Mechanism of adhesion and detachment at the anterior end of Merizocotyle icopae (Monogenea: Monocotylidae) including ultrastructure of the anterior adhesive matrix

The anterior adhesive mechanism was studied for Merizocotyle icopae (Monogenea: Monocotylidae). Adult anterior apertures can open and close. In addition, duct endings terminating within the apertures are everted or retracted depending on the stage of attachment. Adhesive in adults is synthesized from all 3 secretory types (rod-shaped, small and large spheroidal bodies) found within anterior apertures. All exit together and undergo mixing to produce the adhesive matrix, a process that depletes duct contents. A greater number of ducts carrying rod-shaped bodies is depleted than ducts containing spheroidal bodies which changes the ratio of secretory types present on detachment. Detachment involves elongation of duct endings and secretion of additional matrix as the worm pulls away from the substrate. The change in secretory type ratio putatively modifies the properties of the secreted matrix enabling detachment. Only after detachment do ducts refill. During attachment, individual secretory bodies undergo morphological changes. The larval and adult adhesive matrix differs. Anterior adhesive in oncomiracidia does not show fibres with banding whereas banded fibres comprise a large part of adult adhesive. The data suggest that this is the result of adult spheroidal secretions modifying the way in which the adult adhesive matrix forms.B. W. Cribb, W. D. Armstrong and I. D. Whittingto

A Novel Use of Light Guides and Wavelength Shifting Plates for the Detection of Scintillation Photons in Large Liquid Argon Detectors

Scintillation light generated as charged particles traverse large liquid argon detectors adds valuable information to studies of weakly-interacting particles. This paper uses both laboratory measurements and cosmic ray data from the Blanche dewar facility at Fermilab to characterize the efficiency of the photon detector technology developed at Indiana University for the single phase far detector of DUNE. The efficiency of this technology was found to be 0.48% at the readout end when the detector components were characterized with laboratory measurements. A second determination of the efficiency using cosmic ray tracks is in reasonable agreement with the laboratory determination. The agreement of these two efficiency determinations supports the result that minimum ionizing muons generate ${\mathcal N}_{phot} = 40,000$ photons/MeV as they cross the LAr volume.Comment: Accepted version (without final editorial corrections

Cross species transmission of Ovine Johne's Disease - Phase 2 cattle.

One thousand seven hundred and seventy four cattle from 12 properties were sampled by ELISA and faecal culture to detect Johne’s Disease. All properties had a known significant history of Johne’s disease in sheep. They were mostly selected from participants in NOJDP Trial 1.1 (a study to examine the effectiveness of an eradication strategy) and had cattle known to be susceptible to JD at the time that their properties were infected with OJD. All gave negative results on serology; only one animal from a herd of 349 gave a single positive faecal culture result, with all follow-up investigations being negative, suggesting passive transfer of the organism. Due to the small size of some of the herds tested, and the fact that no confirmed infected animals or herds were detected, it is not possible to give maximum estimate of the prevalence of OJD in exposed susceptible cattle. However, using information derived from previous investigations and some additional results in the addendum to this project report, it is known that there are at least 6 cattle herds infected with “S” strain, in NSW, at the present time

Effect of Length of Feeding Period of Performance of British and Exotic Crossbred Yearling Heifers

Producers very often question the additional length of time they should feed exotic-cross cattle as opposed to the feeding period required for the traditional British breeds of cattle. Also implied in this question in this question is the additional amount of feed needed for the exotic-cross animal to attain an optimum weight and an acceptable grade. This trial was conducted in an attempt to help answer these basic questions

Indirect Tissue Scaffold Fabrication via Fused Deposition Modeling and Biomimetic Mineralization

To alleviate material limitations of the additive manufacture of tissue scaffolds, researchers have looked to indirect fabrication approaches. The feature resolution of these processes is limited however, due to the viscous ceramic slurries that are typically employed. To alleviate these limitations, the authors look to an indirect fabrication process wherein a pattern, created using Fused Deposition Modeling, is biomimetically mineralized with an aqueous simulated body fluid, which forms a bonelike hydroxyapatite throughout the scaffold pattern. Mineralized patters are then heat treated to pyrolyze the pattern and sinter the minerals. With this process, scaffolds were created with wall thicknesses as small as 150 m and internal channel diameters of 280-340 m, an appropriate range for bone tissue engineering.Mechanical Engineerin

