Enhancement of endotoxin activity by pulmonary surfactant

The modification of the activity of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in the pulmonary lavage fluid (PLF) of guinea pigs was assessed by a chromogenic Limulus assay. The activity of the lPS bound to Escherichia coli or of LPS extracted from the bacteria was observed to increase significantly in PLF. This increase in activity was amplified after heating at 75°C for 5 min. Pulmonary surfactant (PS) obtained from PLF showed a similar increase in the activity of LPS, indicating that PS is most probably the key agent in this modification.     

The skin of Amphioxus

Summary The skin of the lancelet, Amphioxus lanceolatus, was investigated with the aid of the electron microscope and some histochemical techniques. It was shown that the single type of epidermal cells is capable of performing several activities. These cells produce and attach a thin mucous surface layer and it is also suggested that a primitive form of keratinization occurs in them. Furthermore they may produce pigment granules and serve as glycogen stores. A thin lamina below the epidermal cells cements their basal surfaces and is itself basally anchored in the underlying corium with the aid of an elaborate system of processes. The corium fibre layer in most cases rests upon a single fibrocyte layer. It is at irregular intervals penetrated by bundles of fibres which originate as branches of the corium collagen fibres.Aided by grants 2124-4/5 from Statens naturvetenskapliga forskningsråd.     

Effects of Picoxystrobin and 4-n-Nonylphenol on Soil Microbial Community Structure and Respiration Activity

There is widespread use of chemical amendments to meet the demands for increased productivity in agriculture. Potentially toxic compounds, single or in mixtures, are added to the soil medium on a regular basis, while the ecotoxicological risk assessment procedures mainly follow a chemical by chemical approach. Picoxystrobin is a fungicide that has caused concern due to studies showing potentially detrimental effects to soil fauna (earthworms), while negative effects on soil microbial activities (nitrification, respiration) are shown to be transient. Potential mixture situations with nonylphenol, a chemical frequently occurring as a contaminant in sewage sludge used for land application, infer a need to explore whether these chemicals in mixture could alter the potential effects of picoxystrobin on the soil microflora. The main objective of this study was to assess the effects of picoxystrobin and nonylphenol, as single chemicals and mixtures, on soil microbial community structure and respiration activity in an agricultural sandy loam. Effects of the chemicals were assessed through measurements of soil microbial respiration activity and soil bacterial and fungal community structure fingerprints, together with a degradation study of the chemicals, through a 70 d incubation period. Picoxystrobin caused a decrease in the respiration activity, while 4-n-nonylphenol caused an increase in respiration activity concurring with a rapid degradation of the substance. Community structure fingerprints were also affected, but these results could not be directly interpreted in terms of positive or negative effects, and were indicated to be transient. Treatment with the chemicals in mixture caused less evident changes and indicated antagonistic effects between the chemicals in soil. In conclusion, the results imply that the application of the fungicide picoxystrobin and nonylphenol from sewage sludge application to agricultural soil in environmentally relevant concentrations, as single chemicals or in mixture, will not cause irreversible effects on soil microbial respiration and community structure.     

TAP1-deficiency does not alter atherosclerosis development in Apoe-/- mice

Antigen presenting cells (APC) have the ability to present both extra-cellular and intra-cellular antigens via MHC class I molecules to CD8(+) T cells. The cross presentation of extra-cellular antigens is reduced in mice with deficient Antigen Peptide Transporter 1 (TAP1)-dependent MHC class I antigen presentation, and these mice are characterized by a diminished CD8(+) T cell population. We have recently reported an increased activation of CD8(+) T cells in hypercholesterolemic Apoe(-/-) mice. Therefore, this study included TAP1-deficient Apoe(-/-) mice (Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-)) to test the atherogenicity of CD8(+) T cells and TAP1-dependent cross presentation in a hypercholesterolemic environment. As expected the CD8(+) T cell numbers were low in Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-) mice in comparison to Apoe(-/-) mice, constituting ~1% of the lymphocyte population. In spite of this there were no differences in the extent of atherosclerosis as assessed by en face Oil Red O staining of the aorta and cross-sections of the aortic root between Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-) and Apoe(-/-) mice. Moreover, no differences were detected in lesion infiltration of macrophages or CD3(+) T cells in Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-) compared to Apoe(-/-) mice. The CD3(+)CD4(+) T cell fraction was increased in Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-) mice, suggesting a compensation for the decreased CD8(+) T cell population. Interestingly, the fraction of CD8(+) effector memory T cells was increased but this appeared to have little impact on the atherosclerosis development.In conclusion, Apoe(-/-)Tap1(-/-) mice develop atherosclerosis equal to Apoe(-/-) mice, indicating a minor role for CD8(+) T cells and TAP1-dependent antigen presentation in the disease process.     

Diversity of larger consumers enhances interference competition effects on smaller competitors

Competition between large and small species for the same food is common in a number of ecosystems including aquatic ones. How diversity of larger consumers affects the access of smaller competitors to a limiting resource is not well understood. We tested experimentally how species richness (0–3 spp.) of benthic deposit-feeding macrofauna changes meiofaunal ostracods’ incorporation of fresh organic matter from a stable-isotope-labeled cyanobacterial bloom, using fauna from the species-poor Baltic Sea. Presence of macrofauna mostly decreased meiofaunal incorporation of bloom material, depending on the macrofauna species present. As expected, the species identity of macrofauna influenced the incorporation of organic matter by meiofauna. Interestingly, our results show that, in addition, species richness of the macrofauna significantly reduced meiofauna incorporation of freshly settled nitrogen and carbon. With more than one macrofauna species, the reduction was always greater than expected from the single-species treatments. Field data from the Baltic Sea showed a negative correlation between macrofauna diversity and meiofaunal ostracod abundance, as expected from the experimental results. We argue that this is caused by interference competition, due to spatial niche differentiation between macrofauna species reducing the sediment volume in which ostracods can feed undisturbed by larger competitors. Interference from macrofauna significantly reduces organic matter incorporation by meiofauna, indicating that diversity of larger consumers is an important factor controlling the access of smaller competitors to a limiting food resource.     

A novel series of piperazinyl-pyridine ureas as antagonists of the purinergic P2Y12 receptor

A novel series of P2Y₁₂ antagonists for development of drugs within the antiplatelet area is presented. The synthesis of the piperazinyl-pyridine urea derivatives and their structure-activity relationships (SAR) are described. Several compounds showed P2Y₁₂ antagonistic activities in the sub-micromolar range.     

Historical DNA reveals the demographic history of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in medieval and early modern Iceland

Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) vertebrae from archaeological sites were used to study the history of the Icelandic Atlantic cod population in the time period of 1500–1990. Specifically, we used coalescence modelling to estimate population size and fluctuations from the sequence diversity at the cytochrome b (cytb) and Pantophysin I (PanI) loci. The models are consistent with an expanding population during the warm medieval period, large historical effective population size (N_E), a marked bottleneck event at 1400–1500 and a decrease in N_E in early modern times. The model results are corroborated by the reduction of haplotype and nucleotide variation over time and pairwise population distance as a significant portion of nucleotide variation partitioned across the 1550 time mark. The mean age of the historical fished stock is high in medieval times with a truncation in age in early modern times. The population size crash coincides with a period of known cooling in the North Atlantic, and we conclude that the collapse may be related to climate or climate-induced ecosystem change.