Are all lymphoid blasts in the cell cycle?

Labelling index after one or repeated intravenous injections of 3H-thymidine was measured for various subpopulations of lymphatic cells in different canine lymphoid compartments and correlated with cell morphology. High doses of tritiated thymidine were injected and exposure times of up to 211 days were used. The labelling indices of lymphoid blasts were comparable in all tissues investigated. Labelling index varied from 100% in immunoblasts to 4% in small-sized lymphocytes. Approximately 80% of immunoblasts were labelled 1 h after 3H-thymidine application and 100% labelling was obtained after 12 h repetitive 3H-thymidine labelling. In contrast with mediumsized and large lymphocytes, immunoblasts seem to be rapidly proliferating cells in the dog with almost no G_o cells. Supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft DFG Grant SFB 112     

Evolutionary assembly of cooperating cell types in an animal chemical defense system

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Tnfaip2/exoc3‐driven lipid metabolism is essential for stem cell differentiation and organ homeostasis

Lipid metabolism influences stem cell maintenance and differentiation but genetic factors that control these processes remain to be delineated. Here, we identify Tnfaip2 as an inhibitor of reprogramming of mouse fibroblasts into induced pluripotent stem cells. Tnfaip2 knockout impairs differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs), and knockdown of the planarian para‐ortholog, Smed‐exoc3, abrogates in vivo tissue homeostasis and regeneration—processes that are driven by somatic stem cells. When stimulated to differentiate, Tnfaip2‐deficient ESCs fail to induce synthesis of cellular triacylglycerol (TAG) and lipid droplets (LD) coinciding with reduced expression of vimentin (Vim)—a known inducer of LD formation. Smed‐exoc3 depletion also causes a strong reduction of TAGs in planarians. The study shows that Tnfaip2 acts epistatically with and upstream of Vim in impairing cellular reprogramming. Supplementing palmitic acid (PA) and palmitoyl‐L‐carnitine (the mobilized form of PA) restores the differentiation capacity of Tnfaip2‐deficient ESCs and organ maintenance in Smed‐exoc3‐depleted planarians. Together, these results identify a novel role of Tnfaip2 and exoc3 in controlling lipid metabolism, which is essential for ESC differentiation and planarian organ maintenance.     

The fate of intraperitoneally injected carbon particles in cyprinid fish

Summary The lymphoid organs of rosy barb (Barbus conchonius) and carp (Cyprinus carpio) were investigated for their phagocytic uptake of carbon, after its intraperitoneal injection. Carbon handling was similar in both species. It was first detected in the lymphoid organs at 30 min after injection. During the first day, carbon was phagocytized by macrophages situated in the spleen within the ellipsoids and in the red pulp. In head and trunk kidney, carbon was found in macrophages scattered throughout the haemopoietic parenchyma, and in cells lining the blood sinuses. In the spleen, macrophages replete with carbon left the ellipsoidal structures and formed aggregates with pigment-containing macrophages from day 6 onwards. In all lymphoid organs, almost all carbon was ultimately concentrated in the melano-macrophage centres.     

炼锌废渣-修复植物-凋落物体系的生态化学计量学研究

为揭示金属冶炼废渣堆场生态修复多年后,废渣-植物-凋落物系统中养分循环和系统维持机制。该研究以实现生态修复6 a的黔西北铅锌冶炼废渣堆场上土荆芥(Dysphania ambrosioides)、芦竹(Arundo donax)、刺槐(Robinia pseudoacacia)、构树(Broussonetia papyrifera)和柳杉(Cryptomeria fortunei)五种优势修复植物为对象,分析它们的主要营养器官(细根、粗根、茎/干、枝、叶片)、地表凋落物、植被下方表层废渣(0～10 cm)中碳(C)、氮(N)、磷(P)含量及化学计量特征,探讨它们之间的相互关系。结果表明:不同植物、不同营养器官间C、N、P的含量具有显著差异(P<0.05),C平均含量在两种草本植物中为茎>叶片>根>凋落物,在三种乔木中为干>枝>细根>粗根>叶片>凋落物; N和P的分布在草本植物中分别为叶片>凋落物>根>茎和叶片>根>凋落物>茎,在三种乔木中均为叶片>细根>凋落物>粗根>枝>...     

