FcgammaR expression on macrophages is related to severity and chronicity of synovial inflammation and cartilage destruction during experimental immune-complex-mediated arthritis (ICA)

We investigated the role of Fcγ receptors (FcγRs) on synovial macrophages in immune-complex-mediated arthritis (ICA). ICA elicited in knee joints of C57BL/6 mice caused a short-lasting, florid inflammation and reversible loss of proteoglycans (PGs), moderate chondrocyte death, and minor erosion of the cartilage. In contrast, when ICA was induced in knee joints of Fc receptor (FcR) γ-chain^-/- C57BL/6 mice, which lack functional FcγRI and RIII, inflammation and cartilage destruction were prevented. When ICA was elicited in DBA/1 mice, a very severe, chronic inflammation was observed, and significantly more chondrocyte death and cartilage erosion than in arthritic C57BL/6 mice. The synovial lining and peritoneal macrophages of na?ve DBA/1 mice expressed a significantly higher level of FcγRs than was seen in C57BL/6 mice. Moreover, elevated and prolonged expression of IL-1 was found after stimulation of these cells with immune complexes. Zymosan or streptococcal cell walls caused comparable inflammation and only mild cartilage destruction in all strains. We conclude that FcγR expression on synovial macrophages may be related to the severity of synovial inflammation and cartilage destruction during ICA.     

Phragmites australis at an extreme altitude: Rhizome architecture and its modelling

In central EuropePhragmites australis is a lowland plant, occurring rarely up to the tree line. In the Velká Kotlina cirque (Jeseníky mountains, NE Czech Republic), where it reaches its maximum altitude at about 1350 m a.s.l., its culms are 0.5–0.7 m high and the plants flower only in some years. During the last decade no germinable seeds have been observed. The architecture ofPhragmites rhizomes from this site was studied on seven randomly selected clonal fragments. They consisted of 3 to 10 partial tussocks (clumps) and 4 to 17 green shoots. The total length of the rhizomes was 9.7 to 50 m per plant. The number of nodes per plant was 96 to 431 and the longest internodes were 83 mm long. The number of side branches was 31 to 105 per plant. The branching angle depended on the type of branched rhizome. The mean angles of horizontal rhizomes, which connect individual tussocks, were relatively wide (modus 45°, arithmetic mean 37°), whereas within a tussock much sharper angles of branching prevailed (modal value 5°, arithmetic mean 15°). The mean internode-to-internode angle on continuing rhizomes was about 8°, with a wide variation. An architectural, spatially-explicit model ofPhragmites rhizome growth has been developed, showing that thePhragmites population in the studied locality can be maintained by vegetative multiplication, and seedling recruitment is not needed for its long-term persistence.     

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids from Anchusa strigosa and their antifeedant activity

The pyrrolizidine alkaloid (PA) content of flowers, leaves, and roots of Anchusa strigosa (Boraginaceae) was analysed by ESI-LC-MS. Six PAs, including two new natural compounds, were detected, characterized by NMR spectroscopy, and quantified in each plant organ. The results indicated that the highest total concentration of PAs was in the leaves (23.63 mg/g of dried part), followed by the flowers (19.77 mg/g), and finally by the roots (1.80 mg/g). All PAs isolated were subjected to Spodoptera exigua and Pieris brassicae larvae. Feeding activity by both herbivore species using a bioassay was inhibited up to circa 75% depending on PA and applied concentration.     

Production of tumor necrosis factor alpha by Treponema pallidum, Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., and Leptospira interrogans in isolated rat Kupffer cells

Stimulation of isolated rat Kupffer cells by viable Leptospira interrogans, Treponema pallidum and Borrelia garinii elicited cellular responses resulting in the release of different tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) levels, depending on the spirochetes. L. interrogans induced TNF-alpha levels higher than those achieved with B. garinii and T. pallidum (in this order), but lower than the levels achieved with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In contrast to L. interrogans, pretreatment of borreliae and treponemes with polymyxin B did not substantially diminish the ability of B. garinii and T. pallidum to stimulate Kupffer cells. Purified T. pallidum lipoproteins TpN47, TmpA, TpN15-TpN17, and B. garinii OspA induced TNF-alpha responses comparable to that achieved by LPS. This response was almost insensitive to the action of polymyxin B.     

Occasional sex in an 'asexual' polyploid hermaphrodite

Asexual populations are usually considered evolutionary dead-ends because they lack the mechanisms to generate and maintain sufficient genetic diversity. Yet, some asexual forms are remarkably widespread and genetically diverse. This raises the question whether asexual systems are always truly clonal or whether they have cryptic forms of sexuality that enhance their viability. In the planarian flatworm Schmidtea polychroa parthenogens are functional hermaphrodites (as are their sexual conspecifics), copulate and exchange sperm. Sperm is required for initiation of embryogenesis but usually does not contribute genetically to the offspring (sperm-dependent parthenogenesis). Using karyology and genotyping of parents and offspring, we show that in a purely parthenogenetic population an estimated 12% of all offspring are the result of partial genetic exchange. Several processes of chromosome addition and loss are involved. Some of these result in an alternation between a common triploid and a rare tetraploid state. We conclude that genetic recombination does not necessarily require segregation and fusion within the same generation, as is the case in most sexual species. These occasional sexual processes help to explain the geographical dominance of parthenogens in our study species.     

