Plasma histamine concentrations in horses administered sodium penicillin,guaifenesin–xylazine–ketamine and isoflurane with morphine or butorphanol

ObjectiveVarious drugs administered to horses undergoing surgical procedures can release histamine. Histamine concentrations were evaluated in horses prepared for surgery and administered butorphanol or morphine intraoperative infusions.Study designProspective studies with one randomized.AnimalsA total of 44 client-owned horses.MethodsIn one study, anesthesia was induced with xylazine followed by ketamine–diazepam. Anesthesia was maintained with guaifenesin–xylazine–ketamine (GXK) during surgical preparation. For surgery, isoflurane was administered with intravenous (IV) morphine (group M: 0.15 mg kg^–1 and 0.1 mg kg^–1 hour^–1; 15 horses) or butorphanol (group B: 0.05 mg kg^–1 and 0.01 mg kg^–1 hour^–1; 15 horses). Histamine and morphine concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunoassay before opioid injection (time 0), and after 1, 2, 5, 30, 60 and 90 minutes. In a subsequent study, plasma histamine concentrations were measured in 14 horses before drug administration (baseline), 15 minutes after IV sodium penicillin and 15 minutes after starting GXK IV infusion. Statistical comparison was performed using anova for repeated measures. Pearson correlation compared morphine and histamine concentrations. Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation. Significance was assumed when p ≤ 0.05.ResultsWith histamine, differences occurred between baseline (3.2 ± 2.4 ng mL^–1) and GXK (5.2 ± 7.1 ng mL^–1) and between baseline and time 0 in group B (11.9 ± 13.4 ng mL^–1) and group M (11.1 ± 12.4 ng mL^–1). No differences occurred between baseline and after penicillin or between groups M and B. Morphine concentrations were higher at 1 minute following injection (8.1 ± 5.1 ng mL^–1) than at 30 minutes (4.9 ± 3.1 ng mL^–1) and 60 minutes (4.0 ± 2.5 ng mL^–1). Histamine correlated with morphine at 2, 30 and 60 minutes.Conclusions and clinical relevanceGXK increased histamine concentration, but concentrations were similar with morphine and butorphanol.     

Ameliorative effect of potassium on mice and tomato subjected to sodium salinization

Rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Yamabiko) and tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill cv. Saturn) plants subjected to Na-salinization (NA: 80 mmol( + ) kg^-1 Na) in hydroponics were grown after the addition of K at five concentrations (K1: 10, K2: 20, K3: 30, K4: 40, K5: 50 mmol( + ) kg^-1). The effect of K on their growth was analyzed in terms of transpiration, cation uptake, and transport. A similar tendency for the above parameters was obtained in both species. The addition of 10 mmol( + ) kg^-1 K improved the growth by decreasing the content of Na and increasing the K content of the plants. The growth of the plants, however, was reduced along with the increase of the K concentration and became comparable to that of NA at K5. The total cation content increased with the increase of the K concentration, which was due to the increase of the K content.

A close relationship was observed among the osmotic potential of the solution, cumulative transpiration, and dry weight for both species among the K treatments.

Addition of K suppressed the uptake of other cations by rice and tomato in the order of Na>Mg>Ca, with a very small suppression for Ca and Mg. The depression of Na uptake by K could be due to the antagonism between the two cations.

In rice, the addition of K resulted in a decrease of the uptake concentration (UC) of Na and an increase of that of K, but did not bring about any changes in the UC of Ca and Mg. It was worth noting that K1 and K2 led to a higher UC of Na than NA in tomato, while the trend of the UC of K, Ca, and Mg was similar to that in rice. The transport of Na and Ca to the tops of rice was not affected by the addition of K, while that of Mg increased by K addition. In tomato, the transport of all the cations was promoted by the increase of the K concentration.     

The Physcomitrella genome reveals evolutionary insights into the conquest of land by plants

We report the draft genome sequence of the model moss Physcomitrella patens and compare its features with those of flowering plants, from which it is separated by more than 400 million years, and unicellular aquatic algae. This comparison reveals genomic changes concomitant with the evolutionary movement to land, including a general increase in gene family complexity; loss of genes associated with aquatic environments (e.g., flagellar arms); acquisition of genes for tolerating terrestrial stresses (e.g., variation in temperature and water availability); and the development of the auxin and abscisic acid signaling pathways for coordinating multicellular growth and dehydration response. The Physcomitrella genome provides a resource for phylogenetic inferences about gene function and for experimental analysis of plant processes through this plant's unique facility for reverse genetics.     