YAP参与调控细胞上皮-间充质转化的研究进展

上皮-间充质转化(epithelial-mesenchymal transition,EMT)是上皮来源细胞在各种理化因素作用下经历表型转化获得间充质样细胞表型的过程.研究表明,有多种信号分子参与EMT的发生,并在胚胎发育、器官损伤修复和肿瘤的发生发展过程中起着关键作用.Yes相关蛋白(yes-associated protein,YAP)作为Hippo信号通路的下游效应分子,被广泛报道参与EMT的进程,调控多种基因的表达,起到调节细胞增殖、凋亡、器官发育和修复等作用.最新研究表明,YAP活性的变化直接介导肿瘤细胞的迁移和侵袭等能力的变化,而这些变化都伴随着EMT的发生.因此,YAP蛋白跟EMT的发生密切相关.本文就近年来关于YAP调控组织发育、器官纤维化及在肿瘤发生发展中的作用,以及相关分子机制的研究进行综述,并将阐明其与EMT之间的相互关系,以期为EMT的研究提供新的视角,进而为相关疾病的治疗提供新的分子靶点和诊断治疗策略.     

Evidence for a nervous connection between the brain and the pineal organ in the guinea pig

Summary Following the injection of horseradish peroxidase into the pineal organ of the guinea pig, approximately 30 nerve fibers were demonstrated in the pineal stalk due to the retrograde transport of the tracer enzyme in these elements. Finely branched extensions of these nerve fibers are directed toward the distal portion of the pineal organ. This projection of central nervous elements enters the pineal organ via the habenular or posterior commissures. Neuronal perikarya projecting into the pineal organ are found in the region of the paraventricular nucleus near the border of the third ventricle.In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Dr. med., Faculty of Medicine, Justus Liebig University of Giessen     

中华补血草多酚提取物对自由基的清除能力

采用超声波辅助浸提—大孔树脂吸附法从中华补血草[ Limonium sinense (Girard) Kuntze]根、根茎、叶和花中获得多酚提取物,并对它们的得率和组成成分进行了初步分析;在此基础上,比较研究了不同部位多酚提取物对DPPH·、·OH和O2的清除能力.实验数据表明:中华补血草根、根茎、叶和花多酚提取物的得率分别为12.42％、5.98％、5.27％和3.98％,差异明显;多酚提取物中总酚、原花色素、黄烷醇和总黄酮含量变化幅度较大,分别为51.87％ ～61.60％、5.62％～39.47％、3.69％～12.46％和2.53％ ～35.97％;其中,总酚、原花色素和黄烷醇含量均以根多酚提取物最高,总黄酮含量以花多酚提取物最高,均与其他部位多酚提取物有显著差异.随质量浓度提高,4个部位多酚提取物对3种自由基的清除率总体上逐渐增大;其中根多酚提取物对DPPH·的清除作用最强,半数清除质量浓度(ρSC50)为38.52 μg·L-1,显著低于阳性对照芦丁和BHT(ρSC50分别为67.40和74.25 μg·L-1);花多酚提取物对·OH和O2的清除能力最强,ρSC50分别为53.51和74.00 μg·L-1,均低于芦丁;总体上,4个部位多酚提取物对DPPH·的清除能力由强至弱依次为根、根茎、叶、花,对·OH和O2的清除能力由强至弱依次为花、根、叶、根茎.结果显示:中华补血草不同部位多酚提取物均具有较强的自由基清除能力,其中,根和花多酚提取物中高含量的原花色素和黄酮类成分分别与其自由基清除能力密切相关.     

Origin and segregation of cranial placodes in Xenopus laevis

Cranial placodes are local thickenings of the vertebrate head ectoderm that contribute to the paired sense organs (olfactory epithelium, lens, inner ear, lateral line), cranial ganglia and the adenohypophysis. Here we use tissue grafting and dye injections to generated fate maps of the dorsal cranial part of the non-neural ectoderm for Xenopus embryos between neural plate and early tailbud stages. We show that all placodes arise from a crescent-shaped area located around the anterior neural plate, the pre-placodal ectoderm. In agreement with proposed roles of Six1 and Pax genes in the specification of a panplacodal primordium and different placodal areas, respectively, we show that Six1 is expressed uniformly throughout most of the pre-placodal ectoderm, while Pax6, Pax3, Pax8 and Pax2 each are confined to specific subregions encompassing the precursors of different subsets of placodes. However, the precursors of the vagal epibranchial and posterior lateral line placodes, which arise from the posteriormost pre-placodal ectoderm, upregulate Six1 and Pax8/Pax2 only at tailbud stages. Whereas our fate map suggests that regions of origin for different placodes overlap extensively with each other and with other ectodermal fates at neural plate stages, analysis of co-labeled placodes reveals that the actual degree of overlap is much smaller. Time lapse imaging of the pre-placodal ectoderm at single cell resolution demonstrates that no directed, large-scale cell rearrangements occur, when the pre-placodal region segregates into distinct placodes at subsequent stages. Our results indicate that individuation of placodes from the pre-placodal ectoderm does not involve large-scale cell sorting in Xenopus.