Seasonal Changes in Rigor Development and Flesh Texture of Wild Japanese Sea Bass (Lateolabrax japonicus)

The season for finding the firmest sashimi made from wild Japanese sea bass was investigated. Flesh rigor tension and contraction were measured by a “new” device with isometric (muscle length kept constant) and isotonic (balance beam moves freely) transducers. Both flesh rigor tension and contraction peaks appeared at the same postmortem times, with attainment of ultimate pH and adenosine triphosphate/inosine monophosphate ratio in four seasons. Seasonal seawater temperature correlated negatively to seasonal maximum rigor contraction and positively to seasonal flesh breaking strength at 72 h postmortem. After rigor peak tension attainment, the tension relaxation was much lower than that of other wild fish species, especially in summer. The sea bass muscle resisted structure disruption in rigor isometric tension generation. Wild sea bass sashimi was firmest in breaking strength in summer.     

Studies on availability and fixation of phosphorus in soil (part 4)

It Is known that inorganic phosphorus is contained in soil mainly in the form of calcium phosphates, aluminium phosphates and iron phosphates.     

Morphological analysis of viral communities in the floodwater of a Japanese paddy field

Capsid size distributions of viral communities in the floodwater of a Japanese paddy field under a long-term fertilizer trial were surveyed during the rice cultivation period by using transmission electron microscopy. The capsid size distributions were monophasic, and the median values fell within the range of 50-70 nm. The quartile intervals were narrow from either 40-50 nm or 50-60 nm to either 60-70 nm or 70-80 nm for most samples. There was no clear seasonal variation in the capsid size distribution of viral communities. The difference in size distributions among different fertilizer plots was also not found. Viral communities in the floodwater were predominated by isometric icosahedral forms. Viruses with octahedral capsids and elongated ones were rare and sporadic in the floodwater.     

Phenolic antioxidants from the leaves of Corchorus olitorius L.

Six phenolic antioxidative compounds [5-caffeoylquinic acid (chlorogenic acid), 3,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid, quercetin 3-galactoside, quercetin 3-glucoside, quercetin 3-(6-malonylglucoside), and quercetin 3-(6-malonylgalactoside) (tentative)] were identified from the leaves of Corchorus olitorius L. (moroheiya) by NMR and FAB-MS. The contents of these phenolic compounds, ascorbic acid, and alpha-tocopherol in C. olitorius leaves were determined, and their antioxidative activities were measured using the radical generator-initiated peroxidation of linoleic acid. The results obtained showed that 5-caffeoylquinic acid was a predominant phenolic antioxidant in C. olitorius leaves.     

Water quality in drip/trickle irrigation: A review

Summary The intensive treatment of irrigation water required for the proper operation of drip irrigation systems is presently an accepted practice. To control emitter clogging, we need to know the basic causes of clogging. The major clogging factors have been identified and control measures developed to prevent emitter malfunction. All emitter clogging problems, however, have not been solved primarily because of cost. The main approach to control clogging is proper water treatment. The type of treatment is based on the quality of the irrigation water, which can be classified in terms of its physical, chemical and biological composition. The causes of emitter clogging and possible water treatment and preventive measures to maintain reliable operation are reviewed.     

Correlation of cardiac enlargement as assessed by vertebral heart size and echocardiographic and electrocardiographic findings in dogs with evolving cardiomegaly due to rapid ventricular pacing

Vertebral heart size (VHS) has been proposed as a method for quantifying cardiomegaly in dogs. This study was designed to determine how well echocardiographic and electrocardiographic findings correlated with VHS. Dogs were rapid-paced into varying degrees of cardiomegaly and were monitored by thoracic radiography, echocardiography, and electrocardiography during development of cardiomegaly. Echocardiographic and electrocardiographic parameters were compared with VHS. VHS increased with increased duration or rate of pacing or both, and left atrium-to-aorta ratio, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, left ventricular end-systolic diameter, P wave duration, and QRS duration correlated significantly with VHS. VHS (a score obtained from routine thoracic radiographs) seems to correlate well with both echocardiographic and electrocardiographic parameters. When 9 veterinarians, experienced in interpretation of cardiac silhouettes on radiographs, measured VHS from 1 normal dog and 1 dog with severe cardiomegaly, coefficients of variation (ratio of standard deviation to the mean) for their measurements were 2.7% and 2.8%, respectively. Thus, VHS could be established with great uniformity by experienced interpreters.     

Expression of RANTES mRNA in skin lesions of feline eosinophilic plaque

Abstract One of the mechanisms of eosinophil infiltration is its induction by chemoattractants such as regulated upon activation, normal T-expressed and secreted (RANTES) which is a cysteine–cysteine chemokine that mediates chemotaxis and activation of eosinophils in humans and mice. Skin lesions of feline eosinophilic plaque are characterized by a predominant infiltration of eosinophils. The mechanism(s) of eosinophilic infiltration in the skin and/or mucosa of cats is unknown. It is possible that RANTES is involved. To investigate the presence of RANTES in the skin of cats with eosinophilic plaques and nonaffected skin, we cloned and sequenced the full-length feline RANTES cDNA gene, in order to determine whether it is present in the skin of cats with eosinophilic plaques and/or if it is present in normal adjacent skin. We were able to document the the expression of RANTES mRNAs in skin with feline eosinophilic plaque as well as in normal cat skin. The full-length cDNA sequence of the RANTES gene (742 bp) contained a single open reading frame of 276 bp encoding a protein of 92 amino acids. The amino acid sequence of feline RANTES shared 67 and 74% sequence identity with that of bovine and mouse RANTES genes, respectively. RT–PCR analysis on RANTES mRNA in the skin of cats with eosinophilic plaque revealed that its expression was higher in the eosinophilic plaque skin lesions than in the normal skin. The result suggested that RANTES might play a role to induce eosinophil infiltration in feline eosinophilic plaque lesions.