N -Methyl- N -nitrosourea-induced Renal Tumors in Rats: Immunohistochemical Comparison to Human Wilms Tumors

N-Methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU)-induced renal tumors in rats and Wilms tumors in humans were compared. Renal mesenchymal tumors (RMTs) and nephroblastomas (blastemal and epithelial components) in female Lewis rats treated with a single intraperitoneal injection of 50 mg/kg MNU at birth and Wilms tumors (blastemal, epithelial and mesenchymal components) in humans were analyzed for the expression of pancytokeratin (CK), vimentin, p63, α-smooth muscle actin (SMA), desmin, S-100, CD57, CD117/c-kit, Wilms tumor 1 protein (WT1) and β-catenin. The mesenchymal components of rat RMTs and human Wilms tumors expressed vimentin, SMA and β-catenin. The blastemal components of rat nephroblastomas and human Wilms tumors expressed vimentin, CD117/c-kit and β-catenin. The epithelial components of rat nephroblastomas and human Wilms tumors expressed vimentin and β-catenin. WT1 was expressed in different cellular components of rat tumors as compared with human Wilms tumors; the expression was seen in mesenchymal tumors and blastemal components of nephroblastomas in rats and epithelial components in human Wilms tumors. CK, p63 and CD57 were not expressed in rat RMTs or nephroblastomas, while CK and WT1 were expressed in epithelial components and CD57 was expressed in blastemal and epithelial components of human Wilms tumors. Rat and human tumors were universally negative for the expression of desmin and S-100. The immunohistochemical characteristics of rat renal tumors and human Wilms tumors may provide valuable information on the differences in renal oncogenesis and biology between the two species.     

Effect of different organic amendments on the resistance and resilience of the organic matter decomposing ability of soil and the role of aggregated soil structure

The effect of organic amendment on the resistance and resilience of the organic matter decomposing activity was compared between soils amended with compost and with chemical fertilizers. The impact of metam sodium disinfection on cellulose-decomposing activity and on the number of nematodes in three types of soils was periodically measured. In an andosol, cellulose-decomposing activity was significantly suppressed by soil disinfection only in the chemically fertilized soil (CF-soil) and not in the soils to which cow manure compost and okara (the residue in tofu production)/coffee compost was added. In a brown lowland soil, cellulose-decomposing activity was significantly suppressed by soil disinfection in the CF-soil, but not in the soils to which higher amounts of cow manure compost and pig manure compost had been added. In a red-yellow soil, cellulose-decomposing activity was significantly suppressed by soil disinfection in all soils, but its resilience was higher in the soils to which cow manure compost or coffee compost was added compared with the CF-soil. Total numbers of nematodes were markedly decreased by soil disinfection in all soils. These results may suggest that the resistance and resilience of cellulose-decomposing activity against soil disinfection were enhanced by organic amendments, while disinfection had fatal effects on soil nematodes. In most of the organically amended soils, the mean weight diameters of aggregates were larger compared with the CF-soils, suggesting that highly structured soil pore networks may provide shelters for the soil microbes responsible for cellulose decomposition against disinfection. This hypothesis was supported by the result that the resistance of cellulose-decomposing activity against soil disinfection decreased when the soil structure was destroyed by grinding in a mortal and pestle.     

Molecular characterization of an H1N2 swine influenza virus isolated in Miyazaki, Japan, in 2006

Swine influenza virus (SIV) was isolated from a farm in Miyazaki Prefecture in Japan in July 2006. An isolate was genetically subtyped as H1N2 and was designated A/swine/Miyazaki/1/2006 (H1N2). The nucleotide sequences of all eight viral RNA segments were determined, and then phylogenetic analysis was performed using the neighbor-joining method. All segments were shown to be closely related to those of Japanese SIV H1N2 isolates, which have been circulating since the 1980s. The results indicate the persistence of the SIV H1N2 subtype in the Japanese pig population for more than two decades and emphasize the importance of continuous surveillance for SIV.     

Etiologic study of upper respiratory infections of household dogs

Infectious tracheobronchitis (ITB), also known as the kennel cough, is a respiratory syndrome of dogs and usually appears to be contagious among dogs housed in groups. Etiologic agent of ITB is multiple and sometimes complex. In the present study, 68 household dogs showing clinical signs of respiratory infection were examined, and 20 dogs (29.4%) were found to be positive for either of following agents. Bordetella bronchiseptica (B.b.) was most frequently detected from nasal and oropharynx sites of 7 dogs (10.3%). Among the viruses examined, canine parainfluenza virus (CPIV) was detected with the highest frequency (7.4%). Other pathogens included in the order of frequency group 1 canine coronavirus (4.4%), canine adenovirus type 2 (2.9%), group 2 canine respiratory coronavirus (1.5%), and canine distemper virus (1.5%). Only 2 cases showed mixed infections. Neither influenza A virus nor canine bocavirus (minute virus of canines) was found in any dogs examined. These results indicate that both B.b. and CPIV are likely to be the principal etiologic agents of canine ITB in Japan, and they may be considered as the target for prophylaxis by vaccination.     

