The extensor and flexor group muscles and their related muscles were functional-morphologically observed in the dead body of the giant panda to clarify the action of the forearm and the palm in the manipulation of the species. The Musculus flexor carpi ulnaris had two developed heads, however, we can conclude that the contraction of this muscle slightly changes the angle of the accessory carpal bone to the ulna. The data pointed out that the accessory carpal bone acts as a supporting post, when the giant panda seizes the object. The M. abductor digiti I longus possessed the well-developed origin in both ulna and radius. These findings suggest that this muscle may function as a supinator of the forearm. We also suggest that the well-developed M. pronator quadratus and M. pronator teres, and the proximal part of the M. abductor digiti I longus and the M. supinator may efficiently contribute to the pronator-spinator action of the forearm, when the giant panda brings the food to its mouth using the manipulation system equipped in the palm region.

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Age-related morphological changes were examined in the kidneys of inbred C57BL/6Cr mice maintained in a controlled environment. The specific pathogen free status of animals used in the present study was confirmed by microbiological monitoring. Kidneys were histologically and histometrically investigated at 3, 5, 12, 15, 24 and 27-months-old. Kidney weights did not change with age. Renal corpuscles increased in number at 24- and 27-months-old, but diameter remained constant. The percentage of renal corpuscles with a cuboidal glomerular capsule decreased at 24- and 27-months-old. Score indicating glomerular damage increased from 5- to 27-months-old. Changes to the proximal convoluted tubules were severe. Vacuolar degeneration was observed from 12-months-old. Tubular atrophy was observed at 24- and 27-months-old, with number of nuclei per unit area increasing at the same ages. Amyloidosis and scar lesions were observed at 27-months-old. Focal cell infiltration around vessels was found at 24- and 27-months-old. Electron microscopy at 27-months-old revealed expansion of the mesangial matrices and fusion of foot processes in the glomeruli. Enlarged lysosomes with lipid content were observed in the proximal convoluted tubules.

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Apoptosis of testicular germ cells during fetal development is regulated by both p53-dependent and independent mechanisms. However, its precise mechanisms are largely unknown. A member of p53 gene family, p63, is required for p53-dependent apoptosis and can induce apoptosis in the absence of p53 through the activation of p53-target genes. In this study, we examined the expression pattern of p63 in the mouse testis from embryonic day (E) 13.5 to E18.5 to clarify their possible role in the regulation of germ cell apoptosis. Immunostaining for p63 was found in the nucleus of germ cells at E13.5, and continuously observed until E18.5. The RT-PCR using specific primers for two p63 isotypes, those containing the transactivation domain and others not, showed that both transcripts were expressed in the fetal gonads. Possible roles of p63 in the embryonic testes were discussed.

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Skull size and shape were examined among 14 species of the tree shrews (Tupaia montana, T. picta, T. splendidula, T. mulleri, T. longipes, T. glis, T. javanica, T. minor, T. gracilis, T. dorsalis, T. tana, Dendrogale melanura, D. murina, and Ptilocercus lowii). The bones of face were rostro-caudally longer in T. tana and T. dorsalis, contrasting with T. minor and T. gracilis, D. melanura, D. murina and P. lowii which have smaller facial length ratios. The arbo-terrestrial species (T. longipes and T. glis) were similar to terrestrial species in length ratios of bones of face unlike the other arbo-terrestrial species (T. montana, T. picta, T. splendidula, and T. mulleri). We propose that T. longipes and T. glis have adapted to foraging for termites and ants as have T. tana and T. dorsalis. Additionally small body size in T. javanica may be the result of being isolated in Java. We separated the species into 5 groups from the measurment values of skulls: 1) Terrestrial species; T. tana and T. dorsalis, 2) Arboreal species; T. minor and T. gracilis, 3) Arbo-terrestrial species group 1: T. montana, T. splendidula, T. picta and T. mulleri, and T. javanica, 4) Arbo-terrestrial species group 2: T. glis and T. longipes, 5) Arboreal species of Dendrogale and Ptilocercus. Principal component analysis separated species into 8 clusters as follows: 1) T. tana, 2) T. dorsalis, 3) T. montana, T. splendidula, T. picta and T. mulleri, 4) T. glis and T. longipes, 5) T. javanica, 6) T. minor and T. gracilis, 7) D. melanura and D. murina, and 8) P. lowii. We suggest that these clusters correspond to behavioral strategies and peculiarities observed in foraging, feeding and locomotion in each species.

