A Preliminary investigation of the bioenergetics of pregnancy and lactation of Praomys natalensis and Saccostomus campestris

The energy requirements of pregnant, lactating and non-reproductive Praomys natatensis and Saccostomus campestris were studied in metabolism cages and respirometers. Ingestion rate during pregnancy and lactation was not increased significantly in either species. P. natatensis and S. campestris showed non-significant increases in respiratory rate during pregnancy (18% and 55% respectively) but significant increases in oxygen consumption during lactation (79% and 110% respectively). The results highlight the need for studies quantifying lipid and protein flux during pregnancy and lactation, since quantifying energy turnover alone is inadequate and misleading. The energetic costs of reproduction are discussed in relation to previous studies.     

The digestive tract of Macroscelides proboscideus and the effects of diet quality on gut dimensions

The digestive anatomy of the round-eared elephant shrew, Macroscelides proboscideus, was investigated. The gut combines features indicative of both insectivory and herbivory. The stomach is a unilocular glandular sac. The caecum is an elongate blind-ending pouch, and houses a diverse microflora. The colon is well developed (25% of gut length). Digestive anatomy supports Kerley's (1995) contention that M. proboscideus is a true omnivore. The gut dimensions of M. proboscideus responded to differences in food quality, animals fed a high fibre diet exhibiting greater caecal capacity than those fed a low fibre diet. This hindgut plasticity is likely to compensate for short-term changes in food quality,     

CP7_E2alf oral vaccination confers partial protection against early classical swine fever virus challenge and interferes with pathogeny-related cytokine responses

The conventional C-strain vaccine induces early protection against classical swine fever (CSF), but infected animals cannot be distinguished from vaccinated animals. The CP7_E2alf marker vaccine, a pestivirus chimera, could be a suitable substitute for C-strain vaccine to control CSF outbreaks. In this study, single oral applications of CP7_E2alf and C-strain vaccines were compared for their efficacy to induce protection against a CSF virus (CSFV) challenge with the moderately virulent Bas-Rhin isolate, in pigs as early as two days post-immunization. This work emphasizes the powerful potential of CP7_E2alf vaccine administered orally by a rapid onset of partial protection similar to that induced by the C-strain vaccine. Furthermore, our results revealed that both vaccinations attenuated the effects induced by CSFV on production of the pig major acute phase protein (PigMAP), IFN-α, IL-12, IL-10, and TGF-β1 cytokines. By this interference, several cytokines that may play a role in the pathogeny induced by moderately virulent CSFV strains were revealed. New hypotheses concerning the role of each of these cytokines in CSFV pathogeny are discussed. Our results also show that oral vaccination with either vaccine (CP7_E2alf or C-strain) enhanced CSFV–specific IgG2 production, compared to infection alone. Interestingly, despite the similar antibody profiles displayed by both vaccines post-challenge, the production of CSFV-specific IgG1 and neutralizing antibodies without challenge was lower with CP7_E2alf vaccination than with C-strain vaccination, suggesting a slight difference in the balance of adaptive immune responses between these vaccines.     

Increase in chemokines CXCL10 and CCL2 in blood from pigs infected with high compared to low virulence African swine fever virus isolates

Modulation of the expression of chemokines and chemokine receptors in whole blood was compared following infection of pigs with high and low virulence isolates of African swine fever virus. Levels of mRNAs for CCL2, CCL3L1, CCL4, CXCL10, CCR1 and CCR5 were significantly increased in at least one time point following infection in two experiments and CCL5, CCR9 and CXCR4 mRNA were significantly increased in one of the experiments. The results showed that greatest fold increases in mRNAs for CXCL10 and CCL2 were observed following infection of pigs. CXCL10 mRNA was increased by up to 15 fold in infected compared to uninfected pigs. CXCL10 protein was also detected in serum from pigs infected with the high virulence Benin 97/1 isolate. Levels of CCL2 mRNA were increased in pigs infected with high virulence Benin 97/1 isolate compared to low virulence OURT88/3 isolate and this correlated with an increase of greater than 30 fold in levels of CCL2 protein detected in serum from pigs infected with this isolate. An increase in overall chemotaxis active compounds in defibrinated plasma samples from Benin 97/1 infected pigs was observed at 3 days post-infection (dpi) and a decrease by 7 dpi as measured by chemotaxis assay using normal pig leucocytes in vitro. Increased levels of CXCL10 may either contribute to the activation of lymphocyte priming toward the Th1 phenotype or induction of T lymphocyte apoptosis. Increased levels of CCL2, a chemoattractant for macrophages, may result in increased recruitment of monocytes from bone marrow thus increasing the pool of cells susceptible to infection.     

