Evaluation of the heat‐killed and dried cell preparation of Enterococcus faecalis against villous atrophy in early‐weaned mice and pigs

Early weaning induces villous atrophy in the small intestine (SI) of piglets. Oral administration of live lactic acid bacteria (LAB) can improve villous shortening. In this study, we evaluated the oral administration of a heat‐killed and dried cell preparation of Enterococcus faecalis (a LAB) strain EC‐12 against villous atrophy in early‐weaned mice (Experiment 1) and pigs (Experiments 2 and 3). Twelve 16‐days‐old mice were divided into two groups in Experiment 1: gavage of EC‐12 (10 mg/kg body weight (BW)/day), or control. On day 21, SI was collected. Eighteen 21‐day‐old pigs were divided into two groups in Experiment 2: gavage of EC‐12 (10 mg/kg BW/day), or control. After 10 days, the villous height of jejunum was measured. Six 21‐day‐old pigs were divided into two groups in Experiment 3: the basal diet supplemented with EC‐12 at 0.05%‐fed group, or the basal diet‐fed group. After 10 days, the villous height of jejunum was measured. The villous heights in SI were significantly higher by EC‐12 administration in all experiments. EC‐12 successfully improved the villous atrophy in the early‐weaned mice and pigs when EC‐12 was administered orally.     

A Study on the Presence of Ferritin-binding Proteins in Fetal Horse Plasma

In mammal circulation, ferritin-binding proteins (FBPs) are thought to be involved in clearance of circulating ferritin after complex formation with it through receptor-mediated uptake. However, there is no report on fetal FBP in fetal circulation. Although iron concentrations of fetal horse plasma were higher than those of adult horse plasma, plasma ferritin concentrations and ferritin-binding activities were found to be significantly lower in fetus than in adult. FBPs were purified from fetal or adult horse plasma on horse spleen ferritin-Sepharose 4B affinity column. Partially affinity-purified fetal horse plasma FBPs were mainly separated into 65 and 41 kDa bands in addition to minor bands with higher molecular masses ranged from 102 to 140 kDa on SDS-PAGE under reducing condition. The adult horse plasma FBPs were separated into 74, 54 and 28 kDa bands, and the 74 and 54 kDa bands reacted with antibodies specific for horse IgM and IgG heavy chains, respectively, by immunoblotting analyses. On the other hand, no antibodies to horse immunoglobulin classes detected any bands in fetal horse plasma FBPs. The affinity-purified adult and fetal horse plasma FBPs did not contain fibrinogen as a plasma specific FBP, probably due to its lower affinity to the ligand ferritin. These results demonstrate the presence of FBPs which are different from adult horse plasma FBPs including anti-ferritin autoantibodies in fetal plasma.     

Environmental effects on recruitment and productivity of Japanese sardine Sardinops melanostictus and chub mackerel Scomber japonicus with recommendations for management

We compared a wide range of environmental data with measures of recruitment and stock production for Japanese sardine Sardinops melanostictus and chub mackerel Scomber japonicus to examine factors potentially responsible for fishery regimes (periods of high or low recruitment and productivity). Environmental factors fall into two groups based on principal component analyses. The first principal component group was determined by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation Index and was dominated by variables associated with the Southern Oscillation Index and Kuroshio Sverdrup transport. The second was led by the Arctic Oscillation and dominated by variables associated with Kuroshio geostrophic transport. Instantaneous surplus production rates (ISPR) and log recruitment residuals (LNRR) changed within several years of environmental regime shifts and then stabilized due, we hypothesize, to rapid changes in carrying capacity and relaxation of density dependent effects. Like ISPR, LNRR appears more useful than fluctuation in commercial catch data for identifying the onset of fishery regime shifts. The extended Ricker models indicate spawning stock biomass and sea surface temperatures (SST) affect recruitment of sardine while spawning stock biomass, SST and sardine biomass affect recruitment of chub mackerel. Environmental conditions were favorable for sardine during 1969–87 and unfavorable during 1951–67 and after 1988. There were apparent shifts from favorable to unfavorable conditions for chub mackerel during 1976–77 and 1985–88, and from unfavorable to favorable during 1969–70 and 1988–92. Environmental effects on recruitment and surplus production are important but fishing effects are also influential. For example, chub mackerel may have shifted into a new favorable fishery regime in 1992 if fishing mortality had been lower. We suggest that managers consider to shift fishing effort in response to the changing stock productivity, and protect strong year classes by which we may detect new favorable regimes.     

