IMAGE OF PERFUMES DURING MENSTRUAL CYCLE : SUBJECTIVE ESTIMATION BY SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL METHOD

The fluctuations in the image of six perfumes (rose, sandalwood, lemon, eucalyptus, peppermint and lavender) associated with the menstrual cycle were analyzed using the questionnaire based on the semantic differential method. Three female undergraduates (21-22 yr.) smelled the perfumes on filter paper and answered to the 20 items about subjective estimates of each perfume three days a week during three or four consecutive menstrual cycles. Factor analysis on the scores of the items revealed four main factors; "Evaluation", "Potency", "Maturation" and "Passion". The combination of these factors properly explained the characteristics of perfumes. The fluctuation of the factor scores of "Evaluation", "Maturation" and "Passion" during the menstrual cycle was evident in case of rose; minimum on the second day (menstruation phase) and maximum on the 17th day (post-ovulation phase). The perfume of peppermint and lavender also had a peak on the 17th day. Thus the questionnaire using semantic differential method proved useful to assess the image of perfume and sensitive to detect the cyclic variation

SYMPATHETIC BLOCKADE AFTER STELLATE GANGLION BLOCK : A CONTINUOUS RECORDING USING SKIN POTENTIAL ACTIVITY

Skin potential activities (SPA) were used to assess the degree of sympathetic blockade after stellate ganglion block (SGB). The SPA were recorded bilaterally from the palmar thenar eminences in four outpatients before and after SGB. Before the SGB, the skin potential responses (SPR) on both sides were synchronous and their amplitudes were almost the same. After SGB, the SPR amplitude on the blocked side gradually fell from 1-2 minutes. Before SGB, the skin potential levels (SPL) on both sides were parallel and the lateral difference was constant. About 1-2 minutes after SGB, the SPL on the blocked side began to fall and then reached a stationary level 5 minutes after SGB. SPA variations due to factors other than peripheral blockade can be cancelled by bilateral recording. Thus, the net SPL decrease on the blocked side compared with that on the non-blocked side was proved to be a useful index for continuous, quantitative monitoring of the sympathetic blockade by the SGB

Participation of androgen and its receptor in sex determination of an amphibian species.

INTRODUCTION:In the Japanese frog Rana (R.) rugosa the androgen receptor (AR) gene on the W chromosome (W-AR) is barely expressed. Previously we showed that incomplete female-to-male sex-reversal occurred in Z-AR transgenic female frogs. To date, however, there is no report showing that AR with androgens can determine genetically programed male sex fate in any vertebrate species. Here, we examined whether AR together with androgens functions as a sex determinant in an amphibian species. METHODS:To examine whether complete female-to-male sex-reversal occurs in R. rugosa frogs, we produced AR-transgenic (Tg) and -knockdown (KD) female R. rugosa frogs by the I-SceI meganuclease-mediated gene trap and CRISPR/Cas9 system, respectively. AR-Tg and -KD tadpoles were reared in water containing testosterone (T) at 0 to 7.1 ng/ml. Frozen sections were prepared from the gonads of metamorphosed frogs and immunostained for laminin, Vasa, Pat1a, CYP17 and AR. We also employed PCR analysis to examine Dmrt1, Pat1a and CYP17 expression in the gonads of KD and placebo-KD female frogs. RESULTS:Complete female-to-male sex-reversal occurred in the AR-Tg ZW female frogs when a low dosage of T was supplied in the rearing water of tadpoles. However, no sex-reversal was observed in AR-KD ZW female frogs when the gonads were treated with dosages of T high enough to induce complete female-to-male sex-reversal even in wild type frogs. DISCUSSION:These results suggest that AR with its androgen ligand functions as a male sex-determinant in the ZW type R. rugosa frogs

Immunohistology of Tg gonads.

<p>Frozen sections (7 μm) from the Tg and pTg ZW gonads treated with (+) and without (-) T at 0.02 ng/ml in the rearing water, and Wt ZZ, Wt ZW, Tg ZW and pTg ZW gonads were prepared and stained for Vasa, Pat1a, CYP17 and AR. ExA, external appearance. ZZ, male and ZW, female.</p

<i>Z-AR/V5</i>, <i>CYP17</i> and <i>Dmrt1</i> mRNA expression.

<p>RT-PCR analysis was employed to detect <i>Z-AR/V5</i>, <i>CYP17</i> and <i>Dmrt1</i> mRNA in Wt ZZ and Wt ZW, and Tg ZW and pTg ZW gonads treated with T at 0.02 ng/ml in the rearing water. Top panel, <i>Dmrt1</i> expression; 2nd panel, <i>CYP17</i> expression; 3rd panel, <i>Z-AR</i>/<i>V5</i> expression; bottom panel, genetic sex of each frog. ZZ, male and ZW, female.</p

Immunohistology of <i>AR</i>-KD gonads.

<p>We prepared frozen sections (7 μm) from the Wt ZZ and ZW gonads without T treatment, and KD and pKD ZW gonads treated with (+) and without (-) T at 2.0 ng/ml in the rearing water and stained them for laminin, Vasa, Pat1a, CYP17 and AR. ExA, external appearance. ZZ, male and ZW, female.</p