The Drosophila simulans Y chromosome interacts with the autosomes to influence male fitness

The Y chromosome should degenerate because it cannot recombine. However, male‐limited transmission increases selection efficiency for male‐benefit alleles on the Y, and therefore, Y chromosomes should contribute significantly to variation in male fitness. This means that although the Drosophila Y chromosome is small and gene‐poor, Y‐linked genes are vital for male fertility in Drosophila melanogaster and the Y chromosome has large male fitness effects. It is unclear whether the same pattern is seen in the closely related Drosophila simulans. We backcrossed Y chromosomes from three geographic locations into five genetic backgrounds and found strong Y and genetic background effects on male fertility. There was a significant Y‐background interaction, indicating substantial epistasis between the Y and autosomal genes affecting male fertility. This supports accumulating evidence that interactions between the Y chromosome and the autosomes are key determinants of male fitness.     

Blastomycosis in wild wolves

Blastomycosis was fatal to a wild wolf in Minnesota, and serologic evidence of blastomycosis was found in a Wisconsin wolf. No unusual movements were detected in the Minnesota animal from October 1983 through October 1985. However, by early December 1985, this wolf was weak and debilitated, and it perished on 14 December after approaching a human residence.     

Media alternatives for the collection, culture and freezing of mouse and cattle embryos

The replacement of biological products in media for the collection, culture and freezing of mammalian embryos was studied. To test the hypothesis that chemically defined surfactants can replace bovine serum albumin (BSA) or serum in embryo media, morula-stage mouse and cattle embryos were collected, cultured, and/or frozen in the surfactant compound, VF5. Collection efficiency of mouse and cattle embryos did not differ whether the medium contained serum or surfactant. In addition, morula-stage mouse and cattle embryos developed and hatched at similar rates in culture media containing either BSA or surfactant. Although the freeze/thaw survival and development in culture of bovine embryos was not significantly different in any of the media, there was a significantly lower hatching rate of mouse embryos frozen with serum or surfactant than with cryoprotectant alone or with cryoprotectant plus albumin-free serum. However, the absence of serum or surfactant in embryo freezing media resulted in embryo loss, presumably due to stickiness. The data suggest that serum can be replaced by a chemically defined surfactant in mouse and cattle embryo transfer systems for the collection, culturing and freezing of embryos. It is likely that the beneficial effects of serum are due to its surfactant properties.     

Identification and clonal characterisation of a progenitor cell sub-population in normal human articular cartilage

Background

Articular cartilage displays a poor repair capacity. The aim of cell-based therapies for cartilage defects is to repair damaged joint surfaces with a functional replacement tissue. Currently, chondrocytes removed from a healthy region of the cartilage are used but they are unable to retain their phenotype in expanded culture. The resulting repair tissue is fibrocartilaginous rather than hyaline, potentially compromising long-term repair. Mesenchymal stem cells, particularly bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC), are of interest for cartilage repair due to their inherent replicative potential. However, chondrocyte differentiated BMSCs display an endochondral phenotype, that is, can terminally differentiate and form a calcified matrix, leading to failure in long-term defect repair. Here, we investigate the isolation and characterisation of a human cartilage progenitor population that is resident within permanent adult articular cartilage.

Methods and Findings

Human articular cartilage samples were digested and clonal populations isolated using a differential adhesion assay to fibronectin. Clonal cell lines were expanded in growth media to high population doublings and karyotype analysis performed. We present data to show that this cell population demonstrates a restricted differential potential during chondrogenic induction in a 3D pellet culture system. Furthermore, evidence of high telomerase activity and maintenance of telomere length, characteristic of a mesenchymal stem cell population, were observed in this clonal cell population. Lastly, as proof of principle, we carried out a pilot repair study in a goat in vivo model demonstrating the ability of goat cartilage progenitors to form a cartilage-like repair tissue in a chondral defect.

Conclusions

In conclusion, we propose that we have identified and characterised a novel cartilage progenitor population resident in human articular cartilage which will greatly benefit future cell-based cartilage repair therapies due to its ability to maintain chondrogenicity upon extensive expansion unlike full-depth chondrocytes that lose this ability at only seven population doublings.     

