Assessment of USDA-NRCS Rangeland Conservation Programs: Recommendation for an Evidence-Based Conservation Platform

The Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) was created in response to a request from the Office of Management and Budget that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA- NRCS) document the societal benefits anticipated to accrue from a major increase in conservation funding authorized by the 2002 Farm Bill. A comprehensive evaluation of the efficacy of rangeland conservation practices cost- shared with private landowners was unable to evaluate conservation benefits because outcomes were seldom documented. Four interrelated suppositions are presented to examine the causes underlying minimal documentation of conservations outcomes. These suppositions are (1) the benefits of conservation practices are considered a certainty so that documentation in not required, (2) there is minimal knowledge exchange between the USDA- NRCS and research organizations, (3) and a paucity of conservation- relevant science, as well as (4) inadequate technical support for land owners following implementation of conservation practices. We then follow with recommendations to overcome potential barriers to documentation of conservation outcomes identified for each supposition. Collectively, this assessment indicates that the existing conservation practice standards are insufficient to effectively administer large conservation investments on rangelands and that modification of these standards alone will not achieve the goals explicitly stated by CEAP. We recommend that USDA- NRCS modify its conservation programs around a more comprehensive and integrative platform that is capable of implementing evidence- based conservation. Collaborative monitoring organized around landowner–agency–scientist partnerships would represent the focal point of a Conservation Program Assessment Network (CPAN). The primary network objective would be to establish missing information feedback loops between conservation practices and their agricultural and environmental outcomes to promote learning, adaptive management, and innovation. Network information would be archived and made available to guide other, related conservation programs in relevant ecoregions. Restructuring conservation programs as we recommend would (1) provide site specific information, learning, and accountability that has been requested by CEAP and (2) further advance balanced delivery of agricultural production and environmental quality goals

Rapid Immunomagnetic Negative Enrichment of Neutrophil Granulocytes from Murine Bone Marrow for Functional Studies In Vitro and In Vivo

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) mediate early immunity to infection but can also cause host damage if their effector functions are not controlled. Their lack or dysfunction is associated with severe health problems and thus the analysis of PMN physiology is a central issue. One prerequisite for PMN analysis is the availability of purified cells from primary organs. While human PMN are easily isolated from peripheral blood, this approach is less suitable for mice due to limited availability of blood. Instead, bone marrow (BM) is an easily available reservoir of murine PMN, but methods to obtain pure cells from BM are limited. We have developed a novel protocol allowing the isolation of highly pure untouched PMN from murine BM by negative immunomagnetic isolation using a complex antibody cocktail. The protocol is simple and fast (∼1 h), has a high yield (5–10*106 PMN per animal) and provides a purity of cells equivalent to positive selection (>80%). Most importantly, cells obtained by this method are non-activated and remain fully functional in vitro or after adoptive transfer into recipient animals. This method should thus greatly facilitate the study of primary murine PMN in vitro and in vivo

Dissociation between Mature Phenotype and Impaired Transmigration in Dendritic Cells from Heparanase-Deficient Mice

To reach the lymphatics, migrating dendritic cells (DCs) need to interact with the extracellular matrix (ECM). Heparanase, a mammalian endo-β-D-glucuronidase, specifically degrades heparan sulfate proteoglycans ubiquitously associated with the cell surface and ECM. The role of heparanase in the physiology of bone marrow-derived DCs was studied in mutant heparanase knock-out (Hpse-KO) mice. Immature DCs from Hpse-KO mice exhibited a more mature phenotype; however their transmigration was significantly delayed, but not completely abolished, most probably due to the observed upregulation of MMP-14 and CCR7. Despite their mature phenotype, uptake of beads was comparable and uptake of apoptotic cells was more efficient in DCs from Hpse-KO mice. Heparanase is an important enzyme for DC transmigration. Together with CCR7 and its ligands, and probably MMP-14, heparanase controls DC trafficking

