Development of reverse genetics for Ibaraki virus to produce viable VP6-tagged IBAV.

Ibaraki virus (IBAV) is a member of the epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) serogroup, which belongs to the Orbivirus genus of the Reoviridae family. Although EHDV, including IBAV, represents an ongoing threat to livestock in the world, molecular mechanisms of EHDV replication and pathogenesis have been unclear. The reverse genetics (RG) system is one of the strong tools to understand molecular mechanisms of virus replication. Here, we developed a RG system for IBAV to identify the nonessential region of a minor structural protein, VP6, by generating VP6-truncated IBAV. Moreover, several tags were inserted into the truncated region to produce VP6-tagged IBAV. We demonstrated that all VP6-tagged IBAV could replicate in BHK cells in the absence of any helper VP6 protein. Further, tagged-VP6 proteins were first assembled into puncta in cells infected with VP6-tagged IBAV. Our data suggests that, in order to initiate primary replication, IBAV VP6 is likely to accumulate in some parts of infected cells to assemble efficiently into the primary replication complex (subcore)

Experimental Evaluation of Mechanical Reliability of the Impeller Blade for Large Integrally Geared Compressors

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Experimental Evaluation of Mechanical Reliability of the Impeller Blade for Large Integrally Geared Compressors

Lectur

Genetic distance of inbred lines of Chinese cabbage and its relationship to heterosis

AbstractChinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. var. pekinensis) is an important vegetable in Asia. Most Japanese commercial cultivars of Chinese cabbage use an F1 hybrid seed production system because of the high yielding cultivars produced. An efficient method for predicting hybrid performance in the parental generations is desired, and genetic distance between parental lines might be a good indicator of the level of hybrid vigor in a cross. Information concerning the genetic relationships among parental candidate inbred lines is useful for variety protection. The number of DNA markers available that can be used to assess the purity of inbred lines is limited in B. rapa. The aim of this study is to use DNA markers to assess the genetic distance between inbred lines to examine early developmental and yield heterosis so as to develop methods for selecting the best parental lines for the production of hybrids. We screened highly polymorphic SSR and CAPS markers to assess the genetic uniformity of inbred lines and characterize their genetic relationship. We examined the early size and yield heterosis in 32 F1 hybrids of Chinese cabbage. There was a moderate correlation in mid-parent heterosis between leaf size at 21days after sowing and harvested biomass but not in best-parent heterosis. In contrast there was no correlation between genetic distance and mid-parent or best-parent heterosis, indicating that genetic distance does not predict the heterosis phenotype

Sensitization to alloxan-induced diabetes and pancreatic cell apoptosis in acatalasemic mice

AbstractHuman acatalasemia may be a risk factor for the development of diabetes mellitus. However, the mechanism by which diabetes is induced is still poorly understood. The impact of catalase deficiency on the onset of diabetes has been studied in homozygous acatalasemic mutant mice or control wild-type mice by intraperitoneal injection of diabetogenic alloxan. The incidence of diabetes was higher in acatalasemic mice treated with a high dose (180 mg/kg body weight) of alloxan. A higher dose of alloxan accelerated severe atrophy of pancreatic islets and induced pancreatic β cell apoptosis in acatalasemic mice in comparison to wild-type mice. Catalase activity remained low in the acatalasemic pancreas without the significant compensatory up-regulation of glutathione peroxidase or superoxide dismutase. Furthermore, daily intraperitoneal injection of angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor antagonist telmisartan (0.1 mg/kg body weight) prevented the development of alloxan-induced hyperglycemia in acatalasemic mice. This study suggests that catalase plays a crucial role in the defense against oxidative-stress-mediated pancreatic β cell death in an alloxan-induced diabetes mouse model. Treatment with telmisartan may prevent the onset of alloxan-induced diabetes even under acatalasemic conditions

Molecular and cellular characteristics of hybrid vigour in a commercial hybrid of Chinese cabbage

Abstract Background Heterosis or hybrid vigour is a phenomenon in which hybrid progeny exhibit superior performance compared to their parental inbred lines. Most commercial Chinese cabbage cultivars are F1 hybrids and their level of hybrid vigour is of critical importance and is a key selection criterion in the breeding system. Results We have characterized the heterotic phenotype of one F1 hybrid cultivar of Chinese cabbage and its parental lines from early- to late-developmental stages of the plants. Hybrid cotyledons are larger than those of the parents at 4 days after sowing and biomass in the hybrid, determined by the fresh weight of leaves, is greater than that of the larger parent line by approximately 20 % at 14 days after sowing. The final yield of the hybrid harvested at 63 days after sowing is 25 % greater than the yield of the better parent. The larger leaves of the hybrid are a consequence of increased cell size and number of the photosynthetic palisade mesophyll cells and other leaf cells. The accumulation of plant hormones in the F1 was within the range of the parental levels at both 2 and 10 days after sowing. Two days after sowing, the expression levels of chloroplast-targeted genes in the cotyledon cells were upregulated in the F1 hybrid relative to their mid parent values. Shutdown of chlorophyll biosynthesis in the cotyledon by norflurazon prevented the increased leaf area in the F1 hybrid. Conclusions In the cotyledons of F1 hybrids, chloroplast-targeted genes were upregulated at 2 days after sowing. The increased activity levels of this group of genes suggested that their differential transcription levels could be important for establishing early heterosis but the increased transcription levels were transient. Inhibition of the photosynthetic process in the cotyledon reduced heterosis in later seedling stages. These observations suggest early developmental events in the germinating seedling of the hybrid may be important for later developmental vigour and yield advantage.This work was supported in part by a grant-in-aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas (24113509) (JSPS), by the Sasakawa Scientific Research Grant (24–517) from The Japan Science Society, by Grant for Promotion of Niigata University Research Projects (23C024) and by PREST (12101066) (JST) to R. Fujimoto

Demonstration of iodide-dependent UVA-triggered growth inhibition in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells and identification of its suppressive molecules

Upon white light illumination, the growth of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was extremely impaired only in the presence of iodide ions, but not fluoride, chloride and bromide ions. Action spectroscopy revealed that the maximum wavelength of the light is around at 373 nm, corresponding to the UVA region. Using a genetic approach, several genes, including OPY1, HEM1, and PAU11, were identified as suppressors of this growth inhibition. This iodide-dependent UVA-triggered growth inhibition method, along with its suppressive molecules, would be beneficial for understanding cell growth processes in eukaryotes and can be utilized for medium sterilization using UVA light