A histopathological study on the Caucasian dwarf goby from an anthropogenically loaded site in Hungary using multiple tissues analyses

The present study aimed to investigate for the first time the health status of the Caucasian dwarf goby Knipowitschia caucasica (Berg, 1916, Fishes of freshwaters of Russian Empire, p. 563, Moscow, Russia: Dep. Zemledeliya) (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from an anthropogenically loaded site in Hungary using histopathological analyses on multiple tissues. For that purpose, fish were collected from the public beach at Tiszafüred near the River Tisza. Gills, liver and kidney were subjected to histopathological analyses, and the results showed different alterations in each organ, which also differed in their extent and severity. In addition, we also found lesions in the reproductive organs of both, male and female fish which, overall, we hypothesized could be due to untreated municipal wastewaters, most likely contaminated with endocrine-disrupting chemicals. The multi-organ histopathological analyses of Caucasian dwarf gobies revealed different lesions, prevalence and severity in each target organ, as follows: liver>gills>kidney>gonad (testes and ovaries). These histopathological lesions can be assessed as good indicators of contamination by endocrine-disrupting chemicals of freshwater ecosystems.     

Sensitive detection of GFP utilizing tyramide signal amplification to overcome gene silencing

The green fluorescent protein (GFP) is among the most commonly used expression markers in biology. GFP-tagged cells have played a particularly important role in studies of cell lineage. Sensitive detection of GFP is crucially important for such studies to be successful, and problems with detection may account for discrepancies in the literature regarding the possible fate choices of stem cells. Here we describe a very sensitive technique for visualization of GFP. Using it we can detect about 90% of cells of donor origin while we could only see about 50% of these cells when we employ the methods that are in general use in other laboratories. In addition, we provide evidence that some cells permanently silence GFP expression. In the case of the progeny of bone marrow stem cells, it appears that the more distantly related they are to their precursors, the more likely it is that they will turn off the lineage marker.     

Novel,X-ray supported kinetic imaging of hidden-lifestyle arthropods

Dear Editor,There are several arthropods,which live and develop covertly in plant tissues.The plant tissues surrounding them provide them with shelter during their vulnerable developing stage or ensure overwintering as well as they can supply them with essential food for their ontogenetic development(McNaughton,1983).     

Accuracy of transrectal ultrasonography for determination of pregnancy in sheep: effect of fasting and handling of the animals

The present study was performed to investigate the effect of previous fasting and lifting of the abdomen of the ewes during transrectal ultrasonographic scanning on the results of early pregnancy diagnosis. Ewes of four flocks (A, B, C and D; all Awassi x Merino ewes, n = 1247 ) aged 0.7-10 years were used in this study. These ewes were estrus synchronized and artificially inseminated. From 2 weeks later onwards, fertile rams were kept with the ewes of flocks A, B and C ( n=949 ) for natural breeding, while ewes of flock D ( n=298 ) were re-inseminated 17 days later. Transrectal ultrasonography (5 MHz) was carried out in ewes of flocks A, B and C on four separate occasions but only once in ewes of flock D. For final analysis, animals were divided over two groups: ewes of Group 1 ( n=949 scans) were scanned in a standing position within the milking parlor. Animals of Group 2 ( n=764 scans) were scanned by the same operator and with the same scanning technique, but these ewes were fasted for 12h prior to scanning and the abdominal wall was lifted, just in front of the udder during scanning. The sensitivity of the test for diagnosing pregnancy at Days 18-24, 25-30, 31-40 and 41-50 was 21.8, 32.3, 63.3 and 50% in Group 1, and 46, 92.5, 92.3 and 96.8% in Group 2, respectively. Only within Group 1, the sensitivity of the test was higher in young ewes (0.7-2 years) than in older ones (>2-10 years). Significant differences were observed at scan periods Days 18-24 and Days 41-50 of gestation. It is concluded that, fasting prior to scanning and lifting the abdomen during scanning significantly improve the accuracy of transrectal ultrasonographic pregnancy diagnosis in Awassi x Merino ewes.     

Seasonal home range shift of red deer in a forest-agriculture area in southern Hungary

A long-term radiotelemetry study on red deerCervus elaphus Linnaeus, 1758 was carried out in a lowland forest-agriculture area in Hungary between 1993–2000. Previous observations suggested seasonal changes in population distribution between forested and agricultural habitat. Red deer concentrated in the forest during winter, but they appeared in the agricultural field during the vegetational period. We investigated the ranging behaviour, testing two alternative hypotheses: home range expansion and home range shift. Weekly radiotelemetry localisations revealed that 9 of 28 hinds showed a clear home range shift from the forest to the agricultural area for a prolonged time during the vegetational period. The remaining portion of the animals used a home range within the forest throughout the entire year. Diet composition analysis using indicator plant species showed that neither daily passages between habitats, nor home range expansion exists. These ranging behaviours were stable hence, if an animal shifted one year it shifted again in consecutive years andvice versa. Our results could be useful for the successful management of red deer populations in such complex habitats and to decrease agricultural damage.     

