Relative contribution of two mechanisms to post-stimulus hyperpolarization in leech retzius cells

• 1.1. In Retzius cells of the horse leech, Haemopis sanguisuga, intensive firing is followed by prolonged post-stimulus hyperpolarization (PSH) mediated by an increase in K-conductance and activation of the electrogenic sodium pump.
• 2.2. The recovery of membrane potential during PSH can be described by a biexponential model from which the relative contribution of the early and the late component to the peak amplitude of PSH may be calculated.
• 3.3. The time course of the calculated early component coincides with the time course of changes that occur in input membrane resistance during PSH.
• 4.4. The relative contribution of the late component increases linearly with an increase in stimulus duration. The rate constants of the two phases did not change with changes in stimulus duration.
• 5.5. It was concluded that the proposed model is useful for the estimation of the relative contribution and kinetics of two PSH mediating mechanisms (K-conductance increase and activation of an electrogenic sodium pump) in different experimental conditions.

     

Mechanisms of airway protection during retching,vomiting, and swallowing

We investigated the mechanisms of airway protection and bolus transport during retching and vomiting by recording responses of the pharyngeal, laryngeal, and hyoid muscles and comparing them with responses during swallowing and responses of the gastrointestinal tract. Five dogs were chronically instrumented with electrodes on the striated muscles and strain gauges on smooth muscles. Retching and vomiting were stimulated by apomorphine (5-10 ug/kg iv). During retching, the hyoid and thyroid descending and laryngeal abductor muscles were activated; between retches, the hyoid, thyroid, and pharyngeal elevating, and laryngeal adductor muscles were activated. Vomiting always occurred during the ascending phase of retching and consisted of three sequential phases of hyoid and pharyngeal muscle activation culminating in simultaneous activation of all recorded elevating and descending laryngeal, hyoid, and pharyngeal muscles. Retrograde activation of esophagus and pharyngeal muscles occurred during the later phases, and laryngeal adductor was maximally activated in all phases of the vomit. During swallowing, the laryngeal adductor activation was followed immediately by brief activation of the laryngeal abductor. We concluded that retching functions to mix gastric contents with refluxed intestinal secretions and to impart an orad momentum to the bolus before vomiting. During retches, the airway is protected by glottal closure, and between retches, it is protected by ascent of the larynx and closure of the upper esophageal sphincter. The airway is protected by maximum glottal closure during vomiting. During swallowing, the airway is protected by laryngeal elevation and glottal closure followed by brief opening of the glottis, which may release subglottal pressure expelling material from the laryngeal vestibule.     

Relative contribution of neurotransmission failure to diaphragm fatigue

Two procedures were used to estimate the relative contribution of neurotransmission failure (NF) to fatigue of the rat diaphragm at different rates of phrenic nerve stimulation. In one, direct muscle stimulation was intermittently superimposed on neural stimulation of the diaphragm, and the relative contribution of NF was estimated by the difference in generated tension. In a second procedure, diaphragm fatigue was induced by using either direct muscle stimulation (with complete blockade of the neuromuscular junction by d-tubocurare) or phrenic nerve stimulation. The relative contribution of NF to diaphragm fatigue was then estimated by comparing the force loss during these two modes of stimulation. With both procedures, it was observed that 1) the relative contribution of NF to diaphragm fatigue was less than 45% at each frequency of phrenic nerve stimulation; 2) the relative contribution of NF to diaphragm fatigue increased at higher rates of phrenic stimulation, reaching a maximum at 75 pulses/s; and 3) the relative contribution of NF to diaphragm fatigue reached a plateau after 2 min of repetitive stimulation.     

Relative contribution of gravity to pulmonary perfusion heterogeneity.

