Prion-induced amyloid heart disease with high blood infectivity in transgenic mice

We investigated extraneural manifestations in scrapie-infected transgenic mice expressing prion protein lacking the glycophosphatydylinositol membrane anchor. In the brain, blood, and heart, both abnormal protease-resistant prion protein (PrPres) and prion infectivity were readily detected by immunoblot and by inoculation into nontransgenic recipients. The titer of infectious scrapie in blood plasma exceeded 10(7) 50% infectious doses per milliliter. The hearts of these transgenic mice contained PrPres-positive amyloid deposits that led to myocardial stiffness and cardiac disease.     

Morphology and SSR fingerprinting of newly developed <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cynara cardunculus</Emphasis> genotypes exploitable as ornamentals

The species Cynara cardunculus includes the globe artichoke (var. scolymus), the cultivated cardoon (var. altilis) and the wild cardoon (var. sylvestris). The three taxa are sexually compatible and originate fertile F ₁ progenies, which, given the high heterozygosity of the species, are highly segregating. We report the characterization of two F ₁ populations, one bred from a cross between globe artichoke and cultivated cardoon, and the other between globe artichoke and wild cardoon. Both populations featured a wide array of phenotypes in relation to several traits, and some of the newly developed genotypes are of interest for the ornamental market. The two populations were genotyped at 50 microsatellite (SSR) loci: in the globe artichoke × wild cardoon and globe artichoke × cultivated cardoon progenies 116 and 97 alleles were respectively detected. SSR pattern scores were used to produce an UPGMA dendrogram and a PCoA plot. A set of nine SSR loci, evenly dispersed across the genome, was shown to be sufficient to unambiguously identify each segregant. The molecular fingerprinting is useful for establishing the true to type correspondence of propagative materials in nurseries and ensures the effective correspondence between the real and the declared identity of a clone.     

An Association Analysis Between a Silent C558T Polymorphism at the Pig Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule 1 Locus and Sow Reproduction and Piglet Survivability Traits

The vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM1) has a strong influence on embryonic development and on the formation of the umbilical cord and placenta. These developmental processes are crucial to ensure the success of pregnancy. In this work, we have identified two T306A and C558T single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) at exons 2 and 3 of the pig VCAM1 locus, respectively. The T306A substitution involves a non conservative Asn to Lys replacement at amino acid position 102, whereas the C558T polymorphism is synonymous. An in silico prediction of the consequences of the Asn₁₀₂→Lys₁₀₂ mutation with the PolyPhen software revealed that it is not deleterious. The T306A SNP segregated in the Iberian, Piétrain, Duroc, Large White and Landrace breeds as well as in European wild boars. The C558T SNP also segregated and most of commercial standard breeds. The genotyping of the C558T SNP in an Iberian × Meishan intercross allowed to find a suggestive association (Bonferroni threshold, p < 0.004) between C558T genotype and time the newborn piglet needs to reach the udder (p = 0.013) as well as a significant one with time to make the first ingestion of colostrum (p = 0.003). The biological basis of these associations remains unclear and they should be interpreted with caution.     

Direct measurement of femtomoles of osmium and the 187Os/186Os ratio in seawater

Two depth profiles of the osmium concentration and the 187Os/186Os isotopic ratio in the Indian Ocean showed that the osmium concentration seems to be unaltered by chemical or biological processes occuring in seawater; accordingly, osmium is conservative. These data were obtained from an experimental method that eliminated the problems related to osmium preconcentration. This method led to a new evaluation of the concentration of osmium in seawater; the mean concentration of osmium and the 187Os/186Os ratio are equal to 10.86 +/- 0.07 picograms per kilogram and 8.80 +/- 0.07, respectively. The results suggest the existence of an organocomplex that dominates the speciation of osmium in seawater.     

Unconditional quantum teleportation

Quantum teleportation of optical coherent states was demonstrated experimentally using squeezed-state entanglement. The quantum nature of the achieved teleportation was verified by the experimentally determined fidelity Fexp = 0.58 +/- 0.02, which describes the match between input and output states. A fidelity greater than 0.5 is not possible for coherent states without the use of entanglement. This is the first realization of unconditional quantum teleportation where every state entering the device is actually teleported.     

Tracking the long-term decline and recovery of an isolated population

Effects of small population size and reduced genetic variation on the viability of wild animal populations remain controversial. During a 35-year study of a remnant population of greater prairie chickens, population size decreased from 2000 individuals in 1962 to fewer than 50 by 1994. Concurrently, both fitness, as measured by fertility and hatching rates of eggs, and genetic diversity declined significantly. Conservation measures initiated in 1992 with translocations of birds from large, genetically diverse populations restored egg viability. Thus, sufficient genetic resources appear to be critical for maintaining populations of greater prairie chickens.