Cloning of cDNA for Vitellogenin of the Parasitoid Wasp, Pimpla nipponica (Hymenoptera: Apocrita: Ichneumonidae): Vitellogenin Primary Structure and Evolutionary Considerations

The cDNA for vitellogenin (Vg) of the parasitoid wasp Pimpla nipponica (Hymenoptera: Apocrita) was cloned and sequenced.¹ The deduced amino acid sequence with 1807 residues was obtained. The N-terminal 20 amino acids chemically determined for vitellin (Vn) agreed completely with the deduced 20 amino acids that follow the 16 amino acid residues for putative signal peptide. The cDNA clone for the Vg of the turnip sawfly Athalia rosae (Hymenoptera: Symphyta), previously obtained and partially sequenced, was also completely sequenced and the amino acid sequence deduced. Amino acid sequences were compared between these two species and also with known Vg sequences from other insects. Common to all these insects is the presence of two long regions with relatively well-conserved amino acid sequences, one near the N-terminal extending 267–282 residues (including two cysteines at conserved locations), and the other starting at position 450 to 655 and extending 279–283 residues, and of a region at the C-terminal extending some 200 residues (about 250 in Aedes aegypti due to the presence of a serine-rich stretch) with 10 cysteines at conserved locations. A molecular phylogenetic tree was constructed.     

Ferrous Iron and Sulfur Oxidation and Ferric Iron Reduction Activities of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans Are Affected by Growth on Ferrous Iron, Sulfur, or a Sulfide Ore

Eight strains of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans (laboratory strains Tf-1 [= ATCC 13661] and Tf-2 [= ATCC 19859] and mine isolates SM-1, SM-2, SM-3, SM-4, SM-5, and SM-8) and three strains of Thiobacillus thiooxidans (laboratory strain Tt [= ATCC 8085] and mine isolates SM-6 and SM-7) were grown on ferrous iron (Fe²⁺), elemental sulfur (S⁰), or sulfide ore (Fe, Cu, and Zn). The cells were studied for their aerobic Fe²⁺ - and S⁰-oxidizing activities (O₂ consumption) and anaerobic S⁰-oxidizing activity with ferric iron (Fe³⁺) (Fe²⁺ formation). Fe²⁺-grown T. ferrooxidans cells oxidized S⁰ aerobically at a rate of 2 to 4% of the Fe²⁺ oxidation rate. The rate of anaerobic S⁰ oxidation with Fe³⁺ was equal to the aerobic oxidation rate in SM-1, SM-3, SM-4, and SM-5, but was only one-half or less that in Tf-1, Tf-2, SM-2, and SM-8. Transition from growth on Fe²⁺ to that on S⁰ produced cells with relatively undiminished Fe²⁺ oxidation activities and increased S⁰ oxidation (both aerobic and anaerobic) activities in Tf-2, SM-4, and SM-5, whereas it produced cells with dramatically reduced Fe²⁺ oxidation and anaerobic S⁰ oxidation activities in Tf-1, SM-1, SM-2, SM-3, and SM-8. Growth on ore 1 of metal-leaching Fe²⁺-grown strains and on ore 2 of all Fe²⁺-grown strains resulted in very high yields of cells with high Fe²⁺ and S⁰ oxidation (both aerobic and anaerobic) activities with similar ratios of various activities. Sulfur-grown Tf-2, SM-1, SM-4, SM-6, SM-7, and SM-8 cultures leached metals from ore 3, and Tf-2 and SM-4 cells recovered showed activity ratios similar to those of other ore-grown cells. It is concluded that all the T. ferrooxidans strains studied have the ability to produce cells with Fe²⁺ and S⁰ oxidation and Fe³⁺ reduction activities, but their levels are influenced by growth substrates and strain differences.     

Schistosoma mansoni: Cercarial degradation of a radioactively labeled collagen gel

The apparent penetration activity of Schistosoma mansoni cercariae was quantified by means of an in vitro assay with a radioactively labeled Type I collagen gel. Both live cercariae and cercarial preacetabular gland secretions degraded the collagen. The addition of skin lipid or linoleic acid to the gel surface enhanced the degradation by live cercariae.     

Leucocytosis in Biomphalaria glabrata sensitized and resensitized to Echinostoma lindoense

Leucocytosis was shown to occur in the pulmonate gastropod Biomphalaria glabrata exposed to the trematode Echinostoma lindoense. In these sensitized snails, the leukocyte count in the hemolymph was elevated 3 to 5 days postexposure to miracidia, and prior to complete encapsulation of sporocysts. This increase continued 1 to 5 days after destruction of sensitizing, irradiated E. lindoense sporocysts. Counts returned to normal levels after this period. A significant and more rapid increase in numbers of circulating leukocytes occurred 1 to 6 hr after reexposure of snails to a sensitizing dose of nonirradiated E. lindoense sporocysts. The leukocyte counts usually returned to normal levels after this period, except in snails in which some resensitizing sporocysts remained alive.     

Allyl Isothiocyanate Ameliorates Angiogenesis and Inflammation in Dextran Sulfate Sodium-Induced Acute Colitis

Allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) is a phytochemical found in cruciferous vegetables that has known chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic activities. Thus far, the antiangiogenic activity of AITC has not been reported in in vivo studies. Herein, we investigated the effect of AITC on angiogenesis and inflammation in a mouse model of colitis. Experimental colitis was induced in mice by administering 3% dextran sulfate sodium via drinking water. To monitor the activity of AITC in this model, we measured body weight, disease activity indices, histopathological scores, microvascular density, myeloperoxidase activity, F4/80 staining, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A/VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2) expression in the mice. We found that AITC-treated mice showed less weight loss, fewer clinical signs of colitis, and longer colons than vehicle-treated mice. AITC treatment also significantly lessened the disruption of colonic architecture that is normally associated with colitis and repressed the microvascularization response. Further, AITC treatment reduced both leukocyte recruitment and macrophage infiltration into the inflamed colon, and the mechanism these activities involved repressing iNOS and COX-2 expression. Finally, AITC attenuated the expression of VEGF-A and VEGFR2. Thus, AITC may have potential application in treating conditions marked by inflammatory-driven angiogenesis and mucosal inflammation.