Effect of 2,4-dichlorophenol on DPPC/water liposomes studied by X-ray and freeze-fracture electron microscopy

The effect of 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP) was studied on the fully hydrated 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC)--water liposomes. The structure and the thermotropic phase behaviour of the liposomes was examined in the presence of DCP (DCP/DPPC molar ratio, varied from 2x10(-2) up to 1) using small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS, WAXS) and freeze-fracture electron microscopy. The structural behaviour of the DPPC/DCP/water system was strongly dependent on the concentration of the DCP. In the pretransition range the DCP molecules (at 2x10(-2) DCP/DPPC molar ratio) induced the interdigitated phase beside the parent (gel and rippled gel) phases, locally which can be form at higher DCP concentration. When the DCP/DPPC molar ratio was increased the pretransition disappeared and the main transition was shifted to lower temperatures. In the molar ratio range from 2x10(-1) up to 5x10(-1), a coexistence of different phases was observed in the wide temperature range from 20 up to 40 degrees C. With a further increase of the DCP/DPPC molar ratio (6x10(-1) to 1) only the interdigitated gel phase occurred below 25 degrees C. A schematic phase diagram of DPPC/DCP/water system was constructed to summarise the results.     

Increased nitric oxide levels as an early sign of premature aging in diabetes

The levels of different reactive species, especially those of nitric oxide and peroxynitrite, were determined in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat tissues, before the development of histopathological damages. Significantly higher steady state free radical concentrations were found in the liver 3 weeks after the onset of diabetes compared to age-matched control groups. Increased nitric oxide levels in diabetic vasculature and kidney decreased the production of detectable reactive oxygen species. High peroxynitrite generation suggested the onset of processes characteristic to premature aging of the endothelium. According to the histopathological results, there were no signs of late complications in the tissues up to 7 weeks after induction of diabetes. These results support the idea that oxidative stress is increased at a very early stage of diabetes and, in particular, that high levels of nitric oxide and peroxynitrite could play a decisive role in the development of late complications in the diabetic vasculature and kidney.     

Evaluation of false transrectal ultrasonographic pregnancy diagnoses in sheep by measuring the plasma level of pregnancy-associated glycoproteins

The present study was undertaken to investigate to what extent pregnancy diagnoses made by transrectal ultrasonography could be confirmed by measurements of plasma concentration of ovine pregnancy-associated glycoproteins (ovPAG). A total of 424 Awassi x Merino ewes were synchronized for estrus and examined by transrectal ultrasonography. In Experiment 1, the ewes (n = 156) were repeatedly scanned in a standing position on d 29, 36 and 50 of gestation. Similarly, the ewes (n = 268) in Experiment 2 were scanned on d 24, 29 and 34 of gestation, but these ewes were fasted for 12 h prior to the examination and the abdominal wall of each animal was lifted up by the hands of the assistant during the scanning. Blood samples were withdrawn after each transrectal ultrasonographic examination in both experiments. Ovine PAG concentrations were measured in plasma by a heterologous radioimmunoassay and the cut-off value for pregnancy was > or = 1 ng.mL-1. Based on the lambing performance, in Experiment 1, altogether 47 false negative and 38 false positive diagnoses were made by transrectal ultrasonography in 24 and 33 ewes, respectively between d 29 and 50 of gestation. In Experiment 2, altogether 8 false negative and 13 false positive diagnoses both were made in 7 ewes between d 24 and 34 of gestation. In both experiments, all ewes with false negative diagnoses had ovPAG concentrations higher than the threshold level for pregnancy diagnosis and all ewes with false positive diagnoses had ovPAG concentrations lower than the threshold of pregnancy. Furthermore, by the PAG-RIA test all lambed or aborted ewes (n = 63) were correctly diagnosed as pregnant and with three exceptions, all non-lambed ewes (n = 361) were correctly diagnosed as non-pregnant during the examined periods of both experiments.     

Tracing the genetic origin of Europe's first farmers reveals insights into their social organization

Farming was established in Central Europe by the Linearbandkeramik culture (LBK), a well-investigated archaeological horizon, which emerged in the Carpathian Basin, in today''s Hungary. However, the genetic background of the LBK genesis is yet unclear. Here we present 9 Y chromosomal and 84 mitochondrial DNA profiles from Mesolithic, Neolithic Starčevo and LBK sites (seventh/sixth millennia BC) from the Carpathian Basin and southeastern Europe. We detect genetic continuity of both maternal and paternal elements during the initial spread of agriculture, and confirm the substantial genetic impact of early southeastern European and Carpathian Basin farming cultures on Central European populations of the sixth–fourth millennia BC. Comprehensive Y chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA population genetic analyses demonstrate a clear affinity of the early farmers to the modern Near East and Caucasus, tracing the expansion from that region through southeastern Europe and the Carpathian Basin into Central Europe. However, our results also reveal contrasting patterns for male and female genetic diversity in the European Neolithic, suggesting a system of patrilineal descent and patrilocal residential rules among the early farmers.     

Cerebellar granule cells show age-dependent migratory differences in vitro

Developmental differences between cerebellar granule cells during their migratory period were revealed using dissociated granule cell cultures isolated from 4, 7, or 10 days old (P4, P7, P10) mice. Under all culture conditions, the great majority of cultivated cell populations consisted of those granule cells that had not reach their final destination in the internal granule cell layer (IGL) by the age of isolation. In vitro morphological development and the expression of migratory markers (TAG-1, astrotactin, or EphB2) showed similar characteristics between the cultures. The migration of 1008 granule cells isolated from P4, P7, and P10 cerebella and cultivated under identical conditions were analyzed using statistical methods. In vitro time-lapse videomicroscopy revealed that P4 cells possessed the fastest migratory speed while P10 granule cells retained their migratory activity for the longest time in culture. Cultures obtained from younger postnatal ages showed more random migratory trajectories than P10 cultures. Our observations indicate that despite similar morphological and molecular properties, migratory differences exist in granule cell cultures isolated from different postnatal ages. Therefore, the age of investigation can substantially influence experimental results on the regulation of cell migration.