Effects of local and regional factors on the fish assemblage structure in Meridional Amazonian streams

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of local, regional and temporal factors structuring fish assemblages in Meridional Amazonian streams during the months of May (rainy season) and August (dry season) of 2008. To accomplish this task, 14 streams located in Serra do Expedito (Aripuanã River basin) were sampled along 30-m stretches. A total of 3,212 specimens distributed among five orders, 18 families, and 55 species were recorded. The fish assemblage structure in the streams presented variation among types of riparian vegetation (local factor) and watersheds (regional factor), but did not present variation between seasons (temporal factor) and stream order (regional factor). Larger streams with margins covered with pasture presented higher species richness and abundance than smaller streams with margins covered with forest.     

Properties of glucose uptake in vegetative and sporulating cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The effect of digitonin, acetic acid, urea and ethanol treatment on the glucose uptake of vegetative cells and of sporulating cells (3 h after transfer to sporulation medium) was examined in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Both glucose uptake activities decreased at a similar rate, and a slightly different rate, in treatment with various concentrations of digitonin and of acetic acid, respectively, at 25 degrees C for 10 min. The glucose uptake activity of the sporulating cells was much more stable to urea treatment than that of the vegetative cells; the activity decreased about 36% and 76% in the sporulating cells and the vegetative cells, respectively, under conditions of 2.5 M urea at 25 degrees C for 10 min. The glucose uptake activity of the vegetative cells was more stable to ethanol treatment than that of the sporulating cells; the activity decreased about 56% and 88% in the vegetative cells and the sporulating cells, respectively, in 25% ethanol at 25 degrees C for 10 min.     

Analysis of the sleeping habits of young children in relation to environmental factors and their psychological state

Sleep and Biological Rhythms - A questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the sleeping habits of young children in relation to their lifestyles and psychological state. The study revealed...     

Estimation of rat thermoregulatory ability based on body temperature response to heat

A new simple but general estimation method for survival time in a hot environment is presented in this study. Even in heat-tolerant rats showing a triphasic heat response, an accurate estimation of survival time (ST) is possible. Rat groups, which included some heat-tolerant individuals, were exposed to 42.5 degrees C, 40% rh. Colonic temperature (Tco) was measured continuously by copper-constantan thermocouple. The ST (Y) of male and female rats were expressed as a linear function of time (X) until the Tco of 42.5 degrees C was reached: Y = 0.976X + 30.6 and Y = 0.968X + 31.6, respectively. A Tco of 42.5 degrees C at rest was just below the maximum survivable body temperature and above the steady-state equilibrium Tco levels during the second phase of the triphasic heat-response curve. Heat-tolerant individuals showed lower equilibrium temperatures than heat-intolerant rats. All 140 rats survived the Tco of 42.5 degrees C and lived for more than 8 wk, thus enabling them to be used for future experiments on thermoregulation. The heat survivors were able to reproduce, and their genetically controlled offspring could be used for thermoregulatory experiments.     

HOX cofactors expression and regulation in the human ovary

Background  

HOX cofactors enhance HOX binding affinities and specificities and increase HOX's unique functional activities. The expression and the regulation of HOX cofactors in human ovaries are unknown.     

Detection of multiple hormones and their mRNAs in human neuroblastoma cell line NB-1 using in situ hybridization, immunocytochemistry and radioimmunoassay.

The production and secretion of multiple peptide hormones and tyrosine hydroxylase by the human neuroblastoma cell line NB-1 and the effects of dibutyryl cAMP (Bt2cAMP) and phorbol esters such as 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) on them were investigated. The presence of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)/peptide histidine methionine (PHM), preprotachykinin, and tyrosine hydroxylase was detectable in the cytoplasm of cultured NB-1 cells by in situ hybridization. Treatment with Bt2cAMP and TPA markedly increased the number of cells immunoreactive to VIP, PHM, neuropeptide Y, Met-enkephalin, substance P and tyrosine hydroxylase and also the contents of VIP and Met-enkephalin in the culture medium. Bt2cAMP and TPA induced morphological changes characteristic of endocrine differentiation, such as an increase in neuroendocrine granules and the development of rough endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus. The results indicated that treatment with Bt2cAMP and TPA induces the expression of multiple genes of peptide hormone and tyrosine hydroxylase and increases hormone production and secretion through morphological changes into endocrine cells.