A new pattern of morphofunctional relationship among cranial nerves: Evidence of anatomical and physiological connection between trigeminus and oculomotor nerves

It is shown that the cell bodies of the afferent fibres supplying the proprioceptivity to the extrinsic eye muscles are located within the semilunar ganglion. Furthermore, some Gasserian cells have central processes which enter the midbrain through the oculomotor nerve. Sensory ganglion cells, derived from the same strand of placodal cells forming the ophthalmic lobe, can be constantly detected within the oculomotor nerve of ox, monkey and man.

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Kurzfassung Unsere Forschungen haben ergeben, dass sich die Zellkörper der fibrae afferentes, die dem äusserlichen Augenmuskeln die propriozeptive Sensibilität geben, im Ganglion des Gasser befinden. Ausserdem haben einige Zellen des Gasserschenganglion zentrale Verzweigungen die durch den Nervus oculomotorius in den Hirnstamm führen. Sensitive Ganglionzellen, die von der gleichen Reihe plakodischer Zellen stammen, und den lobus oftalmicus Gasseri formen, sind regelmassig im nervus oculomotorius des Rindes, des Affen und des Menschen zu finden.

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Resume Nos recherches ont démontré que, chez le Mouton et le Porc, le ganglion de Gasser contient les corps cellulaires des fibres nerveuses desservant les fuseaux neuromusculaires des muscles extrinsèques de l'oeil. En outre, quelques cellules du ganglion de Gasser ont leurs prolongements centraux qui se portent au tronc cérébral en suivant à rebours les radicules du nerf oculomoteur. En fin, on a trouvé constamment des cellules ganglionnaires sensitives dans l'oculomoteur du Boeuf, du Singe et de l'Homme; ces cellules proviennent du même cordon de cellules placodiales qui forme le lobe ophthalmique du ganglion semilunaire.

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Riassunto Le nostre ricerche hanno dimostrato che i corpi cellulari delle fibre nervose afferenti, che danno la sensibilità propriocettica al muscolo oculare estrinseco, si trovano nel ganglione di Gasser. Inoltre, alcune cellule del ganglione di Gasser hanno diramazioni centrali che portano al tronco cerebrale attraverso il nervo oculomotore. Infine, si sono costantemente incontrati nel nervo oculomotore del bovino, della scimmia e dell'uomo, cellule sensitive che provengono dallo stessotronco di cellule placodali che formano il lobo oftalmico.

     

Molecular markers for improving control of soil-borne pathogen <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fusarium oxysporum</Emphasis> in sugar beet

Fusarium spp. cause severe damage in many agricultural crops, including sugar beet, with Fusarium oxysporum historically being considered as the most damaging of all species. Sugar beet needs to be protected from this class of soil-borne pathogens in order to ensure an optimal sugar yield in the field. Genetic control of the disease is crucial in managing these pathogens. Identification of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers linked to resistance can be a powerful tool for the introgression of valuable genes needed to develop Fusarium-resistant varieties. A candidate gene approach was carried out to identify SNP markers linked to putative Fusarium resistance sources in sugar beet. Five resistant analogue genes (RGAs) were screened by means of high resolution melting (HRM) analysis in a set of sugar beet lines, considered as resistant and susceptible to Fusarium oxysporum. HRM polymorphisms were observed in 80% of amplicons. Two HRM polymorphisms were significantly associated with Fusarium resistance (P < 0.05). The amplicons that showed association were sequenced and two SNPs were identified. The association was further validated on 96 susceptible and 96 resistant plants using competitive allele-specific PCR (KASPar) technology. The selected SNPs could be used for marker-assisted breeding of Fusarium resistance in sugar beet.     

