Haploinsufficient Bmp4 ocular phenotypes include anterior segment dysgenesis with elevated intraocular pressure

Background  

Glaucoma is a common disease but its molecular etiology is poorly understood. It involves retinal ganglion cell death and optic nerve damage that is often associated with elevated intraocular pressure. Identifying genes that modify glaucoma associated phenotypes is likely to provide insights to mechanisms of glaucoma. We previously reported glaucoma in DBA/2J mice caused by recessive alleles at two loci, isa and ipd, that cause iris stromal atrophy and iris pigment dispersion, respectively. A approach for identifying modifier genes is to study the effects of specific mutations in different mouse strains. When the phenotypic effect of a mutation is modified upon its introduction into a new strain, crosses between the parental strains can be used to identify modifier genes. The purpose of this study was to determine if the effects of the DBA/2J derived isa and ipd loci are modified in strain AKXD-28/Ty.     

Raising the sauropod neck: it costs more to get less

The long necks of gigantic sauropod dinosaurs are commonly assumed to have been used for high browsing to obtain enough food. However, this analysis questions whether such a posture was reasonable from the standpoint of energetics. The energy cost of circulating the blood can be estimated accurately from two physiological axioms that relate metabolic rate, blood flow rate and arterial blood pressure: (i) metabolic rate is proportional to blood flow rate and (ii) cardiac work rate is proportional to the product of blood flow rate and blood pressure. The analysis shows that it would have required the animal to expend approximately half of its energy intake just to circulate the blood, primarily because a vertical neck would have required a high systemic arterial blood pressure. It is therefore energetically more feasible to have used a more or less horizontal neck to enable wide browsing while keeping blood pressure low.     

Determination of the structure of dextran by 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

The ¹³C-n.m.r. spectra have been recorded for a series of dextrans whose structures, in terms of degree and type of branching, had previously been determined by methylation analysis. The spectra established that all observable linkages in these dextrans are α-linked. Correlation of the spectra with methylation data indicated that the 75–85-p.p.m. spectral region is diagnostic for establishing the presence of α-D-(1→2)-, α-D-(1→3)-, or α-D-(1→4)-linkages. Each chemical shift has been found to be temperature-dependent (Δδ/ΔT) when referenced to either the deuterium lock or an external standard (tetramethylsilane). All carbohydrate Δδ/ΔT values are positive, and range from 0.01 to 0.03 p.p.m./°C. These values are considerably larger than analogous Δδ/ΔT values previously observed for smaller molecules. Larger than average Δδ/ΔT values are associated with the non-anomeric, sugar-linking carbon atoms.     

Gas transport and blood acid-base balance in diving sea snakes.

The values of hemoglobin concentration, Hb-O2 affinity and buffering capacity of the blood of six sea snake species considerably overlap values from terrestrial squamates. Decreased blood pH had little effect on the P50 but increased the n-value of Hb-O2 equilibrium curves. The O2 saturation of blood in the dorsal aorta varied between about 30 and 70% during voluntary diving in Acalyptophis peronii and Lapemis hardwickii. Voluntary dives ended when the lung PP02 was about 50 mm Hg and the arterial PO2 about 30 mm Hg indicating that roughly half of the O2 reserves had been used. In conjunction with relatively stable blood lactate concentration and pH, this indicates that voluntary dives occurred largely aerobically. In contrast, forced dives resulted in depletion of O2 reserves and large changes in blood acid-base balance. Long recovery periods following forced dives are inconsistent with field observations and thus suggest that extensive anaerobic metabolism does not normally occur in sea snakes. Bradycardia was not evident during forced dives. Large differences in PO2 between the lung and dorsal aorta indicated considerable right to left shunting either in the heart or in the lung. Venous blood represented over 50% of the systemic flow when there was considerable O2 in the lung. Therefore blood PO2 may remain relatively low despite elevated lung PO2 resulting from diving. In view of substantial capability for extra-pulmonary gas exchange, high shunting reduces the possibility of losing O2 through the skin and also may help prevent decompression sickness following deep dives.     

Microbial oxidation of cumene

Summary A total of 1229 cultures, including 230 actinomycetes, 508 other bacteria, 12 fungi and 479 yeasts were screened for their ability to oxidize the isopropyl side chain of 2-phenyl propane (cumene). Four strains of actinomycetes and six strains of bacteria but no yeasts were found positive in converting 2-phenyl propane to its oxygenated products. Eight strains oxidized cumene through the alkyl side chain producing 2-phenyl-1-propanol. TwoBacillus strains oxidized cumene to an oxygenated product.Pseudomonas oleovorans NRRL B-3429 exhibited the highest alkyl side chain oxidation activity. The optimum reaction conditions for strain B-3429 are: 25 °C, pH 6.5 and 48 h of reaction. Octane-grown cells of strain B-3429 produced higher product yields (about 7.2-fold) than the glucose-grown cells. Prolonged incubation resulted in an increase in 2-phenyl-1-propionic acid production at the expense of 2-phenyl-1-propanol. The yield of 2-phenyl-1-propanol plus 2-phenyl-1-propionic acid was 5.1%. Reaction in the presence of methanol favored the accumulation of 2-phenyl-1-propionic acid and also increased the total yield. (The yield of 2-phenyl-1-propanol plus 2-phenyl-1-propionic acid was 14.9%.) Structures of the reaction products were confirmed by GC/MS and GC/IR analyses. Products contained 92% R(–) isomer.     

Rhoptry Secretion of Membranous Whorls by Plasmodium berghei Sporozoites1

Electron microscopy of sporozoites of the rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium berghei, reveals electron-dense multi-laminate membranous whorls within components of the rhoptry-microneme complex after fixation with tannic acid in conjunction with glutaraldehyde. This multilaminate material, which has a dark line to dark line periodicity of approximately 5 nm, appears to be secreted from the sporozoite since it is also found adhering to the sporozoite's external surface. The material may function in sporozoite gliding motility and in invasion of host cells.