Distinct patterns of water and osmolyte control between intertidal (Bunodosoma caissarum) and subtidal (Anemonia sargassensis) sea anemones

Anemones are frequently found in rocky intertidal coasts. As they have highly permeable body surfaces, exposure to the air or to salinity variations inside tidal pools can represent intense osmotic and ionic challenges. The intertidal Bunodosoma caissarum has been compared with the subtidal Anemonia sargassensis concerning their response to air exposure or salinity changes. B. caissarum maintains tissue hydration through mucus production and dome-shape formation when challenged with air exposure or extreme salinities (fresh water or hypersaline seawater, 45 psu) for 1-2h. Upon exposure to mild osmotic shocks for 6h (hyposmotic: 25 psu, or hyperosmotic: 37 psu), B. caissarum was able to maintain its coelenteron fluid (CF) osmolality stable, but only in 25 psu. A. sargassensis CF osmolality followed the external medium in both salinities. Isolated cells of the pedal disc of B. caissarum showed full capacity for calcium-dependent regulatory volume decrease (RVD) upon 20% hyposmotic shock, at least partially involving the release of KCl via K(+)-Cl(-) cotransport, and also of organic osmolytes. Aquaporins (HgCl(2)-inhibited) likely participate in this process. Cells of A. sargassensis showed partial RVD, after 20 min. Cells from both species were not capable of regulatory volume increase upon hyperosmotic shock (20%). Whole organism and cellular mechanisms allow B. caissarum to live in the challenging intertidal habitat, frequently facing air exposure and seawater dilution.     

Medical management of the acute radiation syndrome

The acute radiation syndrome (ARS) occurs after whole-body or significant partial-body irradiation (typically at a dose of >1 Gy). ARS can involve the hematopoietic, cutaneous, gastrointestinal and the neurovascular organ systems either individually or in combination.There is a correlation between the severity of clinical signs and symptoms of ARS and radiation dose. Radiation induced multi-organ failure (MOF) describes the progressive dysfunction of two or more organ systems over time. Radiation combined injury (RCI) is defined as radiation injury combined with blunt or penetrating trauma, burns, blast, or infection. The classic syndromes are: hematopoietic (doses >2–3 Gy), gastrointestinal (doses 5–12 Gy) and cerebrovascular syndrome (doses 10–20 Gy). There is no possibility to survive after doses >10–12 Gy.The Phases of ARS are—prodromal: 0–2 days from exposure, latent: 2–20 days, and manifest illness: 21–60 days from exposure.Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) at a dose of 5 μg/kg body weight per day subcutaneously has been recommended as treatment of neutropenia, and antibiotics, antiviral and antifungal agents for prevention or treatment of infections.If taken within the first hours of contamination, stable iodine in the form of nonradioactive potassium iodide (KI) saturates iodine binding sites within the thyroid and inhibits incorporation of radioiodines into the gland.Finally, if severe aplasia persists under cytokines for more than 14 days, the possibility of a hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation should be evaluated.This review will focus on the clinical aspects of the ARS, using the European triage system (METREPOL) to evaluate the severity of radiation injury, and scoring groups of patients for the general and specific management of the syndrome.     

ArfA Recruits RF2 into Stalled Ribosomes

During translation in Escherichia coli, the ribosome rescue factor YaeJ and the alternative ribosome rescue factor (ArfA, previously called YhdL) can release stalled ribosomes from mRNA. Here, I used a reconstituted cell-free protein synthesis system to examine YaeJ- and ArfA-dependent recycling of stalled ribosomes, in which mRNA lacks in-frame stop codons. It is shown that YaeJ alone could recycle the ribosome but that ArfA required the presence of release factor 2 (RF2). Furthermore, I show that RF2 binds to stalled ribosomes only in the presence of ArfA, demonstrating that ArfA recruits RF2 into the A site of the ribosome to facilitate peptidyl-tRNA hydrolysis. It is also demonstrated that the efficiency of the ArfA-dependent process decreases rapidly with an increase in mRNA length downstream of the A site of the ribosome whereas YaeJ function is maintained on mRNA with sufficient length. From the results, I discuss differences of in vivo roles of these two systems in addition to the well-known tmRNA-dependent trans-translation system.     

烟草烟雾暴露对哮喘大鼠气道CCR6 mRNA及其蛋白表达的影响

目的研究烟草烟雾暴露对支气管哮喘（简称哮喘）大鼠气道chemokine receptor 6（CCR6）表达的影响,探讨吸烟加重哮喘气道炎症的免疫学机制。方法雄性Wistar大鼠40只,随机分为对照组、烟雾暴露组、哮喘组和哮喘＋烟雾暴露组,每组10只。建立哮喘大鼠模型和哮喘大鼠烟草烟雾暴露模型,采集大鼠支气管肺泡灌洗液（BALF）行白细胞计数及分类,采用逆转录-聚合酶链式反应（RT-PCR）方法及免疫组织化学法检测各组大鼠气道CCR6 mRNA及蛋白的表达。结果①哮喘组（69.0±3.5;4.1±1.0;8.9±2.0）、哮喘＋烟雾暴露组（86.7±5.2;2.2±1.0;19.0±2.8）BALF中白细胞总数、嗜酸粒细胞、中性粒细胞均高于对照组（10.1±3.8;1.3±0.7;2.2±1.1）、烟雾暴露组（47.7±6.8;0.5±0.3;2.7±1.4）（P均〈0.05）;哮喘＋烟雾暴露组BALF中白细胞总数和中性粒细胞高于哮喘组,嗜酸粒细胞低于哮喘组（P均〈0.05）。②哮喘组（8.15±0.88;0.452±0.013）、哮喘＋烟雾暴露组（15.16±0.87;0.531±0.024）CCR6 mRNA及其蛋白表达水平均明显高于对照组（1.01±0.52;0.299±0.027）、烟雾暴露组（5.55±0.54;0.442±0.018）（均P〈0.01）;哮喘＋烟雾暴露组明显高于哮喘组（均P〈0.01）。结论烟草烟雾暴露可通过促使气道CCR6 mRNA及其蛋白高表达,加重哮喘大鼠气道慢性炎症。     

