Effect of the strain combination of the donor and recipient on the production efficiency of W‐bearing sperm in mixed‐sex germline chimeric chickens

Effect of the strain combination of the donor and recipient on production efficiency of W‐bearing sperm in mixed‐sex chimeric testes was analyzed. The combinations of the donors and recipients were White Leghorn (WL) and Rhode Island Red (RIR), and vice versa. Generated mixed‐sex chimeras that had the male phenotype at sexual maturity were classified into four groups: (1) a female WL donor and a male RIR recipient; (2) a male WL donor and a female RIR recipient; (3) a female RIR donor and a male WL recipient; (4) a male RIR donor and a female WL recipient. The mean number of W‐bearing sperm detected by in situ hybridization among 10 000 sperm observed were 147, 165, 30 and 45 in groups 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. The numbers in groups 1 and 2 were both significantly higher than those of groups 3 and 4 (P < 0.05). The combination of a WL donor and a RIR recipient produced W‐bearing sperm more efficiently than the reverse combination.     

Aberrant development of mammary glands, but precocious expression of beta-casein in transgenic females ubiquitously expressing whey acidic protein transgene

It has been suggested that whey acidic protein (WAP) may function as a protease inhibitor. However, the actual function of WAP remains obscure. We investigated the histological development of the mammary glands of transgenic mice ubiquitously expressing WAP and CAG/WAP transgene. Ubiquitous expression of WAP induced aberrant development of the lobular alveoli of the mammary glands: mammary alveoli that were either aberrantly large or small in size increased in number in the developing mammary glands of these transgenic females during pregnancy and lactation. The expression of beta-casein was precociously induced in the mammary glands of the transgenic females during early pregnancy and accompanying this was a histological observation that abnormally developed lobular alveoli filled with milk proteins appeared in the mammary glands of transgenic females during early pregnancy. However, during lactation, the development of mammary glands was impaired in transgenic females. To investigate the possible paracrine action of WAP associated with mammary gland aberration, we transplanted the mammary tissue of CAG/EGFP transgenic females into the fat pad of virgin CAG/WAP transgenic females and initiated pregnancy by mating. The development of mammary tissue transplanted to the recipient was histologically examined on day 3 of lactation. The results revealed that the development of grafted mammary tissues was impaired in a manner similar to that of the mammary glands of CAG/WAP transgenic females, indicating that the inhibitory effect of WAP acts via a paracrine mechanism. In vitro experiments using HC11 cells with forced expression of exogenous WAP demonstrated the inhibitory function of WAP on proliferation of mammary epithelial cells.     

Effects of a probiotic bacterial <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lactobacillus rhamnosus</Emphasis> dietary supplement on the crowding stress response of juvenile Nile tilapia <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oreochromis niloticus</Emphasis>

To test the effects of probiotic bacteria against crowding stress, juvenile Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus were fed commercial feed supplemented with 1 × 10¹⁰ cfu/g pellets of Lactobacillus rhamnosus for 3 weeks. The fish were confined and subjected to crowding for 7 and 14 days after which their physiological condition was investigated. The administration of probiotic prophylaxis improved growth performance even in the stressed fish. After 7 days of stress exposure, fish receiving probiotic-supplemented feed showed proactive behavior and coping responses to the stressor, as evidenced by elevated plasma glucose levels and osmolality, stabilized plasma electrolytes, and a higher RNA:DNA ratio. Fish stressed for 7 days and fed normal commercial diet showed impairment of plasma electrolytes; after 14 days, the plasma osmolality, electrolytes, glucose, and RNA:DNA ratio decreased, indicating physiological maladaptation to the stressor. The growth rate was also found to be reduced, suggesting that energy demand exceeded the energy available from metabolism and dietary uptake. This latter effect was not observed in fish fed the probiotic-supplemented diet. The results suggest that probiotic bacteria prophylaxis may increase energy availability for metabolic support of the crowding stress response and improve the stress coping capacity of fish.     

Impact of luxuriant aquatic plants on thermal convection in a closed water body

The attenuation of heat flux at the water surface with aquatic plants was examined by hydraulic experiments to consider the influence of aquatic plants on the magnitude of thermal disturbance in the closed water body. First of all, the experiment measuring temperatures on surface of leaf revealed the thermal conductivity of the leaf which is peculiar physicality of each aquatic plant. Then, the hydraulic experiment examined attenuation of the underwater illuminance and the heat flux in the covered part which depending on the kind and the luxuriant density of the aquatic plants. As the result, it is clarified that the attenuation rate of the illuminance is large in the plant with a thick leaf, and that the heat flux at the water surface and the developmental velocity of the mixed layer decreased when the luxuriant density of the aquatic plants increased.     

