Criteria for the crystallization of polysaccharides

The relationship between crystallization and the annealing process is well established in the synthetic polymer field. This relationship appears to have been somewhat neglected in studies on biopolymers. Results are presented to show the effect of both humidity and temperature in promoting structural changes in polysaccharide system. Three different polysaccharides have been used as examples of how crystallization may be speeded up by annealing at elevated temperatures.     

Effect of food attractants on appetite and growth rate of gilthead bream, Sparus aurata L.

Appetite and growth rate were measured in Sparus aurata fed ad-libitum a basal diet supplemented with either a synthetic mixture of chemicals based upon the analysis of Mylilus edulis , muscle extract, or newly hatched Artemia saline nauplii. These components were tested for their feeding attraction potency, and were added to the basal diet at three concentrations each; 5, 10 and 20 g kg^-1 dry diet.
Appetite, which was defined as ad-libitum food intake, was significantly affected by the type and concentration of attractant. When the basal diet was supplemented with 10 or 20 g kg^-1 of the synthetic Mytilus edulis muscle extract, it was associated with significantly higher appetite than the basal diet only or the basal diet supplemented with any level of newly hatched Artemia salina nauplii. On the other hand, relative growth rate under the same conditions did not completely conform to the results with appetite. The difference between appetite and growth rate as criteria for the evaluation of food attractants is discussed.     

Vascular alterations upon activation of TGFβ signaling in fibroblasts - implications for systemic sclerosis

Tissue fibrosis and vascular disease are hallmarks of systemic sclerosis (SSc). Transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) is a key-player in fibroblast activation and tissue fibrosis in SSc. In contrast to fibrosis, evidence for a role of TGFβ in vascular disease of SSc is scarce. Using a transgenic mouse model with fibroblast-specific expression of a kinase-deficient TGFβ receptor type II, Derrett-Smith and colleagues demonstrate that aberrant TGFβ signaling in fibroblasts might result in activation of vascular smooth muscle cells and architectural changes of the vessel wall of the aorta.     

Bat diversity in Vietnamese limestone karst areas and the implications of forest degradation

Limestone karst ecosystems in Southeast Asia and Vietnam are important reservoirs for biodiversity and are currently experiencing habitat loss and degradation due to land use changes and increasing pressure from extractive and tourism industries. Recent reviews indicate that their biodiversity is poorly known and raise doubts about the extent to which karst can maintain its biodiversity in the face of ongoing degradation. We investigated this issue by examining the effects of forest degradation on bat species diversity, composition and abundance. Using mist nets and harp traps, we sampled bat assemblages in karst forests of differing integrity for a total of 240 net nights and 180 harp trap nights, capturing 694 bats representing 36 species and five families. Our results confirm that primary forests in Vietnamese karst are exceptionally important for bat diversity, supporting substantial proportions of the national fauna. Disturbed and heavily degraded karst forests also appear capable of supporting relatively high numbers of bat species at low abundances, but their ability to do so in the longer term is in doubt and requires further research. Our findings of bats in relict forests on karst hillsides and ridgetops provide justification for their protection and raise the possibility that these may provide corridors for the movement of forest-dwelling bats within anthropogenic landscapes. Since the majority of Vietnamese karst landscapes remain unprotected however, the future of their biodiversity remains uncertain.     

Distribution of Nerve Elements Showing FMRFamide-like Immunoreactivity in Hydromedusae

Immunofluorescence tests with antisera to various peptides reveal the presence of a FMRFamide-like peptide in neurons of hydromedusae belonging to three orders. An avian pancreatic polypeptide-like peptide may also be present in certain neurons. Distribution of FMRFamide-like immunoreactivity (Fa-IR) has been studied in Proboscidactyla (O. Limnomedusae), Phialidium and Aequorea (O. Leptomedusae) and Aglantha (O. Trachymedusae). These findings are compared with results obtained with Polyorchis (O. Anthomedusae) by Grimmelikhuijzen and Spencer [J. comp. Neurol. 230 , 361 (1984)]. All species show Fa-IR neurons in the tentacles linked by interconnecting neurites running in the outer marginal nerve ring. A Fa-IR plexus is present in the manubrium and, except in Aglantha, this system merges with a plexus associated with the subumbrellar radial muscles. As in Polyorchis, the swimming motor neurons are unstained. In contrast to this species, only a small percentage of the neurites composing the nerve rings are stained. The giant axons of Aglantha show no Fa-IR. The cnidothylaces of Proboscidactyla contain neurons reacting with antisera to FMRFamide and APP. Present evidence suggests that in hydromedusae Fa-IR is confined to distinct subsets of neurons. These appear to be either sensory units or units supplying smooth muscles, but they are not involved in the innervation of striated muscles.     

