Enhancement of Anaerobic Digestion Using Particulate Growth Systems

Attached media reactors are used for enhancement of wastewater treatment processes including anaerobic condition. Selection of a suitable biofilm carrier is a compelling method to improve anaerobic digestion systems. This study investigates the performance of four fibrous biofilms installed in batch biogas reactors for treatment of cow manure. BioCords HS1, HS2, LS1, and LS2 are manufactured by Bishop Water Technologies, ON, Canada. Effluents and attached growth media were analyzed after batch experiment; methane production, methane yield, transfer efficiencies, organic and solid removal efficiencies, pH, and attached volatile suspended solid (VSS) were measured; VSS attached to biofilms mainly correlated with the specific surface area of each biofilm. Additionally, SEM (scanning electron microscopy) was used for further understanding of biofilm formation process for BioCords and the dissimilarity in their performance. The results indicated that BioCord LS2 had positive impact on achieving higher methane production and removal efficiencies compared to other support media utilized in batch reactors. It was also demonstrated from the experiment that BioCord LS2 potentially could generate higher methane production than conventional batch bioreactor.     

A simple and rapid immunochromatographic test strip for detection of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) of shrimp

A simple strip-test kit for white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) detection was developed using monoclonal antibody W29 (against the VP28 structural protein) conjugated with colloidal gold as the detector antibody. A rabbit anti-recombinant VP28F118 (rVP28) protein antibody in combination with a W28 monoclonal antibody was used as the capture complex at the test line (T), and goat anti-mouse IgG antibody (GAM) was used as the capture antibody at the control line (C). For evidence, the ready-to-use strip was kept in a plastic case and stored in a desiccated plastic bag. A sample volume of 100 microl gill homogenate in application buffer was applied to the sample chamber at one end of the strip and allowed to flow by chromatography through the nitrocellulose membrane to the other end. In test samples containing WSSV, the virus bound to the monoclonal antibody conjugated with colloidal gold and the resulting complex was captured by the antibodies at T to give a reddish-purple band. Any unbound monoclonal antibody conjugated with colloidal gold moved across T to be captured by the GAM and formed a band at C. In samples without WSSV or with WSSV below the limit of detection of the kit, only the band at C was seen. This method was 4 times less sensitive than dot blotting, and about 2 000 000 times less sensitive than 1-step PCR. Nonetheless, it could be used to screen individual shrimp or pooled shrimp samples to confirm high levels of WSSV infection or WSSV disease outbreaks. The beneficial features of this kit are that simple, convenient and quick results can be obtained without the requirement of sophisticated tools or special skills.     

A review of flying fishes of the subgenus Hirundichthys (genus Hirundichthys, exocoetidae). 1. Oceanic species: H. speculiger, H. indicus sp. nova

A systematic revision of flying fishes of the subgenus Hirundichthys s.str was carried out based on a study of meristic and morphometric traits and characteristics of pigmentation of fishes from the local populations of species belonging to the subgenus. It is found out that the subgenus includes four species: oceanic H. speculiger from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, oceanic H. indicus sp.n. from the waters of the Indian Ocean, nerito-oceanic H. oxycephalus from the waters of the Indo-West Pacific and nerito-oceanic H. affinis from the Atlantic Ocean. The first part of the review focuses on two oceanic species with a large “mirror” on the pectoral fins: H. speculiger and H. indicus. A comparison of local populations showed that the species H. indicus is polytypic and consists of two subspecies. One of the subspecies—nominative H. indicus indicus—is distributed in the western and the central parts of the Indian Ocean and the other—H. indicus orientalis ssp.n.—in the Eastern Indian Ocean. Maps showing a geographical distribution of the species and the subspecies in the World Ocean are drawn up.     

Repeated oral administration of capsaicin increases anxiety-like behaviours with prolonged stress-response in rats

This study was conducted to examine the psycho-emotional effects of repeated oral exposure to capsaicin, the principal active component of chili peppers. Each rat received 1 mL of 0.02% capsaicin into its oral cavity daily, and was subjected to behavioural tests following 10 daily administrations of capsaicin. Stereotypy counts and rostral grooming were significantly increased, and caudal grooming decreased, in capsaicin-treated rats during the ambulatory activity test. In elevated plus maze test, not only the time spent in open arms but also the percent arm entry into open arms was reduced in capsaicin-treated rats compared with control rats. In forced swim test, although swimming duration was decreased, struggling increased in the capsaicin group, immobility duration did not differ between the groups. Repeated oral capsaicin did not affect the basal levels of plasma corticosterone; however, the stress-induced elevation of plasma corticosterone was prolonged in capsaicin treated rats. Oral capsaicin exposure significantly increased c-Fos expression not only in the nucleus tractus of solitarius but also in the paraventricular nucleus. Results suggest that repeated oral exposure to capsaicin increases anxiety-like behaviours in rats, and dysfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis may play a role in its pathophysiology.     

