Residency and abundance of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) in Nemuro Strait,Hokkaido, Japan

We examined the trend in residence patterns and abundance of male sperm whales in Nemuro Strait, Japan, based on long-term photo-identification (1,513 survey days, total 2,969 photos) between 2006 and 2017. A total of 225 unique individuals were identified during this study, with an average of 36 (SE = 2.55) new individuals identified in each season. The model chosen by maximum likelihood suggests that residence time around Nemuro Strait is 769 (SE = 372.4) days, with individuals staying in the strait about 48 days (SE = 8.36) per year. While the migration patterns of male sperm whales visiting this area are still unclear, these findings along with previous studies suggest that males move from one breeding area to another neighboring area every several weeks, shifting their home ranges gradually over a period of a few years. The abundance of sperm whales in Nemuro Strait varied greatly from year to year; from 28 (95%CI: 24–44) in 2015 and (95%CI: 22–48) in 2016 to 66 (95%CI: 57–84) in 2011. This study provides important knowledge of abundance and residency for Nemuro Strait, information which will contribute to further research on the social structure and movement pattern of male sperm whales.     

Monoclonal antibodies that depress a specific subset of multiple components of the glutathione-induced response ofHydra

Summary Reduced glutathione evokes a feeding response, the tentacle-ball formation inHydra japonica. This response consists of at least 5 components (R1–R5). We raised 6 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), each of which depressed a specific subset of these components, and we also examined the immunocytochemical localization of antigens with these mAbs at light microscopic level. The 2 mAbs that depressed R2 and R4 bound to the cnidocils of the desmoneme and the stenotele nematocytes; the 3 mAbs that depressed R5 bound to the apical surface adjacent to the cnidocils of the nematocytes; and the 2 mAbs that depressed R1 and R3 bound to the apical spot structures of unidentified cells in the ectoderm.Together with the specificity of the action of the mAbs on the behavioral response, the correspondence between the effects on the response and the structures visualized with these mAbs suggests that these structures include components of the receptor-effector system relevant to chemoreception.     

Induction of antibacterial protein synthesis by soluble peptidoglycan in isolated fat body from larvae of the silkworm, Bombyx mori

Synthesis and secretion of bactericidal protein (cecropin) and lysozyme were induced by soluble peptidoglycan fragments (SPG) from Escherichia coli in a culture of fat body from Bombyx mori larvae. The rate of the secretion by fat body increased as a function of SPG concentration added to the culture medium. The induction of bactericidal activity was specific for peptidoglycan of a particular structure. Thus, SPG from Micrococcus luteus was 500-times less potent than E. coli SPG, and various glucans and peptides structurally related to peptidoglycan were all ineffective as elicitor. These results support the hypothesis that bacteria invading the haemocoel have to be partially degraded to generate peptidoglycan fragments as a signal molecule, which subsequently acts on a receptor on fat body cells and induces antibacterial protein synthesis.     

Lid margin reconstruction with an orbicularis oculi musculocutaneous advancement flap and a conchal cartilage graft

A simple method to reconstruct the midlateral lid margin defect is described using an orbicularis oculi musculocutaneous advancement flap and a free conchal cartilage graft. This method is easy to perform not only in the lower eyelid, but also in the upper one, provides a natural gray line and a stable lid margin without postoperative eversion, and substitutes for the Leone and van Gemert procedure.     