Seahorse Brood Pouch Transcriptome Reveals Common Genes Associated with Vertebrate Pregnancy

Viviparity (live birth) has evolved more than 150 times in vertebrates, and represents an excellent model system for studying the evolution of complex traits. There are at least 23 independent origins of viviparity in fishes, with syngnathid fishes (seahorses and pipefish) unique in exhibiting male pregnancy. Male seahorses and pipefish have evolved specialized brooding pouches that provide protection, gas exchange, osmoregulation, and limited nutrient provisioning to developing embryos. Pouch structures differ widely across the Syngnathidae, offering an ideal opportunity to study the evolution of reproductive complexity. However, the physiological and genetic changes facilitating male pregnancy are largely unknown. We used transcriptome profiling to examine pouch gene expression at successive gestational stages in a syngnathid with the most complex brood pouch morphology, the seahorse Hippocampus abdominalis. Using a unique time-calibrated RNA-seq data set including brood pouch at key stages of embryonic development, we identified transcriptional changes associated with brood pouch remodeling, nutrient and waste transport, gas exchange, osmoregulation, and immunological protection of developing embryos at conception, development and parturition. Key seahorse transcripts share homology with genes of reproductive function in pregnant mammals, reptiles, and other live-bearing fish, suggesting a common toolkit of genes regulating pregnancy in divergent evolutionary lineage

Alzheimer's Disease and Anesthesia

Cognitive disorders such as postoperative cognitive dysfunction, confusion, and delirium, are common following anesthesia in the elderly, with symptoms persisting for months or years in some patients. Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients appear to be particularly at risk of cognitive deterioration following anesthesia, and some studies suggest that exposure to anesthetics may increase the risk of AD. Here, we review the literature linking anesthesia to AD, with a focus on the biochemical consequences of anesthetic exposure on AD pathogenic pathways

Bone loss and aggravated autoimmune arthritis in HLA-DRβ1-bearing humanized mice following oral challenge with Porphyromonas gingivalis

BACKGROUND: The linkage between periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis is well established. Commonalities among the two are that both are chronic inflammatory diseases characterized by bone loss, an association with the shared epitope susceptibility allele, and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies. METHODS: To explore immune mechanisms that may connect the two seemingly disparate disorders, we measured host immune responses including T-cell phenotype and anti-citrullinated protein antibody production in human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR1 humanized C57BL/6 mice following exposure to the Gram-negative anaerobic periodontal disease pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis. We measured autoimmune arthritis disease expression in mice exposed to P. gingivalis, and also in arthritis-resistant mice by flow cytometry and multiplex cytokine-linked and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. We also measured femoral bone density by microcomputed tomography and systemic cytokine production. RESULTS: Exposure of the gingiva of DR1 mice to P. gingivalis results in a transient increase in the percentage of Th17 cells, both in peripheral blood and cervical lymph nodes, a burst of systemic cytokine activity, a loss in femoral bone density, and the generation of anti-citrullinated protein antibodies. Importantly, these antibodies are not produced in response to P. gingivalis treatment of wild-type C57BL/6 mice, and P. gingivalis exposure triggered expression of arthritis in arthritis-resistant mice. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure of gingival tissues to P. gingivalis has systemic effects that can result in disease pathology in tissues that are spatially removed from the initial site of infection, providing evidence for systemic effects of this periodontal pathogen. The elicitation of anti-citrullinated protein antibodies in an HLA-DR1-restricted fashion by mice exposed to P. gingivalis provides support for the role of the shared epitope in both periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis. The ability of P. gingivalis to induce disease expression in arthritis-resistant mice provides support for the idea that periodontal infection may be able to trigger autoimmunity if other disease-eliciting factors are already present