Oxidative stress in rats induced by consumption of saxitoxin contaminated drink water

Saxitoxins (STXs) are neurotoxins produced by cyanobacteria such as Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii. During bloom events, the production of these compounds causes contamination on public water supply sources. STXs block voltage gated sodium channels and can lead to severe poisoning and death of organisms at different trophic levels. Other toxicity mechanism of STX is the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of consumption of water contaminated with a C. raciborskii strain (producing variants of Neo-STX and STX) by rats during 30 days through the analysis of oxidative stress biochemical parameters. Total antioxidant capacity (ACAP) and oxidative stress parameters were analyzed at pre-frontal cortex, hippocampus and liver of adult Wistar rats (2–3 months old). Treated animals ingested concentrations of 3 and 9 μg/L of STX equivalents and were compared with a control group (culture medium ASM-1). At the concentration of 3 μg/L, a decrease in ROS production associated with lower ACAP at hippocampus was observed. Furthermore, a decrease of glutamate cysteine ligase (GCL) activity in the cortex and an increase of brain and liver glutathione concentration were also observed. At the highest concentration (9 μg/L), there was an ACAP increase in the hippocampus as well as in the activity GCL and glutathione-S-transferase in the cortex and hippocampus. At both concentrations, lipid peroxidation was registered in the liver. Therefore, chronic ingestion of STXs can alter the antioxidant defenses and induce oxidative stress in brain and liver. The present results point to the values adopted as threshold limit for STXs in potable waters (3 μg/L) shows already significant chronic effects that alter antioxidant defenses and induce oxidative stress at least in two of the organs studied.     

Oscillatory pattern in oxygen consumption of Hummingbirds

Mammals and birds offer the most conspicuous example of homeothermic endothermy, a metabolic feature that implies maintenance of a constant body temperature along broad ranges of ambient temperature. The concept of homeothermic endothermy has been developed in close association with the terms thermoneutral zone and basal metabolic rate. These two metabolic parameters, however, are not easily estimated in micro-endotherms, a difficulty that might emerge from intrinsic aspects of endothermy in minute animals. To address this issue, we used empirical work derived from theoretical considerations. Our theoretical analysis is based on a model of body temperature control by shifts in metabolic rate, and assumes that micro-endotherms lose heat very quickly due to body size, and exhibit a remarkable capacity to rapidly increase metabolic output. We found that these two metabolic traits can lead to non-equilibrium metabolic rate and body temperature. We then measured metabolic rate and body temperature during euthermia in two species of hummingbirds, and analyzed data using the χ² periodogram statistic and a power spectral analysis. We found long-range correlation in both oxygen consumption and body temperature during euthermia, a finding that suggests non-random 1/f oscillations. A similar pattern was not found in the rat, a much larger endotherm. Hummingbirds, then, do not appear to maintain steady-state metabolic conditions during euthermia. If, as we suggest, this pattern applies to micro-endotherms in general, the traditional concepts of thermoneutral zone and basal rate of metabolism might not apply to these animals.     

Green vegetable drink consumption protects peripheral lymphocytes DNA damage in Korean smokers

Smoking increases indices of free radical-mediated damage of DNA which are potential underlying processes in the pathogenesis of many diseases. In this study, we evaluated whether 8 weeks of green vegetable drink (Angelica keiskei based juice) supplementation to smokers can be protective against lymphocytic DNA damage. Twenty smokers were given 240 ml of commercially available green vegetable drink every day for 8 weeks. The DNA damage was determined using single cell gel electrophoresis (COMET assay) and the damage was quantified by measuring tail length (TL), tail moment (TM), and percent DNA in tail. Eight weeks of green vegetable drink consumption resulted in a significant in lymphocytes DNA damage in all three measurements; TL, TM and % DNA in tail. These results support the hypothesis that green vegetable drink exerts a cancer-protective effect via a decrease in oxidative damage to DNA in humans.     

