Specific gene expression profiles are associated with follicular maturational competence acquisition in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

The expression profiles of several mRNAs were characterized during follicular maturational competence (FMC) acquisition. Post-vitellogenic female rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were assayed in vitro for follicular maturational competence (FMC). Ovarian follicles were stimulated in vitro for 60 h at 12 °C with a range of concentrations of partially purified gonadotropin and the efficient concentration for 50% germinal vesicle breakdown was calculated and used as an indicator of follicular maturational competence. Before in vitro assay, ovarian tissue was sampled in order to quantify mRNA abundance in the ovarian follicle by real-time PCR. The mRNA expression of Luteinizing Hormone receptor (LH-r), Follicular Stimulating Hormone receptor (FSH-r), Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF1), Insulin-like Growth Factor 2 (IGF2), Insulin-like Growth Factor receptor 1a (IGF-r1a) and 20β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (20β-HSD), that are putatively expressed in the preovulatory ovary, was thus studied in females of varying FMC.     

A hygro-mechanical analysis of poplar wood along the tangential direction by restrained swelling test

A better understanding of the hygro-mechanical behaviour of poplar wood (Populus alba L.) is proposed by means of restrained swelling tests. Small clear specimens were tested along their tangential direction in controlled climatic conditions; a dry climate (30 % relative humidity and 30 °C temperature) and a humid one (80 % relative humidity and 30 °C temperature) were cyclically set and kept constant each during 7 days. In these conditions, three matched specimens were tested at the same time along the tangential direction: specimen A free to shrink and swell, specimen B free to shrink and prevented from swelling beyond its initial dimension, specimen C prevented from shrinking and swelling. A specific device was set up to monitor strain and/or stress on each specimen. During the adsorption phase, compression forces (on specimens B and C) were measured, and during the desorption step, compression set shrinkage (compression strain at zero load) and tension stress (on specimens B and C, respectively) were measured. In this paper, the dedicated experimental device is presented and a deep analysis of experimental curves is then proposed by means of a rheological approach. By the analysis, some basic data are obtained (swelling coefficient, swelling pressure and compression set shrinkage), and a complex behaviour of wood made of reversible and irreversible phenomena is characterized.     

Contribution of the life-history traits of a plant pathogen to the development of field epidemics

The pathogenicity-related traits of biotrophic plant pathogens are usually measured on the individual host plant, at the scale of a single pathogen life cycle, whereas epidemic development in the field encompasses a succession of cycles. It remains unclear which traits make the greatest contribution to pathogen fitness in the field and to epidemic severity. The objective of this study was to determine the contributions of elementary pathogenicity traits to epidemic development in field conditions. We challenged a set of wheat cultivars with three different leaf rust isolates, under both controlled and field conditions, in 3 consecutive years. Infection efficiency, latent period, lesion size, spore production per lesion and spore production capacity were measured in the greenhouse, whereas disease severity was measured in the field. Most, but not all, of the pathogenicity traits were related to each other. All traits contributed to epidemic development in the field, but to different extents. Surprisingly, lesion size and spore production per lesion were inversely correlated with epidemic severity. Conversely, there was a strong positive correlation between spore production capacity and pathogen fitness in the field, in accordance with the concept of propagule pressure as a strong determinant of invasion success. Severe epidemics were mostly associated with small lesions with a high spore production capacity, high infection efficiency and a short latent period.     

Synthesis and sensorial properties of 2-alkylalk-2-enals and 3-(acetylthio)-2-alkyl alkanals

Parallel synthesis was applied to prepare a series of 3-(acetylthio)-2-alkyl alkanals by Michael addition of thioacetic acid under alkaline conditions to alpha,beta-unsaturated 2-alkyl-substituted aldehydes, which were obtained by aldol condensation of the corresponding primary aldehydes as starting materials. The target compounds were characterized in terms of GC, MS, and NMR data. The sensory properties of the odorants, such as odor quality and odor detection threshold value, were determined with a trained panel. Structure-activity relationships are discussed, suggesting that the 1,3-oxygen-sulfur functionality, required for the "olfactophore" of tropical/vegetable notes, can further be extended to the acetylthio derivatives.     

Assessment of selenium bioavailability from high-selenium spirulina subfractions in selenium-deficient rats

It was previously found that the bioavailability of Se from Se-rich spirulina (SeSp) was lower than that from selenite or selenomethionine when fed to Se-deficient rats. The present study examined the bioavailability of Se from SeSp subfractions: a pellet (P) issuing from the centrifugation of a suspension of broken SeSp and a retentate (R) resulting from ultrafiltration of the supernatant through a 30 kDa exclusion membrane. Animals were fed a torula yeast based diet with no Se (deficients) or supplemented with 75 microg of Se/kg of diet as sodium selenite (controls) for 42 days. Se-deficient rats were then repleted for 56 days with Se (75 microg/kg of diet) supplied as sodium selenite, SeSp, P, or R. During this period, controls continued to receive sodium selenite. Speciation of Se in subfractions showed that the majority was present in the form of high molecular weight compounds; free selenomethionine was only a minor constituent. Gross absorption of Se from sodium selenite, P, and R was not different and was higher than from SeSp. Only retentate allowed full replenishment of Se concentration in liver and kidney (as did sodium selenite) and glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) activity in liver, kidney, plasma, and erythrocytes. The bioavailabilities of Se in retentate, as assessed by slope ratio analysis using selenite as a reference Se, were 89 and 112% in the tissue Se content and 106-133% in the GSHPx activities. SeSp and P exhibited a gross bioavailability of <100%. These results indicate that Se in retentate is highly bioavailable and represents an interesting source of Se for food supplementation.     

Biological characterization of bovine herpesvirus 1 recombinants possessing the vaccine glycoprotein E negative phenotype

Intramolecular recombination is a frequent event during the replication cycle of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1). Recombinant viruses frequently arise and survive in cattle after concomitant nasal infections with two BoHV-1 mutants. The consequences of this process, related to herpesvirus evolution, have to be assessed in the context of large use of live marker vaccines based on glycoprotein E (gE) gene deletion. In natural conditions, double nasal infections by vaccine and wild-type strains are likely to occur. This situation might generate virulent recombinant viruses inducing a serological response indistinguishable from the vaccine one. This question was addressed by generating in vitro BoHV-1 recombinants deleted in the gE gene from seven wild-type BoHV-1 strains and one mutant strain deleted in the genes encoding gC and gE. In vitro growth properties were assessed by virus production, one step growth kinetics and plaque size assay. Heterogeneity in the biological properties was shown among the investigated recombinant viruses. The results demonstrated that some recombinants, in spite of their gE minus phenotype, have biological characteristics close to wild-type BoHV-1.     

Generating optical Schrödinger kittens for quantum information processing

We present a detailed experimental analysis of a free-propagating light pulse prepared in a "Schr?dinger kitten" state, which is defined as a quantum superposition of "classical" coherent states with small amplitudes. This kitten state is generated by subtracting one photon from a squeezed vacuum beam, and it clearly presents a negative Wigner function. The predicted influence of the experimental parameters is in excellent agreement with the experimental results. The amplitude of the coherent states can be amplified to transform our "Schr?dinger kittens" into bigger Schr?dinger cats, providing an essential tool for quantum information processing.