Effect of weight loss and exercise on angiogenic factors in the circulation and in adipose tissue in obese subjects

Background:

Vascular growth is a prerequisite for adipose tissue (AT) development and expansion. Some AT cytokines and hormones have effects on vascular development, like vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF‐A), angiopoietin (ANG‐1), ANG‐2 and angiopoietin‐like protein‐4 (ANGPTL‐4).

Methods:

In this study, the independent and combined effects of diet‐induced weight loss and exercise on AT gene expression and proteins levels of those angiogenic factors were investigated. Seventy‐nine obese males and females were randomized to: 1. Exercise‐only (EXO; 12‐weeks exercise without diet‐restriction), 2. Hypocaloric diet (DIO; 8‐weeks very low energy diet (VLED) + 4‐weeks weight maintenance diet) and 3. Hypocaloric diet and exercise (DEX; 8‐weeks VLED + 4‐weeks weight maintenance diet combined with exercise throughout the 12 weeks). Blood samples and fat biopsies were taken before and after the intervention.

Results:

Weight loss was 3.5 kg in the EXO group and 12.3 kg in the DIO and DEX groups. VEGF‐A protein was non‐significantly reduced in the weight loss groups. ANG‐1 protein levels were significantly reduced 22‐25% after all three interventions (P < 0.01). The ANG‐1/ANG‐2 ratio was also decreased in all three groups (P < 0.05) by 27‐38%. ANGPTL‐4 was increased in the EXO group (15%, P < 0.05) and 9% (P < 0.05) in the DIO group. VEGF‐A, ANG‐1, and ANGPTL‐4 were all expressed in human AT, but only ANGPTL‐4 was influenced by the interventions.

Conclusions:

Our data show that serum VEGF‐A, ANG‐1, ANG‐2, and ANGPTL‐4 levels are influenced by weight changes, indicating the involvement of these factors in the obese state. Moreover, it was found that weight loss generally was associated with a reduced angiogenic activity in the circulation.     

Narrative mediation of conventional and new "mental health" paradigms: reading the stories of immigrant Iranian women

The potential of storytelling to effect change and produce new knowledge is being recognized across disciplines. Two conditions are necessary to realize these goals: first, reading of stories must be contextualized to include larger social and political landscapes; and second, how stories are read and toward what end must be closely examined. This article explores these issues with reference to the subject of the "mental health" or emotional well-being of a cohort of postrevolution Iranian women from metropolitan Vancouver, British Columbia. Reading their stories at a particular moment in time shows that well-being is essentially grounded in spaces and places where we live, work, and engage in social interactions. This commonplace knowledge, which is subdued in medical discourse, is retrieved through Iranian women's stories of life and living told at a time when their experiences, histories, and viewpoints on health are subject to erasure.     

Differential expression of CMG peptide and crustacean hyperglycemic hormones (CHHs) in the eyestalk of the giant tiger prawn Penaeus monodon

Mouse antiserum against C-terminal amide of Pem-CMG (a peptide in the family of CHH/MIH/GIH) penta-deca peptide (RPRQRNQYRAALQRLamide=CMG-15) was generated and used for localization of the peptide in tissue and extract of the eyestalk of Penaeus monodon by means of immunohistochemistry and dot-ELISA in comparison with anti-T+ antiserum (T+=YANAVQTVamide : the putative C-terminal amide of crustacean hyperglycemic hormone (CHH) of Macrobrachium rosenbergii). The anti-CMG-15 antiserum did not show cross-reactivity to T+ peptide by dot-ELISA and vice versa for anti-T+ antiserum. In dot-ELISA of eyestalk extract of P. monodon after one step separation by RP-HPLC, anti-CMG-15 antiserum recognized different peptide fractions (F38-39) from those recognized by anti-T+ antiserum (F19, 40-41 and 47-51). Most of the T+ immunoreactive fractions (except F19) show higher hyperglycemic activity than the CMG immunoreactive fractions. In immunohistochemical localization, anti-CMG antiserum recognized only 2-3 neurons in medulla terminalis X-organ complex (MTXO) with long processes terminated in the sinus gland. The CMG-immunoreactive neurons were clearly distinct from CHH containing neurons situated in the same area. This evidence confirms the existing of CMG peptide which may play distinct roles from CHHs in hormonal regulation in P. monodon.