Temporal pattern of eating in night shift workers

ABSTRACT

Understanding shift workers dietary intake patterns may inform interventions targeted at lowering chronic disease risk. This study examined the temporal distribution of food intake as shift workers rotate between night shifts, day shift and/or days off to identify differences in energy intake, eating frequency, and adherence to dietary guidelines by shift type (night shift vs. day). Night shift (NS) workers completed a four-day food diary that included a minimum of two night shifts and one-day shift (DS)/day off (DO), recording all food, beverages and time of consumption. Comparisons were between shift types, using ANOVA for continuous data and generalized estimating equations for count data, data reported as mean (SE). When comparing NS and DSDO, there were no differences in energy intake (24 h) (8853 (702) vs. 9041 (605) kJ, n = 22) or adherence to dietary guidelines. There was no difference between the number of eating occasions on NS and DSDO (5.6(0.3) vs 5.1(0.6) occasions) but less energy per eating occasion at night (1661(125) vs 1933(159) kJ). When working NS compared with DSDO there was higher total sugar (%E, 19.1(2.0) vs 15.0(2.4)) and lower saturated fat (%E, 13.8(1.2) vs 15.7(1.3)). Further, DSDO were characterized by a pattern of three main meals and a prolonged fasting period. It is important to determine if reducing eating occasions and providing opportunities for fasting improves metabolic health.     

枣园节肢动物群落的时间动态

将枣园节肢动物群落视为一个整体,根据群落内物种的组成和数量,采用不同群落参数和群落分析法对太谷地区枣园节肢动物群落的时间格局进行了比较。结果表明,影响枣园节肢动物群落时间格局的主导因子及时间格局分化较为明显。可将枣园节肢动物群落在时序上分为发展期、过渡期、鼎盛期和衰减期4个阶段,并结合气候、物候变化,讨论了各阶段群落的发生特点和主要害虫的治理对策。     

Temporal pattern of locomotor activity in Drosophila melanogaster

The temporal pattern of locomotor activity of single Drosophila melanogaster flies freely walking in small tubes is described. Locomotor activity monitored by a light gate has a characteristic time-course that depends upon age and the environmental conditions. Several methods are applied to assess the complexity of the temporal pattern. The pattern varies according to sex, genotype, age and environmental conditions (food; light). Activity occurs clustered in bouts. The intrinsic bout structure is quantified by four parameters: number of light gate passages (counts) per bout, duration of a bout, pause between two successive bouts and mean bout period. In addition, the distribution of the periods between light-gate crossings (inter-count intervals) as function of inter-count interval duration reveals a power law, suggesting that the overall distribution of episodes of activity and inactivity has a fractal structure. In the dark without food, the fractal dimension which represents a measure of the complexity of the pattern is sex, genotype and age specific. Fractality is abolished by additional sensory stimulation (food; light). We propose that time-course, bout structure and fractal dimension of the temporal pattern of locomotor activity describe different aspects of the fly's central pattern generator for locomotion and its motivational control. Accepted: 10 October 1998     

槟榔林冠穿透雨空间格局的时间稳定性

槟榔林是热带地区广泛种植典型经济林,独特的树冠结构改变了穿透雨的空间格局,但针对穿透雨空间格局的时间稳定性研究很少,影响对穿透雨生态效应的认识与调控。以海南岛槟榔林为研究对象,基于33场降雨数据,研究了穿透雨的空间格局及时间特性,结果显示:(1)槟榔树冠内不同位置穿透雨差异极显著(P<0.01),穿透雨率分别为:树干附近(85.6%)、冠幅中央(48.3%)、冠幅边缘(59.8%),穿透雨空间格局表现为向树干附近汇集的特点;不同方位的穿透雨率仅东面显著高于南面(P<0.1),表明风向对穿透雨空间格局具有一定影响。(2)槟榔树冠下各位点穿透雨时间变异程度大(65.7%),但槟榔树冠幅中央穿透雨时间稳定性较好(55.6%),而树干旁边和冠幅边缘穿透雨时间稳定性较差(25%、19.4%),各方位穿透雨的时间稳定性相差不大(约1/3)。(3)距树干距离和降雨量影响穿透雨的时间稳定性,距树干不同距离平均叶片倾斜角度的差异是造成穿透雨在时间上不稳定的关键因素,平均叶片倾斜角度与穿透雨时间不稳定程度呈现显著正相关关系(P<0.05);穿透雨时间稳定性在中等降雨条件下最差,随着降雨量...     