Effect of daily concentrate intake at weaning on performance of Belgian Blue double-muscled rearing calves

Weaning at a different daily concentrate intake was investigated during a 140-d experimental period, using 54 male and 68 female newborn Belgian Blue double-muscled animals. They were divided into three comparable groups and received milk at 10% of their birth weight up to weaning. Concentrate was levelled off at a maximum daily intake of 3 kg, while grass hay was freely available. Weaning occurred at a daily concentrate intake level (CL) of 0.5, 0.75 and 1.0 kg, respectively. Weaning at an increased CL prolonged the milk-feeding period by 13.1 and 14.6 days, and resulted in a higher pre- and post-weaning growth rate (p < 0.05). Daily gain during the entire experimental period averaged 0.84, 0.85 and 0.88 kg for the respective groups (p = 0.065). Daily concentrate intake was not different among groups, with only a small effect of CL on intake around weaning. Early weaning resulted in a significant reduction of hay intake (p = 0.032). Total daily net energy intake increased slightly with a higher CL at weaning, so that energy conversion was slightly improved, amounting to 17.7, 17.6 and 17.4 MJ/kg gain, respectively. Energy balance during the first week after weaning was negative for CL 0.5 kg (-22%), while it was close to 0 for CL 0.75 kg (-2%) or positive for CL 1.0 kg. Most effects of CL at weaning were similar for males and females, but male calves tended to have a higher intake and a faster growth rate than females. It can be concluded that weaning should be delayed until Belgian Blue double-muscled calves consume at least 0.75 kg per day or more for reasons of welfare, although performance was hardly improved by weaning at a daily concentrate intake of more than 0.5 kg per day.     

Control mechanisms regulating gene expression during normal differentiation of myeloid leukemic cells: Differentiation defective mutants blocked in mRNA production and mRNA translation

Regulation of gene expression during myeloid cell differentiation has been analyzed using clones of myeloid leukemic cells that differ in their competence to be induced to differentiate by the normal macrophage- and granulocyte-inducing protein MGI. Changes in the relative rate of synthesis for specific proteins were compared to changes in the relative amounts of corresponding translatable poly(A)⁺ mRNAs, assayed in the reticulocyte cell-free translation system, using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Of the 217 proteins which changed during MGI-induced differentiation of normally differentiating MGI⁺D⁺ leukemic cells, 136 could be identified as products of cell-free translation. Eighty-four percent of the 70 decreases in synthesis, most of which occurred early during differentiation, were not accompanied by a parallel decrease in the amount of translatable mRNA, but were accompanied by a parallel shift of the corresponding mRNAs from the polysomal to the monosomal and free mRNA fractions. These results indicate that most of the early decreases in the synthesis of proteins were translationally regulated. In contrast, 81% of the proteins which increased in synthesis and 71% of the proteins that were induced de novo were regulated at the level of mRNA production. Experiments with differentiation defective mutants have shown that they were blocked both at the level of mRNA production and mRNA translation. The data with these mutants have suggested that there were different subsets of translationally regulated proteins which were separately regulated. The translational blocks for several proteins in these mutant clones have also made it possible to identify additional translational sites of regulation for protein changes that were controlled at the level of mRNA production during normal differentiation. The results indicate that translational regulation may predominantly have a different function in cell differentiation than regulation by mRNA production, and that differentiation-defective mutants can be blocked at either level.     

Soil Organic Phosphorus Transformations During Pedogenesis

Abstract Long-term changes in soil phosphorus influence ecosystem development and lead to a decline in the productivity of forests in undisturbed landscapes. Much of the soil phosphorus occurs in a series of organic compounds that differ in their availability to organisms, but changes in the relative abundance of these compounds during pedogenesis remain unknown. We used alkaline extraction and solution phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to assess the chemical nature of soil organic phosphorus along a 120,000-year post-glacial chronosequence at Franz Josef, New Zealand. Inositol phosphates, DNA, phospholipids, and phosphonates accumulated rapidly during the first 500 years of soil development characterized by nitrogen limitation of biological productivity, but then declined slowly to low concentrations in older soils characterized by intense phosphorus limitation. However, the relative contribution of the various compounds to the total organic phosphorus varied along the sequence in dramatic and surprising ways. The proportion of inositol hexakisphosphate, conventionally considered to be relatively recalcitrant in the environment, declined markedly in older soils, apparently due to a corresponding decline in amorphous metal oxides, which weather to crystalline forms during pedogenesis. In contrast, the proportion of DNA, considered relatively bioavailable in soil, increased continually throughout the sequence, due apparently to incorporation within organic structures that provide protection from biological attack. The changes in soil organic phosphorus coincided with marked shifts in plant and microbial communities, suggesting that differences in the forms and bioavailability of soil organic phosphorus have ecological significance. Overall, the results strengthen our understanding of phosphorus transformations during pedogenesis and provide important insight into factors regulating the composition of soil organic phosphorus.     

Assessment of mass transfer and mixing in rigid lab‐scale disposable bioreactors at low power input levels

Mass transfer, mixing times and power consumption were measured in rigid disposable stirred tank bioreactors and compared to those of a traditional glass bioreactor. The volumetric mass transfer coefficient and mixing times are usually determined at high agitation speeds in combination with sparged aeration as used for single cell suspension and most bacterial cultures. In contrast, here low agitation speeds combined with headspace aeration were applied. These settings are generally used for cultivation of mammalian cells growing adherent to microcarriers. The rigid disposable vessels showed similar engineering characteristics compared to a traditional glass bioreactor. On the basis of the presented results appropriate settings for adherent cell culture, normally operated at a maximum power input level of 5 W m^?3, can be selected. Depending on the disposable bioreactor used, a stirrer speed ranging from 38 to 147 rpm will result in such a power input of 5 W m^?3. This power input will mix the fluid to a degree of 95% in 22 ± 1 s and produce a volumetric mass transfer coefficient of 0.46 ± 0.07 h^?1. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 30:1269–1276, 2014