The Effect of \u3cem\u3eLeucaena leucocephala\u3c/em\u3e on Beef Production and Toxicity in the Chaco Region of Argentina

Hedgerows of the fodder tree legume, Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit ssp. glabrata (Rose Zárate) (leucaena), planted with companion grass, provide productive, profitable and sustainable tropical pasture (Shelton and Dalzell 2007). Although leucaena can improve beef production from tropical pastures, poor grower adoption has limited development of leucaena in the Chaco Region of Argentina. This can be partly attributed to: (1) unsuccessful establishment; (2) limited understanding of leucaena management as a forage resource; and (3) concerns about mimosine toxicity. These 3 limitations have been overcome in other regions of the world (e.g. northern Australia and the Chaco Region of Paraguay), but little is known about leucaena management and the protection status of ruminants against mimosine toxicosis in Argentina. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of leucaena on beef production and toxicity in the west of the Argentinean Chaco Region. We hypothesise that the introduction of leucaena into grass pastures will significantly increase beef productivity if mimosine toxicosis does not appear

Soil Organic Carbon and Total Nitrogen in a \u3ci\u3eLeucaena leucocephala\u3c/i\u3e Silvopastoral System in the Chaco Region, Argentina

The introduction of leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) into hedgerow silvopastoral systems increases animal production and improves soil fertility, through biological nitrogen fixation and deep-rooted leguminous trees. There is limited information on carbon and nitrogen dynamics in hedgerow silvopastoral systems, particularly in long term periods and subsoil profiles. The concentrations and vertical distribution of organic carbon (OC) and total nitrogen (TN), and their fractions (particulate and associate forms) in the soil profile (0‒100 cm), with and without leucaena were compared 10 years after leucaena establishment into a 24-year-old tropical pasture (Urochloa brizantha-Chloris gayana). Leucaena increased the OC concentration in the deepest horizon (50‒100 cm) by 73% (from 0.40 to 0.69%), particularly the stable form (associate OC). This was attributed to a greater abundance of leucaena roots deeper in the profile than in the pure grass pasture. Leucaena also enhanced by 12% the TN concentration in the topsoil (0‒20 cm) (from 0.133 to 0.149%) and by 21% in deepest horizon (from 0.049 to 0.059%) associated with leaf deposition, recycling of animal feces and nodule-N turnover from N fixation. Although TN increased in the leucaena topsoil and it is expected that OC follows the same pattern, OC concentration decreased in the topsoil. The low OC content in the topsoil of the leucaena pasture was closely linked to the poor grass cover observed (r2 = 0.82). The loss in grass cover was attributed to the excessive grazing pressure imposed to control the height of leucaena hedgerows. Leucaena establishment has the potential to improve soil fertility and hence availability of N to companion grass growth, and can be utilized as a greenhouse gas mitigation strategy. However, to achieve the potential productivity and carbon sequestration of leucaena in silvopastoral systems, grass persistence needs to be evaluated under different management practices and grazing regimes

Relative contribution of V-H+ATPase and NA+/ H+ exchanger to bicarbonate reabsorption in proximal convoluted tubules of old rats

With aging, the kidney develops a progressive deterioration of several structures and functions. Proximal tubular acidification is impaired in old rats with a decrease in the activity of brush border Na+/ H+ exchange and a fall of H-ion flux measured with micropuncture experiments. In the present work we evaluate the contribution of 5-N-ethyl-n-isopropyl amiloride- (EIPA) and bafilomycin-sensitive bicarbonate flux (JHCO3-) in proximal convoluted tubules of young and aged rats. We performed micropuncture experiments inhibiting the Na+/H+ exchanger with EIPA (10-4 M) and the V-H+ ATPase with bafilomycin (10-6 M). We used antibodies against the NHE3 isoform of the Na+/H+ exchanger and the subunit E of the V-H+ ATPase for detecting by Western blot the abundance of these proteins in brush border membrane vesicles from proximal convoluted tubules of young and old rats. The abundance of NHE3 and the V-H+ ATPase was similar in 18-month-old and 3-month-old rats. The bicarbonate flux in old rats was 30% lower than in young rats. EIPA reduced JHCO3- by 60% and bafilomycin by 30% in young rats; in contrast, EIPA reduced JHCO3- by ∼40% and bafilomycin by ∼50% in old rats. The JHCO3- inhibited by bafilomycin was the same in young and old rats: 0.62.nmol · cm-2 · s-1 and 0.71.nmol · cm-2 · s-1, respectively. However, the EIPA-sensitive fraction was larger in young than in old rats: 1.26.nmol · cm-2 · s-1 vs. 0.85 nmol · cm-2 · s-1, respectively. These results suggest that the component more affected in bicarbonate reabsorption of proximal convoluted tubules from aged rats is the Na+-H+ exchanger, probably a NHE isoform different from NHE3. © 2006 The Authors Journal compilation © Blackwell Publishing Ltd/Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2006.Fil:Fiori, M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Radrizzani, M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Díaz-sylvester, P. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina

Effect of Supplementation Frequency on Forage Utilization by Heifers Grazing a Tropical Pasture during the Dry Season

In tropical pasture, low quality and availability forage during the dry season can limit the cattle intake. Energetic and protein supplementation is a viable practice to improve feed intake and animal performance. Previous studies have shown that infrequent protein supplementation decreases feeding cost achieving similar performance compared with every day supplementation (Farmer et al., 2004). Even though infrequent protein supplementation has been widely studied, little research has been carried out on infrequent energetic supplementation, especially its effect on pasture utilization. Some evidence indicates that negative effects on forage use at low levels of infrequent supplementation (Beaty et al., 1994). However, high levels of energetic supplementation can result in a substitution effect of forage for concentrate, reducing pasture utilization, even more when forage quality decreases as dry season progresses. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation frequency (continuous or discontinuous, based on energetic concentrate) on forage utilization by heifers grazing a Chloris gayana pasture during the dry season in the Semiarid Chaco Region (Northwestern Argentine)