We designed a series of experiments and analyses to quantify the contribution of gravity to pulmonary perfusion heterogeneity. Regional pulmonary perfusion was measured in five anesthetized and ventilated dogs in both supine and prone positions by use of radiolabeled microspheres injected during apnea at functional residual capacity. Measurements of flow were repeated in each position, and the sequence of positions was prospectively designed to nullify any effect of order. The lungs of each animal were excised, perfused with saline until clear, dried at an inflation pressure of 25 cmH2O, and cut into 1.9-cm3 pieces. Each piece was weighed and the radioactivity determined in a scintillation counter. Measurement errors were minimized by excluding lung pieces that had greater than 25% airway and weighed less than 10 mg or greater than 60 mg. Weight-normalized flows in each position and repetition were determined for each lung piece. An analysis of variance model was used to identify the percentage of variation in regional flow that was due to position (supine vs. prone), to random error and time (measurement and repetition), and to structure, where structure was defined as the component of flow that remained constant across position and replication. The contributions of position, error/time, and structure to the total variability of flow across the five dogs were 7.8 +/- 0.6, 8.4 +/- 8.3, and 83.8 +/- 8.4%, (SD), respectively. Because the contribution of position represents the additive effect of gravity between two opposite positions, the contribution of gravity to perfusion heterogeneity in one position may be as little as 4%.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Relative contribution of lipid sources to eggs of lesser scaup

Studies of how birds mobilize nutrients to eggs have traditionally considered a continuum of possible allocation strategies ranging from income breeding (rely on food sources found on the breeding grounds) to capital breeding (rely on body reserves stored prior to the breeding season). For capital breeding, stored body reserves can be acquired either on or away from the breeding grounds, but it has been difficult to quantify the relative contribution of each, precluding identification of key habitats for acquiring nutrients for clutch formation. During 2006–2009, we explored the importance of spring‐staging habitats versus breeding‐area habitats for egg‐lipid formation in female lesser scaup Aythya affinis using stable carbon (δ¹³C) isotope analyses. Although δ¹³C values for abdominal lipid reserves brought to the breeding grounds overlapped those of local amphipods, we were able to quantify the importance of local plant carbohydrates (seeds of emergent wetland plants) to the production of eggs. We compared the importance of local wetland seeds (overall δ¹³C: ?29.1 ± 0.9‰ SD) to combined lipid stores and lipids from local amphipods (overall δ¹³C: ?23.8 ± 2.2‰). Local seeds and stored body lipids contributed equally to egg lipid formation across years but we found evidence of annual variation in their relative importance. Wetland seeds contributed 39% (SE = 10%) to egg lipid production, and the importance of this source varied by year (90% CI = 47–75% in 2006, 13–42% in 2007, 29–65% in 2008, and 7–30% in 2009). In contrast to earlier studies that suggest lesser scaup predominantly employ a capital breeding strategy, our results suggest that in some years females may attain half of their energy for clutch formation from foods on the breeding grounds.     

Diverse mechanisms to remember various odors

Two dorsal paired medial (DPM) neurons express the Amnesiac neuropeptide and project onto mushroom bodies, the Drosophila olfactory memory center. In this issue of Neuron, Keene et al. show that higher-level brain circuits process various olfactory memories differently. DPM neurons are required during acquisition of some odors and during memory consolidation of others. These findings reveal a surprising level of complexity for the formation of olfactory memories in Drosophila.     

Relative contribution of abundant and rare species to species-energy relationships

A major goal of ecology is to understand spatial variation in species richness. The latter is markedly influenced by energy availability and appears to be influenced more by common species than rare ones; species-energy relationships should thus be stronger for common species. Species-energy relationships may arise because high-energy areas support more individuals, and these larger populations may buffer species from extinction. As extinction risk is a negative decelerating function of population size, this more-individuals hypothesis (MIH) predicts that rare species should respond more strongly to energy. We investigate these opposing predictions using British breeding bird data and find that, contrary to the MIH, common species contribute more to species-energy relationships than rare ones.     

