Application of Ecotoxicogenomics for Studying Endocrine Disruption in Vertebrates and Invertebrates

Chemicals released into the environment potentially disrupt the endocrine system in wild animals and humans. Developing organisms are particularly sensitive to estrogenic chemicals. Exposure to estrogens or estrogenic chemicals during critical periods of development induces persistent changes in both reproductive and nonreproductive organs, including persistent molecular alterations. Estrogen-responsive genes and critical developmental windows of various animal species, therefore, need to be identified for investigators to understand the molecular basis of estrogenic activity during embryonic development. For investigators to understand molecular mechanisms of toxicity in various species, toxicogenomics/ecotoxicogenomics, defined as the integration of genomics (transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics) into toxicology and ecotoxicology, need to be established as powerful tools for research. As the initial step toward using genomics to examine endocrine-disrupting chemicals, estrogen receptors and other steroid hormone receptors have been cloned in various species, including reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and alterations in the expression of these genes in response to chemicals were investigated. We are identifying estrogen-responsive genes in mouse reproductive tracts using cDNA microarrays and trying to establish microarray systems in the American alligator, roach, medaka, and water fleas (Daphnia magna). It is too early to define common estrogen-responsive genes in various animal species; however, toxicogenomics and ectotoxicogenomics provide powerful tools to help us understand the molecular mechanism of chemical toxicities in various animal species

Photogenerated Carriers in SrTiO3 Probed by Mid-Infrared Absorption

Infrared absorption spectra of SrTiO$_3$ have been measured under above-band-gap photoexcitations to study the properties of photogenerated carriers, which should play important roles in previously reported photoinduced phenomena in SrTiO$_3$. A broad absorption band appears over the entire mid-infrared region under photoexcitation. Detailed energy, temperature, and excitation power dependences of the photoinduced absorption are reported. This photo-induced absorption is attributed to the intragap excitations of the photogenerated carriers. The data show the existence of a high density of in-gap states for the photocarriers, which extends over a wide energy range starting from the conduction and valence band edges.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Jp

Functional distinctions associated with the diversity of sex steroid hormone receptors ESR and AR

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is availablefrom Elsevier via the DOI in this recordSex steroid hormones including estrogens and androgens play fundamental roles in regulating reproductive activities and they act through estrogen and androgen receptors (ESR and AR). These steroid receptors have evolved from a common ancestor in association with several gene duplications. In most vertebrates, this has resulted in two ESR subtypes (ESR1 and ESR2) and one AR, whereas in teleost fish there are at least three ESRs (ESR1, ESR2a and ESR2b) and two ARs (ARα and ARβ) due to a lineage-specific whole genome duplication. Functional distinctions have been suggested among these receptors, but to date their roles have only been characterized in a limited number of species. Sexual differentiation and the development of reproductive organs are indispensable for all animal species and in vertebrates these events depend on the action of sex steroid hormones. Here we review the recent progress in understanding of the functions of the ESRs and ARs in the development and expression of sexually dimorphic characteristics associated with steroid hormone signaling in vertebrates, with representative fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.Japan Society for the Promotion of ScienceMinistry of the Environment, JapanDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), UKNational Institute for Basic BiologyKyushu Universit

Constraints on Cardassian Scenario from the Expansion Turnaround Redshift and the Sunyaev-Zeldovich/X-ray Data

