Diversity of Halogenated Secondary Metabolites in Okinawan Aplysia argus Including 12-Hydroxypinnaterpene C and Their Feeding Targets

A new irieane-type diterpene, 12-hydroxypinnaterpene C ( 1 ), and 21 known compounds, angasiol acetate ( 2 ), angasiol ( 3 ), 11-deacetylpinnaterpene C ( 4 ), palisadin A ( 5 ), 12-acetoxypalisadin B ( 6 ), 12-hydroxypalisadin B ( 7 ), aplysistatin ( 8 ), luzodiol ( 9 ), 5-acetoxy-2-bromo-3-chloro-chamigra-7(14),9-dien-8-one ( 10 ), neoirietriol ( 11 ), neoirietetraol ( 12 ), (3Z)-laurenyne ( 13 ), cupalaurenol ( 14 ), cupalaurenol acetate ( 15 ), (3Z)-venustinene ( 16 ), 10-hydroxykahukuene B ( 17 ), aplysiol B ( 18 ), (3Z)-13-epipinnatifidenyne ( 19 ), 3Z,6R,7R,12S,13S-obtusenyne ( 20 ), (3Z,9Z)-7-chloro-6-hydroxy-12-oxo-pentadeca-3,9-dien-1-yne ( 21 ), and cholest-7-en-3,5,7-triol ( 22 ) were isolated from the digestive diverticula of Aplysia argus from the Ikei Island in Okinawa, Japan. The structures of these compounds were determined using spectroscopic methods such as NMR and HR-ESI-MS. These compounds were tested for their antibacterial activity against the phytopathogen Ralstonia solanacearum. Compounds 11 and 21 exhibited antibacterial activity at 30 μg/disc. In this study, we also discuss the types of red algae that A. argus feeds on in the shallow waters of Okinawa Prefecture.     

Icelus hypselopterus,a new cottid from the southern Sea of Okhotsk

Ichthyological Research - The new cottid Icelus hypselopterus is described on the basis of four specimens collected in the southern Sea of Okhotsk, off the Shiretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido, Japan. The...     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ceratocystis ficicola</Emphasis> sp. nov., a causal fungus of fig canker in Japan

The causal fungus of Ceratocystis canker of fig in Japan is described as Ceratocystis ficicola sp. nov. This species is characterized by galeated ascospores and is similar to Ceratocystis fimbriata sensu lato. However, the perithecia of the new species are much larger than those of C. fimbriata. The fungus grows more rapidly than C. fimbriata sensu stricto at 25°C but more slowly at 30°C. Molecular analysis of the nucleotide sequences of rDNA ITS regions showed that C. ficicola is phylogenetically placed in the clade of C. fimbriata s. l. but is easily distinguishable from other species of C. fimbriata s. l.     

Season specificity in the cold-induced calcium signal and the volatile chemicals in the atmosphere

Cold-induced Ca²⁺ signals in plants are widely accepted to be involved in cold acclimation. Surprisingly, despite using Arabidopsis plants grown in a growth chamber, we observed a clear seasonal change in cold-induced Ca²⁺ signals only in roots. Ca²⁺ signals were captured using Arabidopsis expressing Yellow Cameleon 3.60. In winter, two Ca²⁺ signal peaks were observed during a cooling treatment from 20 to 0°C, but in summer only one small peak was observed under the same cooling condition. In the spring and autumn seasons, an intermediate type of Ca²⁺ signal, which had a delayed first peak and smaller second peaks compared with the those of the winter type, was observed. Volatile chemicals and/or particles in the air from the outside may affect plants in the growth chamber. This idea is supported by the fact that incubation of plants with activated carbon changed the intermediate-type Ca²⁺ signal to the summer-type. The seasonality was also observed in the freezing tolerance of plants cold-acclimated in a low-temperature chamber. The solar radiation intensity was weakly correlated, not only with the seasonal characteristics of the Ca²⁺ signal but also with freezing tolerance. It has been reported that the ethylene concentration in the atmosphere seasonally changes depending on the solar radiation intensity. Ethylene gas and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid treatment affected the Ca²⁺ signals, the shape of which became a shape close to, but not the same as, the winter type from the other types, indicating that ethylene may be one of several factors influencing the cold-induced Ca²⁺ signal.     

