Possible MIS Production by Follicle Cells in Spontaneous Oocyte Maturation of the Ascidian, Halocynthia roretzi

Outer and inner follicle cell-enclosed oocytes (oocyte complexes) of Halocynthia roretzi underwent germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) within 2 hr when transferred from ovaries to normal seawater of pH 8 (NSW). Extrusion of test cells (TC) into the perivitelline space and elevation of the chorion also occurred. This phenomenon was designated as spontaneous oocyte maturation.
Seawater of low pH, protease inhibitors such as leupeptin or soybean trypsin inhibitor (SBTI), and calcium deficiency inhibited the spontaneous maturation only when introduced to the NSW during the first 10 minutes of incubation. GVBD-blocked complexes underwent GVBD after addition of trypsin regardless of pH or the absence of calcium ions. The oocytes from which follicle cells were removed with glycosidase did not undergo GVBD in NSW, but addition of trypsin triggered GVBD in these defolliculated oocytes (TC oocytes). Furthermore, incubation media in which spontaneous maturation had occurred, induced GVBD in the TC oocytes. This GVBD-inducing activity was heat-labile and was inhibited by leupeptin.
These results indicate that in the first step of the spontaneous oocyte maturation, outer and/or inner follicle cells give a signal to the oocyte itself or TC oocyte. This signal is likely to be trypsin-like.     

Comparison of cytochrome P-450 species which catalyze the hydroxylations of the aromatic ring of estradiol and estradiol 17-sulfate

For identification of microsomal cytochrome P-450 (P-450) enzymes which catalyze 2- or 4-hydroxylations of estrogens in the rat liver, estradiol (E₂) and estradiol 17-sulfate (E₂-17-S) were selected as the substrates and incubated with various kinds of purified P-450 enzymes: PB-1, PB-2, PB-4 and PB-5 obtained from phenobarbital-treated male rats (Sprague-Dawley); MC-1 and MC-5 from 3-methylcholanthrene-treated male rats; and UT-1, UT-2, UT-4 and UT-5 from untreated animals. The reactions were carried out under the P-450-reconstructed system, and the resulting products were determined by HPLC using electrochemical detection. All the enzymes tested were shown to have varying degrees of catalytic activities for 2-hydroxylation of the two substrates; UT-1 and UT-2 had the highest activity. Of the induced P-450 enzymes, PB-2 and MC-1 showed fairly high catalytic activity for 4-hydroxylation of E₂. The P-450 enzymes obtained from the untreated male rats, especially UT-4, showed the highest catalytic activity for 4-hydroxylation of the two substrates. From these results and also from kinetic experiments, the P-450 enzymes which catalyze 2- and 4-hydroxylations of estrogen were considered to be different species. A part of E₂ was converted to such metabolites as estrone and those having a hydroxyl group at positions 6β, 15 or 16, each production of which was estimated to be catalyzed by single or multiple P-450s.     

Biosynthesis of poly(3-hydroxyalkanoate) from amino acids

It was found that an optically active copolyester, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate), denoted as P(3HB-co-3HV), is synthesized by Alcaligenes eutrophus H16 from several amino acids under various fermentation conditions. The optimum condition for the biosynthesis from one amino acid, threonine, was investigated and its biosynthetic pathway was discussed on the basis of the relation between the fermentation condition and the co-monomer composition of the produced polyesters.     

Suppression of the degradation of recombinant human apolipoprotein E by a protease inhibitor obtained from fetal bovine serum in serum-free culture

The recombinant human apolipoprotein E (Apo-E) produced by Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO-322 cells) in serum free culture was degraded to 24K and 23K fragments that contained N-terminal amino acid. The degradation site of Apo-E to 24K fragment was between Arg180 and Leu181 and the C-terminal amino acid of 23K fragment was Gly169. In fetal bovine serum (FBS)-containing culture, the degradation was inhibited. However, in calf serum (CS) the inhibitory activity was not detected. Thus, we attempted the purification of the factor with this inhibitory activity from FBS. A protease inhibitor was purified to give a single peak from FBS by ammonium sulfate precipitation and combination of several column chromatographies. When this FBS-derived protease inhibitor (FBS-d-PI) was added to serum-free culture of CHO-322 cells, degradation of recombinant Apo-E to the 24K and 23K fragments was dose-dependently suppressed and accumulation of intact Apo-E in culture supernatant was observed. FBS-d-PI was found to be a glycoprotein with relative molecular size of 75K daltons under reducing condition, and 85K daltons under nonreducing condition by SDS-PAGE. A complex of FBS-d-PI and a cellular protease was also detected in culture supernatant by western blot analysis using mouse monoclonal antibodies against FBS-d-PI.     

