One step antibiotic disk method for obtaining axenic cultures of multicellular marine algae

A simple and rapid method for obtaining axenic plant material has been devised where antibiotic-containing paper disks are applied to nutrient agarose or agar plates upon which small pieces of plant have been spread. By applying multiple disks to the agarose plate, susceptibility to a large number of antibiotics can be tested simultaneously. Clear zones are produced around those disks where contaminating bacteria are susceptible. Plant pieces are then removed from the clear zones and separately tested for sterility to identify the axenic pieces. The method has been successfully applied to multicellular marine algae (e.g.Enteromorpha, Porphyra, laminaria, Gracilaria andAgardhiella). Pieces fromAgardhiella plants survive better on nutrient medium solidified with agarose when -naphthaleneacetic acid and zeatin are present in the medium.     

A feline large granular lymphoma and its derived cell line

Summary A lymphoma cell line (MCC) was derived from an abdominal mass from a 13-yr-old castrated male cat. The cells resemble natural killer precursor cells, have membrane-bound granules, and are positive for chloroacetate esterase, α-naphthyl butyrate esterase, and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase activities. The MCC cells are negative for rearranged feline T-cell receptor genes, negative for feline T-cytotoxic antigen, Ia, and surface μ, τ, and lambda chains and do not form E-rosettes. The MCC cell line is negative for the feline leukemia virus (FeLV); e.g., negative for exogenous FeLV (exU3) sequences, negative for cytoplasmic and surface FeLV major core protein of 27 000 daltons (p27) by indirect, immunofluorescence assay, negative for helper FeLV by clone 81 assay, and negative for release of soluble FeLV p27 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Electron microscopy reveals budding type C retrovirus particles and MCC cells react with anti-RD-114 (anti-endogenous feline retrovirus) reference serum. After in vitro infection, MCC replicate FeLV readily, but replication is noncytopathic. This project has been funded, at least in part, with funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human services under grants AI 25722, DK41939, and CA 35742 and contract AI-62525.     

A Changing Society and the New Trends in Education

Profound differences exist between the ways in which arts educators and artists personally value the arts and the rationales offered via arts advocacy campaigns for public arts support. The author argues that those discrepancies carry grave consequences for K-university arts education. The author describes means by which to better reconcile valuing the arts for their intrinsic qualities with intense political pressure to justify arts education in terms of its alleged ability to improve students' math and reading skills and to address concerns of social justice and economic development. This article was adapted from a keynote speech given by the author on 13 October 2006 for the 62nd annual meeting of The National Association of Schools of Art and Design.