Reproductive cycle and growth of the sand dollar Scaphechinus griseus inhabiting Japanese surf clam Pseudocardium sachalinense fishing grounds in Tomakomai,southwest Hokkaido,Japan

Fisheries Science - Bioturbation by the sand dollar Scaphechinus griseus is suspected to inhibit the recruitment of Pseudocardium sachalinense, a commercially important bivalve. This study aimed to...     

Differences in lectin-binding properties between the common mucosal epithelium and follicle-associated epithelium in the rabbit small intestine

Differences in sugar distribution between the villous epithelium and follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) were compared using lectins in the rabbit small intestine. In every portion, villous columnar epithelial cells primarily exhibited a positive reaction to the GalNAc, GlcNAc, galactose, and oligosaccharide. In the ileal Peyer's patch (PP), whereas microvillous epithelial cells exhibited positive reactions, M cells tended to be negative. The villous epithelial reaction to the fucose group was negative, but M cells and microvillous epithelial cells showed a positive to the fucose. No epithelium had a positive reaction to the mannose and glucose. The variety of lectin-binding properties of villous epithelial cells and M cells may reflect specificity for the recognizing luminal substances such as antigenic molecules and bacterial elements.     

Role of the hyaluronan receptor CD44 during porcine oocyte maturation

Previous our studies have shown that CD44, the principal receptor for hyaluronan, is present on cumulus cells during oocyte maturation. Although hyaluronan-CD44 interaction has been implicated in cumulus expansion and/or oocyte maturation, the full significance of CD44 remains unknown. The objective of the present study was to further investigate the role of CD44 in cumulus expansion and oocyte maturation in pigs. We demonstrate here in that CD44 has a key role in oocyte maturation but not in cumulus expansion. Previous studies have reported the physiological significance of cumulus expansion in oocyte maturation. However, our results suggest that cumulus expansion is a necessary condition for oocyte maturation, but that it is not sufficient on its own. Furthermore, western blot analysis demonstrated that the CD44 of the in vitro-matured cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) had a larger molecular weight and more terminal sialic acid, which has been proven to inhibit the hyaluronan-binding ability of the receptor, than the CD44 of the in vivo-matured COCs, indicating that the hyaluronan-CD44 interactions during in vitro maturation might be insufficient compared with those in vivo. The insufficient interactions of hyaluronan-CD44 during in vitro maturation may cause the inferior capacity of fertilization and development of oocytes matured in vitro.     

Molecular dynamics of heterochromatin protein 1beta, HP1beta, during mouse preimplantation development

To elucidate the molecular dynamics of HP1beta in mouse preimplantation embryos, we examined the localization, dynamics, and mobility of HP1beta in the (pro)nucleus by live cell imaging. Time-lapse observation revealed that the chromatin association of HP1beta is regulated in a cell cycle-dependent manner. HP1beta was localized in the interphase nucleus and was dynamically dissociated from the nucleus during the metaphase stage. The HP1beta assembly and clustered heterochromatin structure were both found in the nuclei of 2-cell and later-stage embryos. Moreover, fluorescent recovery after photobleaching analysis implied that HP1beta is more freely mobile in the pronucleus of the 1-cell embryo than in the 4-cell nucleus. These results suggest that the chromatin configuration may be regulated by the stability and mobility of chromatin-associated proteins including HP1beta during early embryonic stages.     

Possible influence of termites (Macrotermes bellicosus) on forms and composition of free sesquioxides in tropical soils

There has been less concern about soil mineralogical alteration than about soil physical, chemical and biological changes induced by termite nest-building activity. Furthermore, much less attention has been paid to free sesquioxides than to phyllosilicate minerals. In the present study, we conducted field morphological observations and selective dissolution analysis to characterize free sesquioxides in termite (Macrotermes bellicosus) mounds as compared with surrounding pedons in different toposequence positions, i.e., seasonally flooded valley bottom, hydromorphic fringe and well-drained upland sites. Distinctive redoximorphic features, such as surface yellowish layers on mound structures from the fringe site, indicate possible alteration of iron sesquioxide forms in the mounds due to the transportation of soil from reductive (aquic subsoil) to oxidative (epigeal mound) environments by the nest-building activity of M. bellicosus. On the other hand, the iron-soluble content in the dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) system (Fe_d) was generally higher in the mound structures than at the adjacent sub-surface (Ap2) horizon at each toposequence position, while there was less difference in the content of acid ammonium oxalate (AAO) extractable iron (Fe_o) as compared to Fe_d. As a consequence, the iron activity index (Fe_d/Fe_o ratio) was found for the most part to be lower in the mound structures than in the neighboring Ap2 horizon. In addition, the content of Fe_d, AAO-soluble Al (Al_o) and DCB-extractable Al (Al_d) was significantly correlated with clay content in these soils. These findings suggest that M. bellicosus preferentially collects clay particles, probably from the clay-rich subsoils, such as the argillic horizon, which has been formed by the co-migration of phyllosilicate minerals and relatively crystalline sesquioxides. The species then likely incorporates them into the mounds, which induces an increase in the Fe_d content relative to that of Fe_o, resulting in a decreased iron activity index in the mound structures.     