Faster residue decomposition of brittle stem rice mutant due to finer breakage during threshing

In intensive tropical rice (Oryza sativa L.) cropping systems with short fallows, it would be advantageous that rice straw decompose fast enough to facilitate land preparation and planting of the subsequent crop. The straw of a brittle stem rice mutant of IR68 was tested for more rapid decomposition compared with non-brittle IR68 straw. The hypothesis was that the brittle mutant straw would break into smaller pieces during threshing, and that both the smaller piece size and the differences in biochemical straw composition would enable more rapid decomposition. Brittle straw broke into smaller pieces than non-brittle straw during a replicated trial of three threshing methods: hand threshing, pedal threshing, and axial-flow machine threshing. In a litter bag study to determine the effect of straw piece size on decomposition rate of each straw type over 10 weeks, smaller straw pieces decomposed faster than larger pieces as indicated by changes in amount of straw and its C/N ratio over time (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between straw types at the same size. It was concluded that the finer breakage of brittle straw during field operations is likely to be more important than the biochemical differences in overall residue decomposition rate.     

In vitro and in vivo bioactivity of recombinant canine hepatocyte growth factor

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is crucial for the development and regeneration of the liver and offers a possible new therapeutic strategy for the treatment of canine liver disease. In this study, the in vitro and in vivo bioactivity of recombinant canine HGF (rcHGF) produced with a baculoviral expression system in insect cells was measured. In vitro rcHGF induced mitogenesis, motogenesis, and phosphorylated the HGF receptor c-MET and its downstream mediators PKB and ERK1/2 in two canine epithelial cell lines. After a partial hepatectomy (phx) in dogs, rcHGF increased phosphorylation of c-MET, PKB and ERK1/2. A moderate increase was seen with the cell cycle protein PCNA in rcHGF treated livers, but no HGF-induced increase in liver weight was seen 7 days after phx. Furthermore, rcHGF treated livers showed lower levels of the key mediator of apoptosis, caspase-3, at 7days after phx. It is concluded that rcHGF is a biologically active protein in vitro and in vivo and the baculoviral expression system supplies sufficient amounts of rcHGF for future clinical studies in dogs.     

A Review of Sooty Blotch and Flyspeck Disease in German Organic Apple Production

Sooty blotch and flyspeck (SBFS) fungi colonise the surface of a range of fruits, especially apple, without penetrating the cuticle. Economic damage results from the exclusion of severely affected fruit batches from being marketed as table apples. A study of SBFS was conducted in 2007–2012 in the two largest German apple production areas, i.e. the Lake Constance and Lower Elbe regions. The absence of this disease complex from orchards under integrated pest management in both regions in all years was explained by the collateral effects of scab and storage-rot sprays with captan and quinone-outside inhibitors (QoI) such as trifloxystrobin. However, SBFS was economically relevant in organically managed orchards, being generally more severe in Southern Germany than in the North. In both regions, Peltaster cerophilus was the most frequently isolated SBFS fungus and was chiefly responsible for crop losses. Cyphellophora sessilis, Microcyclosporella mali and Schizothyrium pomi also contributed to SBFS in some organic orchards, whereas a diversity of additional species was confined to untreated orchards. Evidence was obtained that P. cerophilus overwinters within orchards, fruit mummies being one of presumably several colonised plant organs. Infections of young apple fruits were initiated at any time following the end of flowering, and P. cerophilus was capable of causing several infection cycles per season by means of conidial inoculum. The colonisation of sheets of waxed paper by P. cerophilus indicated that this species does not require fruit leachates for growth. No further expansion of colonies was observed during cold storage; instead, P. cerophilus was gradually displaced by other fungi. Differences in the susceptibility of apple varieties to P. cerophilus were due to fruit ripening, late-maturing cultivars being most heavily colonised, and to surface properties, varieties with a waxy bloom being conspicuously less strongly colonised than others. This fungus was unable to colonise russeted fruit areas. Repeated spray treatments with lime-sulphur and potassium bicarbonate throughout the season were effective and necessary to control SBFS in organic production. This strategy threatens the fungicide-saving potential offered by scab-resistant apple varieties. Cultural measures against SBFS include summer pruning as well as the manual removal of fruit mummies in winter.     

Living in a Dusty World: Airborne Dust as a Key Factor for Alpine Lakes

For a long time studies on precipitation and lake-water chemistry have focussed on the deposition of strong acids. Dust in snow and rain was analyzed much less intensively, but recent findings suggest that it may be the missing link which explains why many low-alkalinity lakes in the Alps and the Pyrenees did not become acidic and nutrient levels are seasonally high, whereas lakes in areas which are rarely influenced by dust depositions, for instance in Scandinavia, have acidified. Beside being a dominant factor for nutrient inputs to oceans, rain forests and remote lakes, dust can also play a major role in global warming and cooling, and it may significantly contribute to soil formation at mountain sites in the Mediterranean. I suggest that future changes in dust deposition and warming will be key factors for the development of alpine lakes.