On almost complex embeddings of rational homology balls

We use elementary arguments to prove that none of the Stein rational homology 4-balls shown by the authors and Brendan Owens to embed smoothly but not symplectically in the complex projective plane admit such almost complex embeddings. In particular, we are able to show that those rational balls admit no symplectic embeddings in the complex projective plane without appealing to the work of Evans-Smith.Comment: 7 pages, no figure

Horizontal decompositions, II

We complete the classification of the smooth, closed, oriented 4-manifolds having Euler characteristic less than four and a horizontal handlebody decomposition of genus one. We use the classification result to find a large family of rational homology ball smoothings of cyclic quotient singularities which can be smoothly embedded into the complex projective plane. Our family contains all such rational balls previously known to embed into $\mathbb{CP}^2$ and infinitely many more. We also show that a rational ball of our family admits an almost-complex embedding in $\mathbb{CP}^2$ if and only if it admits a symplectic embedding.Comment: 20 pages, 3 figures; added a citation and a lemma; accepted by Algebraic & Geometric Topolog

Exploring the larval transcriptome of the common sole (Solea solea L.)

open7noBackground The common sole (Solea solea) is a promising candidate for European aquaculture; however, the limited knowledge of the physiological mechanisms underlying larval development in this species has hampered the establishment of successful flatfish aquaculture. Although the fact that genomic tools and resources are available for some flatfish species, common sole genomics remains a mostly unexplored field. Here, we report, for the first time, the sequencing and characterisation of the transcriptome of S. solea and its application for the study of molecular mechanisms underlying physiological and morphological changes during larval-to-juvenile transition. Results The S. solea transcriptome was generated from whole larvae and adult tissues using the Roche 454 platform. The assembly process produced a set of 22,223 Isotigs with an average size of 726 nt, 29 contigs and a total of 203,692 singletons. Of the assembled sequences, 75.2% were annotated with at least one known transcript/protein; these transcripts were then used to develop a custom oligo-DNA microarray. A total of 14,674 oligonucleotide probes (60 nt), representing 12,836 transcripts, were in situ synthesised onto the array using Agilent non-contact ink-jet technology. The microarray platform was used to investigate the gene expression profiles of sole larvae from hatching to the juvenile form. Genes involved in the ontogenesis of the visual system are up-regulated during the early stages of larval development, while muscle development and anaerobic energy pathways increase in expression over time. The gene expression profiles of key transcripts of the thyroid hormones (TH) cascade and the temporal regulation of the GH/IGF1 (growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor I) system suggest a pivotal role of these pathways in fish growth and initiation of metamorphosis. Pre-metamorphic larvae display a distinctive transcriptomic landscape compared to previous and later stages. Our findings highlighted the up-regulation of gene pathways involved in the development of the gastrointestinal system as well as biological processes related to folic acid and retinol metabolism. Additional evidence led to the formation of the hypothesis that molecular mechanisms of cell motility and ECM adhesion may play a role in tissue rearrangement during common sole metamorphosis. Conclusions Next-generation sequencing provided a good representation of the sole transcriptome, and the combination of different approaches led to the annotation of a high number of transcripts. The construction of a microarray platform for the characterisation of the larval sole transcriptome permitted the definition of the main processes involved in organogenesis and larval growth. Keywords: Solea solea; Flatfish; Larval development; Metamorphosis; Transcriptome; Gene expressionopenSerena Ferraresso; Alessio Bonaldo; Luca Parma; Stefano Cinotti; Paola Massi; Luca Bargelloni; Pier Paolo GattaSerena Ferraresso; Alessio Bonaldo; Luca Parma; Stefano Cinotti; Paola Massi; Luca Bargelloni; Pier Paolo Gatt

Effects of Bioactive Peptides from Atlantic Salmon Processing By-Products on Oxyntopeptic and Enteroendocrine Cells of the Gastric Mucosa of European Seabass and Gilthead Seabream