Role for piRNAs and noncoding RNA in de novo DNA methylation of the imprinted mouse Rasgrf1 locus

Genomic imprinting causes parental origin-specific monoallelic gene expression through differential DNA methylation established in the parental germ line. However, the mechanisms underlying how specific sequences are selectively methylated are not fully understood. We have found that the components of the PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway are required for de novo methylation of the differentially methylated region (DMR) of the imprinted mouse Rasgrf1 locus, but not other paternally imprinted loci. A retrotransposon sequence within a noncoding RNA spanning the DMR was targeted by piRNAs generated from a different locus. A direct repeat in the DMR, which is required for the methylation and imprinting of Rasgrf1, served as a promoter for this RNA. We propose a model in which piRNAs and a target RNA direct the sequence-specific methylation of Rasgrf1.     

Function of sodium and potassium in growth of sodium-loving Amaranthaceae species

We observed that the growth of three Amaranthaceae species was promoted by sodium (Na), in the order dwarf glasswort (Salicornia bigelovii Torr.) >> Swiss chard (Beta Burgaris L. spp. cicla cv. Seiyou Shirokuki) > table beet (Beta vulgaris L. spp. vulgaris cv. Detroit Dark Red). In the present study, these Na-loving plants were grown in solutions containing 4 mol m^?3 nitrate nitrogen (NO₃-N) and 100 mol m^?3 sodium chloride (NaCl) and potassium chloride (KCl) under six Na to potassium (K) ratios, 0:100, 20:80, 40:60, 60:40, 80:20 and 100:0, to elucidate the function of Na and K on specific characteristics of Na-loving plants. The growth of dwarf glasswort increased with increasing Na concentration of the shoot, and the shoot dry weight of plants grown in 100:0 Na:K was 214% that of plants grown at 0:100. In Swiss chard and table beet, growth was unchanged by the external ratio of Na to K. The water content was not changed in Swiss chard or table beet by the external Na to K ratio. These observations indicate that both Na and K have a function in osmotic regulation. However, dwarf glasswort could not maintain succulence at 0:100; therefore, Na has a specific function in dwarf glasswort for osmotic regulation to maintain a favorable water status, and the contribution of K to osmotic regulation is low. NO₃-N uptake was promoted by Na uptake in dwarf glasswort and Swiss chard. NO₃-N uptake and transport to shoots was optimal at 100:0 in dwarf glasswort and at 80:20 in Swiss chard. These functions are very important for the Na-loving mechanism, and the contribution of K was lower in dwarf glasswort than in Swiss chard.     

Relation between pathogenicity and genetic variation within <Emphasis Type="Italic">Plasmodiophora brassicae</Emphasis>

The relation between diversity of pathogenicity on clubroot-resistant (CR) cultivars of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis) bred in Japan and DNA polymorphisms in 17 populations of Plasmodiophora brassicae from cruciferous plants was examined by inoculation tests and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis using 18 arbitrary primers. Four pathotypes (A–D) were identified after inoculation of six CR cultivars of Chinese cabbage in the 17 populations from cruciferous crops. A relatively high level of genetic diversity was also detected among these populations in the RAPD analysis. Although the four pathotypes could not be clearly differentiated using the RAPD data, most populations of three pathotypes had a consistent location on the dendrogram. All pathotype B (virulent on five cultivars except Utage 70) and D (avirulent on all cultivars) populations, which were common in incompatible interactions with cv. Utage 70, were located in a single subcluster. All five pathotype C populations (virulent only on cv. Utage 70) except for one population grouped in another single subcluster. Because four pathotype A populations (virulent on all six cultivars, races 4 and 9) fell in different subclusters, the populations may be genetically polyphyletic. Populations from cruciferous weed Cardamine flexuosa differed remarkably from those from cruciferous crops in pathogenicity on common cultivars of Chinese cabbage and turnip and C. flexuosa, but they grouped in a single cluster with all race 9 populations from crops. Race 9 populations from crops may thus be closely related to populations from the weed rather than to races 1 and 4 from crops.     