Cosmic acceleration is one of the most remarkable cosmological findings of recent years. Although a dark energy component has usually been invoked as the mechanism for the acceleration, A modification of Friedmann equation from various higher dimensional models provides a feasible alternative. Cardassian expansion is one of these scenarios. In this work, we first consider the constraints on the parameter space from the turnaround redshift, z_{q=0}, at which the universe switches from deceleration to acceleration. We show that, for every Omega_m, there exist a unique n_{peak} (Omega_m), which makes z_{q=0} reach its maximum value, [z_{q=0}]_{max} = exp[1/ (2-3n_{peak})] -1, which is unlinearly inverse to Omega_m. If the acceleration happans earlier than z_{q=0} = 0.6, suggested by Type Ia supernovae measurements, we have Omega_m < 0.328 no matter what the power index is, and moreover, for reasonable matter density, Omega_m ~ 0.3, it is found n ~ (-0.45,0.25). We next test this scenario using the Sunyaev-Zeldovich/X-ray data of a sample of 18 galaxy clusters with 0.14 < z < 0.83 compiled by Reese et al. (2002). The constraints from the current SZ/X-ray data is weak, though a model with lower matter density is prefered. A certain range of the model parameters is also consistent with the data.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Sexual reprogramming and estrogenic sensitization in wild fish exposed to ethinylestradiol.

addresses: School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4PS, United Kingdom. [email protected]: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tCopyright © 2009 American Chemical Society. Post print version of article deposited. The final published version is available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es802661pGlobally, feminization responses in wild male freshwater fish are caused by exposure to estrogenic chemicals, including natural and synthetic estrogens, contained in effluentsfromwastewater treatment works. In U.K. rivers, feminization responses, including intersex, are widespread in wild roach (Rutilus rutilus) populations, and severely affected fish have a reduced reproductive success. We exposed roach to environmentally relevant concentrations of the contraceptive estrogen 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2) for up to 2 years, including intermittent and repeated exposures,to determine effects on sexual development and subsequent responsiveness to estrogen. Exposure of roach to EE2 (at 4 ng/L) for 2 years resulted in sex reversal in males, leading to an all-female population with two cohorts in terms of their stages of ovarian development one paralleling the control females and one at a significantly less advanced stage, which we propose were sex-reversed males. Differing developmental and maturing rates of the putative sex-reversed males compared with control females would question their functional capability as females in the wild. Early-life exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of EE2 sensitized females to estrogen, as determined by the measurement of the responses of estrogen-sensitive genes in a further EE2 challenge 398 days after the original exposure. In the wild, exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of EE2 during early life has significantly wider implications for the sexual physiology in fish than has thus far been determined

Current status of Japanese detectors

Current status of TAMA and CLIO detectors in Japan is reported in this article. These two interferometric gravitational-wave detectors are being developed for the large cryogenic gravitational wave telescope (LCGT) which is a future plan for detecting gravitational wave signals at least once per year. TAMA300 is being upgraded to improve the sensitivity in low frequency region after the last observation experiment in 2004. To reduce the seismic noises, we are installing new seismic isolation system, which is called TAMA Seismic Attenuation System, for the four test masses. We confirmed stable mass locks of a cavity and improvements of length and angular fluctuations by using two SASs. We are currently optimizing the performance of the third and fourth SASs. We continue TAMA300 operation and R&D studies for LCGT. Next data taking in the summer of 2007 is planned. CLIO is a 100-m baseline length prototype detector for LCGT to investigate interferometer performance in cryogenic condition. The key features of CLIO are that it locates Kamioka underground site for low seismic noise level, and adopts cryogenic Sapphire mirrors for low thermal noise level. The first operation of the cryogenic interferometer was successfully demonstrated in February of 2006. Current sensitivity at room temperature is close to the target sensitivity within a factor of 4. Several observation experiments at room temperature have been done. Once the displacement noise reaches at thermal noise level of room temperature, its improvement by cooling test mass mirrors should be demonstrated.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, Proceedings of GWDAW-1

Measurement and comparison of individual external doses of high-school students living in Japan, France, Poland and Belarus -- the "D-shuttle" project --

Twelve high schools in Japan (of which six are in Fukushima Prefecture), four in France, eight in Poland and two in Belarus cooperated in the measurement and comparison of individual external doses in 2014. In total 216 high-school students and teachers participated in the study. Each participant wore an electronic personal dosimeter "D-shuttle" for two weeks, and kept a journal of his/her whereabouts and activities. The distributions of annual external doses estimated for each region overlap with each other, demonstrating that the personal external individual doses in locations where residence is currently allowed in Fukushima Prefecture and in Belarus are well within the range of estimated annual doses due to the background radiation level of other regions/countries

