Early Cardiogenesis in the Newt Embryo

The migration of cardiogenic cells and the formation of a tubular heart in newt embryos were examined mainly by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Cardiogenic cells are known to localize at the border region of lateral mesoderm migrating in the space between the ectoderm and the endoderm. They initially (before stage 20 or mid-neurula) appeared to attach to the basal surface of the ectoderm, whereas later (after stage 22 or late neurula) they changed their scaffold to the endoderm. On the scaffold cell surface, very fine fibrils of extracellular matrix (ECM) were found. These fibrils were proved to be composed partly of fibronectin by the immunofluorescence method as well as by immunoSEM using latex bead-labeled antibody, suggesting their seemingly important role in migration of cardiogenic cells. At stage 26 or the early tail bud stage, when the tips of bilateral cardiogenic areas begin to fuse under the foregut, several free vasoformative cells are seen there and the mesodermal sheet itself splits into two layers to produce a coelomic cavity. The splanchnic wall of the coelomic or pericardial cavity was recognized to form a trough consisting of cobblestone-like myocardial cells not yet covered with the epicardium

Seasonal cycles of ozone and oxidized nitrogen species in northeast Asia - 2:A model analysis of the roles of chemistry and transport

[1] The dominant factors controlling the seasonal variations of ozone (O-3) and three major oxidized nitrogen species, peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and nitric acid (HNO3), in northeast Asia are investigated by using a three-dimensional global chemical transport model to analyze surface observations made at Rishiri Island, a remote island in northern Japan. The model was evaluated by comparing with observed seasonal variations, and with the relationships between O-3, CO, and PAN. We show that the model reproduces the chemical environment at Rishiri Island reasonably well, and that the seasonal cycles of O-3, CO, NOy species, and VOCs are well predicted. The impact of local emissions on some of these constituents is significant, but is not the dominant factor affecting the seasonal cycles. The seasonal roles of chemistry and transport in controlling O-3 and PAN are revealed by examining production/ destruction and import/ export/deposition fluxes in the boundary layer over the Rishiri region. For O-3, transport plays a key role throughout the year, and the regional photochemical contribution is at most 10% in summer. For PAN, in contrast, transport dominates in winter, while in-situ chemistry contributes as much as 75% in summer. It is suggested that the relative contribution of transport and in-situ chemistry is significantly different for O-3 and PAN, but that the wintertime dominance of transport due to the long chemical lifetimes of these species is sufficient to drive the seasonal cycles of springtime maximum and summertime minimum characteristic of remote sites

Resistance of autotetraploids of grapevine rootstock cultivars to phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae FITCH)

Resistance of colchicine-induced autotetraploids of four grapevine rootstock cultivars (Riparia Gloire de Montpellier, Rupestris St. George, Couderc 3309 and Kober 5BB) to phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae FITCH) was evaluated using the aseptic co-culture technique of root segments and phylloxera in a petri dish, and compared with those of the original diploid and Cabernet Franc (Vitis vinifera L.). None or very few phylloxera nymphs grew to adults on the root of the rootstock cultivars and their autotetrapolids whereas 26.8 % of the eggs grew to adults on the roots of Cabernet Franc. Resistance of Riparia Gloire de Mont-pellier, Rupestris St. George, Couderc 3309 and their autotetraploids to phylloxera was also tested by planting in a phylloxera-infested vineyard and compared with that of Kyoho, a tetraploid table grape cultivar (V. vinifera x V. labrusca Bailey). The formation of galls on the root tips of tetraploid rootstock cultivars was not increased significantly as compared to that on their original diploid plants whereas galls were formed on 52.9% of Kyoho root tips examined. These results show that the autotetraploid rootstock cultivars used in this study had high resistance to phylloxera, thus they were not different from the original diploids.

SP creep properties of Gr.91 boiler pipings service-exposed in different USC power plants

The small punch (SP) testing technique was applied to five heats of Gr.91 steel, which had been actually used for boiler pipings in different USC power plants for long periods of time to investigate the applicability of this technique to the assessment of heat-to-heat variation of creep property. The experimental results revealed that the SP creep rupture strength and deformation behavior were quite different depending on the heat. Those differences in SP creep property, which could not be evaluated by hardness measurement, were qualitatively similar to those in standard uniaxial creep one. It was expected that the SP creep testing technique was applicable to the assessment of heat-to-heat variation for in-service boiler pipings

Fatigue strength assessment of SUS316 by small bulge fatigue (SBF) test

A new fatigue test apparatus with a small disk-type specimen (8 mm in diameter) was developed in the authors’ group. This testing technique was termed “Small Bulge Fatigue (SBF) test”. Unlike the small punch (SP) test, a hydraulic bulging method was adopted for avoiding problems attributable to the contact or the friction between ball and specimen. A cyclic oil pressure could be alternatively applied to both specimen surfaces at the frequency of 10 Hz. The specimen thickness of central region (gauge area) was relatively reduced to avoid cracking at the edge of specimen, and the characteristic small disk-type specimen with flat and concave surfaces was proposed considering machinability and handleability. Austenitic stainless steel SUS316 was subjected to the preliminary test using this newly developed testing technique. The obtained results indicated that this SBF test had a potential for fatigue strength assessment