The present study was designed to evaluate the effects of dietary levels of bioactive peptides (BPs) derived from salmon processing by-products on the presence and distribution of peptic cells (oxyntopeptic cells, OPs) and enteric endocrine cells (EECs) that contain GHR, NPY and SOM in the gastric mucosa of European seabass and gilthead seabream. In this study, 27 seabass and 27 seabreams were divided into three experimental groups: a control group (CTR) fed a control diet and two groups fed different levels of BP to replace fishmeal: 5% BP (BP5%) and 10% BP (BP10%). The stomach of each fish was sampled and processed for immunohistochemistry. Some SOM, NPY and GHR-IR cells exhibited alternating “open type” and “closed type” EECs morphologies. The BP10% group (16.8 ± 7.5) showed an increase in the number of NPY-IR cells compared to CTR (CTR 8.5 ± 4.8) and BP5% (BP10% vs. CTR p ≤ 0.01; BP10% vs. BP5% p ≤ 0.05) in the seabream gastric mucosa. In addition, in seabream gastric tissue, SOM-IR cells in the BP 10% diet (16.8 ± 3.5) were different from those in CTR (12.5 ± 5) (CTR vs. BP 10% p ≤ 0.05) and BP 5% (12.9 ± 2.5) (BP 5% vs. BP 10% p ≤ 0.01). EEC SOM-IR cells increased at 10% BP (5.3 ± 0.7) compared to 5% BP (4.4 ± 0.8) (5% BP vs. 10% BP p ≤ 0.05) in seabass. The results obtained may provide a good basis for a better understanding of the potential of salmon BPs as feed ingredients for seabass and seabream.publishedVersio

Successful treatment with T depleted autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation of refractory chronic autoimmune thrombocytopenic purpura

Autoimmune thrombocytopenia (AITP) is a disorder due to specific platelet auto-antibodies directed against platelet surface glycoproteins. AITP in adults is usually chronic, idiopathic and frequently refractory to conventional treatments. Myelo- and immuno- suppressive chemotherapy followed by autologous peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplantation is an experimental approach for severe chronic refractory AITP. We report a case of a woman with AITP, refractory to the conventional therapy, submitted to T-cell-depleted autologous PBSC transplantation, which obtained long term stable response on platelet count. We deem that the positive outcome of our patient depends on T-cells depletion of the graft, which reduces autoreactive T clones

Feeding common sole (Solea solea) juveniles with increasing dietary lipid levels affects growth, feed utilization and gut health

Knowledge about the nutritional requirements of common sole (Solea solea) is limited and no information regarding the optimal dietary lipid level is available yet. Thus, this study was undertaken to assess the growth response and feed utilization of common sole juveniles fed diets with increasing lipid levels. Four isonitrogenous (59% protein) pelletized diets with different dietary lipid levels (8%, 12%, 16% and 20%; L8, L12, L16 and L20, respectively) were fed to triplicate fish groups of 80 individuals to apparent satiation over 150 days. A one-way ANOVA, Tukey's post hoc test and linear regression were used to analyse the data (P 64 0.05). At the end of the trial, final body weight was significantly higher in fish fed L8 (40.7 \ub1 1.7 g), followed by those fed L12 (35.1 \ub1 1.2 g), L16 (27.9 \ub1 2.5 g) and L20 (22.1 \ub1 0.3 g). The specific growth rate was higher in fish fed L8 and L12, compared to the other treatments, and it was lowest in L20. Voluntary feed intake decreased with an increase in the dietary lipid level. The feed conversion rate, the protein efficiency ratio and the gross protein efficiency were lower in fish fed L20, while no significant differences were observed among L8, L12 and L16. Gross lipid efficiency was significantly higher in fish fed low lipid diets. Histological observations showed that 19 of 36 observed subjects had lipid droplets in the cytoplasm of enterocytes at the apex of the mucosal folds and, in some cases, also along the entire fold (intestinal steatosis). The number of fish with intestinal steatosis in groups L20 and L16 was significantly higher than the number in group L8. Ultrastructure showed large electrondense lipid droplets within the cytoplasm of enterocytes and warping of the cytoplasmic membrane (steatosis); in some cases, lipid droplets were also present within the Golgi apparatus. In conclusion, the results of this trial suggest that the diet for S. solea juveniles should include no more than 12% lipids. Higher lipid inclusions not only led to a substantial decline in performance but also affected gut health. This should be taken into consideration in formulating specific practical diets for common sole

Integrated study on production performance and quality traits of European sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ) fed high plant protein diets