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Receptor-binding cancer antigen expressed on SiSo cells (RCAS1) is a novel cancer cell-surface antigen, strongly expressed in invasive cancers. RCAS1 inhibited the in vitro growth of immunocytes, and induced apoptotic cell death. The cloning of canine RCAS1 cDNA was carried out and identified from the mammary gland tumor of a dog. A canine RCAS1 cDNA of 864 bp in length has an open reading frame of 642 bp nucleotides encoding a protein of 213 deduced amino acids. The predicted amino acid sequence of canine RCAS1 showed 96.2% and 96.7% homologies with those of human and mouse RCAS1 respectively. Canine RCAS1 has an N-terminal transmembrane segment and a coiled-coil structure in the C-terminal protein, which are highly conserved in mouse and human RCAS1.

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The role of monoamine oxidase has been shown to be related to some behavioral changes including aggression and cognitive dysfunction. In order to demonstrate the basic expression patterns of monoamine oxidase in the canine brain, we determined the full-length nucleotide sequences of cDNA for canine monoamine oxidase type A (MAOA) and type B (MAOB) genes that were isolated from the canine brain cDNA library. Oligonucleotide primers for PCR were constructed based on the conserved sequences reported thus far for other mammalian species. The nucleotide sequences had open reading frames of 1584 and 1563 bp for MAOA and MAOB, respectively. Both of these genes showed relatively high homology with other species in both nucleotide (> 81%) and deduced amino acid (> 85%) sequences. In Northern blot analyses MAOA mRNA was expressed broadly in various parts of the canine brain, whereas MAOB mRNA was found only in specific brain regions, such as the hypothalamus, hippocampus, brain stem and olfactory bulb. These results suggest that MAOA and MAOB mRNAs have subtype-specific expression patterns in the canine brain.

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The effects of oral administration of sugar cane extracts (SCE) on Eimeria tenella oocysts infection in chickens were studied with 2 different experiments. In Experiment 1, 3-week-old inbred chickens (MHC; H.B15) were inoculated into the crop with SCE (500 mg/kg/day) for 1 day or 3 consecutive days, and then challenged with E. tenella sporulated oocysts (2 × 10⁴ cells/chicken). In Experiment 2, 1-week-old chickens were orally administered SCE at the same dose for 3 consecutive days, and then initially infected with E. tenella sporulated oocysts (2 × 10³ cells/chicken). At 2 and 3 weeks of age, these chickens were immunized intravenously with the mixed antigens of sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and Brucella abortus (BA). At 4 weeks of age, chickens were challenged with E. tenella sporulated oocysts (1 × 10⁵/chicken). Challenged chickens with E. tenella oocysts showed markedly decreased body weight gain/day, severe hemorrhage and great number of shedding oocysts in feces and high lesion scores. Oral administration of SCE and initial infection with oocysts (2 × 10 ³/chicken) resulted in a remarkable improvement in body weight gain/day, hemorrhage, the number of shedding oocysts and lesion score, compare to other infected groups. In addition, SCE-inoculated chickens with the initial infection showed a significant increase in antibody responses against SRBC and BA and also improvement in decreased relative proportions of Bu-1a⁺ and CD4 cells in cecal tonsil lymphocytes of E. tenella-challenged chickens. Cecal tissues of chickens administered SCE and initially infected with E. tenella oocysts showed lower numbers of schizonts, gametocytes and oocysts than those of infected control chickens. These results suggest that SCE have immunostimulating and protective effects against E. tenella infection in chickens.