The endocrine disruptor mono-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate promotes adipocyte differentiation and induces obesity in mice

The environmental obesogen hypothesis proposes that exposure to endocrine disruptors during developmental ‘window’ contributes to adipogenesis and the development of obesity. MEHP [mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate], a metabolite of the widespread plasticizer DEHP [di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate], has been found in exposed organisms and identified as a selective PPARγ (peroxisome-proliferator-activated receptor γ) modulator. However, implication of MEHP on adipose tissue development has been poorly investigated. In the present study, we show the dose-dependent effects of MEHP on adipocyte differentiation and GPDH (glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase) activity in the murine 3T3-L1 cell model. MEHP induced the expression of PPARγ as well as its target genes required for adipogenesis in vitro. Moreover, MEHP perturbed key regulators of adipogenesis and lipogenic pathway in vivo. In utero exposure to a low dose of MEHP significantly increased b.w. (body weight) and fat pad weight in male offspring at PND (postnatal day) 60. In addition, serum cholesterol, TAG (triacylglycerol) and glucose levels were also significantly elevated. These results suggest that perinatal exposure to MEHP may be expected to increase the incidence of obesity in a sex-dependent manner and can act as a potential chemical stressor for obesity and obesity-related disorders.     

Influence of traffic variations on exposure to wireless signals in realistic environments

In this article, the general public daily exposure to broadcast signals and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) mobile telephone signals in indoor areas is investigated. Temporal variations and traffic distributions during a day at different indoor sites in urban and rural zones are presented. The goal is to analyze the real exposure compared to the maximum assessment imposed by radio protection standards and to characterize the ratio between daily and maximum theoretical values. Hence, a realistic maximum is proposed based on the statistical analysis performed using measurements. Broadcast signals remain constant over the day so they are best fitted with a Normal distribution while the mobile telephone signals depend on the traffic demand during the day so they fit a three‐Gaussian distribution model. A general mask is also constructed for underlining the maximum equivalent active traffic for different periods in the day. Also, relations between the mean values over 24 h, the realistic maximal values (at 99%) and the maximal theoretical values are presented. The realistic maximum is also presented with a sliding time average of 6 min applied to the measurements in accordance with international standards. An extrapolation factor is given for the different systems to easily assess the maximum values starting from an instantaneous measurement. The extrapolation factor is also given for a broadband measurement to estimate the maximum potential exposure during the day. Bioelectromagnetics 33:288–297, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Occupational exposure to electric fields and currents associated with 110 kV substation tasks

The main aim of this study was to investigate occupational exposure to electric fields, and current densities and contact currents associated with tasks at air-insulated 110 kV substations and analyze if the action value of EU Directive 2004/40/EC was exceeded. Four workers volunteered to simulate the following tasks: Task (A) maintenance of an operating device of a disconnector at ground or floor level, Task (B) maintenance of an operating device of a circuit breaker at ground or floor level, Task (C) breaker head maintenance from a man hoist, and Task (D) maintenance of an operating device of a circuit breaker from a service platform. The highest maximum average current density in the neck was 1.8 mA/m(2) (calculated internal electric field 9.0-18.0 mV/m) and the highest contact current was 79.4 μA. All measured values at substations were lower than the limit value (10 mA/m(2)) of the EU Directive 2004/40/EC and the 2010 basic restrictions (0.1 and 0.8 V/m for central nervous system tissues of the head, and all tissues of the head and body, respectively) of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).     

In situ exposure to non-directional beacons for air traffic control

In situ electromagnetic field exposure of workers and the general public due to non-directional beacons (NDB) for air traffic control is assessed and characterized. For occupational exposure, the maximal measured electric field value is 881.6 V/m and the maximal magnetic field value is 9.1 A/m. The maximum electric fields exceed the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) reference levels at all seven NDB sites, and the magnetic fields at two of the seven NDB sites (occupational exposure). Recommendations and compliance distances for workers and the general public are provided.     

Comparison of complex permittivities of isotonic colloids containing single‐wall carbon nanotubes of varying chirality

The application of bio‐compatible, conductive nanoparticles in combination with radiofrequency (RF) irradiation to raise tissue temperatures between 40 and 60 °C for hyperthermia and ablation spurred interest in the complex permittivities of isotonic nanoparticle‐based colloids. Nanoparticles with large aspect ratios and high permittivities increase the bulk permittivity of the colloid and RF losses at the macroscopic scale. The complex permittivities of isotonic colloids with and without single‐wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) containing either metallic, semiconducting, or mixed chiralities were measured from 20 MHz to 1 GHz at room temperature. The colloids were made with one of three different isotonic solvents: phosphate buffered saline (PBS), and Dulbecco's modified eagle medium (DMEM) with and without 0.5% weight/volume bovine serum albumin to simulate cytosol and blood, respectively. The concentration of elemental carbon from the SWCNTs in the colloids ranged from 16 to 17 mM. The permittivities were corrected for electrode polarization effects by fitting the data to the Cole–Cole relaxation model with a constant phase angle element. The presence of SWCNTs increased both the real and imaginary components of the permittivities of the colloids. For all three solvents, the direct current (DC) components of the real and imaginary permittivities were greatest for the colloids containing the mixed chirality SWCNTs, followed by the colloids with semiconducting SWCNTs, and then metallic SWCNTs. Bioelectromagnetics 33:134–146, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.