Role of exercise intensity on GLUT4 content,aerobic fitness and fasting plasma glucose in type 2 diabetic mice

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) results in several metabolic and cardiovascular dysfunctions, clinically characterized by hyperglycaemia due to lower glucose uptake and oxidation. Physical exercise is an effective intervention for glycaemic control. However, the effects of exercising at different intensities have not yet been addressed. The present study analysed the effects of 8 weeks of training performed at different exercise intensities on type 4 glucose transporters (GLUT4) content and glycaemic control of T2D (ob/ob) and non‐diabetic mice (ob/OB). The animals were divided into six groups, with four groups being subjected either to low‐intensity (ob/obL and ob/OBL: 3% body weight, three times/week/40 min) or high‐intensity (ob/obH and ob/OBH: 6% body weight, three times per week per 20 min) swimming training. An incremental swimming test was performed to measure aerobic fitness. After the training intervention period, glycaemia and the content of GLUT4 were quantified. Although both training intensities were beneficial, the high‐intensity regimen induced a more significant improvement in GLUT4 levels and glycaemic profile compared with sedentary controls (p < 0·05). Only animals in the high‐intensity exercise group improved aerobic fitness. Thus, our study shows that high‐intensity training was more effective for increasing GLUT4 content and glycaemia reduction in insulin‐resistant mice, perhaps because of a higher metabolic demand imposed by this form of exercise. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Play it again: the use of video records in behavioural studies with small cetaceans

Some difficulties arise in studying the behaviour of marine mammals at their natural habitat mainly because they spend most of their time underwater and have complex behaviours. Therefore, many protocols and sample methods are available to better assess the behavioural ecology of this animals. Here, we compared two behavioural recording methods. The first one was the direct visual observation. The second one was recording using a digital video recorder. We hypothesise that the possibility of watching recorded videos repeatedly leads to a higher quantification of behaviours compared with the direct observation method. We found a slight variation in the frequency of behaviours according to the method used. Furthermore, we found that the video recordings should not be used as a replacement for the direct observation method. Finally, we highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of both methods. We recommend that in behavioural research, the use of video recording should be careful; it is preferable that an experienced researcher uses the direct observation method, while it is best for a person with low know–how to the use the video recording method.     

Number and thickness of myelinic fibres of the phrenic nerve of young and aged rats]

The phrenic nerve of albino rats was studied for age changes in number of fibres, myelin sheath thickness and axon calibre. There is no significant morphological differences between nerves from young and aged rats and no difference with age was found in the number of fibres, myelin sheath thickness and axon calibre.     

Detection of Wuchereria bancrofti DNA in paired serum and urine samples using polymerase chain reaction-based systems

The Global Program for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) aims to eliminate this disease by the year 2020. However, the development of more specific and sensitive tests is important for the success of the GPELF. The present study aimed to standardise polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based systems for the diagnosis of filariasis in serum and urine. Twenty paired biological urine and serum samples from individuals already known to be positive for Wuchereria bancrofti were collected during the day. Conventional PCR and semi-nested PCR assays were optimised. The detection limit of the technique for purified W. bancrofti DNA extracted from adult worms was 10 fg for the internal systems (WbF/Wb2) and 0.1 fg by using semi-nested PCR. The specificity of the primers was confirmed experimentally by amplification of 1 ng of purified genomic DNA from other species of parasites. Evaluation of the paired urine and serum samples by the semi-nested PCR technique indicated only two of the 20 tested individuals were positive, whereas the simple internal PCR system (WbF/Wb2), which has highly promising performance, revealed that all the patients were positive using both samples. This study successfully demonstrated the possibility of using the PCR technique on urine for the diagnosis of W. bancrofti infection.     

GABAergic circuits of the basolateral amygdala and generation of anxiety after traumatic brain injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has reached epidemic proportions around the world and is a major public health concern in the United States. Approximately 2.8 million individuals sustain a traumatic brain injury and are treated in an Emergency Department yearly in the U.S., and about 50,000 of them die. Persistent symptoms develop in 10–15% of the cases including neuropsychiatric disorders. Anxiety is the second most common neuropsychiatric disorder that develops in those with persistent neuropsychiatric symptoms after TBI. Abnormalities or atrophy in the temporal lobe has been shown in the overwhelming number of TBI cases. The basolateral amygdala (BLA), a temporal lobe structure that consolidates, stores and generates fear and anxiety-based behavioral outputs, is a critical brain region in the anxiety circuitry. In this review, we sought to capture studies that characterized the relationship between human post-traumatic anxiety and structural/functional alterations in the amygdala. We compared the human findings with results obtained with a reproducible mild TBI animal model that demonstrated a direct relationship between the alterations in the BLA and an anxiety-like phenotype. From this analysis, both preliminary insights, and gaps in knowledge, have emerged which may open new directions for the development of rational and more efficacious treatments.

