Regulation of bone mass in mice by the lipoxygenase gene Alox15

The development of osteoporosis involves the interaction of multiple environmental and genetic factors. Through combined genetic and genomic approaches, we identified the lipoxygenase gene Alox15 as a negative regulator of peak bone mineral density in mice. Crossbreeding experiments with Alox15 knockout mice confirmed that 12/15-lipoxygenase plays a role in skeletal development. Pharmacologic inhibitors of this enzyme improved bone density and strength in two rodent models of osteoporosis. These results suggest that drugs targeting the 12/15-lipoxygenase pathway merit investigation as a therapy for osteoporosis.     

Detection of full and limited amphidromous migratory dynamics of fish in Caribbean rivers

All native fishes living in the Caribbean island rivers are considered diadromous but few species have been validated as diadromous. In Guadeloupe (Lesser Antilles) as well as in the other tropical islands, the riverine habitats are subject to strong anthropogenic pressure due to resource modifications or dams. The management of fish biodiversity requires knowledge concerning their life history traits and behaviour that are still unknown for most species at a local scale and at the whole distribution area of the species. In a Guadeloupe river, we inferred the migratory patterns of four freshwater fishes common to Caribbean rivers by the analysis of otolith microchemistry. We found two species Eleotris perniger (Eleotridae) and Sicydium plumieri (Gobiidae) to be completely amphidromous with a marine larval phase and a freshwater adult phase. Agonostomus monticola (Mugilidae) was also found to be amphidromous in this system. The fourth species Gobiesox cephalus (Gobiesocidae) showed elemental ratios suggesting an estuarine larval phase and was defined as “limited amphidromous”. The identification of such life history traits, with limited dispersion abilities, argues for specific management measures in tropical island rivers at a basin scale for the conservation of biodiversity.     

Primary epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma in a horse.

A 17-year-old Quarterhorse gelding with a clinical diagnosis of protein-losing enteropathy was submitted for necropsy following a 4-5-month duration of weight loss, decreased appetite, and hypoproteinemia. Gross findings included multiple 1-2-cm diameter ulcers on the luminal surfaces of the duodenum and ileum. Histologic examination revealed individual large, round cells infiltrating much of the mucosal epithelium of the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and colon in addition to multifocal areas of ulceration. Similar round cells infiltrated Brunner's glands and expanded the submucosa beneath the foci of ulceration. Immunohistochemical staining indicated the round cell population was of T-lymphocyte origin. Several features of this equine neoplasm bear similarities to enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma in humans.     

What veterinary practitioners should know about scrapie

Scrapie is the longest known and most widely spread of the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies and remains the model for much of the research regarding these diseases. Because scrapie is a reportable disease and the subject of an active eradication program in the United States, veterinary practitioners should have a basic understanding of the disease.     

A rapid, seedling-based bioassay for identifying low cadmium-accumulating individuals of Durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L.).

We have developed a seedling-based bioassay that iscapable of identifying low Cd-accumulating phenotypes(homozygous and heterozygous) after 96–120 h ofexposure. Our experiments were conducted using¹⁰⁹Cd as a tracer at subtoxic concentrations tosimulate conditions that might be experienced in thefield. Supply of Cd (10^-11 M) to 4-d oldseedlings for 0–8 h resulted in no differences in rootand leaf Cd content between the low (TL05) and high(TL04) Cd-accumulating isolines. Increasing time ofexposure produced significant differences in leaf Cdaccumulation between isolines, with differencesbecoming most pronounced after the bulk of appliedcadmium ( 95%) was depleted from absorption solutions( 72 h). Similar results were obtained with8-d old seedlings, where differences between genotypeswere more pronounced in young leaves (2nd leaf) orshoot bases. Individuals from five low and highCd-accumulating near isogenic pairs (50individuals/isoline) were screened using Cdconcentration of shoot bases as the screeningcriterion. Mean scores within each isoline pair weresignificantly different, although overlap ofindividual scores was observed at intermediate foliarCd concentrations. The 2^nd leaf to root Cdcontent ratio, which reflects root to shoottranslocation, provided a better parameter todistinguish low from high Cd-accumulating isolines. Plants used for this bioassay could also be rescuedfor subsequent experimental crosses, providing a rapidand cost-effective tool for early detection of the lowCd-accumulating phenotype.     

