Nest Building as an Indicator of Health and Welfare in Laboratory Mice

The minimization and alleviation of suffering has moral and scientific implications. In order to mitigate this negative experience one must be able to identify when an animal is actually in distress. Pain, illness, or distress cannot be managed if unrecognized. Evaluation of pain or illness typically involves the measurement of physiologic and behavioral indicators which are either invasive or not suitable for large scale assessment. The observation of nesting behavior shows promise as the basis of a species appropriate cage-side assessment tool for recognizing distress in mice. Here we demonstrate the utility of nest building behavior in laboratory mice as an ethologically relevant indicator of welfare. The methods presented can be successfully used to identify thermal stressors, aggressive cages, sickness, and pain. Observation of nest building behavior in mouse colonies provides a refinement to health and well-being assessment on a day to day basis.     

眼科常用实验动物视网膜血管的比较

目的比较眼科常用实验动物视网膜血管尤其是视网膜毛细血管的情况,为实验时正确选择动物模型提供基础。方法取猕猴、家猪、新西兰大白兔、犬、猫、SD大鼠、C57小鼠以及豚鼠的正常眼球数个,完整剥离整个视网膜,用ADPase法进行血管染色,对视网膜血管进行形态学的比较。结果猕猴视网膜大血管从视盘穿出,分成四支分别供应视网膜四个象限,每条血管逐级分支最后成为毛细血管,其毛细血管呈网状分布,在赤道处分成两层,至周边变成一层,且有发育良好的黄斑区毛细血管拱环结构。家猪视网膜大血管由视盘发出后放射状走行,毛细血管也呈网状分布,无黄斑拱环结构。兔仅视盘两侧部分视网膜可见血管,毛细血管网状不明显。犬的视网膜血管也放射状走行,但迂曲明显,毛细血管不成网状。猫、大鼠、小鼠的视网膜大血管均由视盘发出,猫的分成上、鼻下、颞下三支,大鼠、小鼠的各方向均有,区域性不明显,三者的毛细血管网均发育良好,至周边部仍很密集,呈两层分布。豚鼠视网膜无可见的血管。结论用于研究人视网膜血管尤其是毛细血管时,可选用猕猴、家猪、猫、大鼠和小鼠作为动物模型;但要研究人黄斑区血管时,仅可选用猕猴等灵长类动物。     

侵染辣椒的烟草蚀纹病毒的鉴定

1990年在杨陵从表现花叶畸形的辣椒上分离到H90－2分离物。汁液磨擦接种6科17种植物,病毒可侵染2科8种植物,在白肋烟、三生烟上出现坏死蚀纹,在辣椒、心叶烟、曼陀罗上出现花叶畸形,在苋色藜上出现局部枯斑。该分离物的致死温度为50－55℃,稀释限点10^-3-3×10^-3,体外保毒期3－5天,桃蚜可传毒。病毒粒体为线状,稍弯曲,长720－750nm,宽13nm,与烟草蚀纹病毒的抗血清有明显的阳性反应。根据这些特性,经初步鉴定该病毒属于马铃薯Y病毒组的烟草蚀纹病毒（TEV）。     

A Bead-Based Multiplex Assay for the Detection of DNA Viruses Infecting Laboratory Rodents

The Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Association (FELASA) recommends screening of laboratory rodents and biological materials for a broad variety of bacterial agents, viruses, and parasites. Methods commonly used to date for pathogen detection are neither cost-effective nor time- and animal-efficient or uniform. However, an infection even if silent alters experimental results through changing the animals’ physiology and increases inter-individual variability. As a consequence higher numbers of animals and experiments are needed for valid and significant results. We developed a novel high-throughput multiplex assay, called rodent DNA virus finder (rDVF) for the simultaneous identification of 24 DNA viruses infecting mice and rats. We detected all 24 DNA viruses with high specificity and reproducibility. Detection limits for the different DNA viruses varied between 10 and 1000 copies per PCR. The validation of rDVF was done with DNA isolated from homogenised organs amplified by pathogen specific primers in one multiplex PCR. The biotinylated amplicons were detected via hybridisation to specific oligonucleotide probes coupled to spectrally distinct sets of fluorescent Luminex beads. In conclusion, rDVF may have the potential to replace conventional testing and may simplify and improve routine detection of DNA viruses infecting rodents.     

侵染扁豆的三叶草黄脉病毒的鉴定

1987年从泰安表现系统花叶的扁豆上分离到一个分离物B_2,汁液摩擦接种9科38种植物,它可侵染5科10种植物,在扁豆和昆诺藜上引起系统花叶,在苋色藜上引起局部枯斑。该分离物钝化温度为60—65℃,稀释限点为10~(-3)—10~(-4),体外存活期为3—5天。可由桃蚜传播;病毒粒体线条状,大小为700—760×12nm病叶细胞内有风轮状内含体,该分离物与三叶草黄脉病毒的抗血清有明显的-阳性反应。根据这些特性,该病毒属于马铃薯丫病毒组的三叶草黄脉病毒。     

Identification and Characterization of Tobamoviruses Strains Infecting L-resistant Genotypes of Peppers in France

Characterization of tobamovirus isolates collected from pepper crops in South East France has revealed the existance of several strains belonging to different viruses of the group. The biological and serological properties of three isolates (Vi76, Adam and Eve), selected as representative strains, have been studied. They have been compared with TMV and ToMV strains already isolated in our region as well as with other reference strains of ToMV-D and TMV-U1. They were also compared with other tobamovirus strains P11, P8 and P14, from the Netherlands, and PMMV-W from Italy also isolated from pepper genotypes possessing the “L” gene for resistance to TMV and ToMV strains. According to biological and serological reactions, Vi76 is more related to ToMV than to TMV but it is not related to Adam and Eve which are more closely related to PMMV. On the basis of the interaction with the “L” gene for resistance in pepper genotypes we have found that the Adam and P8 strains belong to the P1-2 pathotype and the Eve and P14 strains to the P1-2-3 pathotype and all the 4 strains belong to the PMMV-W group. In France, there have been no reports of the isolation of the P11 strain which is distantly related to the Adam strain.     