Salt tolerance of grain crops in relation to ionic balance ability to absorb microelements

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of exchangeable Na on the growth and absorption of metal elements in barley, rye, and maize. The plants were cultivated in soils whose exchangeable sodium percentages (ESP) were 6.6 (saline soil: Saline), 17.4 (saline-sodic soil: Sodic 1), and 39.6 (sodic soil: Sodic 2), which were prepared from Tottori sand dune soil (Control). The dry weight (DW) and concentrations of metal elements Ca, Mg, Mn, Zn, and Cu) in shoots were analyzed. The shoot DW was smaller with higher ESP, but in barley the difference between all the treatments was no longer observed with time. In Sodic soils, the growth of barley was vigorous, whereas rye growth was poor, and maize plants died by 5 weeks after planting. The Na concentration in shoots of all the species was higher with higher ESP. The K concentration in shoots was low at the early growth stage, but in barley it was higher in the Saline and both Sodic soils than in the Control at the subsequent stages. The concentrations of Ca and Mg in shoots of barley and maize in the Saline and both Sodic soils were higher than those in the Control, but in rye the concentrations were lowest in Sodic 2. The concentrations of Mn, Zn, and Cu in barley shoots in the Saline and bothSodic soils tended to be higher than those in the Control, whereas in rye they were lower than in the Control in both Sodic soils. Barley showed a higher ability to absorb low available microelements than rye and maize. These results indicate that barley is tolerant to sodicity as well as salinity, maize is tolerant to salinity, but is very sensitive to sodicity, and rye is moderately sensitive to both stresses. We suggest that the tolerance of grain crops to ESP involves a tolerance to a high Na concentration in shoots, the ability to keep suitable concentrations of essential cations in the presence of a high concentration of Na in shoots and the ability to absorb low available microelements.     

近滨海区鲁梅克斯K-1杂交酸模的引种及耐盐性研究

通过引种试验,对鲁梅克斯Ｋ－１杂交酸模和生长发育规律、营养成分、耐盐力等进行了研究。结果表明,该杂交酸模在肥水充足的条件下,营养价值高,蛋白质含量高达２０％～３８％;繁殖力强,一年或刈割４茬～５茬,每公顷收获鲜草１５０ｔ左右。按照抗逆半衰减定义,该牧草耐盐力０．３２５％,只有抗中等盐碱。但收获携盐能力较强,从平均盐离子含量来看,每种植１ｈｍ＾２鲁梅克斯,通过牧草收割,一年可携走土壤中的盐分１５０ｋｇ～２００ｋｇ。     

A new source of basaltic meteorites inferred from Northwest Africa 011

Eucrites are a class of basaltic meteorites that share common mineralogical, isotopic, and chemical properties and are thought to have been derived from the same parent body, possibly asteroid 4 Vesta. The texture, mineralogy, and noble gas data of the recently recovered meteorite, Northwest Africa (NWA) 011, are similar to those of basaltic eucrites. However, the oxygen isotopic composition of NWA011 is different from that of other eucrites, indicating that NWA011 may be derived from a different parent body. The presence of basaltic meteorites with variable oxygen isotopic composition suggests the occurrence of multiple basaltic meteorite parent bodies, perhaps similar to 4 Vesta, in the early solar system.     

Assessment of emitter discharge in microirrigation system as affected by polluted water

A drip irrigation system has the advantage of maintaining high water content near the plant root. However, its performance depends on water quality as it may induce the emitter clogging. In the Tohaku National Irrigation Project, in western Japan, mist spray emitters are widely used for irrigation in the field and greenhouses for vegetable and orchard crops. Seven emitters of different types were evaluated for the variation in their discharge rate without filter. The statistical analysis of mean discharge ratio and the coefficient of variation of the performance of emitters along a lateral line in the field indicated that the mist spray emitters had the best performance for irrigation in Tohaku area, particularly the new emitters or 1-year old emitters. The results suggest that after using the emitter line for two irrigation seasons it should either be replaced in the third season or washed carefully if further used.