In the issue of fishmeal replacement, besides maintaining optimal growth, a key area of investigation for continuing to improve modern aquafeeds includes the evaluation of the effects of plant ingredients on fish quality. It is generally accepted that farmed fish quality can be influenced by the formulation of composition of their feed. Hence, the aim of the present research was to evaluate plant protein inclusion up to 84% of the overall protein content in an integrated study on growth and quality traits of European sea bass. Three diets were formulated to contain increasing plant protein levels (50, 67 and 84%; 50PP, 67PP and 84PP, respectively), with fishmeal dietary levels at 30, 20 and 10%, respectively. No significant differences due to reducing fishmeal content were observed after 118 days in terms of growth (final body weight and specific growth rate) and feed intake, even though a trend towards lower growth performance at higher fishmeal replacement levels was observed. Fish fed diet 50PP showed lower feed conversion rate in comparison to those fed diet 84PP, while no differences were recorded between diet 50PP and 67PP. No significant differences among treatments were found in protein efficiency rate. On the contrary, fish fed diet 84PP showed lower gross protein efficiency in comparison to those fed diet 50PP and 67PP. No significant differences in biometric indices and fillet composition were observed. No significant differences were found in pH, liquid holding capacity and skin colour measurements between treatments, while regarding fillet colour, significant differences were found only for H\ub0ab. In conclusion, our findings demonstrated that dietary plant proteins up to 84% of the overall protein content had no effects on quality traits of European sea bass in comparison with 50% and 67%. All experimental groups showed similar growth even though 84% plant protein inclusion negatively influenced feed and protein utilisation

Clinical, genetic, and pathological features of male pseudohermaphroditism in dog

Male pseudohermaphroditism is a sex differentiation disorder in which the gonads are testes and the genital ducts are incompletely masculinized. An 8 years old dog with normal male karyotype was referred for examination of external genitalia abnormalities. Adjacent to the vulva subcutaneous undescended testes were observed. The histology of the gonads revealed a Leydig and Sertoli cell neoplasia. The contemporaneous presence of testicular tissue, vulva, male karyotype were compatible with a male pseudohermaphrodite (MPH) condition

First insight into temporal variation of digestive enzyme activities in flathead grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) during the ongrowing phase

Digestive enzymes break down the complex nutrients of food into easily absorbable molecules. Understanding their temporal variation during food transit through the gastrointestinal tract is crucial for developing effective nutritional strategies. This study provides the first insight on the digestive capacity of captive flathead grey mullet (Mugil cephalus), a promising omnivorous/detritivorous species for the sustainable diversification of aquaculture in EU. Fish (initial weight: 67.90 ± 15.46 g) were reared in captivity and fed a low fish meal-based diet for 113 days. At the end of the trial, the activity of pancreatic and intestinal enzymes were analysed at three different times: 0, 6 and 12 hours post-prandial. Additionally, the gene expression of pept1 was determined in the intestine at all considered times to provide a reference to peptide absorption. Alkaline proteases, trypsin and chymotrypsin showed a significant increase at 6 hours post-prandial, with values markedly lower than those of α-amylase. Bile salt-activated lipase and leucine-alanine aminopeptidase increased at 12 hours post-prandial. In the anterior intestine, aminopeptidase presented higher activity at 6 hours post-prandial while alkaline phosphatase showed no significant differences in both anterior and posterior tracts. Pept1 expression was significantly higher at 12 hours post-prandial in the posterior intestine. This study provides essential insights into the digestive physiology of captive-reared, ongrowing flathead grey mullet (Mugil cephalus), emphasizing the importance of aligning feeding practices with the species’ unique digestive adaptations. These findings establish a foundation for optimizing feeding schedules and diet composition to significantly enhance nutrient absorption and growth efficiency.This research was undertaken as a part of the FEAMP 2014–2020 project, action 3 A. Pilot project for the application of techniques and methods aimed at the enhancement and diversification of fish products from Valliculture financed by Emilia Romagna region. Analyses of digestive enzymes conducted at IRTA were supported by the ACUISOST project funded by the Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación from the Spanish Government and EU Next Generation funds (PRTR). Part of the research was carried out under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.4 – Call for tender No. 3138 of 16 December 2021, rectified by Decree n.3175 of 18 December 2021 of Italian Ministry of University and Research funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU. Project code CN_00000033, Concession Decree No. 1034 of 17 June 2022 adopted by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, CUP J33C22001190001 (Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio