Physiological Basis of Irrigation Scheduling for Seed Production in Egyptian Clover Syn. Berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) Crop

A field experiment was conducted to find out the critical physiological stages of irrigation schedules inducing better growth, physiological efficiency and seed yield potential of berseem ( Trifolium alexandrinum L., Var. S-99-1). For this purpose eight irrigation treatments were made comprised of four treatments of three irrigation (W₁, W₂, W₃ and W₄), three treatments of four irrigation (W₅, W₇ and W₈) and one treatment of five irrigation (W₆) at various physiological stages i. e. regeneration, flower initiation, full bloom, seed initiation and advance seed development stage.
Thus based on the experimental results the physiological role of watering in berseem seed production could be discussed as:
With-holding of irrigation either at regeneration or at full bloom stage developed potential water stress in plants as indicated by high proline content of irrigation treatments — W₄, W₁ and W₇; and further brought out disturbance on the formation of carotene, synthesis of water soluble sugar and translocation of sugar towards reproductive organs during grain development stage. These stresses adversely affected the plant growth and flowering behaviour. The irrigation at seed initiation stage increased the seed yield. Continuous irrigation did not appear to be useful. Thus it can be concluded that irrigation at three critical physiological stages i. e. regeneration, full bloom and seed initiation was found to be essential for obtaining potential seed yield of berseem.     

β-Carotene from the Alga Dunaliella bardawil Decreases Gene Expression of Adipose Tissue Macrophage Recruitment Markers and Plasma Lipid Concentrations in Mice Fed a High-Fat Diet

Vitamin A and provitamin A carotenoids are involved in the regulation of adipose tissue metabolism and inflammation. We examined the effect of dietary supplementation using all-trans and 9-cis β-carotene-rich Dunaliella bardawil alga as the sole source of vitamin A on obesity-associated comorbidities and adipose tissue dysfunction in a diet-induced obesity mouse model. Three-week-old male mice (C57BL/6) were randomly allocated into two groups and fed a high-fat, vitamin A-deficient diet supplemented with either vitamin A (HFD) or β-carotene (BC) (HFD-BC). Vitamin A levels in the liver, WATs, and BAT of the HFD-BC group were 1.5–2.4-fold higher than of the HFD group. BC concentrations were 5–6-fold greater in BAT compared to WAT in the HFD-BC group. The eWAT mRNA levels of the Mcp-1 and Cd68 were 1.6- and 2.1-fold lower, respectively, and the plasma cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were 30% and 28% lower in the HFD-BC group compared with the HFD group. Dietary BC can be the exclusive vitamin A source in mice fed a high-fat diet, as shown by the vitamin A concentration in the plasma and tissues. Feeding BC rather than vitamin A reduces adipose tissue macrophage recruitment markers and plasma lipid concentrations.     

武定鸡红细胞免疫功能研究及其意义

应用红细胞Ｃ３ｂ受体花环（Ｃ３ｂＲＲ）和免疫复合物花环（ＩＣＲ）试验,证实武定鸡红细胞表面存在补体Ｃ３ｂ受体（Ｃ３ｂｒｃｃｃｐｔｏｒ,Ｃ３ｂＲ）,表明红细胞免疫系统（Ｒｃｄｃｃｌｉｍｍｕｎｅｓｙｓｔｅｍ,ＲＣＩＳ）的概念亦适用于这种动物。武定鸡的ＲＣＩＳ有其独特之处,文中对武定鸡红细胞Ｃ３ｂＲＲ和ＩＣＲ分别代表红细胞表面Ｃ３ｂ“空位”和“占位”状态的含义做出了新的解释。     

Evidence for estrogen receptor expression during medullary bone formation and resorption in estrogen-treated male Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

The temporal expression of estrogen receptor (ER)-α and ER-β mRNA was examined in male Japanese quails. Femurs of quails receiving 17β-estradiol underwent RTPCR and histochemical analysis 1 to 15 days after treatment. Untreated quails were used as controls (day 0). Between days 0 and 5, cells lining the bone endosteal surface differentiated into osteoblasts, which in turn formed medullary bone. Expression of ER-α was already observed on day 0 and increased slightly during bone formation whereas ER-β was hardly detected throughout this process. After osteoclasts appeared on the medullary bone surface, this type of bone disappeared from the bone marrow cavity (days 7~15). ER-α expression simultaneously decreased slightly and ER-β levels remained very low. These results suggest that estrogen activity mediated by ER-α not only affects medullary bone formation but also bone resorption.     

