Sequences of canine glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) 1 and GAD2 genes, and variation of their genetic polymorphisms among five dog breeds

Glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) is the primary enzyme in the brain that catalyzes the synthesis of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the main inhibitory neurotransmitter. There are two isoforms named according to their molecular weights, GAD67 and GAD65, which are encoded by GAD1 and GAD2, respectively. To investigate the association between GAD genes and temperament in domestic dogs, Canis familiaris, we sequenced the full lengths of the coding regions of these genes and identified three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in GAD1 and one in GAD2. When comparing genotype and allele frequencies of SNPs among five breeds with different behavioral traits, statistically significant interbreed differences were observed for three SNPs in GAD1. These results suggest that GAD1 SNPs may be useful for behavioral genetic studies in dogs.     

Regulation of biosynthesis,perception, and functions of strigolactones for promoting arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis and managing root parasitic weeds

Strigolactones (SLs) are carotenoid‐derived plant secondary metabolites that play important roles in various aspects of plant growth and development as plant hormones, and in rhizosphere communications with symbiotic microbes and also root parasitic weeds. Therefore, sophisticated regulation of the biosynthesis, perception and functions of SLs is expected to promote symbiosis of beneficial microbes including arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and also to retard parasitism by devastating root parasitic weeds. We have developed SL mimics with different skeletons, SL biosynthesis inhibitors acting at different biosynthetic steps, SL perception inhibitors that covalently bind to the SL receptor D14, and SL function inhibitors that bind to the serine residue at the catalytic site. In greenhouse pot tests, TIS108, an azole‐type SL biosynthesis inhibitor effectively reduced numbers of attached root parasites Orobanche minor and Striga hermonthica without affecting their host plants; tomato and rice, respectively. AM colonization resulted in weak but distinctly enhanced plant resistance to pathogens. SL mimics can be used to promote AM symbiosis and to reduce the application rate of systemic‐acquired resistance inducers which are generally phytotoxic to horticultural crops. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry     

Comparative QTL mapping for male sterility of cultivated strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) using different reference genome sequences

Male sterility is one of the reproductive isolation systems in plants and quite useful for F₁ seed production. We previously identified three independent quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for male sterility of cultivated strawberry, Here, we identified the specific subgenomes in which these QTLs are located by QTL-seq approach. QTLs qMS4.1, qMS4.2, and qMS4.3 were mapped separately in subgenomes Fvb4-4, Fvb4-3, and Fvb4-1, respectively, in ‘Camarosa’ genome assembly v. 1.0.a1. Candidate regions of qMS4.1 and qMS4.3 were clearly detected around 12–26 Mb in Fvb4-4 and 12–14 Mb in Fvb4-1, respectively; those of qMS4.2 were fragmented in Fvb4-3, which suggests that some scaffolds were incorrectly assembled in Fvb4-3. qMS4.3 was mapped to chr4X1 of ‘Reikou’ genome assembly r2.3, and qMS4.1 and qMS4.2 were both mapped to chr4Av, which indicates that differentiation of the subgenomes in which both QTLs are located was insufficient in ‘Reikou’ r2.3. Although ‘Camarosa’ genome assembly v. 1.0.a1 is an unphased map, which merges homologous chromosomes into one sequence, ‘Reikou’ genome assembly r2.3 is a phased map, which separates homologous chromosomes. QTL mapping to different reference genomes clearly showed the specific features of each reference genome, and that using different kinds of reference map could accelerate fine mapping and map-based cloning of certain genes of cultivated strawberry.     