Short-term transportation in a small vehicle affects the physiological state and subsequent water consumption in goats

We investigated the physiological effects on goats of transportation for one hour in a small truck. We also investigated food and water consumption after transportation. Eight adult goats (four castrated males and four ovariectomized females) were used. Plasma levels of cortisol, glucose and free fatty acids increased significantly within 15 min of the start of transportation, and these higher levels were maintained throughout transportation. These results indicate that transportation in a small truck activates the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathetic nervous system in goats. Despite activation of the sympathetic nervous system, heart rate (HR) in subjected animals during transportation did not differ from during the control animals, which were housed in their usual pen. However, after the transportation had ended and the goats started to eat fodder, HR increased significantly. There was no difference in the amount of food consumption between the control and transported goats. Water consumption in the first three hours after transportation was significantly lower in the transported goats than in the controls for the equivalent period. In the subsequent three hours, however, the transported goats consumed more water than the controls. Consequently, the total water consumption of the transported goats did not differ from that of the controls during the six hours after transportation. In conclusion, short-term transportation with a small vehicle activated the HPA axis and the sympathetic nervous system in goats. HR was not increased during transportation, but after the transportation had ended HR in transported goats was higher than that in control goats. After transportation, goats had consumed the same amount of food as control goats, but water consumption during three hours after the transportation was lower than that of control goats.     

Phenotypic and functional analysis of bovine peripheral blood dendritic cells before parturition by a novel purification method

Dendritic cells (DCs) are specialized antigen presenting cells specializing in antigen uptake and processing, and play an important role in the innate and adaptive immune response. A subset of bovine peripheral blood DCs was identified as CD172a⁺/CD11c⁺/MHC (major histocompatibility complex) class II⁺ cells. Although DCs are identified at 0.1%–0.7% of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), the phenotype and function of DCs remain poorly understood with regard to maintaining tolerance during the pregnancy. All cattle used in this study were 1 month before parturition. We have established a novel method for the purification of DCs from PBMC using magnetic‐activated cell sorting, and purified the CD172a⁺/CD11c⁺ DCs, with high expression of MHC class II and CD40, at 84.8% purity. There were individual differences in the expressions of CD205 and co‐stimulatory molecules CD80 and CD86 on DCs. There were positive correlations between expression of cytokine and co‐stimulatory molecules in DCs, and the DCs maintained their immune tolerance, evidenced by their low expressions of the co‐stimulatory molecules and cytokine production. These results suggest that before parturition a half of DCs may be immature and tend to maintain tolerance based on the low cytokine production, and the other DCs with high co‐stimulatory molecules may already have the ability of modulating the T‐cell linage.     

Paired box 7 inhibits differentiation in 3T3‐L1 preadipocytes

Myogenesis is precisely proceeded by myogenic regulatory factors. Myogenic stem cells are activated, proliferated and fused into a multinuclear myofiber. Pax7, paired box 7, one of the earliest markers during myogenesis. It has been reported that Pax7 regulates the muscle marker genes, Myf5 and MyoD toward differentiation. The possible roles of Pax7 in myogenic cells have been well researched. However, it has not yet been clarified if Pax7 itself is able to induce myogenic fate in nonmyogenic lineage cells. In this study, we performed experiments using stably expressed Pax7 in 3T3‐L1 preadipocytes to elucidate if Pax7 inhibits adipogenesis. We found that Pax7 represses adipogenic markers and prevents differentiation. These cells showed decreased expression of PDGFRα, PPARγ and Fabp4 and inhibited forming lipid droplets.     

Microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA analyses reveal no genetic difference between two pufferfish species torafugu <Emphasis Type="Italic">Takifugu rubripes</Emphasis> and karasu <Emphasis Type="Italic">T. chinensis</Emphasis>

It has been reported that the nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial and nuclear genes of Takifugu pufferfish torafugu T. rubripes and karasu T. chinensis show 99–100% sequence identity, indicating a very close relationship between the two species. To further investigate this genetic relationship, we compared genetic variation at four microsatellite loci and at the mitochondrial control region (CR) (561 bp) between groups of T. rubripes caught at two locations [TrG, caught in the Genkai Sea off Tsushima Island in 2003 (n = 50); TrS, caught in the Suwo Sea off Kita-Kyushu in 2008 (n = 50)] and T. chinensis caught at one location (TcK, caught off the east coast of Korea in 2004; n = 50). Analyses using microsatellite loci showed that genetic diversity index values of the TrG, TrS and TcK groups were 0.9505, 0.9350 and 0.9335, respectively, while values of genetic distance and genetic differentiation between TrG and TcK (0.0543 and 0.0189, respectively) were smaller than those between TrG and TrS (0.0857 and 0.0194, respectively). Analyses using CR for the same specimens showed that genetic distances were consistent with those obtained using microsatellite loci. These results, together with our previous observations, suggest that T. rubripes and T. chinensis are very closely related and possibly can be regarded as the same species.     

Impact of short‐term climate effects and sea ice coverage variation on Japanese scallop aquaculture in Saroma Lake,Japan

Saroma Lake is the southernmost lagoon exhibiting seasonal sea ice coverage in the Northern hemisphere and one of the most important aquaculture areas for Japanese scallops (Mizuhopecten yessoensis). Under conditions of adequate food and appropriate temperature, scallops grow well from the time of ice melting in April to harvesting starting in July. However, over the past decade, Saroma Lake frequently has not been completely covered by ice in winter, and the production of Japanese scallops has shown significant changes. Therefore, this study integrated data from satellite remote sensing, buoys, and in situ observations with climatic events [the winter East Asian Monsoon (EAM) and El Niño/La Niña–Southern Oscillation events] to investigate the impact of ice coverage variations on scallop growth in Saroma Lake between 2007 and 2015. Daily ice conditions were detected using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer false colour images and an unsupervised classification method. The results indicated that EAM strongly influenced the ice coverage variation in Saroma Lake through their effects on temperature during winter. Ice coverage variations show a strong correlation with water temperature and spring phytoplankton blooms, which are the two most important environmental factors for scallop growth. In addition, extreme climate events could cause water temperature anomalies (as in 2015) which are unfavourable for scallop growth. Monitoring ice conditions should be considered when developing plans and management strategies for scallop aquaculture in Saroma Lake.