Electroencephalographic observation on sheep and cattle with experimental cerebrocortical necrosis

Nine Suffolk sheep and 4 Holstein cattle were employed to observe electroencephalographic changes in experimental cerebrocortical necrosis. Amprolium (600 mg/kg/day) alone was given intraruminally 6 sheep and 4 cattle, all of which showed neurological signs and abnormal electroencephalograms. Both amprolium and thiamine (200 mg/day) and thiamine (50 mg/day) alone were given 2 and 1 sheep, respectively, as controls, which did not show any abnormal signs. Abnormal electroencephalograms included continuous slow waves and long-lasting spindles, both of which appeared diffusely and were seen subclinically or with neurological signs. The spindles consisted of slow waves or sharp- (or spike-) and-slow-wave complexes with or without convulsive seizures even during the convulsion stage. Conversely, the seizures occurred with the spindles or slow waves.     

Regional Characteristics of Cooper Corrosion Components in East Asia

Copper plates were exposed under shelters at 13 sampling sites in East Asia and their corrosion was analyzed. The corrosion products were first dissolved in water and then oxalic acid. Sulfate, nitrate and chloride in the solutions were measured by ion chromatography. The amounts of the three anions significantly differed depending on the atmospheric environment at the sites. Sulfate was a major part of the anions at Chongqing and Shanghai in China. Especially, at the urban sites in Japan, nitrate remarkably changed with the seasons, and often became the large anionic component in the summer. The amounts of chloride at most sites were at higher concentration levels compared with those at the rural sites in Japan. The anions in the copper corrosion must mainly reflect the impact of acid deposition.     

Biological dinitrogen fixation and soil microbial biomass carbon as influenced by free-air carbon dioxide enrichment (FACE) at three levels of nitrogen fertilization in a paddy field

An experiment was conducted in an Andosol paddy field in Shizukuishi (Iwate Prefecture, Japan) to determine the effects of free-air CO₂ enrichment (FACE) on biological N₂-fixation activity and soil microbial biomass C at three levels of N application. Rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Akitakomachi) plants were grown under ambient CO₂ or FACE (ambient +200 µmol mol^-1 CO₂) conditions throughout the growing season with each treatment having four replicated plots. Three levels of N fertilizer (high, standard and low; 15, 9 and 4 g N m^-2, respectively) were applied to examine the effect of different N availability under both CO₂ conditions. Soil samples were collected at four different times from upper and lower soil layers (0-1-cm and 1-10-cm soil depths, respectively) and analysed for biological N₂-fixation (BNF) activity and microbial biomass C (MBC) by the acetylene reduction and chloroform fumigation-extraction methods, respectively. The amounts of chlorophyll-type compounds (Chls), an index of algal growth, and soil available C were also determined. Compared to the ambient CO₂ treatment, the FACE treatment had significantly higher BNF activity in both the upper and lower soil layers at ripening only in low-N soil and at harvest at all three levels of N fertilization rates. MBC was significantly increased by FACE in both the upper and lower soil layers from the middle to later period of the growing season compared to the ambient CO₂ treatment. The FACE treatment increased the Chls in the upper soil layers at ripening only in low-N soil and at harvest at all three levels of N fertilization rates. The amount of soil available C was not significantly different between FACE and ambient CO₂ treatments in both the upper and lower soil layers throughout the cropping season. From these results it can be concluded that the FACE treatment had a significantly positive influence on BNF activity, MBC and Chls at different levels of N fertilization rates in paddy field during the cropping season.     

Periodic signaling controlled by an oscillatory circuit that includes protein kinases ERK2 and PKA

Self-regulating systems often use robust oscillatory circuits. One such system controls the chemotactic signaling mechanism of Dictyostelium, where pulses of adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) are generated with a periodicity of 7 minutes. We have observed spontaneous oscillations in activation of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase ERK2 that occur in phase with peaks of cAMP, and we show that ERK2 modulates cAMP levels through the phosphodiesterase RegA. Computer modeling and simulations of the underlying circuit faithfully account for the ability of the cells to spontaneously generate periodic pulses during specific stages of development. Similar oscillatory processes may occur in cells of many different species.     

