Effects of radiation from P32 on development of rice seedlings

Since the discovery of radioactivity, its effects upon living organisms have attracted many people's interest and attention, and paticularly, since the appearance of the atomic bomb, it has raised very important problems in various fields¹). In connection with this, radioactive isotopes have been found to be very useful and important tools for investigation and research in the fields of Biology and Agriculture.     

Spontaneous adenocarcinoma with giant cell formation in the accessory sex glands in a male Sprague-Dawley rat

In this study, we report the features of an adenocarcinoma with giant cell formation spontaneously occurring in the accessory sex glands of a male 10-month-old Sprague-Dawley rat. A milky white mass was found in the region corresponding to the left seminal vesicle and the left coagulating gland. Histologically, tumor cells exhibited diverse growth patterns, including glandular/trabecular, cystic, and sheet-like growth areas. The tumor cells were pleomorphic, with round- or oval-shaped nuclei and abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm. Mitotic figures were occasionally observed. Giant cells were also prominent in the sheet-like growth area, with intracytoplasmic vacuoles containing eosinophilic material. The stroma was rich in collagen fibers and fibroblasts. Numerous inflammatory cells were observed in the glandular and cystic lumina and stroma. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were positive for cytokeratin AE1/AE3 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen. In the sheet-like growth area, some of the tumor cells and giant cells were positive for vimentin in the cytoplasm adjacent to the nucleus. Electron microscopy revealed that the tumor cells contained a small number of mitochondria and rough endoplasmic reticulum, and had no basement membrane or desmosome. The giant cells occasionally contained variably sized intracytoplasmic lumina and globular filamentous bodies, probably corresponding to vimentin. Considering these morphological features, the tumor was diagnosed as an adenocarcinoma with the formation of giant tumor cells originating from the male accessory sex glands.     

The Natural Occurrence of Two Distinct Begomoviruses Associated with DNAbeta and a Recombinant DNA in a Tomato Plant from Indonesia

ABSTRACT Two begomoviruses (Java virus-1 and Java virus-2), two satellite DNAs (DNAbeta01 and DNAbeta02), and a recombinant DNA (recDNA) were cloned from a single tomato plant from Indonesia with leaf curl symptoms, and the role of these satellite DNAs in the etiology of begomovirus disease was investigated. The genome organizations of the two viruses were similar to those of other Old World monopartite begomoviruses. Comparison of the sequences with other begomoviruses revealed that Java virus-1 was a newly described virus for which the name Tomato leaf curl Java virus (ToLCJAV) is proposed. Java virus-2 was a strain of Ageratum yellow vein virus (AYVV) (AYVV-[Java]). ToLCJAV or AYVV-[Java] alone did not induce leaf curl symptoms in tomato plants. However, in the presence of DNAbeta02, both ToLCJAV and AYVV-[Java] induced leaf curl symptoms in tomato plants. In the presence of DNAbeta01, these viruses induced mild leaf curl symptoms in tomato plants. The recDNA had a chimeric sequence, which arose from recombination among ToLCJAV, AYVV-[Java], DNAbeta01, and DNAbeta02; it was replicated only in the presence of AYVV-[Java] in tomato plants.     

蛋鸡周龄和午后添加贝壳粉对蛋内部品质的影响

经过两个年龄段４个试验组的研究结果表明：（１）午后添加贝壳粉对蛋白哈夫单位影响不大,但是年轻蛋鸡所产蛋的哈夫单位年老蛋鸡（Ｐ〈０．０１）,且随年龄增长呈不断下降趋势;对蛋黄系数的影响因蛋鸡年龄不同而异,年轻蛋鸡的蛋黄系数高于年老蛋鸡。（２）蛋黄颜色受饲料中玉主等含有黄色素的原料影响较大,并且与产蛋鸡的年龄呈极强的正相关性（Ｐ〈０．０１）,（３）年轻蛋鸡产肉斑蛋的比率低于年老蛋鸡,而产血斑蛋的比率相     

Serum vascular endothelial growth factor in dogs with various proliferative diseases

Angiogenesis plays an important role in the proliferation and metastasis mechanisms of malignant tumors. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a group of cytokines that contribute to angiogenesis and vasculogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the serum VEGF-A concentrations in dogs with various proliferative diseases. A total of 202 dogs that were histopathologically diagnosed with proliferative diseases were included in the study. Serum VEGF-A concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Median serum VEGF-A concentrations in dogs were as follows: healthy dogs, 4 pg/ml [0–21 pg/ml]; hepatocellular carcinoma, 30 pg/ml [0–158 pg/ml, P=<0.001]; hepatocellular adenoma, 32 pg/ml [0–49 pg/ml, P=0.003]; hepatic nodular hyperplasia, 18 pg/ml [0–51 pg/ml, P=0.595]; adrenal pheochromocytoma, 32 pg/ml [0–187 pg/ml, P=<0.001]; adrenocortical carcinoma, 32 pg/ml [3–161 pg/ml, P=0.002]; adrenocortical adenoma, 27 pg/ml [0–106 pg/ml, P=0.005]; colorectal adenocarcinoma, 36 pg/ml [0–75 pg/ml, P=0.002]; colorectal adenoma, 43 pg/ml [0–48 pg/ml, P=0.144]; inflammatory colorectal polyps, 37 pg/ml [0–111 pg/ml, P=<0.001]; pulmonary adenocarcinoma, 35 pg/ml [4–107 pg/ml, P=0.002]; pulmonary histiocytic sarcoma, 35 pg/ml [0–131 pg/ml, P=0.016]; and follicular thyroid carcinoma, 35 pg/ml [0–106 pg/ml, P=0.009]. The serum VEGF-A concentrations were significantly higher in dogs with neoplastic lesions compared to healthy dogs, except for colorectal adenoma. High serum VEGF-A concentrations were observed in dogs with proliferative diseases. The present study suggests that angiogenesis-inhibiting therapy, which targets VEGF-A, may be useful for canine neoplastic diseases.     