Ability of possible DMS precursors to release DMS during wine aging and in the conditions of heat-alkaline treatment

The origin of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) produced during wine aging was examined through different assays. The production of DMS during the model aging of a wine and the concomitant decrease of residual potential DMS (PDMS), as DMS released by heat-alkaline treatment in 0.5 M sodium hydroxide at 100 degrees C for 1 h, were demonstrated. Then, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), methionine sulfoxide (MSO), S-methylmethionine (SMM), and dimethylsulfonium propanoic acid (DMSPA), reported previously as possible DMS precursors, were investigated for their ability to be DMS precursors in wine in the conditions of this model aging and of the heat-alkaline treatment. The results showed that DMSO, MSO, and DMSPA could hardly be DMS precursors in the conditions used, whereas SMM appeared to be a good candidate. Finally, the use of [(2)H(6)]-DMSPA as an internal standard for PDMS determination was proposed, because it provided better reproducibility than [(2)H(6)]-DMS used as an external standard.     

Changes in fruit antioxidant activity among blueberry cultivars during cold-temperature storage

Antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, anthocyanin content, and six other fruit characters including titratable acid concentration, soluble solids, firmness, and percentage of bruised berries were determined for nine blueberry (Vaccinium L. sp.) cultivars at harvest and at various postharvest intervals after storage at 5 degrees C. Berries from MSU-58, Brigitta, and Legacy stored successfully for 7 weeks, Bluegold stored for 3-5 weeks, Bluecrop, Elliott, and Nelson stored for 3 weeks, and Jersey and Little Giant stored for fewer than 3 weeks. During the time they retained marketable quality, one cultivar (MSU-58) demonstrated a 29% increase in antioxidant activity. None of the cultivars showed a significant decrease from the harvest antioxidant activity value during storage. Antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and anthocyanin content were strongly correlated with each other (r = 0.87-0.99, P < 0.01). All three parameters were moderately correlated with soluble solids (r = 0.47, P < or =0.05; r = 0.44, P < or = 0.05; and r = 0.64, P < or = 0.01, respectively), and antioxidant activity and total phenolic content were both moderately correlated with pH (r = 0.53 and 0.49, respectively; P < or = 0.05). However, antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and anthocyanin content showed no correlation with firmness, percent severely bruised berries, or weight loss. Antioxidant activity and total phenolic content at harvest both correlated with titratable acidity at harvest (r = 0.68, P < or = 0.05 and r = 0.70, P < or = 0.05, respectively) on a cultivar mean basis. Berries from Elliott were also harvested from plants at two levels of bush ripeness (30-50% and 60-80% ripe berries on plants) and separated into three fruit maturity classes on the basis of percent blue color. The level of bush ripeness had no significant effect on antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, or anthocyanin content; however, fruit maturity had a significant effect on antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and anthocyanin content, and bush ripeness x fruit maturity interactions were significant for these three traits. Berries with 50-75% blue coloration harvested from bushes with 60-80% mature fruit showed a significant increase in antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and anthocyanin content during the first 3 weeks in storage. Our results demonstrate that increases in antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and anthocyanin content may occur in the blueberry during cold storage and are cultivar-dependent. The increases that occur in immature fruit, such as in Elliott, may be advantageous for producers who wish to delay marketing of the fruit.     

Robust two-stage approach to repeated measurements analysis of chronic ozone exposure in rats

A robust two-stage approach is used to reanalyze the repeated measurements from an experiment of airway responsiveness in rats randomized to long-term exposure at four ozone doses. The concentration-response data generated for each rat may be represented as a hierarchical nonlinear model encompasing the sources of variation within and between individual profile for each rat, the conditional modeling approach can assess the adequacy of an assumed mean model, a fundamental advantage not intrinsic to marginal techniques. The two-stage population inference is based on the estimated individual parameters, thus maintaining an intuitive appeal to the toxicologists who traditionally have fitted a separate curve for each animal and then applied ANOVA to the summary statistics. However, we formally adjust the standard errors for the extra variability due to the initial estimation of the individual parameters and also allow for their within-rat correlation. The robust two-stage method appropriately down weights the a berrant responses arising sporadically within individualsand, more importantly, the rats which may be outlying relative to the usual population variation. The true effect of chronic ozone exposure, including a significant gender interaction, may be masked by a few rats which exert undue influence on the population estimates in a nonrobust analysis.     

Rapid determination of polyphenols and vitamin C in plant-derived products

Polyphenols, widely spread in our diet by the consumption of plant food products, are commonly determined using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent that interacts with other different reducing nonphenolic substances and leads to an overestimation of polyphenol content. In this paper we report an optimized Folin-Ciocalteu method to specifically determine the contents of total polyphenols and vitamin C. After the optimal conditions for the colorimetric assay were set, solid-phase extraction (Oasis HLB (hydrophilic-lipophilic balance)) was carried out to eliminate the water-soluble reducing interferences including vitamin C. Colorimetric correction was thus performed by subtracting interfering substances contained in the water washing extract from the raw extract. Moreover, vitamin C present in the water washing extract can be destroyed by heating and thus colorimetrically deduced. This procedure was set up with synthetic solutions and validated on different extracts from fruit products.