Spontaneous movement and ataxic gait in ataxic mice showing various pathological changes in the cerebellum were investigated according to developmental stage by the open-field method of comparison with normal mice. As the cerebllum contains relatively high levels of cyclic nucleotide, its concentration was measured by radioimmunoassay to elucidate the correlation between spontaneous movement and ataxic gait and the neurological changes. The movements of Rolling Mouse Nagoya (RMN), Weaver and Reeler mice without Purkinje Cell Degeneration (PCD) were found to decrease at 4 and 12 weeks of age. The degree of ataxic gait worseened in RMN, was unchanged in Reeler and improved in Weaver and PCD mice. The cerebellar c-GMP concentration of ataxic mice was decreased, while no significant changes in c-AMP concentration were found in comparison with normal mice. With development, the level of cerebellar c-GMP in Weaver mice incceased, but this was not apparent in RMN, Reeler or PCD mice. The results of this investigation indicated that there may be some relation between the degree of ataxic gait and the level of cerebellar c-GMP in Weaver mice.

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Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity in fecal excretions was measured in male Wistar rats. Total daily ALP activity in fecal extracts was 133.1±21.2 μmoles/min per rat weighing approximately 150g. We found that 63.7% of the fecal ALP activity was inhibited by 30 mM L-phenylalanine (L-Phe), a specific inhibitor for intestinal ALP. As body weight increased from 150g to 300g, total daily ALP activity in fecal extracts decreased rapidly to 33.7±6.08μmoles/min/rat. However, the percentage of L-Phe-sensitive ALP to total enzyme activity was less variable (40-65%) in the growing rats. Cysteamine-HCI, an ulcerogenic drug, was injected subcutaneously to adult rats (300g b. w) at a dosage of 400mg/kg. b. w. Daily excretion of L-Phe-sensitive ALP in fecal extracts decreased to one-third 2 days after injection. Afterwards, a steep and transient increase in the enzyme activity was detected in fecal extracts between days 4 and 7 after injection. ALP activity in fecal excretions may be a clinical indicator of duodenal mucosal damage.

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Effects of intrauterine position of the fetuses on the weight of fetal sac, fetus and placenta were investigated on the 21th day of unilaterally (right) ovariectomized pregnant Wistar strain rats. Results were obtained as follows. 1. Litter size was negatively correlated with the mean weights of fetal sac and fetus. 2. The mean weights of male fetal sac and fetus were heavier than those of female ones, while there was no difference in the weight of placenta between male and female. 3. The mean weights of male fetal sac and fetus positioning ovarian end (OV) were lighter than those of ones at the other positions. And the highest frequency of the lightest weight of live fetuses was demonstrated at OV position. 4. The mean weights of male fetal sac and fetus positioning between two males (2M) were heavier than those of ones positioning not next to male (0M) . And the mean weight of 2M female fetal sac was heavier than those of 0M one. 5. The mean weights of fetal sac and fetus positioning next to resorbed fetus were heavier than those of ones positioning not next to resorbed fetus.

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A new hereditary dwarf mutation was found in Csk: Wistar-Imamichi rat breeding colony. The mutant rats and control normal rats were studied with clinical, genetical and histological examination. The result showed that the present mutation was inherited in autosomal recessive trait (gene symbol; rdw) and was provoked with the hypoplasia of pars distalis (anterior pituitary), in particular the secretory cells of GH, PRL and TSH. The characteristics of the present mutant (rdw) was very similar to dw mouse, and was usefull for endocrinological research as an animal model of human pituitary dwarfism.

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An epizootic of Staphylococcus infection causing abscesses was encountered in a smallscale breeding colony of nude mice of BALB/c background. The incidence of abscess was sporadic and mostly nude (nu/nu) mice aged over 3 months were affected. Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from the face, oral cavity, and feces of almost all nu/nu and heterozygous (nu/+) mice in the colony. After a prolonged time period, up to 10 to 14 months of age, almost all the S. aureus-carrying nu/nu mice produced abscesses and eventually died. Athymicity of the host seemed to be a prerequisite for the abscess formation since nu/+ mice were spared from the lesions. Also, transfer of immunocompetent spleen cells cured the abscesses of the affected nude mice.

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Hematological and serum biochemical data obtained from 91 laboratory-bred cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) aged 11 to 362 days were analyzed by the discriminant analysis. All animals used had been bred and reared under uniform environmenal conditions at Tsukuba Primate Center for Medical Science, N. I. H., Japan. The examination items were as follows: red blood cell count (RBC), hematocrit value (Ht), hemoglobin concentratio (Hb), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), white hood cell count (WBC), glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase activity (GOT), glutamic pyruvic transaminase activity (GPT), total protein concentration (TP), albumin concentration (ALB), albumin-globulin ratio (A/C), blood urea nitrogn (BUN), glcose concentration (GLU), total cholesterol concentration (TCHO), free cholesterol concentration (FCHO), triglyceride concentratio (TG), alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP) and calcium concentration (Ca) . The animals were divided into four groups (A: Suckling infants, less than 176 days old. B, C, D: Weanlings and juveniles, 121 to 220 days old, 221 to 280 days old, and 281 to 362 days old, respectively) . Discrimination was possible among these four groups on the basis of the Mahalanobis' generalized distance. Regarding the canonical discriminant analysis (discriminant analysis with reduction of dimensionality), discrimintion was possible. The suckling infant group could be discriminated from the juvenile groups by the first canonical variate. Concerning the juvenile groups, age was highly correlated to the value of the second canonical variate. Judging from an approximate relative eigenvector value for the second canonical variate, the effective discriminant variables were WBC, TP, ALB, A/G, TCHO, FCHO, TG, and ALP. It can be concluded that these eight parameters are important and useful for monitoring the physiologicals conditions of growing juvenile monkeys.

