Serum lipase determination in the dog: a comparison of a titrimetric method with an automated kinetic method

An enzymatic, kinetic method for determining serum lipase activity was evaluated and compared to a standard manual method for use in dogs. The kinetic method was a commercial kit adapted for use on a tandem access clinical chemistry analyzer and utilized a series of coupled enzymatic reactions based on the hydrolysis of 1,2-diglyceride by lipase. The manual method was the Cherry-Crandall technique based on the titration of base against the acid formed by hydrolysis of an olive oil substrate by lipase. The correlation between the two methods was very good (r = 0.94). The reference range for 56 clinically healthy dogs assayed by the kinetic method was 90 to 527 U/L. Diseases associated with a greater than twofold elevation in serum lipase activity as determined by the kinetic method included pancreatitis, gastritis with liver disease, and oliguric renal failure with metabolic acidosis. In some cases, pancreatitis was seen with other clinical problems, such as gastroenteritis, diabetic ketoacidosis, duodenal mass, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and septic peritonitis. Diseases associated with serum lipase activity within the reference range or elevated less than twofold included gastritis, gastric ulcer, cholestasis, phenobarbital-induced hepatopathy, colitis, copper hepatopathy, abdominal hematoma, apocrine gland adenocarcinoma, and thrombocytopenia with pneumonia.     

Influence of Amaranthus betacyanin pigments on the physical properties and color of wheat flours

The effect of betacyanin pigments from Amaranthus tricolor and Amaranthus cruentus on chromatic and physicochemical properties of three wheat flours was studied. Addition of Amaranthus betacyanins increased the gelatinization temperatures (T(o), T(p), and T(c)) of all wheat flours without altering their transition ranges (T(c)-T(o)). The melting enthalpies (DeltaH) were either increased or decreased depending on the types of flour and pigment. Amaranthus betacyanins decreased the peak viscosity (PV), hot paste viscosity (HPV), cold paste viscosity (CPV), setback (SB), and pasting time (PT) of all flours and increased the breakdown (BD). Texture profile analysis (TPA) showed that Amaranthus betacyanins decreased hardness, and gumminess, and increased cohesiveness of all gels, without altering adhesiveness. Chromatic investigation exhibited that A. tricolor and A. cruentus pigments imparted gels with red and orange-yellow hues with favorable color stability.     

A biologically-consistent stand growth model for loblolly pine in the Piedmont physiographic region, USA

A theory-influenced dynamical stand growth model formulation described well the behavior of thinned and unthinned loblolly pine plantations. A simplification containing few free parameters performed as well as a fully parametrized version. It seems particularly well suited to situations where available data is scarce. The stand model can be interfaced to additional climate, nutrition and carbon cycling modules for studying the effects of a changing environment.     

Potential long-term growth gains from early clump thinning of coppice-regenerated oak stands

A study was established in the Missouri Ozarks to evaluate coppice regeneration of oak. Five years after a 32-year-old stand was clearcut and regenerated naturally through stump sprouts, the dominant sprout on each stump was identified based upon height. Treated plots were thinned to the single dominant sprout on each stump whereas control plots were not thinned. Twenty-five years later the largest 247, 371, 494, and 618 stems per ha were examined and height of the dominant sprout at age 5 was found to be strongly related to dbh at age 30 in both thinned and unthinned plots. However, in the thinned plots, the largest 494 stems per ha were on average 11%, 28%, and 58% greater, respectively, in height, dbh, and volume compared to similar dominant sprouts in unthinned plots. Logistic regression analysis was used to develop curves for the evaluation of potential gains from clump thinning. In this analysis, the average height of a stand at age 5 was used to estimate thinning gains at age 30.     

An assessment of potential of hybrid poplar for planting in the Virginia Piedmont

Poplar species grow well across the temperate zone, but hybrid varieties have not previously been evaluated for planting in the Virginia Piedmont region. The top 12 clones in height growth and rust resistance from a screening trial involving 98 hybrid poplar varieties of three taxa (Populus deltoides × P. maximowiczii, DxM; P. deltoides × P. nigra, DxN; P. deltoides × P. trichocarpa, DxT) were selected for planting in replicated yield trials at two locations in the Virginia Piedmont. Results through the first four growing seasons showed that the DxM taxon had the most rapid height development. It was, however, the taxon most affected by a late spring frost at the Appomattox-Buckingham State Forest site and by Septoria stem canker at the Reynolds Homestead site. Analysis of variance of clonal and location effects showed highly significant differences among replicates within location and among clones within taxon. Among seven clones within the DxM taxon, pairwise comparison tests of height growth identified two groups: a group of four better clones that were significantly different (p = 0.05) from a second group of three. These early results suggest that multi-selection criteria, including growth, disease and frost resistance, are important when developing hybrid poplar clones for planting in the Piedmont region.     

籽粒苋类II型金属硫蛋白基因的分离及其表达分析

Metallothioneins (MTs) are a group of small,Cys-rich, metal-binding proteins. Plant MTs are divided into two types based predominantly upon the arrangement of Cys residues: those only containing the Cys-Xaa-Cys (Xaa is an amino acid other than Cys)metal-binding motif (type 1) and those containing a combination of the Cys-Cys,Cys-Xaa-Cys and Cys-Xaa-Xaa-Cys motifs (type 2).Both type 1 and type 2 contain two Cys-rich MT-like amino- and carboxyl-terminal domains separated by a central region of about 40 residues which is devoid of Cys (Robinson et al.,1993).Here we report a type 2 MT from amaranth.     

Oil and squalene in amaranthus grain and leaf

Amaranthus grain of 104 genotypes from 30 species was investigated for oil and squalene contents and fatty acid profiles. The overall average oil content in Amaranthus grain was 5.0%, ranging from 1.9 to 8.7%. Squalene concentration in extracted oils ranged from trace to 7.3%, with an average concentration of 4.2%. The average contents of three major fatty acids in Amaranthus grain were 22.2, 29.1, and 44.6% for palmitic, oleic, and linoleic, respectively. The average fat content in dried mature leaves of 45 Amaranthus genotypes was 1.63%, ranging from 1.08 to 2.18%. The squalene concentration in leaf lipid extracts averaged 0.26%, ranging from trace to 0.77%, which is much lower than that from seeds. The major fatty acids of leaf extracts were linolenic, linoleic, and palmitic. Linolenic ranged from 56.5 to 62.0% of total fatty acids; linoleic, from 15.5 to 24.7%; and palmitic acid, from 13.5 to 15.5%. As for the fatty acid compositions at different growth stages, fatty acid content in leaf lipid was lower in mature leaves than in young leaves. The saturated/unsaturated ratio decreased when the leaf grew to maturity. Principal component analysis (PCA) was carried out on compositional characteristics of grain. The first two components accounted for 70% of the total variance (38.3 and 21.7%, respectively). There was a positive correlation between oil content and squalene yield, and a negative correlations were found between linoleic and either of the other two major fatty acids, palmitic and oleic. The taxonomic relationship among the species was also elucidated by PCA.