Relative contribution of delaying senescence to growth compensation after defoliation

Delaying senescence as a response to tissue losses has been reported in some studies, but there is no information about its influence in growth compensation. We performed a first test of the relative contribution of delaying senescence after defoliation to growth compensation in Dactylis glomerata L. by means of an iterative growth analysis modified to estimate tissue losses to senescent leaves. We show that Dactylis glomerata overcompensated for relative growth rate after defoliation, mainly by slowing down senescence, and to a lesser extent by increasing the newly assimilated mass allocated to leaves.     

葛根素对糖尿病致肺损伤的保护作用及其机制的研究

目的:探讨糖尿病对肺脏损伤及葛根素对肺组织影响的可能机制。方法:腹腔注射链脲佐菌素(STZ)建立大鼠糖尿病(DM)模型,SD大鼠随机分为对照组(C组)、糖尿病组(DM组)、糖尿病 葛根素组(DM Pur组)。检测注药前及模型成立后第20d、40d、60d的血糖及体重的改变。检测肺组织中一氧化氮(NO)和丙二醛(MDA)的含量、超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性。结合光镜、电镜、免疫组织化学染色方法综合评价。结果:①DM组NO、MDA高于C组(P<0.01),SOD活性低于C组(P<0.01),DM Pur组NO含量明显低于DM组(P<0.01),MDA含量40d开始显著降低(P<0.01),SOD活性高于DM组(P<0.01)。②光镜下见肺泡隔增厚,炎性细胞浸润;电镜下见Ⅱ型肺泡上皮细胞微绒毛数量明显减少,嗜锇性板层小体数量明显减少,细胞间质胶原纤维增生,葛根素可减轻肺组织上述病理性改变。③免疫组织化学染色结果:DM组细胞胞质中可见ONOO-特征性代表物硝基酪氨酸(ni-trotyrosine,NT)黄染阳性信号表达,且较对照组略为增强,DM Pur组黄染信号较DM组略为减弱。结论:①DM时可发生肺组织损伤,可能与长期高血糖诱导产生大量自由基有关。②NO/ONOO-通路是DM造成肺组织细胞损伤的机制之一。③初步证实葛根素能在一定程度上抑制高血糖诱导肺组织中自由基的过量生成,降低肺组织中的ONOO-的过度表达,这可能是其抗DM时肺组织损伤的作用机制之一。     

Selected contribution: plasticity of airway smooth muscle stiffness and extensibility: role of length-adaptive mechanisms.

Airway smooth muscle exhibits the property of length adaptation, which enables it to optimize its contractility to the mechanical conditions under which it is activated. Length adaptation has been proposed to result from a dynamic modulation of contractile and cytoskeletal filament organization, in which the cell structure adapts to changes in cell shape at different muscle lengths. Changes in filament organization would be predicted to alter muscle stiffness and extensibility. We analyzed the effects of tracheal muscle length at the time of contractile activation on the stiffness and extensibility of the muscle during subsequent stretch over a constant range of muscle lengths. Muscle strips were significantly stiffer and less extensible after contractile activation at a short length than after activation at a long length, consistent with the prediction of a shorter, thicker array of the cytoskeletal filaments at a short muscle length. Stretch beyond the length of contractile activation resulted in a persistent reduction in stiffness, suggesting a stretch-induced structural rearrangement. Our results support a model in which the filament organization of airway smooth muscle cells is plastic and can be acutely remodeled to adapt to the changes in the external physical environment.     