Morphology and Neurochemical Expression of Neurons Immunoreactive for the Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide (CGRP-IR) in the Lamb Ileum

Veterinary Research Communications -     

Hot air treatment for surface decontamination of table eggs experimentally infected with Salmonella,Listeria, and Escherichia coli

Hot-air pasteurization was investigated in the EU-funded project “Reducing Egg Susceptibility to Contaminations in Avian Production in Europe (RESCAPE)” as an innovative treatment for surface bacterial decontamination of table eggs. Possible side effects of the treatment on egg quality traits were also studied. The decontamination power of hot air was evaluated over 1 month on shell eggs that were experimentally inoculated with Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli, or Listeria monocytogenes. The S. Enteritidis and L. monocytogenes populations on the surfaces of treated eggs showed a significant reduction compared with untreated eggs. No statistically significant results were obtained comparing E. coli loads on treated and untreated eggs. No detrimental effects on quality traits either immediately after treatment or after 28 days of storage at 20°C were recorded.

     

Ultrastructural Observations on the Tapetum lucidum fibrosum

The ultrastructural comparison made between the tapetum cellulosum of the cat and the tapetum fibrosum of the sheep has shown that the rods and the collagen fibrils have the same diameters and the same spatial arrangement.     

Cytoarchitecture, morphology, and lumbosacral spinal cord projections of the red nucleus in cattle

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the morphology, cytoarchitecture, and lumbosacral spinal cord projections of the red nucleus (RN) in cattle. ANIMALS: 8 healthy Friesian male calves. PROCEDURES: Anesthetized calves underwent a dorsal laminectomy at L5. Eight bilateral injections (lateral to the midline) of the neuronal retrograde fluorescent tracer fast blue (FB) were administered into the exposed lumbosacral portion of the spinal cord. A postsurgical calf survival time of 38 to 55 days was used. Following euthanasia, the midbrain and the L5-S2 spinal cord segments were removed. Nissl's method of staining was applied on paraffin-embedded and frozen sections of the midbrain. RESULTS: The mean length of the RN from the caudal to cranial end ranged from 6,680 to 8,640 microm. The magnocellular and parvicellular components of the RN were intermixed throughout the nucleus, but the former predominate at the caudal portion of the nucleus and the latter at the cranial portion with a gradual transitional zone. The FB-labeled neurons were found along the entire craniocaudal extension of the nucleus, mainly in its ventrolateral part. The number of FB-labeled neurons was determined in 4 calves, ranging from 191 to 1,469 (mean, 465). The mean cross-sectional area of the FB-labeled neurons was approximately 1,680 microm2. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: In cattle, small, medium, and large RN neurons, located along the entire craniocaudal extension of the RN, contribute to the rubrospinal tract reaching the L6-S1 spinal cord segments. Thus, in cattle, as has been shown in cats, the RN parvicellular population also projects to the spinal cord.     

Occurrence of ɛ-proteobacterial species in rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) reared in intensive and rural farms

In order to investigate the occurrence of Campylobacter, Helicobacter and Arcobacter species in caecal contents of rabbits reared in intensive and rural farms, a total of 87 samples from animals belonging to 29 farms were analysed by both cultural and PCR analyses.     

The morphology and location of atrial specific granules and the demonstration of atrial natriuretic factor in porcine,lapine and bovine heart by immunoelectronmicroscopy

The atrial specific granules (ASGs) were studied in samples collected from the right and left auricles of conventionally slaughtered cows (10), pigs (16) and rabbits (8). In addition, the presence of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) was detected by immunocytochemistry. Mature ASGs, characterized by the presence of highly osmiophilic and electron-dense material surrounded by a membrane, were present in all atrial myoendocrine cells and their diameters ranged from 100 to 470 nm in pigs, from 100 to 235 nm in cattle, and from 125 to 275 nm in rabbits. Immunoelectronmicroscopical studies revealed the presence of ANF in the ASGs of pigs and cattle, whereas anti-ANF polyclonal serum failed to detect any significative reaction in lapine ASGs. The ultrastructural features of the ASGs of pigs, cattle and rabbits described may be useful in comparing the morphological picture of several cardiac endocrine pathological conditions.