Flight Distance and Avoidance Score in Thoroughbred Foals and Yearlings and the Relationship with Handling Frequency in the Young Ages

Flight and avoidance reactions from human were examined using 168 postweaning Thoroughbred foals in 22 breeding farms. Further 114 yearlings of 168 foals were tested in the following summer. The foal handlings by the stabler were asked in questionnaire. The relationship between the behavioural reactions and the foal handling frequencies was analyzed. The flight reaction was estimated as the distance from the animal to a stranger when the animal began to flight away from his approach. The avoidance scores were set up from (1) (not resistant) to (5) (touch rejection) from human touching. In the stabler questionnaire, handling frequencies of “body brushing”, “rectal temperature measurement”, “hoof cleaning”, and “stall cleaning” in the early nursing period were asked. The handling frequencies were scored from (1) (not done) to (5) (every day). In the preliminary test, a measurement reliability of the flight distance and the avoidance score was confirmed. The mean flight distances were 0.56 m and 0.27 m in the postweaning foals and the yearlings, respectively. Touch-avoidance scores of the highest frequency were (3) and (2) in the postweaning foals and the yearlings, respectively. As the results of Spearman’s rank-correlation analysis, “body brushing” showed highly negative relationships with “flight distance” (ρ=–0.31, P<0.001) and “avoidance score” (ρ=–0.37, P<0.001) in the postweaning foals. In the yearlings, “hoof cleaning” also showed significantly negative relationships with these behavioural indices (ρ=–0.24, P<0.01; ρ=–0.22, P<0.01, respectively).     

Effect of oral administration of 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphyenl on the intestinal microbiota of Sprague–Dawley rats

The effect of the endocrine-disrupting chemical 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphyenl (PCB 126) on intestinal microbiota after oral administration, and the improvement of intestinal microbiota and feces quantity by the subsequent administration of Lactobacillus acidophilus or Lactobacillus reuteri was investigated. All the rats were given 100 μg/kg bodyweight of PCB 126. The changes in bacterial counts were confirmed using a culture method. The administration of PCB 126 tended to decrease the bacterial counts of lactobacilli (10^9.6−10^10.2 to 10^8.8−10^9.2) and bifidobacteria (10^5.3−10^6.1 to 10^3.6−10^4.2), and to increase those of Enterobacteriaceae (10^8.2−10^9.1 to 10^9.4−10^10.3) and staphylococci (10^6.6−10^7.4 to 10^7.2−10^8.4) compared to no PCB 126 administration. After administration of PCB 126, L. acidophilus or L. reuteri orally administered to rats caused Enterobacteriaceae and staphylococci counts to decrease, suggesting that the intestinal microbiota was improved by the lactobacilli. The administration of L. acidophilus and L. reuteri improved the balance of intestinal microbiota, and defecation volume returned to its normal level. L. acidophilus and L. reuteri have a remedial effect on intestinal microbiota affected by PCB 126 and can function to lessen accumulated PCB 126 volume.     

Generation of PDX‐1 mutant porcine blastocysts by introducing CRISPR/Cas9‐system into porcine zygotes via electroporation

Recently, we established the GEEP (“gene editing by electroporation of Cas9 protein”) method, in which the CRISPR/Cas9 system, consisting of a Cas9 protein and single guide RNA (sgRNA), is introduced into pig zygotes by electroporation and thus induces highly efficient targeted gene disruption. In this study, we examined the effects of sgRNA on the blastocyst formation of porcine embryos and evaluated their genome‐editing efficiency. To produce an animal model for diabetes, we targeted PDX‐1 (pancreas duodenum homeobox 1), a gene that is crucial for pancreas development during the fetal period and whose monoallelic disruption impairs insulin secretion. First, Cas9 protein with different sgRNAs that targeted distinct sites in the PDX‐1 exon 1 was introduced into in vitro‐fertilized zygotes by the GEEP method. Of the six sgRNAs tested, three sgRNAs (sgRNA1, 2, and 3) successfully modified PDX‐1 gene. The blastocyst formation rate of zygotes edited with sgRNA3 was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than that of control zygotes without the electroporation treatment. Our study indicates that the GEEP method can be successfully used to generate PDX‐1 mutant blastocysts, but the development and the efficiency of editing the genome of zygotes may be affected by the sgRNA used for CRISPR/Cas9 system.     

Estimation of potassium and magnesium flows in animal production in Dianchi Lake basin,China

The objectives of this study were to estimate and evaluate potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg) budgets and flows of animal production in the basin of Dianchi Lake, China. Feed sampling and farmer interviews were conducted in field surveys. The supplies of K and Mg from local and external feeds and the retention, production and excretion of animals were calculated individually for dairy cows, fattening pigs, breeding sows, and broilers and laying hens. The K and Mg flows on a regional level were estimated using the individual budgets. At the individual level, in dairy cattle, the K and Mg supplied from local feeds accounted for large parts of the total nutrient intakes, whereas in the other animal categories most of the K and Mg in the feeds depended on external resources. Our findings also suggested that excessive Mg intake resulted in high Mg excretion and low use efficiency in dairy cattle and fattening pigs. At the regional level, the K and Mg amounts of manure produced and applied in the area (K: 339 and Mg: 143 t/year) exceeded those used as local feeds. Our results imply the animal production potentially increased the K and Mg loads in the regional agriculture system.