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Morphometrical observations were carried out on the mandibles of chimeras made from the embryos of C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice to compare with the two strains and their reciprocal F₁ crosses. The results of the principal component analysis indicate that the first principal component (PC1) and the second principal component (PC2) extracted might be acceptable as size and shape factors, respectively. Variations of both PC1 and PC2 were generally larger in the chimeras than in the two component strains and their F₁ crosses. The mean PC1 value of the chimeras was larger than that of the two component inbred strains, and it was similar to that of F₁ crosses, or slightly larger. The overall size of the mandible represented by PC1 tended to be larger in the chimeras consisting of two component cells that were approximately equivalent than in those that shifted to either cell population. The above trend was observed in both sexes. These results indicate that chimeric heterosis due to the interaction between genetically different cells (C57BL/6 and BALB/c) has some relation to mandible size. The mean PC2 value, which was accepted as shape factor, was intermediate between the two inbred strains. The mandible size (PC1) and shape (PC2) were bilaterally symmetrical, except for the shape in the female chimeras and in (C57BL/6×BALB/c) F₁.

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The standard value of serum insulin was determined to be less than 75μU/ml with ninety-eight female adult cynomolgus monkeys of wild origin. Then, fifteen apparently healthy laboratory-bred female cynomolgus monkeys aged 6-8 years were studied to know the usefulness of the arginine tolerance test (ATT) by measuring blood glucose, insulin and glucagon. Prior to ATT, all animals had been diagnosed as non-diabetic by the intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) . Arginine hydrochloride was infused intravenously at a dose of 0.5g/kg. BW under anesthesia. According to the standard value of insulin, fifteen animals were divided into two groups, that is, the low (n=7) and the high (n=8) value groups. In the low value group, glucose and insulin value did not change significantly after arginine infusion and their responses were similar to those in the control group (saline infused, n=4) . But glucagon markedly increased from 10 to 45 minutes post infusion. In the high value group, glucagon response was similar to that in the low value group, while glucose and insulin values significantly decreased. It is concluded that the pancreatic a-cell function (glucagon secretion) can be judged by the ATT in the cynomolgus monkey but the β-cell function (insulin secretion) can not be diagnosed.

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It was demonstrated that the transmission S. pneumoniae in guinea pigs was remarkably promoted by the combined infection with Sendai virus in the following experiments. When guinea pigs infected with S. pneumoniae alone (infector) were cage-mated with nontreated guinea pigs (contact) for 2 and 4 weeks, only 2 of 30 contacts were infected with the organism. On the contrary, when the contact guinea pigs were infected with Sendai virus and immediately cage-mated with the infectors, the pneumococcal infection occurred in 25 of 30 contacts during 2 to 4 weeks period. In the experiment in which 30 non-treated contacts were cage-mated with pneumococcal infectors for 4 weeks and then infected with Sendai virus, no pneumococcal infection was demonstrated in the contacts, suggesting no presence of latent infection of the organism in the contact guinea pigs. Twenty-five of 30 contacts suffered from pneumococcal infection when they were exposed to Sendai virus for 2 weeks and then cage-mated with infectors. The multiplication of S, pneumoniae in the respiratory trect of the guinea pigs was remarkably enhanced by combined infection with Sendai virus. Namely, a 1000-fold increase in the number of organism resulted in the guinea pigs suffered from combined infection as compared with that in the animals received pneumococcal single infection.

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An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for detection of CAR bacillus antibody in rat sera was developed by Ganaway et al., in 1985 although the ELISA method was not described in detail. We investigated antigen preparation and test procedures of the ELISA using two strains of CAR bacillus which we isolated from a mouse (CB-M) and a rat (CB-R) . Allantoic fluids containing 2.4×10⁸/ml of CB-M and 2.0×10⁸/ml of CB-R were washed with sterile phosphate buffered saline (PBS), resuspended in a 1/5 volume of sterile carbonate buffer (pH 9.8) and sonicated. Then 1/40 and 1/80 dilutions of CB-M and CB-R lysates in PBS, respectively, were used for antigen solutions of ELISA. Briefly, antibodies in sera are reacted with antigens coated on the surface of microtiter plates. The amount of horse radish peroxidase labeled protein-A or anti-rat IgG bound to the antigen-antibody complexes is measured on the spectro photometer at wave length of 492 nm. A total of 180 mouse and 205 rat sera were tested against both antigens. The optical density (OD) values of 140 mouse and 161 rat sera obtained from SPF mice and rats free from CAR bacillus infection were on the average 0.005 and 0.019, respectively. On the other hand, OD values of the sera collected from CB-M or CB-R infected animals ranged from 0.20 to 1.52. According to these results, the cut-off OD value for positive reaction was set at 0.1. A statistically significant correlation of OD values was found between CB-M antigen (Ag) and CB-R Ag ELISA assays (r=0.85, p<0.001) . Both of the CB-M Ag and CB-R Ag ELISA were considered to be useful for detection of CAR bacillus antibody in mice and rats.