Transcriptomic analysis of milk somatic cells in mastitis resistant and susceptible sheep upon challenge with Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The existence of a genetic basis for host responses to bacterial intramammary infections has been widely documented, but the underlying mechanisms and the genes are still largely unknown. Previously, two divergent lines of sheep selected for high/low milk somatic cell scores have been shown to be respectively susceptible and resistant to intramammary infections by <it>Staphylococcus spp</it>. Transcriptional profiling with an 15K ovine-specific microarray of the milk somatic cells of susceptible and resistant sheep infected successively by <it>S. epidermidis </it>and <it>S. aureus </it>was performed in order to enhance our understanding of the molecular and cellular events associated with mastitis resistance.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The bacteriological titre was lower in the resistant than in the susceptible animals in the 48 hours following inoculation, although milk somatic cell concentration was similar. Gene expression was analysed in milk somatic cells, mainly represented by neutrophils, collected 12 hours post-challenge. A high number of differentially expressed genes between the two challenges indicated that more T cells are recruited upon inoculation by <it>S. aureus </it>than <it>S. epidermidis</it>. A total of 52 genes were significantly differentially expressed between the resistant and susceptible animals. Further Gene Ontology analysis indicated that differentially expressed genes were associated with immune and inflammatory responses, leukocyte adhesion, cell migration, and signal transduction. Close biological relationships could be established between most genes using gene network analysis. Furthermore, gene expression suggests that the cell turn-over, as a consequence of apoptosis/granulopoiesis, may be enhanced in the resistant line when compared to the susceptible line.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Gene profiling in resistant and susceptible lines has provided good candidates for mapping the biological pathways and genes underlying genetically determined resistance and susceptibility towards <it>Staphylococcus </it>infections, and opens new fields for further investigation.</p

Metabolic Control of Dendritic Cell Functions: Digesting Information

Dendritic cells (DCs) control innate and adaptive immunity by patrolling tissues to gather antigens and danger signals derived from microbes and tissue. Subsequently, DCs integrate those environmental cues, orchestrate immunity or tolerance, and regulate tissue homeostasis. Recent advances in the field of immunometabolism highlight the notion that immune cells markedly alter cellular metabolic pathways during differentiation or upon activation, which has important implications on their functionality. Previous studies showed that active oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria is associated with immature or tolerogenic DCs, while increased glycolysis upon pathogen sensing can promote immunogenic DC functions. However, new results in the last years suggest that regulation of DC metabolism in steady state, after immunogenic activation and during tolerance in different pathophysiological settings, may be more complex. Moreover, ontogenically distinct DC subsets show different functional specializations to control T cell responses. It is, thus, relevant how metabolism influences DC differentiation and plasticity, and what potential metabolic differences exist among DC subsets. Better understanding of the emerging connection between metabolic adaptions and functional DC specification will likely allow the development of therapeutic strategies to manipulate immune responses

NK cell maturation and function in C57BL/6 mice are altered by caloric restriction

NK cells are a heterogenous population of innate lymphocytes with diverse functional attributes critical for early protection from viral infections. We have previously reported a decrease in influenza-induced NK cell cytotoxicity in 6-mo-old C57BL/6 calorically restricted (CR) mice. In the current study, we extend our findings on the influence of CR on NK cell phenotype and function in the absence of infection. We demonstrate that reduced mature NK cell subsets result in increased frequencies of CD127(+) NK cells in CR mice, skewing the function of the total NK cell pool. NK cells from CR mice produced TNF-α and GM-CSF at a higher level, whereas IFN-γ production was impaired following IL-2 plus IL-12 or anti-NK1.1 stimulation. NK cells from CR mice were highly responsive to stimulation with YAC-1 cells such that CD27(−)CD11b(+) NK cells from CR mice produced granzyme B and degranulated at a higher frequency than CD27(−)CD11b(+) NK cells from ad libitum fed mice. CR has been shown to be a potent dietary intervention, yet the mechanisms by which the CR increases life span have yet to be fully understood. To our knowledge, these findings are the first in-depth analysis of the effects of caloric intake on NK cell phenotype and function and provide important implications regarding potential ways in which CR alters NK cell function prior to infection or cancer