小鼠呼肠孤病毒Ⅲ型标准化血清制备及ELISA检测方法的建立

目的制备标准化小鼠呼肠孤病毒III型（reovirus 3,Reo-3）免疫血清,建立小鼠Reo-3抗体ELISA检测方法。方法使用动物来源的Reo-3病毒感染BALB/c小鼠,获得高效价免疫血清;以BHK-21细胞制备Reo-3病毒抗原,同时制备做正常对照抗原。滴定抗原和标准化小鼠Reo-3血清的最佳工作浓度,进行特异性、敏感性、重复性、稳定性等实验。结果制备18 mL抗Reo-3血清,经检测,IFA效价达1∶640,IEA效价达1∶160;Reo-3抗原和标准化小鼠Reo-3免疫血清最佳工作浓度分别为5μg/mL和1∶2400;该ELISA检测体系Reo-3特异抗原批内变异系数为3.8%,批间变异系数为4.0%;检测灵敏度〉1∶4400;与仙台病毒（SV）、小鼠肝炎病毒（MHV）、小鼠腺病毒（Mad）、小鼠脑脊髓炎病毒（TMEV）、小鼠多瘤病毒（POLY）均无交叉反应。经37℃破坏性试验,2 d稳定性试验相对偏差〈27%。结论本研究制备的Reo-3抗血清达到同批次大量高滴度的水平,可作为检测实验小鼠Reo-3病原的标准化质控血清。本研究建立的ELISA方法重复性、稳定性好,特异性、敏感性强。该体系可用于大、小鼠等实验动物Reo-3抗体的检测。     

Territorial Dominance of Male Laboratory Mice

Social interaction and spatial distribution among male mice (Mus musculus) were observed. The enclosure was divided into three compartments, left, right and center. Each side compartment contained two males for 3 d and then the doors that led to the center compartment were opened for 7 d. The dominant male was removed 3 d after the opening day. The results indicate that the dominant male monopolized its own territory including the compartment where it had dwelt before opening the doors. The other subordinates huddled together in the opposite compartment. The dominant male patrolled more frequendy than subordinates and sometimes attacked subordinates. One of the subordinates rapidly became dominant after the removal of the dominant male. The secondary dominant male monopolized the familiar area and attacked subordinates, as the dominant male had done.     

广东地区两种兰花病毒病害的分子鉴定及检测

根据已报道的建兰花叶病毒(CyMV)和齿兰环斑病毒(ORSV)基因组核苷酸序列,在其cp基因上下游设计PCR引物.CyMV预计扩增产物784bp,ORSV预计扩增产物604bp.以采集自广东省顺德的墨兰和文心兰表现病毒病症状的病株叶组织总RNA为模板,进行RT-PCR扩增.对预期大小的5个扩增产物进行克隆和测序,结果表明,来源于不同兰种或同一兰种不同兰场的病样CyMV引物扩增产物核苷酸序列存在少量差异,但均与世界各地的CyMV分离物cp基因高度同源;而来源于不同兰种的病样ORSV引物扩增产物核苷酸序列完全相同,与世界各地的ORSV分离物cp基因高度同源.因此可将侵染广东兰花的两种病毒鉴定为CyMV和ORSV.混合上述两种病毒的 PCR引物,采用双重RT-PCR扩增,对采自广东顺德23个兰场共153份样品进行病毒检测,76份(49.7%)检出CyMV,52份(34.0%)检出ORSV,2份(1.3%)同时检出CyMV和ORSV.     

Specialization and medical mycology in the US, Britain and Japan

This paper attempts to bring new insights to a long-standing historical debate over medical specialization by analyzing the formation of medical mycology, a somewhat marginal biomedical discipline that emerged in the mid-twentieth century around studies of fungal disease in humans. The study of fungi predates that of bacteria and viruses, but from the 1880s it became eclipsed by bacteriology. However, in the postwar period, there were moves to establish medical mycology as an independent speciality. I trace the processes that led to the launch of professional societies in the United States, Britain and Japan, three major players in medical mycology, and more broadly in biomedicine. The analysis of the three different national contexts illustrates how geographical, medico-technological, epidemiological, political and social conditions gave the specialty a distinctive character in each country; this was further complicated by the different and changing medical fields in which fungal diseases were studied and treated. The three case studies show medical specialization as a process that is not simply cumulative but responds to specific historical events and developments.     

Identification and Characterization of a Badnavirus Infecting Betel Vine and Indian Long Pepper

Badnavirus infecting betel vine (Piper betle L) and Indian long pepper (P. longum L) were detected with primers designed from the open reading frame (ORF III) region of the virus using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The amplicons obtained from these infected hosts were cloned and sequenced. The sequenced region of ORF III contained 597 nucleotides in both the isolates. Sequence analysis with recognized badnaviruses revealed that Badnavirus infecting P. betle and P. longum had highest sequence identity (>89.1% at nucleotide level and >93.4% at amino acid level) with an Indian isolate of Piper yellow mottle virus (PYMoV) infecting black pepper. Based on the sequence identity and phylogenetic relationship studies, it was concluded that Badnavirus infecting P. betle and P. longum in India is a strain of PYMoV. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the identification and characterization of PYMoV infecting P. betle in India and PYMoV infecting P. longum in India and elsewhere.