Reconstruction of stratum corneum in organotypically cultured canine keratinocyte-derived CPEK cells

The stratum corneum of epidermis is an essential barrier against the external environment and water loss. This study aimed to develop an organotypic culture model that targets the reconstruction of the stratum corneum using canine keratinocyte-derived CPEK cells. The CPEK cells cultured at the air-liquid interface became stratified and formed a stratum corneum-like layer on stratum spinosum- and stratum granulosum-like layers. The CPEK cells in the stratum granulosum-like layer expressed the cornified cell envelope (CCE)-related proteins loricrin and keratinocyte differentiation-associated protein. Organotypically cultured CPEK cells were considered to form a CCE at the stratum granulosum-like layer, allowing the formation of a stratum corneum-like layer. The organotypic culture of CPEK cells could be useful for studying the barrier function of canine stratum corneum.     

The draft genome of Ciona intestinalis: insights into chordate and vertebrate origins

The first chordates appear in the fossil record at the time of the Cambrian explosion, nearly 550 million years ago. The modern ascidian tadpole represents a plausible approximation to these ancestral chordates. To illuminate the origins of chordate and vertebrates, we generated a draft of the protein-coding portion of the genome of the most studied ascidian, Ciona intestinalis. The Ciona genome contains approximately 16,000 protein-coding genes, similar to the number in other invertebrates, but only half that found in vertebrates. Vertebrate gene families are typically found in simplified form in Ciona, suggesting that ascidians contain the basic ancestral complement of genes involved in cell signaling and development. The ascidian genome has also acquired a number of lineage-specific innovations, including a group of genes engaged in cellulose metabolism that are related to those in bacteria and fungi.     

Multigenerational cortical inheritance of the Rax2 protein in orienting polarity and division in yeast

Diploid yeast cells repeatedly polarize and bud from their poles, probably because of highly stable marks of unknown composition. Here, Rax2, a membrane protein, was shown to behave as such a mark. The Rax2 protein itself was inherited immutably at the cell cortex for multiple generations, and Rax2 was shown to have a half-life exceeding several generations. The persistent inheritance of cortical protein markers would provide a means to couple a cell's history to the future development of a precise morphogenetic form.     

Use of a rigid-type polyethylene T-cannula,silicone tubing,and adhesion netting for surgical cannulation of ileum of the horse

A rigid-type of polyethylene T-cannula was fitted into the anterior ileum of six horses in order to improve the cannulation techniques. A piece of polyethylene net was fastened onto the intestinal wall around the cannula to prevent dislodgment of the cannula by promoting a secure adhesion between the ileum and the abdominal wall. The cannula barrel sheathed with silicone tubing was exteriorized through a stab incision at the lateral ventral wall on the transverse line of the second lumber vertebra, and a flange was screwed onto the barrel. The feeding regime gradually increased concentrate without roughage prevented any colic signs. The use of these techniques succeeded in the ileal cannulation with no leakage of digesta.     

Effects of Full-Length Kisspeptin Administration on Follicular Development in Japanese Black Beef Cows

Kisspeptin is a key molecule that stimulates gonadotropin secretion via release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). In the present study, our aim was to investigate whether kisspeptin has stimulatory effects on follicular development via GnRH/gonadotropin secretion in cows. Japanese Black beef cows were intravenously injected with full-length bovine kisspeptin [Kp-53 (0.2 or 2 nmol/kg)] or vehicle 5 days after they exhibited standing estrus (Day 0). In cows injected with Kp-53 at 2 nmol/kg, the follicular sizes of the first dominant follicles increased on Day 6 and thereafter. Ovulation of the first dominant follicle occurred in 1 out of 4 cows treated with Kp-53 at 2 nmol/kg. Injection of Kp-53 at 2 nmol/kg increased the concentration of plasma luteinizing hormone (LH) but not follicle-stimulating hormone, over a 4-h period following injection in all cows. The present study suggests that administration of full-length kisspeptin causes LH secretion, which is sustained for a few hours, and it is capable of stimulating follicular development and/or ovulation.     

齐氏田中鳑鲏的早期发育研究

通过对齐氏田中鳑鲏(Tanakia chii)人工授精和培育(22℃恒温环境)阶段早期发育的观察,描述了其仔稚鱼发育形态特征。初孵仔鱼卵黄囊饱满,呈淡黄色,表皮布满微突;3日龄仔鱼卵黄囊两侧向上突起,尾部鳍褶延展变大;6日龄仔鱼眼囊发育;8日龄仔鱼眼囊有黑色素,晶状体形成;11日龄仔鱼口形成,脑开始发育,体上有黑色素出现;15日龄仔鱼鳃沟和肛门形成,背鳍和臀鳍的鳍基出现,尾鳍下叶鳍条形成;21日龄仔鱼头与躯干分界明显,鳔分化为前鳔和后鳔,背部和臀部鳍条数目分别为8和10枚,身体黑色素连接成条带状,虽然残存有卵黄囊,但已经开口并摄食。31-36日龄仔鱼胸鳍呈膜状鳍褶,腹鳍出现鳍条,尾鳍呈深叉形。61-66日龄稚鱼,鳞片出现,体中线后半部具一条黑色素带,稚鱼出现集群游动现象。仔鱼体长的生长呈阶段性:1-26日龄仔鱼生长较为平缓;26-81日龄生长较快。综合21日龄仔鱼卵黄囊残留很少并开口摄食的特征,我们推测在孵化后21日为自然条件下齐氏田中鳑鲏的出蚌时间。同时,仔鱼的感觉、摄食、呼吸和游泳器官在早期阶段快速发育。这些器官在仔鱼的早期快速发育,使出蚌后的仔鱼在最短的时间内获得与早期生存相关的各种能力,提高了出蚌后仔鱼的生存能力。     

Malignant Mesothelioma in the Thoracic Cavity of a Crj:CD(SD) Rat Characterized by Round Hyalinous Stroma

Spontaneous malignant mesothelioma was found in a 104-week-old male Crj:CD(SD) rat. The tumor was scattered on the surface of the lung, heart, mediastinal pleura and thoracic wall and metastasized to the alveolar septa. Histopathologically, small flattened or cuboidal tumor cells proliferated with stroma, formed almost normal papillary structures and reacted positively to colloidal iron stain and immunohistochemical staining for mesothelin. Round hyalinous stromata were pronounced, which is a characteristic feature, and the possible reason for this is as follows; at first, a small amount of collagen fibers was formed in the center of the clusters of several tumor cells, and then the cell clusters expanded like balloons with an increase in the collagen fibers.     

Conserved molecular components for pollen tube reception and fungal invasion

During sexual reproduction in flowering plants such as Arabidopsis, a tip-growing pollen tube (PT) is guided to the synergid cells of the female gametophyte, where it bursts and releases the two sperm. Here we show that PT reception and powdery mildew (PM) infection, which involves communication between a tip-growing hypha and a plant epidermal cell, share molecular components. NORTIA (NTA), a member of the MLO family originally discovered in the context of PM resistance, and FERONIA (FER), a receptor-like kinase, both control PT reception in synergids. Homozygous fer mutants also display PM resistance, revealing a new function for FER and suggesting that conserved components, such as FER and distinct MLO proteins, are involved in both PT reception and PM infection.