Virucidal and Immunostimulating Activities of Monogalactosyl Diacylglyceride from Coccomyxa sp. KJ,a Green Microalga,against Murine Norovirus and Feline Calicivirus

Human noroviruses are the most common pathogens causing acute gastroenteritis and may lead to more severe illnesses among immunosuppressed people, including elderly and organ transplant recipients. To date, there are no safe and effective vaccines or antiviral agents for norovirus infections. In the present study, we aimed to demonstrate the antiviral activity of monogalactosyl diacylglyceride (MGDG) isolated from a microalga, Coccomyxa sp. KJ, against murine norovirus (MNV) and feline calicivirus (FCV), the surrogates for human norovirus. MGDG showed virucidal activities against these viruses in a dose- and time-dependent manner—MGDG at 100 μg/mL reduced the infectivity of MNV and FCV to approximately 10% after 60 min incubation. In the animal experiments of MNV infection, intraoral administration of MGDG (1 mg/day) exerted a therapeutic effect by suppressing viral shedding in the feces and produced high neutralizing antibody titers in sera and feces. When MGDG was orally administered to immunocompromised mice treated with 5-fluorouracil, the compound exhibited earlier stopping of viral shedding and higher neutralizing antibody titers of sera than those in the control mice administered with distilled water. Thus, MGDG may offer a new therapeutic and prophylactic alternative against norovirus infections.     

Development of room-temperature curing aqueous emulsion-type acrylic adhesive I: effect of monomer composition on the initial adhesive strength

For the purpose of developing a new aqueous emulsion-type adhesive for wood or paper use that does not release formaldehyde or volatile organic solvents, a honeymoon-type acrylic adhesive was examined. An adhesive system consisting of acrylic monomers copolymerized with functional monomers and a cross-linking agent was selected for the purposes of increasing initial adhesive strength and ensuring room-temperature curing. The initial adhesive strength increased by the use of cross-linkers such as dihydrazides and also polymeric methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (pMDI). Thus an adhesive with reasonable to good initial adhesive strength and room-temperature curing was obtained. The effect of pMDI on the initial adhesive strength was not significant and decreased when the amount of acrylamide in a copolymer was high.     

Induction of primer pheromone production by dihydrotestosterone in the male goat

Castrated goats were treated with dihydrotestosterone (DHT) for four weeks. Skin samples were collected from the head and the rump regions before and after the DHT treatment. The primer pheromone activities of these samples were assessed neurophysiologically by recording electrophysiological manifestations of the hypothalamic gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse generator activity. Pheromone activity was detected in both the head and rump skin samples following the DHT treatment, although the development of sebaceous glands was limited to the head region. Taken together with our previous finding that testosterone treatment results in the appearance of primer pheromone activity in the skin sample of the head region but not of the rump region. these observations suggests that the regional difference of pheromone production would be ascribed to intrinsic expression levels of 5alpha-reductase, an enzyme converting testosterone to DHT.     

Acute respiratory failure caused by leukaemic infiltration of the lung of a dog

A seven-year-old crossbred male dog with a suspected leukaemic condition was referred for investigation and treatment. A bone marrow aspirate revealed an acute myeloid leukaemia. Combination chemotherapy was administered and the dog initially improved, but 18 days after the initiation of therapy its body condition deteriorated and the animal developed acute respiratory distress. On postmortem examination, extensive leukaemic pulmonary infiltrates were evident.     

Breed differences in genotype and allele frequency of catechol O-methyltransferase gene polymorphic regions in dogs

Catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) inactivates catecholamines and catechol-containing drugs such as L-DOPA. The common genetic polymorphism Val158Met in the human COMT gene is suspected to be associated with "persistence" or risk for schizophrenia. In this study, we attempted to identify the canine COMT gene fragment and to find a similar polymorphism and to reveal its genetic distribution among five representative canine breeds. We found that the amplified gene consisted of 663 bp nucleotides and was 84% homologous with the human COMT gene. The single nucleotide polymorphisms, guanine adenine substitution, were observed at the 39th, 216th and 482nd nucleotides. From the genotyping of the 216th polymorphism among 266 dogs by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method with restriction enzyme EagI, and that of the 482nd polymorphism with restriction enzyme SfcI, we found inter-breed variations of genotypes as well as of allelic frequencies for both of these polymorphic regions. These results suggest that the identified polymorphisms will be useful tools in elucidating the genetic background of canine behavioral traits.