Scyliorhinus tokubee sp. nov. from Izu Peninsula,southern Japan (Scyliorhinidae,Elasmobranchii)

A new catshark,Scyliorhinus tokubee sp. nov., is described based on specimens from the coast of Shirahama, eastern Izu Peninsula, southern Japan. The present species is distinguished from other congeners in having a particular coloration with dark saddles, blotches and numerous small light spots, a wide oral cleft, the anterior nasal flap not reaching the oral cleft, a short interspace between the dorsal fins, developed clasper hooks, and some meristic characters (number of vertebrae, jaw teeth, and spiral valve turns). This species has been bred under captivity for several years in Shimoda Floating Aquarium.     

Highly sensitive assay for tyrosine hydroxylase activity by high-performance liquid chromatography

A highly sensitive assay for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with amperometric detection was devised based on the rapid isolation of enzymatically formed DOPA by a double-column procedure, the columns fitted together sequentially (the top column of Amberlite CG-50 and the bottom column of aluminium oxide). DOPA was adsorbed on the second aluminium oxide column, then eluted with 0.5 M hydrochloric acid, and assayed by HPLC with amperometric detection. d-Tyrosine was used for the control. α-Methyldopa was added to the incubation mixture as an internal standard after incubation. This assay was more sensitive than radioassays and 5 pmol of DOPA formed enzymatically could be measured in the presence of saturating concentrations of tyrosine and 6-methyltetrahydropterin. The TH activity in 2 mg of human putamen could be easily measured, and this method was found to be particularly suitable for the assay of TH activity in a small number of nuclei from animal and human brain.     

Pummerer Rearrangement of Selenium-Containing Uracil Nucleosides

Abstract

Pummerer-type rearrangement of uracil nucleosides having a phenylseleno group in the 2′-, 3′-, and 5′-positions took place upon oxidation with MCPBA in CH₂Cl₂ followed by treatment with acid anhydrides to yield α-acyloxyselenides.     

Effectiveness of enhanced cognitive behavior therapy for bulimia nervosa in Japan: a randomized controlled trial protocol

Although fatigue is a common and distressing symptom in cancer survivors, the mechanism of fatigue is not fully understood. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the relation between the fatigue and mindfulness of breast cancer survivors using anxiety, depression, pain, loneliness, and sleep disturbance as mediators. Path analysis was performed to examine direct and indirect associations between mindfulness and fatigue. Participants were breast cancer survivors who visited a breast surgery department at a university hospital in Japan for hormonal therapy or regular check-ups after treatment. The questionnaire measured cancer-related-fatigue, mindfulness, anxiety, depression, pain, loneliness, and sleep disturbance. Demographic and clinical characteristics were collected from medical records. Two-hundred and seventy-nine breast cancer survivors were registered, of which 259 answered the questionnaire. Ten respondents with incomplete questionnaire data were excluded, resulting in 249 participants for the analyses. Our final model fit the data well (goodness of fit index = .993; adjusted goodness of fit index = .966; comparative fit index = .999; root mean square error of approximation = .016). Mindfulness, anxiety, depression, pain, loneliness, and sleep disturbance were related to fatigue, and mindfulness had the most influence on fatigue (β = − .52). Mindfulness affected fatigue not only directly but also indirectly through anxiety, depression, pain, loneliness, and sleep disturbance. The study model helps to explain the process by which mindfulness affects fatigue. Our results suggest that mindfulness has both direct and indirect effects on the fatigue of breast cancer survivors and that mindfulness can be used to more effectively reduce their fatigue. It also suggests that health care professionals should be aware of factors such as anxiety, depression, pain, loneliness, and sleep disturbance in their care for fatigue of breast cancer survivors. This study was registered in the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN number. 000027720) on June 12, 2017.     

Decrease in bacterial production over the past three decades in the north basin of Lake Biwa,Japan

Limnology - In Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan, external pollutant loads have decreased since the 1980s, leading to improved water quality, such as reduction in biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)...