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The characteristics of 50 strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from BALB/c nude mice (nu/nu, nu/+) with or without subcutaneous abscesses [13] were examined. All the 50 strains belonged to biotype B according to the classification by Hájek and Maršálek. All of them were phage typable, showing a single phage pattern of 52A/79 /47/53/77/83A/85. The coagulase type was classified as VII. All of the 50 strains were highly sensitive to penicillin, methylphenylisoxazolyl penicillin, erythromycin, spiramycin, lincomycin, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, kanamycin, gentamicin and cephaloridine, but were resistant to sulfisoxazole. Two S. aureus strains isolated from the nostril and finger of one person working in the mouse colony were identified as the same biotype as the murine strains but different in phage type, coagulase type and drug resistance pattern.

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The trembler chickens, which spontaneously occured in the Poultry farm of Animal Genetics Laboratory of Nagoya University, showed the phenotypic symptoms as of the tremor of the head, neck and body. Mild symptoms of shaking were observed in most of the day-old affected chicks, but this sign will be kept calm during 1-4 weeks old. Subsequently, trembling became clearly evident. Progressing with age, the trembling severely increased inducing the chickens to walk with a stumbling gait. In the terminal stages the chickens were hardly to stand and die from inanition. Mating experiments between half-sib and sire-daughter have revealed that the responsible gene (tr) for the trembler chicken is an autosomal recessive gene.

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To elucidate the ataxic mechanism of Wriggle mouse Sagami (WMS), a behavioural pharmacological investigation was carried out by open-field study. The dysfuncion of DA receptor, a-receptor, β-receptor, 5-HT receptor and Ach-receptor appeared in WMS. Further examination will be necessary to investigate WMS with receptor dysfunction.

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A new type of cage including a running wheel basket and tilting floor was developed. Using this cage it was possible to record simultaneously wheel-running and ambulatory activity of the rat.

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A reproducible procedure was devised for making histological preparations of early mouse embryos cultured in vitro. This method was characterized by use of a resinous embedding material, Technovit 7100, and a 96-well U-bottomed microplate, which enabled efficient rinsing and dehydration of fixed embryos without loss. Technovit 7100 polymerized or hardened at room temperature slowly enough to allow sedimentation of embryos to the bottom, which enabled more correct prediction of the place of the embryos at sectioning. The present method will lead to easier microscopic observation of early embryos in embryology.

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The lordosis behavior in female rats following removal of the vomeronasal organ (VNO) was observed for a period of 14 hrs by means of a video camera monitor. Although the VNO-ablated female rats received a large number of mounts (96 to 204 times) by sexually active males, they showed only low scores (8 to 22) of lordosis quotients (number of lordosis behavior displayed/number of mounts×100) . In contrast, sham-operated females showed the highest lordosis quotients of 100 as was expected.

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Tear proteins were detected by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the vole, Microtus arvalis. The tear proteins were separated to 6 to 8 bands and the bands were divided to three regions on the anodic side. In the adult male vole, a male specific band (Vtp-1) was detected in the first region. The first region of adult female and immature voles contained two specific bands (Vtp-2, 3) . In the castrated adult males or adult males injected with estrogen, the male specific hand, Vtp-1, disappeared and Vtp-2 and 3 bands appeared. In all castrated voles, the Vtp-1 band appeared and Vtp-2 and 3 bands disappeared after the administration of testosterone. Thus, sex hormone-dependent proteins are present in vole tears.

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Coprophagy in female mice was observed predominantly in the reproductive stage. Female mice exhibited coprophagy more frequently during pregnancy and ingested larger amounts of feces during pregnancy and lactation than when they were not pregnant. Feces were found to be rich in vitamin B12 and folic acid. However, there were no marked fluctuations in the levels of either vitamin in the feces during pregnancy or lactation as compared with levels when animals were not pregnant. Acceleration of coprophagy during pregnancy and lactation seemed to correlate with the increased nutri-tional requirements of females during the reproductive stage.

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A survey on the number of animals used in experiments including bioassay, diagnosis, education and preparation of biological agents such as vaccines between April 1986 and March 1987 was conducted. Out of 917 universities, institutes, hosipitals, testing laboratories and companies, 433 replies were received. The distribution of the number of animals is shown in the following tables : Number of Animals Used in Experiments in 1986 and 1981

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