Infrared spectra of carbon monoxide complexes of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase and L-tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenases. Effects of substrates on the CO-stretching frequencies

Carbonmonoxy indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase from rabbit small intestine exhibited two CO stretch bands at 1953 and 1933 cm-1 with half-band widths (delta v 1/2) of both approximately 15 cm-1. Upon addition of an excess amount of L-tryptophan, the substrate, the spectrum changed into that with an intense single band at 1902 cm-1 with the delta v 1/2 of 15 cm-1. Carbonmonoxy L-tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase of Pseudomonas acidovorans in the absence of L-tryptophan showed a fused CO stretch band which consists of two components at 1965 and 1958 cm-1 (delta v 1/2 for the fused band; 25 cm-1), which was converted into a sharp single band at 1968 cm-1 (delta v 1/2; 10 cm-1) upon addition of excess L-tryptophan. On the other hand, CO complex of rat liver L-tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase in the absence of L-tryptophan gave a spectrum with a poorly defined peak around 1961 cm-1. By the addition of L-tryptophan, the spectrum changed into that with two distinct bands at 1972 and 1920 cm-1 (delta v 1/2; 6 and 13 cm-1, respectively). These spectra were insensitive to pH in a range where the enzymes were not denatured (neutral to near pH 9). The infrared spectra of the carbonmonoxy enzymes were also affected by the addition of certain effectors such as skatole and alpha-methyl-DL-tryptophan, which facilitate the binding of L-tryptophan to the catalytic site of intestinal and Pseudomonas enzymes, respectively. However, the changes were of different types from those by the saturating amount of L-tryptophan. Possible mechanisms for these phenomena are discussed in relation to the structure of the heme-CO complex in these heme-containing dioxygenases.     

OsSEND-1: a new RAD2 nuclease family member in higher plants

A novel endonuclease, a new member of the RAD2 nuclease family, has been identified from the higher plant, rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Nipponbare), and designated as OsSEND-1. The open reading frame of the OsSEND-1 cDNA encoded a predicted product of 641 amino acid residues with a molecular weight of 69.9 kDa. The encoded protein showed a relatively high degree of sequence homology with the RAD2 nuclease family proteins, especially RAD2 nuclease, but it differed markedly from FEN-1, XPG or HEX1/EXO1. The N- and I-domains in the family were highly conserved in the OsSEND-1 sequence. The protein was much smaller than XPG, but larger than HEX1/EXO1 and FEN-1. The genome sequence was composed of 14 exons, and was localized at the almost terminal region of the short arm of chromosome 8. Northern blotting and in situ hybridization analyses demonstrated preferential expression of OsSEND-1 mRNA in proliferating tissues such as meristem. The mRNA level of OsSEND-1 was induced by UV and DNA-damaging agent such as MMS or H₂O₂, indicating that OsSEND-1 has some roles in the repair of many types of damaged DNA. The recombinant peptide showed endonuclease activity.     

Identification of Potential Regulatory Elements for the Transport of Emp24p

To examine the possibility of active recycling of Emp24p between the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi, we sought to identify transport signal(s) in the carboxyl-terminal region of Emp24p. Reporter molecules were constructed by replacing parts of a control invertase-Wbp1p chimera with those of Emp24p, and their transport rates were assessed. The transport of the reporter was found to be accelerated by the presence of the cytoplasmic domain of Emp24p. Mutational analyses revealed that the two carboxyl-terminal residues, leucine and valine (LV), were necessary and sufficient to accelerate the transport. The acceleration was sequence specific, and the terminal valine appeared to be more important. The LV residues accelerated not only the overall transport to the vacuole but also the ER to cis-Golgi transport, suggesting its function in the ER export. Hence the LV residues are a novel anterograde transport signal. The double-phenylalanine residues did not affect the transport by itself but attenuated the effect of the anterograde transport signal. On the other hand, the transmembrane domain significantly slowed down the ER to cis-Golgi transport and effectively counteracted the anterograde transport signal at this step. It may also take part in the retrieval of the protein, because the overall transport to the vacuole was more evidently slowed down. Consistently, the mutation of a conserved glutamine residue in the transmembrane domain further slowed down the transport in a step after arriving at the cis-Golgi. Taken together, the existence of the anterograde transport signal and the elements that regulate its function support the active recycling of Emp24p.     

