues from camelids and mice (positive control specimens) were examined after staining with antibodies against GLUT-1, -2, -3, and -4 molecules. RESULTS: In camelids, pancreatic islets were prominent and lacked connective tissue capsules. Numerous individual endocrine-type cells were visible distant from the islets. Findings in neonatal and adult tissues were similar; however, the former appeared to have more non-islet-associated endocrine cells. Via immunostaining, GLUT-2 molecules were detected on pancreatic endocrine cells and hepatocytes in camelids, GLUT-1 molecules were detected on the capillary endothelium of the CNS, GLUT-3 molecules were detected throughout the gray matter, and GLUT-4 molecules were not detected in any camelid tissues. Staining characteristics of neonatal and adult tissues were similar. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: In New World camelids, microanatomic features of pancreatic islets are similar to those of other mammals. Data suggest that the poor glucose clearance and poor insulin response to hyperglycemia in adult camelids cannot be attributed to a lack of islet cells or lack of GLUT molecules on the outer membrane of those cells.     

Light Weight Aggregates made from Dredged Harbour Sediments

Goal  

Annually, 400.000 m₃ harbour sediments are dredged to maintain the water depth in the harbours of Bremen and Bremerhaven. The sediment contains organic and inorganic pollutants and hence is deposited on a landfill. Because of the limited capacity of that landfill alternative treatment techniques are investigated. This study aims to evaluate the production of Light Weight Aggregates (LWA) from harbour sediments with respect to the product quality and environmental aspects of the use of the LWA.     

Ant alarm pheromone activity: correlation with molecular shape by scanning computer

The ant Iridomyrmex pruinosus utilizes 2-heptanone as an alarm pheromone. The activities of 49 ketones and 35 nonketones as alarm pheromones for this species were determined. The molecular shapes of these compounds were assessed by submitting silhouette photographs of their molecular models to a pattern recognition machine. A highly significant correlation exists between molecular shape and alarm activity.     

Prognosis for Neonatal Foals in an Intensive Care Unit

This study was conducted to develop an equation for the prediction of outcome in neonatal foals undergoing treatment in an intensive care unit (ICU). Fifty-three physical examination, historical, and clinicopathologic variables were analyzed from the records of 99 neonatal foals (<14 days of age) treated in the neonatal ICU of the Equine Medical Center. The outcome was recorded and the results were categorized into either surviving or nonsurviving groups. The mean values for the 2 groups were compared, and variables that differed significantly between the two groups were retained and used to construct a logistic regression equation. Retained variables were heart rate, temperature, and neutron phil count. The predictive equation then was tested prospectively in 2 additional groups of foals from 2 separate ICUs. The predicted outcome was compared to the actual outcome, and performance variables were calculated. Sensitivity (.83), specificity (.87), negative predictive value (.72), and positive predictive value (.93) were determined for foals from one neonatal ICU; the sensitivity (.83), specificity (.44), negative predictive value (.44), and positive predictive value (.83) were lower for foals at a second, separate ICU.