Preliminary study of discrimination of human vocal commands in walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens)

Walruses seem to use various acoustic signals in social context. So, the auditory faculty is seems to be important for walruses. Can walruses understand another animals' vocal information using auditory sense? This study tested whether a male walrus could discriminate human vocal words and perform different actions corresponding to each one under various conditions. The subject, a male walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) named Pou, was set on the ground, and the experimenter spoke one of the ten words to the subject under the following conditions; (1) The experimenter stood close to the subject and spoke each vocal stimulus wearing a black cloak and goggles so that the experimenter's eye and body movements would not influence the subject's behavior, (2) A wooden board was placed between the experimenter and the subject so that the subject could not see the experimenter, (3) A wooden board was placed between the experimenter and the subject so that the subject could not to see the experimenter, and the experimenter uttered each vocal stimulus through an audio speaker. Under each condition, when the subject performed the correct action corresponding to the vocal stimulus, he was rewarded with a piece of fish. As a result, the subject responded correctly to almost all the human vocal stimuli in every condition, including when the speaker was not visible. This means that he was indeed responding to the vocal words and not the experimenter's cues. This study demonstrated that walruses can hear and identify human vocal words using their auditory sense and can form correspondence between vocal words and their meanings

COVID-19 pandemic challenges and lessons learned by pharmacy educators around the globe

The coronavirus identified in 2019 (COVID-19) has affected peoples’ lives worldwide. This pandemic forced both pharmacy faculty members and students to adapt to a new teaching and learning environment not only in the United States but around the globe. Pharmacy educators faced challenges and opportunities to convert classroom learning and experiences, as well as student assessments, to a remote or online format. The unique approaches taken to overcome difficulties in various countries showed pharmacy faculty members’ resilience in the face of adversity and their determination to continue providing education to students. The pandemic also shed light on areas needing improvement for pharmacy educators to work on in the future

RNA-seq Transcriptional Profiling of an Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Provides Insights into Regulated and Coordinated Gene Expression in Lotus japonicus and Rhizophagus irregularis

Gene expression during arbuscular mycorrhizal development is highly orchestrated in both plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. To elucidate the gene expression profiles of the symbiotic association, we performed a digital gene expression analysis of Lotus japonicus and Rhizophagus irregularis using a HiSeq 2000 next-generation sequencer with a Cufflinks assembly and de novo transcriptome assembly. There were 3,641 genes differentially expressed during arbuscular mycorrhizal development in L. japonicus, approximately 80% of which were up-regulated. The up-regulated genes included secreted proteins, transporters, proteins involved in lipid and amino acid metabolism, ribosomes and histones. We also detected many genes that were differentially expressed in small-secreted peptides and transcription factors, which may be involved in signal transduction or transcription regulation during symbiosis. Coregulated genes between arbuscular mycorrhizal and root nodule symbiosis were not particularly abundant, but transcripts encoding for membrane traffic-related proteins, transporters and iron transport-related proteins were found to be highly co-up-regulated. In transcripts of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, expansion of cytochrome P450 was observed, which may contribute to various metabolic pathways required to accommodate roots and soil. The comprehensive gene expression data of both plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi provide a powerful platform for investigating the functional and molecular mechanisms underlying arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis.ArticlePLANT AND CELL PHYSIOLOGY. 56(8):1490-1511 (2015)journal articl

A Spectroscopic Survey of Electronic Transitions of C6_6H, 13^{13}C6_6H, and C6_6D

Electronic spectra of C$_6$H are measured in the $18\,950-21\,100$ cm$^{-1}$ domain using cavity ring-down spectroscopy of a supersonically expanding hydrocarbon plasma. In total, 19 (sub)bands of C$_6$H are presented, all probing the vibrational manifold of the B$^2\Pi$ electronically excited state. The assignments are guided by electronic spectra available from matrix isolation work, isotopic substitution experiments (yielding also spectra for $^{13}$C$_6$H and C$_6$D), predictions from ab initio calculations as well as rotational fitting and vibrational contour simulations using the available ground state parameters as obtained from microwave experiments. Besides the $0_0^0$ origin band, three non-degenerate stretching vibrations along the linear backbone of the C$_6$H molecule are assigned: the $\nu_6$ mode associated with the C-C bond vibration and the $\nu_4$ and $\nu_3$ modes associated with C$\equiv$C triple bonds. For the two lowest $\nu_{11}$ and $\nu_{10}$ bending modes, a Renner-Teller analysis is performed identifying the $\mu^2\Sigma$($\nu_{11}$) and both $\mu^2\Sigma$($\nu_{10}$) and $\kappa^2\Sigma$($\nu_{10}$) components. In addition, two higher lying bending modes are observed, which are tentatively assigned as $\mu^2\Sigma$($\nu_9$) and $\mu^2\Sigma$($\nu_8$) levels. In the excitation region below the first non-degenerate vibration ($\nu_6$), some $^2\Pi-^{2}\Pi$ transitions are observed that are assigned as even combination modes of low-lying bending vibrations. The same holds for a $^2\Pi-^{2}\Pi$ transition found above the $\nu_6$ level. From these spectroscopic data and the vibronic analysis a comprehensive energy level diagram for the B$^2\Pi$ state of C$_6$H is derived and presented.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Journal of Physical Chemistry A (26 July 2016