Stable carbon isotopes accurately predict diet selection by sheep fed mixtures of C3 annual pastures and saltbush or C4 perennial grasses

The stable carbon isotope technique has been widely used to infer the dietary ecology of a range of animal species; however calibration of the technique with animals fed known diets is essential for accurate back-calculation of dietary preferences. The aim of this study was to identify suitable samples and back-calculation methods to predict short-term (2 to 3 week) dietary selection by sheep among plants with C₃ and C₄ photosynthetic pathways. Variation in integration time of dietary carbon into plasma and faeces; diet-tissue discrimination of carbon isotopes (fractionation) and the importance of accounting for the digestible or indigestible components of the diet was investigated. The results indicate that faecal and rumen samples provided the most accurate prediction of short term dietary changes in sheep selecting between C₃ and C₄ plants. The most accurate back-calculation method for these samples used δ¹³C of the C₃ and C₄ plants and accounted for both diet-tissue discrimination and differences in the indigestibility between the C₃ and C₄ forage. For faecal samples, the organic matter content of the diet originating from C₄ plants could be predicted with a mean error as low as 2.7%. Wool and plasma samples were not conducive to predicting proportion of C4 forage in the diet within 18 days after a change in diet; however plasma could be used to discriminate between animals fed 100% C₃ and C₄ diets after 3 days. The δ¹³C technique provides a valuable tool for researchers when designing pastures for dual environmental and production purposes. An understanding of what sheep select allows for development of appropriate grazing management strategies to optimise productivity and/or persistence of target species.     

Immunostimulatory effects of natural human interferon-alpha (huIFN-α) on carps Cyprinus carpio L.

Human interferon-α (huIFN-α) is an important immunomodulatory substance used in the treatment and prevention of numerous infectious and immune-related diseases in animals. However, the immunostimulatory effects of huIFN-α in fish remain to be investigated. In the current study, the immune responses of the carp species Cyprinus carpio L. to treatment with huIFN-α were analyzed via measurement of superoxide anion production, phagocytic activity and the expression of cytokine genes including interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin 10. Low doses of huIFN-α were administered orally once a day for 3 days, and sampling was carried out at 1, 3 and 5 days post-treatment. Our results indicate that a low dose of huIFN-α significantly increased phagocytic activity and superoxide anion production in the carp kidney. The huIFN-α-treated fish also displayed a significant upregulation in cytokine gene expression. The current study demonstrates the stimulatory effects of huIFN-α on the carp immune system and highlights the immunomodulatory role of huIFN-α in fish.     

Radiosensitivity and capacity for radiation-induced sublethal damage repair of canine transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) cell lines

Understanding the inherent radiosensitivity and repair capacity of canine transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) can aid in optimizing radiation protocols to treat this disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate the parameters surviving fraction at 2 Gy (SF(2) ), α/β ratio and capacity for sublethal damage repair (SLDR) in response to radiation. Dose-response and split-dose studies were performed using the clonogenic assay. The mean SF(2) for three established TCC cell lines was high at 0.61. All the three cell lines exhibited a low to moderate α/β ratio, with the mean being 3.27. Two cell lines exhibited statistically increased survival at 4 and 24 h in the dose-response assay. Overall, our results indicate that the cell lines are moderately radioresistant, have a high repair capacity and behave similarly to a late-responding normal tissue. These findings indicate that the radiation protocols utilizing higher doses with less fractionation may be more effective for treating TCC.     

持续风沙流胁迫对黑果枸杞叶片生理特性的影响

以民勤和永靖种源3龄黑果枸杞(Lycium ruthenicum)盆栽实生苗为试验材料,采用风洞模拟试验,在9 m·s^-1风速下每天1 h,持续4 d进行风沙流胁迫,记录胁迫过程中叶片形态变化,测定第4 d和第11 d叶片生理指标,以期探究民勤、永靖黑果枸杞对持续风沙流胁迫的生理响应机制。结果表明：持续风沙流胁迫后黑果枸杞叶片受损,出现褐色斑块,萎蔫,第11 d膜透性增大;与对照相比,胁迫后民勤叶片过氧化氢酶(Catalase, CAT)、超氧化物歧化酶(Superoxide dismutase, SOD)活性及脯氨酸(Proline, Pro)含量增加,丙二醛(Malonaldehyde, MDA)含量在第11 d显著下降;永靖叶片CAT、过氧化物酶(Peroxidase, POD)活性,MDA含量增加,PSⅡ最大光化学效率(F_v/F_m)在第4 d显著下降。二者其余荧光参数变化不一。研究结果可为风沙地区黑果枸杞种植选育提供一定的理论依据。     

对3个桑品种生理生态特征的比较研究

研究了湖桑32号、农桑14号和丰田2号等3个桑树品种的光合特征及叶绿素的部分参数。3个品种的光补偿点为3.58～50.10μmol/(m2.s),表观量子效率为0.022～0.051,湖桑32号>农桑14号>丰田2号;光饱和点为1 436.78～1 571.43μmol/(m2.s),丰田2号>农桑14号>湖桑32号;CO2补偿点为62.87～103.40μmol/mol,CO2饱和点为921.88～1 055.56μmol/mol,其中,湖桑32号的CO2补偿点和饱和点、羧化效率及二磷酸核酮糖羧化酶的最大再生速率(Pmax)均较显著高于其它两个品种;叶绿素相对含量丰田2号>农桑14号>湖桑32号,表明丰田2号单位叶面叶绿体数量较多,具有相对较大的光合潜力;光化学效率和光合电子传递效率分别为0.746 2～0.801 8、1.58～3.43,其中丰田2号的叶绿素荧光参数值显著高于其它2个品种,具有一定光适应和抗逆性能力。