A Cathepsin B Inhibitor,E-64, Improves the Preimplantation Development of Bovine Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Embryos

Bovine somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is an important and powerful tool for basic research and biomedical and agricultural applications, however, the efficiency of SCNT has remained extremely low. In this study, we investigated the effects of cathepsin B inhibitor (E-64) supplementation of culture medium on in vitro development of bovine SCNT embryos. We initially used three concentrations of E-64 (0.1, 0.5, 1.0 μm), among which 0.5 μm resulted in the highest rate of blastocysts production after in vitro fertilization (IVF), and was therefore used for further experiments. Blastocyst development of SCNT embryos in the E-64 treatment group also increased relative to the control. Moreover, the cryosurvival rates of IVF and SCNT blastocysts were increased in E-64 treatment groups when compared with the control. On the other hand, we found that IVF and SCNT blastocysts derived from E-64-treated groups had increased total cell numbers and decreased apoptotic nuclei. Furthermore, assessment of the expression of apoptosis-related genes (Bax and Bcl-xL) in bovine IVF and SCNT blastocysts treated with E-64 by real-time RT-PCR analysis revealed suppressed expression of the pro-apoptotic gene Bax and stimulated expression of the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl-xL. Taken together, these finding indicate that addition of E-64 to embryo culture medium may have important implications for improving developmental competence and preimplantation quality in bovine IVF and SCNT embryos.     

Leiomyosarcoma of urinary bladder in a Shih Tzu dog

A 10-year-old intact male Shih Tzu dog presented with hematuria. Double-contrast cystography revealed a polypoid filling defect at the apex of the urinary bladder. Ultrasonography revealed a heterogeneously hypoechoic intramural mass with minimal vascular flow beneath the submucosal layer. After partial cystectomy, a well-demarcated bladder leiomyosarcoma was diagnosed on histopathology. The patient was alive and well without any clinical signs, recurrence, or metastasis at the 29-month follow-up after the surgical removal of the bladder mass. Leiomyosarcoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis if mass-like lesions are observed in the urinary bladder, although this type of malignancy is rare in canines. Histopathological confirmation is important for predicting prognosis and determining further medical plans.     

SUBTRACTION PORTAL VENOGRAPHY

Photographic subtraction was made of 38 canine portal venograms to remove the images of the overlying abdominal structures and enhance the radiographic contrast of portal veins. The improved visual quality of the subtracted portogram aided in the detection of portosystemic shunts and intrahepatic portal veins. The subtraction studies revealed portosystemic shunts not detected on the initial portal venogram.     

Public Education Financing Trends and the Gray Peril Hypothesis

The effects of migrating seniors on the provision of local public services in rural communities is growing in importance because of the large number of retiring baby boomers and the increasing rate at which these retirees are locating outside traditional retirement destinations. Some communities are optimistic about attracting and retaining retirees as an economic development strategy, but others are concerned that inmigrating seniors may be reluctant to support local public services, such as education, bringing with them “Gray Peril.” This article attempts to clarify questions regarding the Gray Peril hypothesis and local ability and willingness to fund education in Tennessee, an increasingly popular retirement destination. To this end, county per pupil education expenditure growth is explained by growth trends in local property tax assessment and sales tax revenue, and migration patterns of the retirement‐aged population from 1962 to 2002.     

Evaluation of two commercial PRRSV antibody ELISA kits with samples of known status and singleton reactors

Two commercial PRRSV ELISA kits (IDEXX and Bionote) were evaluated for their sensitivityand specificity using 476 PRRS-positive serum samples collected from 7 animal challengeexperiments and 1,000 PRRS-negative sera. Both ELISA kits exhibited 100% sensitivity withsera collected 14 to 42 days post-infection, and the results from the kits were highlycorrelated (R²=0.9207). The specificity of IDEXX or Bionote kit was 99.9% or99.7%, respectively. In addition, the Bionote ELISA kit was used to examine 100 sera thatwere determined to be falsely positive either by IDEXX 2XR or 3XR ELISA, and only 7 ofthese samples were found to be positive. These results indicate that both ELISA kitsexhibited similar levels of sensitivity and specificity and would complement one anotherfor the verification of false-positive samples.     

流动沙丘风沙流结构的定量研究

在对野外风沙流进行实测的基础上,运用拟合曲线、拟合方程等方法对0～48cm垂直高度层内风沙流结构进行了分析研究。结果表明：0～48cm高度内总输沙率及各高度层输沙率均与风速呈幂函数关系;各高度层输沙率百分比与风速呈指数函数关系;各高度层输沙率与高度呈幂函数或指数函数关系;上、中、下各层输沙率与总输沙率呈良好的幂函数关系。     

Soil texture affects the conversion factor of electrical conductivity from 1:5 soil-water to saturated paste extracts

Electrical conductivity(EC) of soil-water extracts is commonly used to assess soil salinity. However, its conversion to the EC of saturated soil paste extracts(ECe), the standard measure of soil salinity, is currently required for practical applications. Although many regression models can be used to obtain ECe from the EC of soil-water extracts, the application of a site-specific model to different sites is not straightforward due to confounding soil factors such as soil texture. This study was...     

长期用生活污水处理厂排放的废水浇灌影响了糙米和土壤中重金属的含量

A pot experiment was conducted in a plastic film house to evaluate the translocation and uptake of heavy metals(Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn) into brown rice(Oryza sativa L.) and the heavy metals residues in soils which had previously been irrigated with domestic wastewater for a long time(3 years).The range of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn was 5.10 ± 0.01,0.105 ± 0.017,5.76 ± 0.42,and 23.56 ± 1.40 mg kg-1,respectively in the domestic wastewater-irrigated soil,and 0.370 ± 0.006,0.011 ± 0.001,0.340 ± 0.04,and 2.05 ± 0.18 mg kg-1,respectively,in the domestic wastewater-irrigated brown rice.The results indicated that application of domestic wastewater to arable land slightly increased the levels of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn in soil and brown rice(P < 0.01).The concentrations of heavy metals in brown rice were lower than the recommended tolerable levels proposed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives.However,the continuous monitoring and pollution control of hazardous materials from domestic wastewater are needed in order to prevent excessive build-up of heavy metals in the food chain.