     

Pericarp ontogenesis in wild species of Arachis L. (Leguminosae; Papilionoideae)

The genus Arachis encompasses 80 validly described species and the most striking characteristics is the geocarpic fruit, which occurs in every species of the genus. Taking into consideration that much of the current knowledge about this subject is based on the anatomy and morphology of A. hypogaea, a cultivated species with fruits that were modified during domestication, the objective of this study was to learn more about the development of the geocarpic fruits of wild species of Arachis (A. paraguariensis, A. pintoi, A. stenosperma, and A. tuberosa), and to provide characters that can be used in future phylogenetic works about this group. Buds, flowers and fruits at different stages of development were collected and processed according to standard methods used for light field, interferential contrast, and scanning electron microscopy. Although the geocarpic fruits of the wild species share many adaptations, this study identified potentially diagnostic infrageneric characters, such as the type of trichomes on the pericarp, the presence of sclerenchyma caps in the bundles of the pericarp of the seed chamber of the fruit and isthmus, the presence of tracheoid cells in the pith of the isthmus, the location of crystalliferous cells, the presence of tannins in the cells of mesocarp outer layers, and the presence of projections in the sclerenchyma tissue. In addition, this article brings some inferences about functional characteristics of this peculiar geocarpic fruit.     

Stability of crude ligninases: Effect of different hydrogen peroxide concentrations in the presence of aromatic alcohols

Summary In absence of veratryl alcohol (VA),Phanerochaete chrysosporium ligninases were extensively inactivated by H₂O₂ concentrations as low as 5.0 μM (1 hr exposure time, pH 4.5, 38°C). In the presence of 2.5 mM VA (but not 2.5 mM benzyl alcohol), protection occurred below 500 μM H₂O₂.     

Genome-wide detection of copy number variants in European autochthonous and commercial pig breeds by whole-genome sequencing of DNA pools identified breed-characterising copy number states

In this study, we identified copy number variants (CNVs) in 19 European autochthonous pig breeds and in two commercial breeds (Italian Large White and Italian Duroc) that represent important genetic resources for this species. The genome of 725 pigs was sequenced using a breed-specific DNA pooling approach (30–35 animals per pool) obtaining an average depth per pool of 42×. This approach maximised CNV discovery as well as the related copy number states characterising, on average, the analysed breeds. By mining more than 17.5 billion reads, we identified a total of 9592 CNVs (~683 CNVs per breed) and 3710 CNV regions (CNVRs; 1.15% of the reference pig genome), with an average of 77 CNVRs per breed that were considered as private. A few CNVRs were analysed in more detail, together with other information derived from sequencing data. For example, the CNVR encompassing the KIT gene was associated with coat colour phenotypes in the analysed breeds, confirming the role of the multiple copies in determining breed-specific coat colours. The CNVR covering the MSRB3 gene was associated with ear size in most breeds. The CNVRs affecting the ELOVL6 and ZNF622 genes were private features observed in the Lithuanian Indigenous Wattle and in the Turopolje pig breeds respectively. Overall, the genome variability unravelled here can explain part of the genetic diversity among breeds and might contribute to explain their origin, history and adaptation to a variety of production systems.     

Fossil peccaries of Late Pleistocene/Holocene (Cetartiodactyla,Tayassuidae) from underwater caves of Serra da Bodoquena (Mato Grosso do Sul State,Brazil)

New records of Catagonus stenocephalus and Tayassu pecari are reported from the karst of Serra da Bodoquena, located at a south-western portion of Brazil near the border with Paraguay. Skull and lower jaw fragments at different stages of mineralisation were retrieved from two limestone underwater caves, Japonês and Nascente do Formoso, associated with clay and sand deposits with no retrievable stratigraphy. C14 dating of fossil mammals from these caves was attempted, but so far no success was achieved, but the inferred age for the associated paleofauna of these caves is Late Pleistocene and Holocene. The morphology of these fossil peccaries, from the most south-western known population in Brazil, is detailed and paleoecological implications are considered.