A Nested Air Quality Prediction Modeling System for Urban and Regional Scales: Application for High-Ozone Episode in Taiwan

A nested air quality prediction modeling system (NAQPMS) has been developed to investigate the various processes that govern the loading of chemical species and anthropogenic aerosols at various scales of atmospheric motions in urban and regional scales. The model employs flexible horizontal grid resolution with multiple multi-level nested grids with options for one-way and two-way nesting procedures in a spherical and terrain-following coordinate. The NAQPMS is driven using meteorological fields from the NCAR/Penn State Fifth-Generation Mesoscale Model (MM5). Hourly pollutant levels of 71 stations covering Taiwan are used to evaluate the modeling system. Case simulation of a high-ozone episode occurred during April 13–15 1999 shows that the technique of the model nesting is capable of affording more realistic temporal and spatial structures of concentration fields, processes and precursors.     

Experimental infection of recent field isolates of feline herpesvirus type 1

Two field isolates of feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1) designated as 00-015 and 00-035, were obtained from cats diagnosed as feline viral rhinotracheitis (FVR) in Japan. To analyze the character of recent FHV-1, these two isolates and our laboratory strain C7301 were inoculated experimentally to specific-pathogen-free cats. Although all cats showed typical FVR symptoms, more severe clinical symptoms were observed on cats infected with the isolates 00-015 and 00-035 compared with those of C7301-infected cats. Severe ocular lesions including conjunctivitis were found in the cats infected with the isolates, indicating that the recent FHV-1 has a potential to induce severe FVR symptoms including ocular lesions.     

Winter monsoon promotes the transport of Japanese temperate bass Lateolabrax japonicus eggs and larvae toward the innermost part of Tango Bay,the Sea of Japan

Northwesterly cold winds characteristic of the East Asian Winter Monsoon (EAWM) dictate winter climatic conditions over the Japanese Archipelago. Japanese temperate bass Lateolabrax japonicus is a commercially important coastal fish that spawns offshore in winter and uses shallow waters as nursery habitats. To investigate the effects of EAWM on the planktonic period of L. japonicus, eggs, larvae, and juveniles were quantitatively collected in Tango Bay on the Sea of Japan side in winter and spring from 2007 to 2017. Although eggs occurred close to the mouth of the bay, planktonic larvae occurred further inside as they developed. The horizontal distribution of planktonic larvae, combined with water velocity data obtained from mooring observations, indicated that planktonic larvae are transported south‐ to westward through Ekman current and an anticyclonic circulation, which are driven by northwesterly winds. To evaluate survival during the planktonic period in each year class, the abundance of benthic larvae/juveniles was divided by winter total landings of Lateolabrax spp. (proxy of the spawning stock size). This survival index exhibited a positive correlation with the northwesterly component of winter winds, and a negative correlation with winter air temperature (average from December to February, Spearman's correlation, p < .05). There was, however, no significant correlation with winter water temperature or winter freshwater discharge in the bay. We conclude that northwesterly cold winds of EAWM play a critical role in transporting L. japonicus eggs and larvae toward nursery habitats, specifically beaches and estuaries fringing the innermost part of Tango Bay.     

Propagation of Asian isolates of canine distemper virus (CDV) in hamster cell lines

Backgrounds

The aim of this study was to confirm the propagation of various canine distemper viruses (CDV) in hamster cell lines of HmLu and BHK, since only a little is known about the possibility of propagation of CDV in rodent cells irrespective of their epidemiological importance.

Methods

The growth of CDV in hamster cell lines was monitored by titration using Vero.dogSLAMtag (Vero-DST) cells that had been proven to be susceptible to almost all field isolates of CDV, with the preparations of cell-free and cell-associated virus from the cultures infected with recent Asian isolates of CDV (13 strains) and by observing the development of cytopathic effect (CPE) in infected cultures of hamster cell lines.

Results

Eleven of 13 strains grew in HmLu cells, and 12 of 13 strains grew in BHK cells with apparent CPE of cell fusion in the late stage of infection. Two strains and a strain of Asia 1 group could not grow in HmLu cells and BHK cells, respectively.

Conclusion

The present study demonstrates at the first time that hamster cell lines can propagate the majority of Asian field isolates of CDV. The usage of two hamster cell lines suggested to be useful to characterize the field isolates biologically.