Water browning mediates predatory decimation of the Arctic fairy shrimp Branchinecta paludosa

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Spatiotemporal Developmental Trajectories in the Arabidopsis Root Revealed Using High-Throughput Single-Cell RNA Sequencing

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Detecting early kidney damage in horses with colic by measuring matrix metalloproteinase -9 and -2, other enzymes,urinary glucose and total proteins

Background  

The aim of the study was to investigate urine matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-2 and -9) activity, alkaline phosphatase/creatinine (U-AP/Cr) and gamma-glutamyl-transpeptidase/creatinine (U-GGT/Cr) ratios, glucose concentration, and urine protein/creatinine (U-Prot/Cr) ratio and to compare data with plasma MMP-2 and -9 activity, cystatin-C and creatinine concentrations in colic horses and healthy controls. Horses with surgical colic (n = 5) were compared to healthy stallions (n = 7) that came for castration. Blood and urine samples were collected. MMP gelatinolytic activity was measured by zymography.     

Effects of weaning age and formic acid-based feed additives on pigs from weaning to slaughter

Two hundred and forty piglets were used in a 2 x 6 factorial experiment to study the effects of weaning age (26 or 36 d) and four formic acid-based feed additives on the performance of pigs from weaning to slaughter. Either formic acid (F) or a mixture of formic acid, propionic acid, and potassium sorbate (FPS) or a mixture of formic acid, propionic acid, and sodium benzoate (FPB) or formic acid in a diatomaceous earth carrier (FD) were added to the diets of weaned piglets (from weaning to 60 d of age) and growing (18-46 kg) and finishing pigs (46-107 kg) to provide 8, 6, and 6 g acid per kg feed, respectively. The negative control treatment's (C) diets contained no growth promoters, whereas the positive control treatment's weaner and grower diets were supplemented with 40 mg/kg of avilamycin (A). The piglets weaned at the age of 26 and 36 d weighed 7.6 and 10.7 kg at weaning (p < 0.001), and 18.5 and 17.9 kg at the age of 60 d (p > 0.05), respectively. There was a weaning age x feed additive interaction in the weight gain of piglets after weaning (p < 0.05). The weight gain of piglets weaned on day 26 was enhanced by A, FPS, and FD (p < 0.05), and that of piglets weaned on day 36 by A and FPB (p < 0.05). The feed conversion ratio was not affected by weaning ages but was decreased in groups A, F, FBS, and FPB (p < 0.05). The severity of post-weaning diarrhoea was less in groups A, F, FPS, and FD than in C (p < 0.05). In piglets weaned on day 26, faecal water content and the total Escherichia coli count were highest 9 d after weaning. The total E. coli count was reduced only by FD (p < 0.05). Increased faecal water content was characterized by increased faecal Na+ and decreased K+ concentrations. Weaning age did not influence performance or carcass quality in the growing-finishing pigs. Feed additives did not affect weight gain in the growing pigs, but FPS and FPB enhanced weight gain during finishing period and total fattening (p < 0.05). In summary, the pigs' growth performance from weaning to slaughter was not affected by weaning age but it was enhanced by mixtures of formic and propionic acids with small amounts of sorbate or benzoate.     

Water turbidity by algal blooms causes mating system breakdown in a shallow-water fish, the sand goby Pomatoschistus minutus

Eutrophication as a result of human activity has resulted in increased algal blooms and turbidity in aquatic environments. We investigated experimentally the effect of algal turbidity on the mating system and sexual selection in the sand goby, Pomatoschistus minutus (Pallas), a marine fish with a resource-defence mating system and paternal care. Owing to male-male competition and female choice, large males can monopolize multiple mates, while some males do not achieve mating at all. We show that the number of eggs laid was the same in both turbid and clear tanks but that mating success was more evenly distributed among males in turbid than in clear water. The opportunity for sexual selection was lower in turbid conditions. In turbid conditions mating success was less skewed towards large males. Our results suggest that increased turbidity can change mating systems and decrease the opportunity for sexual selection as well as selection intensity.     

A novel type of deubiquitinating enzyme

A previous report from this laboratory described two novel proteins that have sequence similarity to A20, a negative regulator of NF-kappaB (Evans, P. C., Taylor, E. R., Coadwell, J., Heyninck, K., Beyaert, R., and Kilshaw, P. J. (2001) Biochem. J. 357, 617-623). One of these molecules, cellular zinc finger anti-NF-kappaB (Cezanne), a 100-kDa cytoplasmic protein, also suppressed NF-kappaB. Here we demonstrate that Cezanne is a novel deubiquitinating enzyme, distinct from the two known families of deubiquitinases, Types I and II. We show that Cezanne contains an N-terminal catalytic domain that belongs to the recently discovered ovarian tumor protein (OTU) superfamily, a group of proteins displaying structural similarity to cysteine proteases but having no previously described function. Recombinant Cezanne cleaved ubiquitin monomers from linear or branched synthetic ubiquitin chains and from ubiquitinated proteins. Mutation of a conserved cysteine residue in the catalytic site of the proteolytic domain caused Cezanne to co-precipitate polyubiquitinated cellular proteins. We also provide evidence for an additional ubiquitin binding site in the C-terminal part of the molecule. Our data provide the first demonstration of functional activity among OTU proteins.     

GRACILE syndrome,a lethal metabolic disorder with iron overload,is caused by a point mutation in BCS1L

GRACILE (growth retardation, aminoaciduria, cholestasis, iron overload, lactacidosis, and early death) syndrome is a recessively inherited lethal disease characterized by fetal growth retardation, lactic acidosis, aminoaciduria, cholestasis, and abnormalities in iron metabolism. We previously localized the causative gene to a 1.5-cM region on chromosome 2q33-37. In the present study, we report the molecular defect causing this metabolic disorder, by identifying a homozygous missense mutation that results in an S78G amino acid change in the BCS1L gene in Finnish patients with GRACILE syndrome, as well as five different mutations in three British infants. BCS1L, a mitochondrial inner-membrane protein, is a chaperone necessary for the assembly of mitochondrial respiratory chain complex III. Pulse-chase experiments performed in COS-1 cells indicated that the S78G amino acid change results in instability of the polypeptide, and yeast complementation studies revealed a functional defect in the mutated BCS1L protein. Four different mutations in the BCS1L gene have been reported elsewhere, in Turkish patients with a distinctly different phenotype. Interestingly, the British and Turkish patients had complex III deficiency, whereas in the Finnish patients with GRACILE syndrome complex III activity was within the normal range, implying that BCS1L has another cellular function that is uncharacterized but essential and is putatively involved in iron metabolism.