Role of primary sensorimotor cortex and supplementary motor area in volitional swallowing: a movement-related cortical potential study

We investigated the role of the cerebral cortex, particularly the face/tongue area of the primary sensorimotor (SMI) cortex (face/tongue) and supplementary motor area (SMA), in volitional swallowing by recording movement-related cortical potentials (MRCPs). MRCPs with swallowing and tongue protrusion were recorded from scalp electrodes in eight normal right-handed subjects and from implanted subdural electrodes in six epilepsy patients. The experiment by scalp EEG in normal subjects revealed that premovement Bereitschaftspotentials (BP) activity for swallowing was largest at the vertex and lateralized to either hemisphere in the central area. The experiment by epicortical EEG in patients confirmed that face/tongue SMI and SMA were commonly involved in swallowing and tongue protrusion with overlapping distribution and interindividual variability. BP amplitude showed no difference between swallowing and tongue movements, either at face/tongue SMI or at SMA, whereas postmovement potential (PMP) was significantly larger in tongue protrusion than in swallowing only at face/tongue SMI. BP occurred earlier in swallowing than in tongue protrusion. Comparison between face/tongue SMI and SMA did not show any difference with regard to BP and PMP amplitude or BP onset time in either task. The preparatory role of the cerebral cortex in swallowing was similar to that in tongue movement, except for earlier activation in swallowing. Postmovement processing of swallowing was lesser than that of tongue movement in face/tongue SMI; probably suggesting that the cerebral cortex does not play a significant role in postmovement processing of swallowing. SMA plays a supplementary role to face/tongue SMI both in swallowing and tongue movements.     

in vitro generation of IFN-γ-producing Listeria-specific T cells is dependent on IFN-γ production by non-NK cells

In vitro 5-day cultures of naive spleen cells with viable Listeria monocytogenes (VLM), but not heat-killed L. monocytogenes, induced CD4⁺ T cells that produced IFN-γ upon secondary antigen stimulation. The VLM-induced Listeria-specific T cells produced IFN-γ but lacked expression of IL-2 and IL-4. To study the role of IFN-γ in the induction of the IFN-γ-producing T cells, we added anti-IFN-γ mAb to the primary culture and analyzed IFN-γ production upon secondary antigen stimulation. Addition of anti-IFN-γ mAb to the culture suppressed generation of IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells, suggesting that IFN-γ is important in the induction of IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells. Furthermore, our results showed that depletion of NK cells from spleen cells by anti-asialo GM1 antibody plus complement before culture enhanced induction of IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells. Although NK cells are known to produce IFN-γ, the results indicate that NK cell-derived IFN-γ may not be important in induction of the Listeria-specific IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells in the culture system. In addition, we demonstrated that IFN-γ expression was high in CD4⁺ T cells from cultures of spleen cells with VLM at the primary culture level. These results suggest that IFN-γ derived from T cells may enhance production of IFN-γ by CD4⁺ T cells, while NK cells rather suppress the induction of IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells.     

Cloning of Bacillus subtilis leucina A, B and C genes with Escherichia coli plasmids and expression of the leuC gene in E. coli.

Summary The leucine genes of Bacillus subtilis have been cloned directly from the chromosomal DNA into Escherichia coli leuB cells by selection for the Leu⁺ phenotype using RSF2124 as a vector plasmid. The hybrid plasmid designated RSF2124-B·leu contained a 4.2 megadalton fragment derived from B. subtilis DNA, including the leu genes. The fragment had one site susceptible to EcoRI^* and another site susceptible to BamNI endonuclease. Among the three fragments produced by EcoRI^* and BamNI endonucleases, the 1.2 megadalton fragment had the ability to transform B. subtilis leuA, leuB and leuC auxotrophs to leu ⁺. However, B. subtilis ilvB and ilvC auxotrophs were not rescued even by the whole 4.2 megadalton fragment present in the hybrid plasmid. -Isopropylmalate dehydrogenase (leuB gene product) activity found in E. coli cells containing the hybrid plasmid was about 60% of that in E. coli wild type cells, despite the high copy number (7.8) of the plasmid per chromosome observed.