Gastrointestinal parasites of the chimpanzee population introduced onto Rubondo Island National Park,Tanzania

The release of any species into a novel environment can evoke transmission of parasites that do not normally parasitize the host as well as potentially introducing new parasites into the environment. Species introductions potentially incur such risks, yet little is currently known about the parasite fauna of introduced primate species over the long term. We describe the results of long‐term monitoring of the intestinal parasite fauna of an unprovisioned, reproducing population of chimpanzees introduced 40 years earlier (1966–1969) onto Rubondo Island in Lake Victoria, Tanzania, a non‐native habitat for chimpanzees. Two parasitological surveys (March 1997–October 1998 and October 2002–December 2005) identified Entamoeba spp. including E. coli, Iodamoeba buetschlii, Troglodytella abrassarti, Chilomastix mesnili, Trichuris sp., Anatrichosoma sp., Strongyloides spp., Strongylida fam. gen. sp., Enterobius anthropopitheci, Subulura sp., Ascarididae gen. sp., and Protospirura muricola. The parasite fauna of the Rubondo chimpanzees is similar to wild chimpanzees living in their natural habitats, but Rubondo chimpanzees have a lower prevalence of strongylids (9%, 3.8%) and a higher prevalence of E. anthropopitheci (8.6%, 17.9%) than reported elsewhere. Species prevalence was similar between our two surveys, with the exception of Strongyloides spp. being higher in the first survey. None of these species are considered to pose a serious health risk to chimpanzees, but continued monitoring of the population and surveys of the parasitic fauna of the two coinhabitant primate species and other animals, natural reservoir hosts of some of the same parasites, is important to better understand the dynamics of host–parasite ecology and potential long‐term implications for chimpanzees introduced into a new habitat. Am. J. Primatol. 72:307–316, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Stabilization of a HemA-LacZ hybrid protein against proteolysis during carbon starvation in atp mutants of Salmonella typhimurium.

Transposon insertions that stabilize the beta-galactosidase activity of a HemA-LacZ hybrid protein following carbon starvation were mapped to the atp operon of Salmonella typhimurium. This effect is similar to that seen with nuo mutants defective in the energy-conserving type I NADH dehydrogenase. Insertions in several other genes, including such highly pleiotropic mutants as rpoS, polA, and hfq, were isolated with the same phenotypic screen, but they do not affect the beta-galactosidase activity of HemA-LacZ. All of these mutants act indirectly to alter the colony color of many different fusion strains on indicator plates.     

Nanoporous Hybrid Electrolytes for High‐Energy Batteries Based on Reactive Metal Anodes

Successful strategies for stabilizing electrodeposition of reactive metals, including lithium, sodium, and aluminum are a requirement for safe, high‐energy electrochemical storage technologies that utilize these metals as anodes. Unstable deposition produces high‐surface area dendritic structures at the anode/electrolyte interface, which causes premature cell failure by complex physical and chemical processes that have presented formidable barriers to progress. Here, it is reported that hybrid electrolytes created by infusing conventional liquid electrolytes into nanoporous membranes provide exceptional ability to stabilize Li. Electrochemical cells based on γ‐Al₂O₃ ceramics with pore diameters below a cut‐off value above 200 nm exhibit long‐term stability even at a current density of 3 mA cm^?2. The effect is not limited to ceramics; similar large enhancements in stability are observed for polypropylene membranes with less monodisperse pores below 450 nm. These findings are critically assessed using theories for ion rectification and electrodeposition reactions in porous solids and show that the source of stable electrodeposition in nanoporous electrolytes is fundamental.     

Presence and functionality of mating type genes in the supposedly asexual filamentous fungus Aspergillus oryzae

The potential for sexual reproduction in Aspergillus oryzae was assessed by investigating the presence and functionality of MAT genes. Previous genome studies had identified a MAT1-1 gene in the reference strain RIB40. We now report the existence of a complementary MAT1-2 gene and the sequencing of an idiomorphic region from A. oryzae strain AO6. This allowed the development of a PCR diagnostic assay, which detected isolates of the MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 genotypes among 180 strains assayed, including industrial tane-koji isolates. Strains used for sake and miso production showed a near-1:1 ratio of the MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 mating types, whereas strains used for soy sauce production showed a significant bias toward the MAT1-2 mating type. MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 isogenic strains were then created by genetic manipulation of the resident idiomorph, and gene expression was compared by DNA microarray and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) methodologies under conditions in which MAT genes were expressed. Thirty-three genes were found to be upregulated more than 10-fold in either the MAT1-1 host strain or the MAT1-2 gene replacement strain relative to each other, showing that both the MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 genes functionally regulate gene expression in A. oryzae in a mating type-dependent manner, the first such report for a supposedly asexual fungus. MAT1-1 expression specifically upregulated an α-pheromone precursor gene, but the functions of most of the genes affected were unknown. The results are consistent with a heterothallic breeding system in A. oryzae, and prospects for the discovery of a sexual cycle are discussed.