Loss of viability during freeze-thaw of intact and adherent human embryonic stem cells with conventional slow-cooling protocols is predominantly due to apoptosis rather than cellular necrosis

10.1007/s11373-005-9051-9Journal of Biomedical Science133433-44

Open data from the third observing run of LIGO, Virgo, KAGRA, and GEO

The global network of gravitational-wave observatories now includes five detectors, namely LIGO Hanford, LIGO Livingston, Virgo, KAGRA, and GEO 600. These detectors collected data during their third observing run, O3, composed of three phases: O3a starting in 2019 April and lasting six months, O3b starting in 2019 November and lasting five months, and O3GK starting in 2020 April and lasting two weeks. In this paper we describe these data and various other science products that can be freely accessed through the Gravitational Wave Open Science Center at https://gwosc.org. The main data set, consisting of the gravitational-wave strain time series that contains the astrophysical signals, is released together with supporting data useful for their analysis and documentation, tutorials, as well as analysis software packages

Oral DNA vaccination of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), against infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus using PLGA [Poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid)] nanoparticles

A DNA vaccine against infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) is effective at protecting rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, against disease, but intramuscular injection is required and makes the vaccine impractical for use in the freshwater rainbow trout farming industry. Poly (D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) is a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved polymer that can be used to deliver DNA vaccines. We evaluated the in vivo absorption of PLGA nanoparticles containing coumarin-6 when added to a fish food pellet. We demonstrated that rainbow trout will eat PLGA nanoparticle coated feed and that these nanoparticles can be detected in the epithelial cells of the lower intestine within 96 h after feeding. We also detected low levels of gene expression and anti-IHNV neutralizing antibodies when fish were fed or intubated with PLGA nanoparticles containing IHNV G gene plasmid. A virus challenge evaluation suggested a slight increase in survival at 6 weeks post-vaccination in fish that received a high dose of the oral vaccine, but there was no difference when additional fish were challenged at 10 weeks post-vaccination. The results of this study suggest that it is possible to induce an immune response using an orally delivered DNA vaccine, but the current system needs improvement

Costs of plasticity: responses to desiccation decrease post-metamorphic immune function in a pond-breeding amphibian

1.   Phenotypic plasticity may allow an organism to respond to temporally variable opportunities for growth and risks of mortality. However, life-history theory assumes that there are often trade-offs between the benefits afforded by plasticity in one trait and the consequences of that plasticity on other traits that affect fitness. In organisms with a complex life cycle, trade-offs may occur between larval and post-metamorphic traits. 2.   Many amphibians metamorphose in temporary ponds, and may accelerate larval development to avoid mortality when a pond desiccates. A younger age at metamorphosis often results in reduced body size, but may also facilitate a trade-off with physiological traits that are linked to fitness in the adult stage. 3.   We investigated a potential trade-off between desiccation-driven acceleration of development rate and immune system responsiveness in a species that breeds exclusively in temporary ponds. We exposed Rana sylvatica (wood frog) tadpoles to four possible desiccation regimes and then assayed the cell-mediated immune response to a standardized foreign antigen, phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), injected 3 weeks after metamorphosis. We also quantified total leucocyte numbers from haematological smears to obtain a secondary measure of individual immunological condition. 4.   Animals exposed to desiccation had shorter development times, weaker cellular immune system responses to PHA and lower total leucocyte numbers than animals from control groups. Both measures of immune response showed a decrease with increasing severity of the desiccation treatment. 5.   It is currently unclear whether the observed depression in immune response is transient or permanent. However, even temporary periods of immune system suppression shortly after metamorphosis may lead to greater susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens or parasites.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/74472/1/j.1365-2435.2007.01340.x.pd