Disrupted Membrane Structure and Intracellular Ca2+ Signaling in Adult Skeletal Muscle with Acute Knockdown of Bin1

Efficient intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) homeostasis in skeletal muscle requires intact triad junctional complexes comprised of t-tubule invaginations of plasma membrane and terminal cisternae of sarcoplasmic reticulum. Bin1 consists of a specialized BAR domain that is associated with t-tubule development in skeletal muscle and involved in tethering the dihydropyridine receptors (DHPR) to the t-tubule. Here, we show that Bin1 is important for Ca2+ homeostasis in adult skeletal muscle. Since systemic ablation of Bin1 in mice results in postnatal lethality, in vivo electroporation mediated transfection method was used to deliver RFP-tagged plasmid that produced short –hairpin (sh)RNA targeting Bin1 (shRNA-Bin1) to study the effect of Bin1 knockdown in adult mouse FDB skeletal muscle. Upon confirming the reduction of endogenous Bin1 expression, we showed that shRNA-Bin1 muscle displayed swollen t-tubule structures, indicating that Bin1 is required for the maintenance of intact membrane structure in adult skeletal muscle. Reduced Bin1 expression led to disruption of t-tubule structure that was linked with alterations to intracellular Ca2+ release. Voltage-induced Ca2+ released in isolated single muscle fibers of shRNA-Bin1 showed that both the mean amplitude of Ca2+ current and SR Ca2+ transient were reduced when compared to the shRNA-control, indicating compromised coupling between DHPR and ryanodine receptor 1. The mean frequency of osmotic stress induced Ca2+ sparks was reduced in shRNA-Bin1, indicating compromised DHPR activation. ShRNA-Bin1 fibers also displayed reduced Ca2+ sparks' amplitude that was attributed to decreased total Ca2+ stores in the shRNA-Bin1 fibers. Human mutation of Bin1 is associated with centronuclear myopathy and SH3 domain of Bin1 is important for sarcomeric protein organization in skeletal muscle. Our study showing the importance of Bin1 in the maintenance of intact t-tubule structure and ([Ca2+]i) homeostasis in adult skeletal muscle could provide mechanistic insight on the potential role of Bin1 in skeletal muscle contractility and pathology of myopathy

A method of determining where to target surveillance efforts in heterogeneous epidemiological systems

The spread of pathogens into new environments poses a considerable threat to human, animal, and plant health, and by extension, human and animal wellbeing, ecosystem function, and agricultural productivity, worldwide. Early detection through effective surveillance is a key strategy to reduce the risk of their establishment. Whilst it is well established that statistical and economic considerations are of vital importance when planning surveillance efforts, it is also important to consider epidemiological characteristics of the pathogen in question—including heterogeneities within the epidemiological system itself. One of the most pronounced realisations of this heterogeneity is seen in the case of vector-borne pathogens, which spread between ‘hosts’ and ‘vectors’—with each group possessing distinct epidemiological characteristics. As a result, an important question when planning surveillance for emerging vector-borne pathogens is where to place sampling resources in order to detect the pathogen as early as possible. We answer this question by developing a statistical function which describes the probability distributions of the prevalences of infection at first detection in both hosts and vectors. We also show how this method can be adapted in order to maximise the probability of early detection of an emerging pathogen within imposed sample size and/or cost constraints, and demonstrate its application using two simple models of vector-borne citrus pathogens. Under the assumption of a linear cost function, we find that sampling costs are generally minimised when either hosts or vectors, but not both, are sampled

An overview of using small punch testing for mechanical characterization of MCrAlY bond coats

Considerable work has been carried out on overlay bond coats in the past several decades because of its excellent oxidation resistance and good adhesion between the top coat and superalloy substrate in the thermal barrier coating systems. Previous studies mainly focus on oxidation and diffusion behavior of these coatings. However, the mechanical behavior and the dominant fracture and deformation mechanisms of the overlay bond coats at different temperatures are still under investigation. Direct comparison between individual studies has not yet been achieved due to the fragmentary data on deposition processes, microstructure and, more apparently, the difficulty in accurately measuring the mechanical properties of thin coatings. One of the miniaturized specimen testing methods, small punch testing, appears to have the potential to provide such mechanical property measurements for thin coatings. The purpose of this paper is to give an overview of using small punch testing to evaluate material properties and to summarize the available mechanical properties that include the ductile-to-brittle transition and creep of MCrAlY bond coat alloys, in an attempt to understand the mechanical behavior of MCrAlY coatings over a broad temperature range