Photoperiod regulate gonad development via kisspeptin/kissr in hypothalamus and saccus vasculosus of Atlantic salmon (<i>Salmo salar</i>) - Fig 1

<p>1a: The distribution of <i>sGnRH3</i> and <i>skissr</i> in the Atlantic salmon brain. Tel: telencephalon; Dien: diencephalon; Mes: mesencephalon; Pit: pituitary gland; SV: saccus vasculosus. Fig 1b: The expression of <i>sGnRH3</i> and <i>skissr</i> in the hypothalamus (A, B) and SV (C, D). The cells which express <i>sGnRH3</i> mRNA are indicated by blue arrows; the white arrows indicate the supporting cells of the SV; and the yellow arrows indicate the coronet cells of the SV. The results show that <i>skissr</i> is mainly expressed in the cerebrospinal fluid-contacting (CSF-c) cells of the SV. Hyp: hypothalamus; SV: saccus vasculosus; Results are presented as mean ± SD. Significant differences were found at p≦0.5* and p≦0.1**; and different letters indicate statistical significance at p < 0.05.</p

The co-expression of <i>sGnRH3</i> and <i>kissr</i> in the hypothalamus during the different stages of gonad development.

<p>A-D: the co-expression pattern of sGnRH3 and <i>skissr</i> in fish with gonad at stage II; E-H: the co-expression pattern of <i>sGnRH3</i> and <i>skissr</i> in fish with gonads at stage III/ IV (at this time, the transcript levels of <i>kissr</i> are very low); I-L: the co-expression pattern of <i>sGnRH3</i> and <i>skissr</i> in fish with gonads at stage V.</p

The expression levels of <i>skissr</i> transcripts in the hypothalamus (Fig 4a and 4c) and saccus vasculosus (Fig 4b and 4d) in fish with gonads at stage II (Fig 4a and 4b) and stage V (Fig 4c and 4d) under different photoperiod treatments.

<p>Data are shown as mean ±SD. One-way ANOVA is performed to determine the significant differences between means Columns sharing different letters show significant difference (p < 0.05).</p

Investigation of Ionic Liquids as Extraction Solvents for Separating Bicyclic Aromatic S/N-Compounds from FCC Diesel

To improve the quality of fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) diesel, ionic liquids (ILs) were used as promising neoteric solvents to extract bicyclic S/N-compounds (quinoline and 1-benzothiophene) from FCC model oil. In addition to the thermodynamic properties, including solvent capacity and selectivity, physical properties such as viscosity and thermal stability are also considered as important factors in the IL screening process. 1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([C2MIM][NTF2]) was selected as the most suitable extraction solvent by the COSMO-RS model, and the accuracy of this model was verified based on the collected experimental data. Liquid–liquid equilibrium experiments were performed to study the effects of the initial quinoline and 1-benzothiophene concentrations, mass solvent ratio, extraction stages, and the presence of other aromatics on the extraction efficiency. Then, the extraction mechanism and the differences in the extraction effects for the quinoline and 1-benzothiophene systems were explored by quantum chemical calculation and molecular dynamics simulation. The consistency between experiments and theoretical calculation indicates that the electrostatic interaction is the main reason for the difference in the extraction efficiency between the quinoline and 1-benzothiophene systems

The expression pattern of <i>skissr</i> in the hypothalamus (2a) and SV (2b) during the development process of Atlantic salmon.

<p>II: the gonad at stage II; III: the gonad at stage III; IV: the gonad at stage IV; V: the gonad at stage V. Fig 2c: The expression of <i>kissr</i> in the Atlantic salmon hypothalamus (A, B, C) and SV (D, E, F) when fish with different stages of gonad development are assayed using <i>in situ</i> hybridization. SV: Saccus vasculosus. The <i>kissr</i> was mainly expressed in the early and late stages of gonad development in Atlantic salmon both in the hypothalamus and the SV. Data are shown as mean ±SD. One-way ANOVA is performed to determine the significant differences between means Columns sharing different letters show significant difference (p < 0.05).</p

The primers used for amplification of gene by PCR.

<p>The primers used for amplification of gene by PCR.</p

The expression levels of <i>sGnRH3</i> transcripts in the hypothalamus (Fig 5a and 5c) and saccus vasculosus (Fig 5b and 5d) in fish with gonads at stage II (Fig 5a and 5b) and stage V (Fig 5c and 5d) under the different photoperiod treatments.

<p>Data are shown as mean ±SD. One-way ANOVA is performed to determine the significant differences between means Columns sharing different letters show significant difference (p < 0.05).</p

The primers used for real-time RT-PCR.

<p>The primers used for real-time RT-PCR.</p

The expression pattern of <i>sGnRH3</i> in the hypothalamus (3a) and saccus vasculosus(3b) during the development of Atlantic salmon.

<p>II: the gonad at stage II; III: the gonad at stage III; IV: the gonad at stage IV; V: the gonad at stage V.</p

The histology of the Atlantic salmon hypothalamus and saccus vasculosus in Atlantic salmon; A: longitudinal section of the Atlantic salmon brain. B: enlarged picture of the hypothalamus; C: enlarged picture of the saccus vasculosus.

<p>Hyp: hypothalamus; SV: saccus vasculosus. Green arrows indicate the coronet cells; the red arrow indicates the supporting cells; and the yellow arrow indicates the cerebrospinal fluid- contacting cells. NH: neurohypophysis.</p