Temporal pattern discrimination of impulse sequences in the computer-simulated nerve cells

This paper deals with some properties of temporal pattern discrimination performed by single digital-computer simulated synaptic cells. To clarify these properties, the Shannon's entropy method which is a basic notion in the information theory and a fundamental approach for the design of pattern classification system was applied to input-output relations of the digital computer simulated synaptic cells. We used the average mutual information per symbol as a measure for the temporal pattern sensitivity of the nerve cells, and the average response entropy per symbol as a measure for the frequency transfer characteristics. To use these measures, the probability of a post-synaptic spike as a function of the recent history of pre-synaptic intervals was examined in detail. As the results of such application, it was found that the EPSP size is closely related to the pattern of impulse sequences of the input, and the average mutual information per symbol for EPSP size is given by a bimodal curve with two maximum values. One is a small EPSP size and the other is a large EPSP size. In two maximum points, the structure of the temporal pattern discrimination reverses each other. In addition, the relation between the mean frequency, or the form of impulse sequences of the input, and the average mutual information per symbol has been examined. The EPSP size at one maximum point of average mutual information is in inverse proportion to the magnitude of input mean frequency which relates to the convergence number of input terminal, while that at the other maximum point is proportional to that of the mean frequency. Moreover, the temporal pattern discrimination is affected remarkably by whether successive interspike intervals of the input are independent or not in the statistical sense. Computer experiments were performed by the semi-Markov processes with three typical types of transition matrixes and these shuffling processes. The average mutual informations in the cases of these semi-Markov processes are in contrast to those of the shuffling processes which provide a control case. The temporal structure of successive interspike intervals of the input is thus a significant factor in pattern discrimination at synaptic level.     

Temporal mortality pattern of pedunculate oaks in southern Sweden

Decline of the oak forests decline in southern Sweden has been reported for more than two decades. Little empirical data exists, however, to study the temporal pattern of the phenomenon in detail. In this study we quantified the temporal pattern of non-windfall oak mortality by analyzing the dataset of 44 dendrochronologically dated dead pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) trees. We compared tree-ring chronologies from recently dead and living trees from the same sites (number of sites=13) located in the nemoral and boreo-nemoral zones in southern Sweden. For each dead tree, tree-ring chronologies were analyzed for the presence of pre-death growth depressions. A growth depression was defined as a period (of one or more years) when growth remained below the 5%, 7%, or 10% quantiles of the ring-width distribution obtained from living trees for a particular year and site.

The most recent peak in oak mortality occurred around the year 2000. Growth depressions were recorded in 80% (n=35) of all dead oaks and were most prominent during the 1990s. While some oaks showed an obvious reduction in growth over several decades, 51% of the dead trees had growth depression for at least 4 years prior to death. Although diameter growth rate differed between living and recently dead trees for at least 30 years, this difference started to amplify in late 1980s–early 1990s. Presence of pre-death growth depression in tree-ring chronologies implies that (a) non-windfall mortality of oak is a decade-long process and (b) the actual death events might be lagging behind the timing of the mortality-inducing factors. ANOVA revealed significant differences in tree responses to the drought year 1992. The cumulative growth increment ratio between 1992–1994 and 1989–1991, was higher in living trees than in those that had recently died. We suggest that the spring and summer drought of 1992 resulted in the mortality of oaks that was observed in southern Sweden at the end of the 20th century. If this time lag exists, it may complicate analyses of decline-related factors and the choice of appropriate actions by forest managers. We conclude that studies of oak decline may benefit from widening the time perspective to include several decades preceding the sampling year.