No association between polymorphisms of WNT2 and schizophrenia in a Korean population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Wingless-type MMTV integration site family member 2 (WNT2) has a potentially important role in neuronal development; however, there has yet to be an investigation into the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of <it>WNT2 </it>and schizophrenia. This study aimed to determine whether certain SNPs of <it>WNT2 </it>were associated with schizophrenia in a Korean population.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>e genotyped 7 selected SNPs in the <it>WNT2 </it>gene region (approximately 46 Kb) using direct sequencing in 288 patients with schizophrenia and 305 healthy controls.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the SNPs examined, one SNP showed a weak association with schizophrenia (p = 0.017 in the recessive model). However, this association did not remain statistically significant after Bonferroni correction.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The present study does not support a major role for <it>WNT2 </it>in schizophrenia. This could be due to the size of the population. Therefore, additional studies would be needed to definitively rule out the gene's minor effects.</p

Coincidence analysis to search for inspiraling compact binaries using TAMA300 and LISM data

Japanese laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors, TAMA300 and LISM, performed a coincident observation during 2001. We perform a coincidence analysis to search for inspiraling compact binaries. The length of data used for the coincidence analysis is 275 hours when both TAMA300 and LISM detectors are operated simultaneously. TAMA300 and LISM data are analyzed by matched filtering, and candidates for gravitational wave events are obtained. If there is a true gravitational wave signal, it should appear in both data of detectors with consistent waveforms characterized by masses of stars, amplitude of the signal, the coalescence time and so on. We introduce a set of coincidence conditions of the parameters, and search for coincident events. This procedure reduces the number of fake events considerably, by a factor $\sim 10^{-4}$ compared with the number of fake events in single detector analysis. We find that the number of events after imposing the coincidence conditions is consistent with the number of accidental coincidences produced purely by noise. We thus find no evidence of gravitational wave signals. We obtain an upper limit of 0.046 /hours (CL $= 90$) to the Galactic event rate within 1kpc from the Earth. The method used in this paper can be applied straightforwardly to the case of coincidence observations with more than two detectors with arbitrary arm directions.Comment: 28 pages, 17 figures, Replaced with the version to be published in Physical Review

The nuclear receptors of Biomphalaria glabrata and Lottia gigantea: Implications for developing new model organisms

© 2015 Kaur et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are creditedNuclear receptors (NRs) are transcription regulators involved in an array of diverse physiological functions including key roles in endocrine and metabolic function. The aim of this study was to identify nuclear receptors in the fully sequenced genome of the gastropod snail, Biomphalaria glabrata, intermediate host for Schistosoma mansoni and compare these to known vertebrate NRs, with a view to assessing the snail's potential as a invertebrate model organism for endocrine function, both as a prospective new test organism and to elucidate the fundamental genetic and mechanistic causes of disease. For comparative purposes, the genome of a second gastropod, the owl limpet, Lottia gigantea was also investigated for nuclear receptors. Thirty-nine and thirty-three putative NRs were identified from the B. glabrata and L. gigantea genomes respectively, based on the presence of a conserved DNA-binding domain and/or ligand-binding domain. Nuclear receptor transcript expression was confirmed and sequences were subjected to a comparative phylogenetic analysis, which demonstrated that these molluscs have representatives of all the major NR subfamilies (1-6). Many of the identified NRs are conserved between vertebrates and invertebrates, however differences exist, most notably, the absence of receptors of Group 3C, which includes some of the vertebrate endocrine hormone targets. The mollusc genomes also contain NR homologues that are present in insects and nematodes but not in vertebrates, such as Group 1J (HR48/DAF12/HR96). The identification of many shared receptors between humans and molluscs indicates the potential for molluscs as model organisms; however the absence of several steroid hormone receptors indicates snail endocrine systems are fundamentally different.The National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research, Grant Ref:G0900802 to CSJ, LRN, SJ & EJR [www.nc3rs.org.uk]