Identification of a male-specific (H-Y) antigen on the flagellar plasma membrane of ram epididymal spermatozoa

Summary H-Y (male-specific) antigen has been detected on the plasma membranes of both caput and caudal ram spermatozoa using both immunoperoxidase and immunofluorescence labelling techniques. In these spermatozoa the distribution of H-Y antigen appears to be confined to both the posterior region of the head and the mid-piece region of the flagellum. In addition, caput spermatozoa also exhibit intense immunoperoxidase staining of the cytoplasmic droplet which is situated on the flagellum at the base of the head. Western blot analyses of purified plasma membranes from the flagella of caudal spermatozoa have revealed the presence of a malespecific protein with an estimated molecular weight of 25,000–27,000.     

Identification of Tumor Antigens in the HLA Peptidome of Patient-derived Xenograft Tumors in Mouse

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Highlights

• •Sufficient tumor tissues are often unavailable large HLA peptidome discovery.
• •Using patient derived xenograft (PDX) tumors can overcome this limitation.
• •The large PDX HLA peptidomes expand significantly those of the original biopsies.
• •The HLA peptidomes of the PDX tumors included many tumor antigens.

     

Paleoceanographic interpretations of coccoliths and oxygen-isotopes from the sediment surface of the southwest Indian Ocean

The distribution of forty-four coccolithophore species in one hundred deep-sea core-tops from the southwest Indian Ocean is described. Three coccolith assemblages have been recognised (Maputo, Agulhas Current and deep water) by the relative abundances of four ecologically significant coccolithophore species (Gephyrocapsa oceanica, Emiliania huxleyi, Calcidiscus leptoporus and Umbilicosphaera sibogae). Their biogeographical distribution appears to be related to water temperature, nutrient concentration and dissolution.The degree of preservation of coccoliths and foraminifera indicates that the carbonate lysocline lies somewhere between 3500 and 4000 m, resulting in the concentration of dissolution-resistant microfossils below this depth.Stable oxygen isotope ratios of the planktonic foraminiferal species Globigerinoides sacculifer range between −1.5 to −1.0‰ PDB (equal to 22.8–25.1°C) and occur in a narrow band on the sea floor beneath the “A” route of the Agulhas Current.These values are about 0.5 per mil PDB lighter than samples analyzed on either side of this band and can be explained by the Agulhas Current's elevated temperature at the ocean surface of 2–3°C. Thus an oxygen isotope imprint of the Agulhas Current exists beneath it on the sea floor.The Agulhas Current is probably the major factor influencing sedimentation, sediment-distribution patterns and geological features in the study area. At present it is voluminous and fast flowing, possibly eroding sediments up to 2500 m below the surface.The oxygen-isotope ratios and nannoplankton counts obtained in this study indicate, however, that the majority of samples are most probably recent or at least not older than 85,000 years. This implies that sediments are accumulating on the ocean floor and that the Agulhas Current does not have a pronounced erosional influence, at least in areas from which cores were retrieved for this study.     

Design and optimization of selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors with high synthetic accessibility Part 1

The reported selective serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor Litoxetine was used as the starting point in the design of a range of potential SSRIs with high ease of synthetic accessibility. Preparation and subsequent optimization yielded a range of potent and highly selective SSRIs.     

Size distribution of luteal cells from pregnant and non-pregnant marmoset monkeys and a comparison of the morphology of marmoset luteal cells with those from the human corpus luteum

The size distribution of marmoset luteal cells was determined on Days 6, 14 and 20 after ovulation in non-pregnant cycles and in early pregnancy. Image analysis was used to estimate the cell diameter of dispersed cells prepared from the marmoset corpus luteum (CL). Steroidogenic cells showed a size distribution consistent with one population of cells. There was a significant increase in mean cell diameter (P less than 0.05) from Day 6 to Day 14 in pregnant and non-pregnant animals with no further increase on Day 20. Micrographs of marmoset luteal tissue showed cells of greater than 10 micron containing the organelles typical of steroid-producing cells, and smaller non-steroidogenic cells surrounding the steroid-producing cells. On the basis of microscopy, there were no areas within the CL where cell composition was noticeably different. In contrast, micrographs of human luteal tissue showed two types of steroidogenic cell; most cells were similar to those in the marmoset CL but a smaller population of smaller cells could be distinguished around the periphery and along vascular septa. It is likely that these smaller and larger types of steroidogenic cells are of theca and granulosa cell origin respectively, the two cell populations differing in the degree of electron density and amount of rough endoplasmic reticulum. A distinguishing feature between marmoset and human luteal cells was the shape of the mitochondrian which were considerably rounder in marmoset luteal cells. The origin of steroidogenic cells in the marmoset CL is unclear, although in marmosets and man the luteal cell types display morphological characteristics distinct from the large and small luteal cells described for CL of the domestic ungulates.     

A Positive GATA Element and a Negative Vitamin D Receptor-Like Element Control Atrial Chamber-Specific Expression of a Slow Myosin Heavy-Chain Gene during Cardiac Morphogenesis

We have used the slow myosin heavy chain (MyHC) 3 gene to study the molecular mechanisms that control atrial chamber-specific gene expression. Initially, slow MyHC 3 is uniformly expressed throughout the tubular heart of the quail embryo. As cardiac development proceeds, an anterior-posterior gradient of slow MyHC 3 expression develops, culminating in atrial chamber-restricted expression of this gene following chamberization. Two cis elements within the slow MyHC 3 gene promoter, a GATA-binding motif and a vitamin D receptor (VDR)-like binding motif, control chamber-specific expression. The GATA element of the slow MyHC 3 is sufficient for expression of a heterologous reporter gene in both atrial and ventricular cardiomyocytes, and expression of GATA-4, but not Nkx2-5 or myocyte enhancer factor 2C, activates reporter gene expression in fibroblasts. Equivalent levels of GATA-binding activity were found in extracts of atrial and ventricular cardiomyocytes from embryonic chamberized hearts. These observations suggest that GATA factors positively regulate slow MyHC 3 gene expression throughout the tubular heart and subsequently in the atria. In contrast, an inhibitory activity, operating through the VDR-like element, increased in ventricular cardiomyocytes during the transition of the heart from a tubular to a chambered structure. Overexpression of the VDR, acting via the VDR-like element, duplicates the inhibitory activity in ventricular but not in atrial cardiomyocytes. These data suggest that atrial chamber-specific expression of the slow MyHC 3 gene is achieved through the VDR-like inhibitory element in ventricular cardiomyocytes at the time distinct atrial and ventricular chambers form.     

The Relationships between Phase and Period Responses to Light Pulses

Current theories of stable circadian entrainment postulate phase delays should be associated with period lengthening, while phase advances should be associated with period shortening. While characterising features of the rat PRC to light, we noted substantial numbers of responses that displayed the opposite pattern. Forty-eight rats provided data for 192 phase responses. Limiting our analysis to phase shifts greater than 1 hour, we found 44 displayed the expected predicted relationship, and 33 displayed the contrary paradoxical relationship. Paradoxical responders possessed significantly shorter initial activity periods, compared to predicted responders. Activity was significantly lengthened by paradoxical responders and shortened by predicted responders following light pulse exposure. These results suggest a second mode of stable entrainment. Additionally, these results indicate entrainment mode, predicted or paradoxical, is based upon activity period duration. Short activity period durations will be associated with paradoxical responses, long durations will be associated with predicted responses. We argue that, given the dynamic changes in photoperiod, both modes of entrainment are necessary to provide stable entrainment across the year.