Tea extract increases cell fusion via regulation of cell surface DC-STAMP

Mononuclear osteoclast precursor cells fuse with each other to become mature multinucleated osteoclasts, which is regulated by dendritic cell-specific transmembrane protein (DC-STAMP). We evaluated the effects of tea extract and catechins on cell-cell fusion and DC-STAMP expression to elucidate their relationship with osteoclast development. When tea extract or epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) was applied to RAW264.7 cells, multinucleated cells were increased significantly, while tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) activity was hardly upregulated. Flow cytometric analysis revealed that EGCg suppressed DC-STAMP expression on the cell surface, which is similar to osteoclast development. These observations suggest that TRAP activity is not activated even when suppression of both surface DC-STAMP expression and multinucleation occurs, which might be mediated by another pathway.     

Stability of human salivary extracellular vesicles containing dipeptidyl peptidase IV under simulated gastrointestinal tract conditions

BackgroundExtracellular vesicles (EVs) have been isolated from various sources, including primary and cultured cell lines and body fluids. Previous studies, including those conducted in our laboratory, have reported the stability of EVs under various storage conditions.MethodsEVs from human whole saliva were separated via size-exclusion chromatography. To simulate the effects of gastric or intestinal fluids on the stability of EVs, pepsin or pancreatin was added to the samples. Additionally, to determine the effect of bile acids, sodium cholate was added. The samples were then subjected to western blotting, dynamic light scattering, and transmission electron microscopy analyses. In addition, the activity of dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP) IV retained in the samples was examined to monitor the stability of EVs.ResultsUnder acidic conditions, with pepsin mimicking the milieu of the stomach, the EVs remained stable. However, they partially lost their membrane integrity in the presence of pancreatin and sodium cholate, indicating that they may be destabilized after passing through the duodenum. Although several associated proteins, such as mucin 5B and CD9 were degraded, DPP IV was stable, and its activity was retained under the simulated gastrointestinal conditions.ConclusionOur data indicate that although EVs can pass through the stomach without undergoing significant damage, they may be disrupted in the intestine to release their contents. The consistent delivery of active components such as DPP IV from EVs into the intestine might play a role in the efficient modulation of homeostasis of the signal transduction pathways occurring in the gastrointestinal tract.     

Unique spatial behavior of the Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) in the open mountains of Mt. Fuji

acta ethologica - The Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) exhibits spatial behavior adapted to forest habitats with relatively stable food supply and climatic conditions, such as sedentary habits,...     

DFT calculation–assisted stereo-structural assignment of arundifungin

Arundifungin ( 1 ) has been reported as a potent antifungal agent against Candida and Aspergillus spp; however, only its planar structure has been disclosed. This paper describes the assignment of the relative and absolute configuration of 1 , which includes (a) determination of the relative configuration of the ABCD polycyclic ring moiety on the basis of detailed nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis, followed by the confirmation with density functional theory (DFT)–based ¹³C NMR chemical shift calculations, (b) determination of the absolute configuration of the ABCD polycyclic ring moiety by observing a positive Cotton effect at 217 nm because of the C-8/C-9 tetrasubstituted double bond and its reproduction using DFT calculations, (c) determination of the configurational relationship between C-17 and C-20 by a combination of nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE) analysis and DFT-based conformational analysis, and (d) determination of the relative and absolute configuration of the C-24 and C-25 asymmetric centers on the acyclic side chain by a combination of chemical derivatization including modified Mosher's method and DFT-based conformational analysis, followed by electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectral reproduction. Present study also discovered 26-deoxyarundifungin ( 2 ) of which relative structure was readily elucidated by ¹H and ¹³C spectral comparison with those of 1 . Since 2 exhibits slightly weaker antifungal activity against Cochliobolus miyabeanus than 1 , the hydroxy group at C-26 moderately contributes to the activity.     

A preliminary study on habitat selection of the Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) at two temporal scales,season and time of day,in a montane forest

Journal of Ethology - Habitat selection has a significant influence on animals’ fitness, and has been well studied in various ungulates. A trade-off between the access to forage and to...