Peptide and amino acid transport in Streptococcus bovis

Summary In amino acid transport studies with Streptococcus bovis using ¹⁴C-labelled amino acids, it has been shown that between 87% and 95% of cell-associated radioactivity was located in the cytosol. In similar studies with unlabelled peptides, most test peptide associated with S. bovis was truly intracellular. Using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the proteolytic activity in S. bovis was found to be largely cell-associated and of the serine-protease type, but stimulated by dithiothreitol. A wide range of extracellular peptide hydrolysing activities was demonstrated against the pentapeptide Leu-Trp-Met-Arg-Phe, which was completely hydrolysed to eight products after 10 min incubation. Some of this pentapeptide was transported intact, indicating the existence of mechanisms for the transport of peptides up to 751 Da. In studies with Arg-Phe-Ala, only Phe (F) and Ala (A), and to a much lesser extent Phe-Ala (FA) were transported after extracellular hydrolysis to FA, Arg (R), F and A. In this case, amino acid transport was much more predominant than peptide transport. The extent and nature of peptide transport was affected by the addition of protease inhibitors. Offprint requests to: R. I. Mackie     

Central vasopressin in the modulation of catecholamine release in conscious rats

Neurons containing arginine vasopressin (AVP) have been shown to project from the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus to the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) in the medulla. We investigated whether AVP acts in brain stem regions to influence sympathoadrenal outflow. Cannulae were implanted into the fourth ventricle of rats 7 days prior to the experiment. The effects of intracerebroventricular (icv) injections of AVP, the vehicle, and AVP antagonist, d(CH2)5Tyr(Me)AVP, on mean arterial pressure (MAP) and plasma noradrenaline (NA) and adrenaline (A) levels were determined in conscious unrestrained rats. Injections of AVP (icv, 23 and 73 ng/kg) but not the vehicle increased MAP and plasma NA and A levels. In contrast, iv injection of AVP increased MAP but decreased plasma concentrations of A and NA. The pressor response to icv injection of AVP was abolished by prior icv injection of AVP antagonist. Injection of AVP antagonist (icv, 0.5 and 1.5 microgram/kg) had no effect on MAP or plasma NA or A levels. These results show that centrally injected AVP activates sympathoadrenal outflow, possibly via an inhibition of baroreceptor reflexes. Since centrally administered AVP antagonist did not influence MAP or plasma NA or A levels, it appears that endogenously released AVP does not have a tonic influence on central cardiovascular reflex system in conscious, unrestrained rats.     

Enumeration of anaerobic bacterial microflora of the equine gastrointestinal tract.

Samples from the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum, as well as from the cecum and colon, were obtained from 11 mature grass-fed horses. Viable counts of total culturable and proteolytic bacteria were made on habitat-simulating media containing 40% clarified ruminal fluid. The mean pHs in the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum were 6.32, 7.10, and 7.47, respectively; the mean pH decreased to 6.7 in the hindgut. The acetate concentration increased along the length of the small intestine and was the only volatile fatty acid present in this gut segment. Molar proportions of acetate, propionate, and butyrate in the hindgut were 85:10:3. Differences in bacterial counts on habitat-simulating media containing equine cecal fluid or clarified ruminal fluid were negligible. Bacterial counts showed a substantial population in the duodenum (ca. 2.9 x 10(6) per g [wet weight] of sample), and this increased to 29.0 x 10(6) in the jejunum and 38.4 x 10(6) in the ileum. Proteolytic bacteria formed a high proportion of the total culturable bacteria, especially in duodenal samples. Counts of proteolytic bacteria per gram (wet weight) of sample were 3.0 x 10(6), 15.6 x 10(6), and 22.0 x 10(6) in the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum, respectively. There was a close relationship between lumenal and mucosal bacterial counts, although actual values were lower in mucosal samples. The mucosal bacterial population in the duodenum was high relative to the lumenal population. Although the comparison of bacterial populations in the hindgut of the horse and white rhino was limited to a single animal, the results were of interest. Counts were higher in the cecum than in the colon for both the horse and the white rhino.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)