Aroid scarabs in the genus Peltonotus Burmeister (Coleoptera,Scarabaeidae, Dynastinae): key to species and new distributional data

The southeast Asian scarab beetle genus Peltonotus Burmeister (Scarabaeidae, Dynastinae, Cyclocephalini) is reviewed. New country records for Peltonotus morio Burmeister (Myanmar and Vietnam), Peltonotus nasutus Arrow (southern China and Cambodia), and Peltonotus favonius Jameson and Wada (Myanmar) are reported, including a new record in the Palearctic/Sino-Japanese biogeographic region. The first female specimen of Peltonotus favonius is described. Biological associations with aroid inflorescences are reviewed, and human consumption of Peltonotus beetles is reported. A key to all species, paralectotype designations for Peltonotus nasutus, diagnoses, and distributions using dynamic mapping tools are included.     

Intracellular features of type II procollagen and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan synthesis in chondrocytes

The intracellular compartments of chondrocytes involved in the synthesis and processing of type II procollagen and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (CSPG) monomer were investigated using simultaneous double immunofluorescence and lectin localization reactions. Type II procollagen was distributed in vesicles throughout the cytoplasm, whereas intracellular precursors of CSPG monomer were accumulated in the perinuclear cytoplasm. In this study, cytoplasmic vesicles that stained intensely with antibodies directed against CSPG monomer but did not react with type II collagen antibodies, also were observed. A monoclonal antibody, 5-D-4, that recognizes keratan sulfate determinants was used to identify the Golgi complex (the site of keratan sulfate chain elongation). Staining with 5-D-4 was restricted to the perinuclear cytoplasm. The vesicles outside the perinuclear cytoplasm that stained intensely with antibodies to CSPG monomer did not react with 5-D-4. Fluorescent lectins were used to characterize further subcellular compartments. Concanavalin A, which reacts with mannose-rich oligosaccharides, did not stain the perinuclear region, but it did stain vesicles throughout the rest of the cytoplasm. Because mannose oligosaccharides are added cotranslationally, the stained vesicles throughout the cytoplasm presumably correspond to the rough endoplasmic reticulum. Wheat germ agglutinin, which recognizes N-acetyl-D-glucosamine and sialic acid (carbohydrates added in the Golgi), stained exclusively the perinuclear cytoplasm. By several criteria (staining with the monoclonal antibody 5-D-4 and with wheat germ agglutinin), the perinuclear cytoplasm seems to correspond to the Golgi complex. The cytoplasmic vesicles that react with anti-CSPG monomer and not with anti-type II collagen contain precursors of CSPG monomer not yet modified by Golgi-mediated oligosaccharide additions (because they are not stained with wheat germ agglutinin or with the anti-keratan sulfate antibody); these vesicles may have a unique function in the processing of CSPG.     

Dust and ammonia in horse stalls with different ventilation rates and bedding

Airborne particles and ammonia were monitored in horse stalls managed under four conditions. Two ventilation rates, high (27 air changes per h) and low (5 air changes per h) and two bedding types, paper and straw, were employed. At both ventilation rates, the number of airborne particles generated while the stalls were mucked out was higher with straw than with paper. Particles were more efficiently cleared at the higher ventilation rate in both the straw and paper stalls. Ammonia measurements reflected an accumulation over time. In the stalls with low ventilation, ammonia levels were significantly higher than in those stalls with high ventilation regardless of bedding type. Management decisions and their relationships to respiratory disorders are discussed.     

Identification and Characterization of Aspergillus Nidulans Mutants Defective in Cytokinesis

Filamentous fungi undergo cytokinesis by forming crosswalls termed septa. Here, we describe the genetic and physiological controls governing septation in Aspergillus nidulans. Germinating conidia do not form septa until the completion of their third nuclear division. The first septum is invariantly positioned at the basal end of the germ tube. Block-and-release experiments of nuclear division with benomyl or hydroxyurea, and analysis of various nuclear division mutants demonstrated that septum formation is dependent upon the third mitotic division. Block-and-release experiments with cytochalasin A and the localization of actin in germlings by indirect immunofluorescence showed that actin participated in septum formation. In addition to being concentrated at the growing hyphal tips, a band of actin was also apparent at the site of septum formation. Previous genetic analysis in A. nidulans identified four genes involved in septation (sepA-D). We have screened a new collection of temperature sensitive (ts) mutants of A. nidulans for strains that failed to form septa at the restrictive temperature but were able to complete early nuclear divisions. We identified five new genes designated sepE, G, H, I and J, along with one additional allele of a previously identified septation gene. On the basis of temperature shift experiments, nuclear counts and cell morphology, we sorted these cytokinesis mutants into three phenotypic classes. Interestingly, one class of mutants fails to form septa and fails to progress past the third nuclear division. This class of mutants suggests the existence of a regulatory mechanism in A. nidulans that ensures the continuation of nuclear division following the initiation of cytokinesis.     