Analysis of the anti-Schistosoma mansoni surface antibody response during murine infection and its potential contribution to protective immunity

Absorption of serum from chronically infected mice with homogenized schistosome eggs reduced antibody binding to the schistosomulum surface by 94%, indicating that almost all schistosomulum surface recognition during chronic infection is due to epitopes shared with the egg. Absorption of the serum with egg homogenate from which protein antigens had been removed by boiling and digestion with proteinase K resulted in a similar reduction of antisurface antibody demonstrating that all the shared epitopes that are recognized are carbohydrate in nature. Analysis of the time course of anticarbohydrate antibody production and the levels of antibody in mice infected with a single sex of schistosome indicated that eggs directly stimulated this response. Mouse mAb were identified that bound at very high levels to the schistosomulum surface and that recognized carbohydrate epitopes shared with the egg. Three of these had previously been demonstrated to passively transfer resistance, indicating that these surface carbohydrates are potential targets of protective immunity in the mouse. All the anticarbohydrate mAb also bound to the surface of schistosomula of other schistosome species. Thus, the strong immune response against these epitopes in chronic infection could account for the cross-specific immunity observed. Mice vaccinated with irradiated cercariae lacked high levels of anticarbohydrate antibodies and their recognition of the surface was largely due to antibody to species-specific polypeptide epitopes. With respect to the Mr greater than 200,000 and 38,000 antigens, it was demonstrated that these epitopes were present on the same antigens that bear the carbohydrate moieties recognized by antibodies from chronically infected mice. This specific polypeptide recognition is also reflected in the immunity generated by exposure to irradiated cercariae.     

Relative contribution of surface and edge to ion absorption by leaf discs

Summary Phosphorus (H₃P³²O₄) absorption was studied in detached bean leaves and leaf discs and later computed per unit surface area and per unit edge length vis-a-vis discs of 4–18 mm diameters. Not only absorption through edge predominantly contributed to total disc absorption it was also directly proportional to disc diameter. Part of the work carried out during senior author's (BKG) tenure as IAEA expert at Bogota.     

Relative contribution of bacterial and photosynthetic production to metazooplankton as carbon sources

Percentages of label transfer (PLT) from bacteria and autotrophsto metazooplankton during 4 h were determined in parallel usingdissolved organic and inorganic¹³C tracers, respectively, inin situ batch incubations, to estimate the relative contributionof each production to the metazooplankton food requirement.The batch incubation for each pathway was done eight times,respectively, during 20 days in a mesocosm where continuousspecies succession of organisms was observed. The PLT in thetwo pathways, dependent on metazooplankton abundance and speciescomposition rather than changes in the activities of producers(bacteria or autotrophs), showed a similar tendency of changeand were of a similar magnitude: mean 1.0% (0.09–2.7%)in the photosynthetic pathway and 0.5% (0.22–1.5%) inthe bacterial pathway. This finding suggests that metazooplanktonare supported by entire microbial food webs including both thebacterial and photosynthetic pathways.     

Relative contribution of bronchial flow to subpleural region in dog lung.

The bronchial flow is approximately 1% of the total pulmonary flow. Anastomosis between the bronchial and pulmonary vessels occurs primarily at the microcirculatory level. It is assumed that bronchopulmonary anastomoses are present in a homogeneous manner throughout lung parenchyma. To investigate this issue, an in situ blood-perfused left lower lung lobe (500 ml/min) was prepared in a live dog. The bronchial flow rate in the entire lobe was monitored using the rate of volume gain in the reservoir while the pulmonary and bronchial flow in the subpleural region was monitored using laser-Doppler flowmetry. The results were expressed as ratio of bronchial to pulmonary flow rate for the entire lobe and for the subpleural region. We found that, for the entire lobe, bronchial flow was 1.0% of pulmonary flow, while for the subpleural region this ratio was much higher, with an average of 12%. In two different experimental conditions that were imposed to affect the global bronchial flow, these ratios changed in the same direction as the global bronchial flow. After transfusion of blood into the animal, bronchial flow increased to 1.7%, while the subpleural bronchial flow increased to 18% of the subpleural pulmonary flow. During elevation of venous pressure, bronchial flow decreased to 0.6%, while the subpleural bronchial flow decreased to 10% of the subpleural pulmonary flow. The differences in the ratios between the global and subpleural region may be explained by having low pulmonary blood flow in the periphery compared with the interior regions of the lung.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)