Preparation of partial-thickness burn wounds in rodents using a new experimental burning device

Objective: The manual application of hot water or hot metal to an animal's skin surface is often used to prepare burn wound models. However, manual burn creation is subject to human variability.We developed a new device that can control the temperature, time, and pressure of contact to produce precise and reproducible animal burn wounds and investigated the conditions required to prepare various burn wounds using our new device. Methods: We prepared burnwounds on F344 rats using 3 contact times 2, 4, and 10 seconds using a stamp heated to 80C. We observed the wound-healing process macroscopically and histologically and evaluated the burn depth using a laser speckle contrast-imaging device, which evaluated the blood flow of the wound. Results: The changes in the burned area over time, tissue perfusion of the burn wounds, histological evaluation of the burn depth by hematoxylin-eosin and azocarmine and aniline blue staining, and the epithelialization rate (the ratio of the epithelialized area to the wound length) were evaluated on histological sections. Results indicated that the burn wounds prepared with contact times of 2, 4, and 10 seconds corresponded to superficial dermal burns, deep dermal burns, and full-thickness burns, respectively. Conclusions: We demonstrated that partial-and full-thickness burn wounds can be precisely and reproducibly created with our new automated burning device

Cellular senescence triggers intracellular acidification and lysosomal pH alkalinized via ATP6AP2 attenuation in breast cancer cells

がん治療薬による乳がん細胞の老化とpH調整の解明 --新規細胞老化のメカニズム解明に貢献--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-11-27.Several chemotherapeutic drugs induce senescence in cancer cells; however, the mechanisms underlying intracellular pH dysregulation in senescent cells remain unclear. Adenosine triphosphatase H+ transporting accessory protein 2 (ATP6AP2) plays a critical role in maintaining pH homeostasis in cellular compartments. Herein, we report the regulatory role of ATP6AP2 in senescent breast cancer cells treated with doxorubicin (Doxo) and abemaciclib (Abe). A decline in ATP6AP2 triggers aberrant pH levels that impair lysosomal function and cause immune profile changes in senescent breast cancer cells. Doxo and Abe elicited a stable senescent phenotype and altered the expression of senescence-related genes. Additionally, senescent cells show altered inflammatory and immune transcriptional profiles due to reprogramming of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype. These findings elucidate ATP6AP2-mediated cellular pH regulation and suggest a potential link in immune profile alteration during therapy-induced senescence in breast cancer cells, providing insights into the mechanisms involved in the senescence response to anticancer therapy

Peptidyl prolyl isomerase Pin1-inhibitory activity of d-glutamic and d-aspartic acid derivatives bearing a cyclic aliphatic amine moiety

AbstractPin1 is a peptidyl prolyl isomerase that specifically catalyzes cis–trans isomerization of phosphorylated Thr/Ser-Pro peptide bonds in substrate proteins and peptides. Pin1 is involved in many important cellular processes, including cancer progression, so it is a potential target of cancer therapy. We designed and synthesized a novel series of Pin1 inhibitors based on a glutamic acid or aspartic acid scaffold bearing an aromatic moiety to provide a hydrophobic surface and a cyclic aliphatic amine moiety with affinity for the proline-binding site of Pin1. Glutamic acid derivatives bearing cycloalkylamino and phenylthiazole groups showed potent Pin1-inhibitory activity comparable with that of known inhibitor VER-1. The results indicate that steric interaction of the cyclic alkyl amine moiety with binding site residues plays a key role in enhancing Pin1-inhibitory activity