Mapping and monitoring tick (Acari,Ixodida) distribution,seasonality, and host associations in the United Kingdom between 2017 and 2020

Tick-borne disease risk is intrinsically linked to the distribution of tick vector species. To assess risk and anticipate disease emergence, an understanding of tick distribution, host associations, and seasonality is needed. This can be achieved, to some extent, using passive surveillance supported by engagement with the public, animal health, and public health experts. The Tick Surveillance Scheme (TSS) collects data and maps tick distribution across the United Kingdom (UK). Between 2017 and 2020, 3720 tick records were received and 39 tick species were detected. Most records were acquired in the UK, with a subset associated with recent overseas travel. The dominant UK acquired species was Ixodes ricinus (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Linnaeus), the main vector of Lyme borreliosis. Records peaked during May and June, highlighting a key risk period for tick bites. Other key UK species were detected, including Dermacentor reticulatus (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Fabricius) and Haemaphysalis punctata (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Canestrini & Fanzago) as well as several rarer species that may present novel tick-borne disease risk to humans and other animals. Updated tick distribution maps highlight areas in the UK where tick exposure has occurred. There is evidence of increasing human tick exposure over time, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, but seasonal patterns remain unchanged.     

Neuroanatomical distribution of aromatase mRNA in the rat brain: indications of regional regulation

Aromatase, the enzyme responsible for the conversion of testosterone to estradiol, is found in the rat brain and is present in regions of the preoptic area, hypothalamus, and limbic system. Gonadal steroid hormones regulate aromatase activity levels in many brain regions, but not all. Using in situ hybridization, we examined the distribution of aromatase mRNA in the adult male forebrain, as well as the levels of aromatase mRNA in the brains of males and females, and the regulation by gonadal steroid hormones. In the adult male, many heavily labelled cells were found in the encapsulated bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), the medial preoptic nucleus (MPN), the ventro-medial nucleus (VMN), the medial amygdala (mAMY) and the cortical amygdala (CoAMY). The regional distribution of aromatase mRNA was similar in males and females, but males tended to have a greater number of aromatase mRNA-expressing cells in each region compared to females. Aromatase mRNA levels in the BNST, MPN, VMN and mAMY tended to be lower in castrated males than in intact males, whereas aromatase mRNA levels were unaltered by castration in the CoAMY. Further analysis of individual cells expressing aromatase mRNA suggests that aromatase mRNA may be regulated by steroid hormones differentially in specific populations of cells in regions where enzyme activity levels are steroid-hormone-dependent.     

Measurement of the inorganic pyrophosphate in tissues of Pisum sativum L.

Purified pyrophosphate: fructose 6-phosphate 1-phosphotransferase (EC 2.7.1.90) was used to measure the inorganic pyrophosphate in unfractionated extracts of tissues of Pisum sativum L. The fructose 1,6-bisphosphate produced by the above enzyme was measured by coupling to NADH oxidation via aldolase (EC 4.1.2.13), triosephosphate isomerase (EC 5.3.1.1) and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.8). Amounts of pyrophosphate as low as 1 nmol could be measured. The contents of pyrophosphate in the developing embryo of pea, and in the apical 2 cm of the roots, were appreciable; 9.4 and 8.9 nmol g^-1 fresh weight, respectively. The possibility that pyrophosphate acts in vivo as an energy source for pyrophosphate: fructose 6-phosphate 1-phosphotransferase and for UDPglucose pyrophosphorylase (EC 2.7.7.9) is considered.     

Changes in selected enzyme activities during growth of pure and mixed cultures of the white-rot decay fungus Trametes versicolor and the potential biocontrol fungus Trichoderma harzianum.

Two filamentous fungi, the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor and the soil fungus and potential biocontrol organism Trichoderma harzianum, have been grown in pure and mixed cultures on low-N (0.4 mM) and high-N (4 mM) defined synthetic media to determine the activities of selected wood-degrading enzymes such as cellobiase, cellulase, laccase, and peroxidases. Growth characteristics and enzyme activities were examined for potential correlations. Such correlations would allow the use of simple enzyme assays for measuring biomass development and would facilitate predictions about competitiveness of species in mixed fungal cultures. Our results show that while laccase and Poly Red-478 peroxidase activities indicate survival of the decay fungus, none of the monitored extracellular enzymes can serve as a quantitative indicator for biomass accumulation. As expected, the level of available nitrogen affected the production of the enzymes monitored: in low-N media, specific cellobiase, specific cellulase, and peroxidase activities were enhanced, while laccase activities were reduced. Most importantly, laccase activities of Trametes versicolor, and to a smaller extent, cellobiase activities of both fungi, were significantly induced in mixed cultures of Trametes versicolor and Trichoderma harzianum.     

A case of endometriosis in the macaque diagnosed by nuclear magnetic resonance imaging.

A case of spontaneous endometriosis was diagnosed in the pigtailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina nemestrina) with the aid of high-field (2.35 T), T2-weighted (TE50), C1H2-suppressed, oblique nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Postmortem histology was obtained. A variety of endometriotic lesions was seen with MRI, including extrauterine hyperintense apparently cystic regions, extrauterine hypointense regions apparently associated with intracellular paramagnetic iron proteins, and an enlarged myometrium exhibiting adenomyosis foci.