Proposal of screening method for intestinal mucus adhesive lactobacilli using the enzymatic activity of glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH)

Adhesion tests are complex, time‐consuming and expensive, while the most important criterion for a probiotic lactobacilli is the ability to adhere to the human intestine. Thirty lactobacilli isolates from human intestinal tissues were measured for cell surface glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) activity using a microtiter plate screening method. GAPDH activities were detected in 21 out of 30 samples from 12 h cultures and in all samples from 18 h cultures. This suggests GAPDH is universally expressed on the bacterial cell surfaces from many lactobacilli. A statistically significant positive correlation was shown between GAPDH activity and adhesion using the BIACORE adhesion assay (P < 0.01). The new screening method using GAPDH enzymatic activity without an adhesion test may be possible due to the significant positive correlation of GAPDH activity with adhesion of lactobacilli derived from the human intestine.     

Male attacks on infants and infant death during male takeovers in wild white‐headed langurs (Trachypithecus leucocephalus)

Infanticide was first observed in langurs nearly 50 years ago, and this rare phenomenon has been inferred to have either an evolutionarily adaptive function or to be a pathological and non‐functional behavior. In this study, we report 5 male takeover events in one‐male groups of white‐headed langurs in the Nongguan Karst Hills, Guangxi, China from 1998 to 2006. We recorded 13 attacks on 9 infants by extra‐group males or new resident males. During the male takeovers, all of the infants younger than 6 months (with an average age of 3.6 months [N = 11]) in the groups disappeared. The infant death rate during the 4.2 months after takeover by a new male was significantly higher than the infant death rate calculated for most of the year. Older infants that were still nursing (with an average age of 14.1 months [N = 7]) were often attacked and seriously wounded by the extra‐group males or new resident males, but all of them survived. The interbirth intervals of females whose infants were assumed to be killed by males were significantly reduced relative to those of females in groups with stable male tenure (mean = 10 months vs 25 months). Our data suggest that males kill unrelated and unweaned infants during the takeover period to decrease the time until the infants’ mothers resume fertility. Thus, infanticide would support sexual selection theory in white‐headed langurs. The data also show that infanticidal behavior was directed toward the infants, especially those who were still nursing. Female dispersal may function as a counter‐strategy to avoid infanticide.     

Mode of reproduction of Barbarea vulgaris in two different habitats in Tohoku, Japan

This study was conducted to determine the reproductive characteristics of Barbarea vulgaris under different disturbance regimes (mowing and tilling) in two different habitats: a levee and a wheat field. On the levee, 77 of the 114 individuals that had had their floral stalks removed by the first mowing produced new rosettes at the basal part of the stem during the same growing season. The plants that were mowed four times per year had a significantly greater survival rate than the plants that were mowed twice per year. The levee population that was mowed without tillage was largely maintained by vegetative reproduction. These results suggest that mowing the levees promotes the vegetative reproduction of B. vulgaris and helps it to compete with tall-growing plants, thus facilitating its survival as a perennial. In spite of the high sprouting ability of the plant's root fragments, most of the root fragments did not regenerate when buried or when exposed to high soil moisture conditions in tilled wheat fields. The population of B. vulgaris in tilled wheat fields was maintained almost entirely by sexual reproduction. Barbarea vulgaris can survive under two different management regimes by altering its mode of reproduction.     

大米蛋白水平对成熟期大鼠体质量及体脂水平的影响

选用蛋白水平(CP)为7%及14%的大米蛋白(R-7,R-14)及酪蛋白(C-7,C-14)喂养20周龄雄性Wistar大鼠2周后,进行大鼠体质量变化、腹腔贮脂水平、血浆总胆固醇、血浆高密度胆固醇、血浆甘油三酯及肝脏胆固醇、甘油三酯含量的测定。与C-7组相比,R-7组大鼠体质量、生长效率、贮藏脂肪含量、血脂及肝脂水平无显著差异。在高蛋白水平(14%)下,R-14组大鼠体质量总增加量、腹腔贮脂水平均低于C-14组,但各组间无显著差异;对比C-14,R-14显著降低了成熟期大鼠血浆总胆固醇、血浆非高密度胆固醇、血浆甘油三酯水平及动脉硬化指数,并且显著降低了肝脏胆固醇及甘油三酯含量。结果表明,蛋白水平是大米蛋白调控体质量及体脂水平主要影响因素之一。随着蛋白水平的增加(7%~14%),大米蛋白能够降低体质量增加量及腹腔贮脂水平,并显著降低成熟期大鼠血浆及肝脏脂质含量,提示大米蛋白潜在的抗肥胖功能与其蛋白水平密切相关。