A new spore precipitator with polarized dielectric insulators for physical control of tomato powdery mildew

ABSTRACT In an attempt to physically protect greenhouse tomato plants from the powdery mildew fungus Oidium neolycopersici, we developed a new electrostatic spore precipitator in which a copper wire conductor is linked to an electrostatic generator and covered with a transparent acrylic cylinder (insulator). The conductor was negatively charged by the generator, and the electrostatic field created by the conductor was used to dielectrically polarize the insulator cylinder. The dielectrically polarized cylinder also produced an electrostatic force without a spark discharge. This force was directly proportional to the potential applied to the conductor and was used to attract conidia of the pathogen. The efficacy of this spore precipitator in protecting hydroponically cultured tomato plants from powdery mildew was evaluated in the greenhouse. The hydroponic culture troughs were covered with a cubic frame installed with the spore precipitator, and the disease progress on precipitator-guarded and unguarded seedlings was traced after the conidia were disseminated mechanically from inoculum on tomato plants. Seedlings in the guarded troughs remained uninfected during the entire experiment, in spite of rapid spread of the disease to all leaves of the unguarded seedlings.     

牙鲆在保藏过程中影响ATP关联化合物降解的因素

为了深入了解牙鲆体内ATP关联化合物的变化,尤其是肌苷酸(IMP)降解这一限速步骤,利用高效液相色谱法(high efficiency liquid chromatography,HPLC)测定不同保藏条件下牙鲆体内ATP关联化合物和K值变化,并探讨了影响其变化的因素。结果显示,0°C保藏条件下牙鲆体内ATP在1 d内迅速降解,产生IMP作为初期的主要积累物质,蓄积一段时间(10 d)后迅速降解为次黄嘌呤(Hx),IMP的降解过程呈现二相性;鱼肉制成鱼糜形态保藏,ATP 0 d时几乎降解完全,但IMP的降解过程仍旧呈现二相性;加入抗菌素的鱼肉中微生物的生长得到有效抑制,此时IMP降解缓慢并且呈线性下降,原本的蓄积过程消失,K值的增长速率也随之减慢;加入Tritonx-100破坏细胞膜结构发现,牙鲆体内IMP的降解速率加快,同时K值的增长速率也随之加快。结果表明,牙鲆的保藏形态影响ATP的降解速率,但几乎不影响其他关联产物的降解变化;保藏后期外源微生物产生的酶与内源酶的叠加作用是导致保藏后期IMP加速降解、从而呈现二相性的原因,微生物是影响ATP关联化合物降解的关键因素;表面活性剂通过改变细胞膜结构也能够影响IMP的降解过程。     

A new device for monitoring the activity of freely swimming flatfish, Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus

ABSTRACT:   The tail beat and activity behavior of four captive Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus , were monitored with acceleration data-loggers while the fish swam in an aquarium. Depth, swimming speeds and two-axis acceleration data were collected continuously for approximately 20 h per fish. Simultaneously, the swimming behaviors of the fish were filmed at different angles. Using the specific characteristic of the acceleration profiles, in tandem with other types of data (e.g. speed and depth), four behavioral patterns could be distinguished: (i) 'active' swimming; (ii) burying patterns; (iii) 'inactive' gliding; and (iv) lying on the bottom. Tail beat frequency ranged from 1.65 ± 0.47 to 2.04 ± 0.25 Hz (mean ± SD; n  = 4). Using the relationship between tail beat frequency and swimming speed, the 'preferred' swimming speed of the fish was estimated to be between 0.6 and 1.2 body lengths (BL)/s. Additionally, fish rarely swam faster than 1.2 BL/s. This study shows that the acceleration data-loggers represent a useful and reliable system for accurately recording the tail beat of free-ranging fish and estimating flatfish behavior.     

Screening and genetic analysis of resistance to peanut stunt virus in soybean: identification of the putative Rpsv1 resistance gene

The peanut stunt virus (PSV) causes yield losses in soybean and reduced seed quality due to seed mottling. The objectives of this study were to determine the phenotypic reactions of soybean germplasms to inoculation with two PSV isolates (PSV-K, PSV-T), the inheritance of PSV resistance in soybean cultivars, and the locus of the PSV resistance gene. We investigated the PSV resistance of 132 soybean cultivars to both PSV isolates; of these, 73 cultivars exhibited resistance to both PSV isolates. Three resistant cultivars (Harosoy, Tsurunotamago 1 and Hyuga) were crossed with the susceptible cultivar Enrei. The crosses were evaluated in the F₁, F₂ and F_2:3 generations for their reactions to inoculation with the two PSV isolates. In an allelism test, we crossed Harosoy and Tsurunotamago 1 with the resistant cultivar Hyuga. The results revealed that PSV resistance in these cultivars is controlled by a single dominant gene at the same locus. We have proposed Rpsv1, as the name of the resistance gene in Hyuga. We also constructed a linkage map using recombinant inbred lines between Hyuga × Enrei using 176 SSR markers. We mapped Rpsv1 near the Satt435 locus on soybean chromosome 7.