两个氮素利用率不同的水稻品种根系形态及生理特性的差异

The variation in nitrogen (N) uptake by rice has been widely studied but differences in rice root morphology that may contribute to this variation are not completely understood. Field and greenhouse experiments were carried out to study N accumulation, root dry weights, total root lengths, root surface areas, and root bleeding rates of two rice cultivars, Elio with low N-use efficiency and Nanguang with high N-use efficiency. Low (1 mmol N L^-1) and high (5 mmol N L^-1) N applications were established in the greenhouse experiment, and the N rates were 0, 120, and 240 kg ha^-1 in the field experiments at Jiangning and Jiangpu farms, Nanjing, China. The results showed that the N accumulation, root dry weight, total root length, and root surface area increased with an increase in N application. At the heading stage, N accumulation in the shoots and roots of Nanguang was greater than that of Elio in the field experiments and that of Elio at 5 mmol N L^-1 in the greenhouse experiment. After the heading stage, N accumulation was higher for Nanguang at both 1 and 5 mmol N L^-1 in the greenhouse experiment. The total root length and root surface area were significantly different between the two cultivars. Over the range of the fertilizer application rates, the root lengths of Nanguang at Jiangning Farm were 49%-61% greater at booting and 26%-39% greater at heading than those of Elio, and at Jiangpu Farm they were 22%-42% and 26%-38% greater, respectively. Nanguang had a greater root bleeding rate than Elio. It was concluded that the N-use efficiency of the two rice cultivars studied depended to a great extent on the root morphological parameters and root physiological characteristics at different growth stages.     

小麦茎秆实心度对茎秆强度的影响及相关性状QTL分析

在QTL水平上研究茎秆实心度与强度的遗传关系及实心度对茎秆强度的影响,为小麦抗倒伏育种提供依据。利用普通小麦宁麦18与实秆小麦种质"武云实秆"的F2群体和F2:3家系,对小麦茎秆强度、实心度及影响实心度的相关性状包括厚径比、壁厚、茎粗和髓腔直径进行了相关分析,并对茎秆强度相关性状QTL进行分子标记定位及遗传效应分析。结果表明小麦茎秆强度与厚径比、壁厚均呈极显著正相关,与髓腔直径呈极显著负相关。基于复合区间作图法进行QTL定位,检测到与茎秆强度、厚径比、壁厚、茎粗和髓腔直径相关QTL共23个,分布在1B、3B、4A、4B、5A上,表型贡献率3.5%~44.0%。在染色体3B、4A和5A上的标记区间gwm547–gwm247、wmc718–wmc468和gwm156–gwm443均检测到贡献率很高的茎秆实心度相关QTL,说明在这3条染色体上可能存在控制茎秆强度的主效QTL。用普通小麦宁麦13(N13)×武云实秆的24个F7家系检验分子标记gwm247的可靠性表明利用标记gwm247选育茎秆实心度优于宁麦13的概率较大。研究结果为进一步精细定位相关主效QTL以及分子标记辅助改良小麦茎秆强度奠定了基础。     

华南兴国县影响土壤侵蚀时空动力学的环境因素

By using soil erosion maps of four different time periods and a digital elevation model (DEM), in combination with the remote sensing and GIS technologies, soil erosion dynamics in Xingguo County of Jiangxi Province in South China were analyzed on both temporal and spatial scales in soils of different parent materials, altitudes and slopes. The results showed that from 1958 to 2000 severe soil erosion was coming under control with a decreasing percentage of the land under severe erosion. It was also found that the soils developed from Quaternary red clay, granite and purple shale were more susceptible to soil erosion and that areas sitting between 200 to 500 m in altitude with a slope less than 3° or between 7° to 20° where human activities were frequent remained to be zones where soil erosion was most likely to occur. These areas deserve special attention in monitoring and controlling.     

Effect of calcium ion on the thermal denaturation of subfragment-1 and rod regions of squid myosin upon the heating of myofibrils

Thermal inactivation of Ca²⁺ ATPase of squid myofibrils was significantly suppressed in the presence of Ca²⁺. Monomeric myosin content decreased much faster than Ca²⁺ ATPase inactivation in Ca medium, which was well explained by fast rod denaturation. In contrast, rod denaturation was slower than S-1 in EDTA medium. The decrease in monomeric myosin content was explained by faster S-1 denaturation. Comparing the S-1 and rod denaturation rates at a fixed temperature, it was concluded that S-1 denaturation was suppressed by Ca²⁺ whereas the rod denaturation was not. An unfolding experiment with isolated myosin rod confirmed that there was no stabilizing effect of Ca²⁺ on myosin rod. It was concluded that significant stabilization of the S-1 portion by Ca²⁺ generated the apparently different myosin denaturation patterns in the two media.     

Beneficial effects on meat quality of yellowtail Seriola quinqueradiata induced by diets containing red pepper

The meat quality of farmed yellowtail Seriola quinqueradiata fed on extruded pellets (EP) containing 0.5% (v/v) red pepper (experimental group) was compared with yellowtail of the same age fed on EP (control group). In 1-year-old yellowtail, the crude lipid content of the dorsal muscle of the experimental group tended to be lower than that of the control group. In contrast, there was no difference in the lipid content of the dorsal muscle between the control group and the experimental group in 2-year-old yellowtail. The muscle texture of the experimental group was significantly firmer than that of the control group, with the effect of red pepper unrelated to fish age and lipid content. Color change of red muscle of the experimental group was significantly lower than that of the control group, and the content of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances in the red muscle was significantly lower in the experimental group than in the control group. These results are the first to demonstrate that the inclusion of red pepper in the diet is able to reduce the loss of muscle texture firmness and to slow down color change in red muscle of yellowtail.