Methane Emission Estimated from Different Cattle Intake Data in Heifers Grazing a Tropical Pasture

The quantification of methane (CH4) from enteric fermentation related to cattle diet is a useful tool to identify strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. This is even important in tropical and subtropical regions due to the lack of CH4 estimations in beef cattle, particularly from Bos Indicus breeds grazing tropical grasses (Kurihara et al., 1999). Several modelling approaches have been developed in order to predict CH4 emission. However, the use of these models has limitations associated with uncertainty information required such as feed intake (FI), composition of the selected diet and animal responses (Gonzalez et al., 2014). FI is the main factor influencing CH4 emission. Individual FI measurements are not easy to achieve accurately in grazing animals rather than those located in pens, particularly under deferred tropical pastures at the end of the dry season, due to the large proportion of death forage. In this case, cattle supplementation with energetic and proteins concentrates, is a viable practice in order to improve animal FI and reduce CH4 emissions. The main objectives of this study was estimate and compare CH4 emission using data collected from experimental trials and predicted by a model (UNFCCC, 2014) in supplemented heifers grazing low quality Chloris gayana pasture in northwestern Argentina (Semiarid Chaco Region)

Parkinson’s Disease in a Patient with 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome: The Relevance of Detecting Mosaicisms by Means of Cell-By-Cell Evaluation Techniques

We report the case of a male patient from an Ashkenazi Jewish ethnic group with a history of midline defects (congenital heart disease, high-arched palate and bifid uvula). At the age of 46 years, he came to our center complaining of resting tremor, and a neurological examination concluded Parkinson?s disease. As a part of his approach, genetic evaluation was performed. Fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) confirmed a mosaicism of a 22q deletion in 24% of the analyzed blood cells. Also, immunohistochemical studies were performed on samples from the minor salivary glands using a SNCA antibody. Intense SNCA immunoreactive profiles were obtained for cells from the salivary glands of the patient. This is, to our knowledge, the first description of the association of amosaicism of a 22q11.2 microdeletion syndrome with Parkinson?s disease. Our findings suggest that, before excluding the involvement of the 22q11.2 deletion in the etiology of early-onset PD cases, the spectrum of evaluations should be extended to include more sensitive FISH analysis and immunohistochemical studies. The pathogenesis of early-onset PD in patients with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome remains unknown but, if elucidated, it may contribute to understanding the etiology of PD and ultimately to preventionand treatment strategies.Fil: Perandones, Claudia. Dirección Nacional de Instituto de Investigación. Administración Nacional de Laboratorio e Instituto de Salud "Dr. C. G. Malbrán"; ArgentinaFil: Farini, Veronica Lujan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Escuela de Ciencia y Tecnología. Centro de Estudios en Salud y Medio Ambiente; ArgentinaFil: Pellene, L. A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Sáenz Farret, Michel. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Cuevas, S. M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Micheli, Federico. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Radrizzani Helguera, Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Escuela de Ciencia y Tecnología. Centro de Estudios en Salud y Medio Ambiente; Argentin

Different Conformations of Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog, Deleted on Chromosome 10 (PTEN) Protein within the Nucleus and Cytoplasm of Neurons

PTEN is a critical gene involved in the regulation of many cellular processes. The product of this gene has dual phosphatase activity and is able to dephosphorylate the 5′ end of the phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate. Within the cellular nucleus, this protein has been associated with regulation of the expression of many genes, although the mechanism of this regulation remains unclear. In this paper, two specific oligonucleotide aptamers were developed and selected, using the SELEX procedure, according to their ability to detect the PTEN protein in different subcellular compartments of neurons. While one aptamer was able to detect PTEN in the nucleus, the other recognized PTEN in the cytoplasm. The recognition pattern of PTEN by both aptamers was confirmed using antibodies in western blots of the proteins purified from mouse cerebellar homogenates and subcellular fractions. Additionally, we demonstrated that the two aptamers recognized different epitopes of the target peptide. The results presented here could not be fully explained by the canonical phosphatase structure of PTEN, suggesting the existence of different conformations of phosphatase in the nucleus and the cytoplasm

Hypothesis: Somatic Mosaicism and Parkinson Disease

Letter to the EditorFil: Perandones, Carlos Edgardo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Pellene, L. A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Giugni, J. C.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Calvo, D. S.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Raina, G. B.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Cuevas, S. M.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Mata, I. F.. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Zabetian, C. P.. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Caputo, Mariela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Servicio de Huellas Digitales Genéticas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Corach, Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Servicio de Huellas Digitales Genéticas; ArgentinaFil: Micheli, Federico. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Servicio de Huellas Digitales Genéticas; ArgentinaFil: Radrizzani Helguera, Martin. Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Escuela de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay; Argentin

Cpd-1 Null Mice Display a Subtle Neurological Phenotype

CPD1 (also known as ANP32-E) belongs to a family of evolutionarily conserved acidic proteins with leucine rich repeats implicated in a variety of cellular processes regulating gene expression, vesicular trafficking, intracellular signaling and apoptosis. Because of its spatiotemporal expression pattern, CPD1 has been proposed to play an important role in brain morphogenesis and synaptic development.We have generated CPD1 knock-out mice that we have subsequently characterized. These mice are viable and fertile. However, they display a subtle neurological clasping phenotype and mild motor deficits.CPD1 is not essential for normal development; however, it appears to play a role in the regulation of fine motor functions. The minimal phenotype suggests compensatory biological mechanisms