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The effects of whole blood storage time on platelet aggregation and on post-transfusion platelet survival time were assessed in dogs. Citrate phosphate dextrose adenine-1 (CPDA-1) was used as a blood cell preservative. Storage time dependent decay of platelet aggregability was assessed. Platelet aggregation responses to collagen and ADP were maintained for at least 8 hr at room temperature. During blood storage, immunoglobulin became nonspecifically bound to platelets, suggesting the potential for immune destruction of platelets by the mononuclear phagocyte system after transfusion. To assess this assumption, the survival times of infused platelets, which were stored for 0 to 8 hr in whole blood, were measured. Post-transfusion survival of platelets was not affected by these storage times. These results suggest that canine platelets maintain viability when stored at room temperature for up to 8 hr in CPDA-1 treated whole blood intended for transfusion.

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Cellular activation and functional cell surface markers were evaluated during experimentally-induced endotoxemia in healthy horses. Eight healthy adult horses were infused a low dose of endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide from Escherichia coli O26: B6, 30 ng/kg of body weight, IV) and five control horses were given an equivalent volume of sterile saline solution. Venous blood samples were collected for flow cytometric analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and to measure plasma endotoxin concentrations. Clinical signs of endotoxemia were recorded at 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 min, 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 16, 24 and 48 hr after endotoxin or saline solution administration. Clinical findings characteristic of endotoxemia (tachycardia, tachypnea, increased rectal temperature, and leukopenia) occurred transiently in all horses administered endotoxin; however, plasma endotoxin concentrations were detectable in only 50% (4/8) of the endotoxin-infused horses. The percentage of CD4⁺, CD5⁺, and CD8⁺ cells decreased while the percentage of CD14⁺, IgM⁺, and MHC class II⁺ cells increased significantly after endotoxin infusion. Alterations in the immunophenotype of PBMCs from horses with experimentally-induced endotoxemia were associated with changes in vital signs, indicating that endotoxin altered the immuno balance.

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To investigate the pathological role of staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) and toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1) in bovine mastitis, the production of SEs and TSST-1 was investigated in staphylococci isolated from 120 mammary gland secretions (MGS, 51 from no clinical sign-mammary glands and 69 from staphylococcal mastitic-mammary glands) collected from dairy farms where staphylococcal mastitis frequently occurred in Miyagi and Yamagata prefectures from 1997 to 1998. Concentrations of these toxins and specific antibody titers in each MGS were also measured. Furthermore, SEC and TSST-1 were inoculated into lactating mammary glands and inflammatory responses were analyzed. A high percentage of staphylococci including Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from both no clinical sign- and mastitic-MGS produced both SEC and/or TSST-1. The concentration of SEC increased with the severity of the mastitis, and was significantly higher (P<0.05) in acute mastitic-than in no clinical signs-MGS. Titers of specific antibodies to TSST-1 in MGS were significantly higher (P<0.05) than those to SEC, regardless of whether or not the cows were lactating or mastitic. Specific antibodies purified from MGS neutralized each toxin in vitro. A significant increase (P < 0.05) in somatic cell counts was induced by the intramammary inoculation of SEC but not TSST-1. These findings indicated that SEC rather than TSST-1 plays an important role in the pathology of staphylococcal bovine mastitis. The inflammatory activity of TSST-1 was probably neutralized by specific antibodies in MGS.

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Two feline cases were diagnosed as systemic cryptococcosis due to Cryptococcus neoformans (teleomorph: Filobasidiella neoformans) by PCR assay with CAP59 gene primers using urine, serum and biopsy samples. The results of molecular analysis were consistent with the mycological findings.

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Despite numerous benefits of laparoscopic procedures, the serious hypercapnia and respiratory acidosis in hypercapnic patients with decreased pulmonary compliance during carbon dioxide-induced pneumoperitoneum (CDP) may be developed. Tracheal gas insufflation (TGI) has been shown to be a useful adjunct to controlled mechanical hypoventilation. This study was undertaken to identify whether TGI superimposed on controlled mechanical ventilation (CMV) improve ventilatory efficiency during CDP in rabbits. Sixteen paralyzed and anesthetized rabbits were used. The animals were assigned to two groups-CMV group: CMV alone; TGI group: CMV superimposed by TGI with flow rate of 2L/min. The animals were insufflated to intra-abdominal pressure of 8 mmHg with CO₂ gas. Then, tidal volume (V_T) was changed to maintain the set peak inspiratory pressure (PIP) value, while other ventilatory settings were kept constant. The set PIP value corresponding to 30, 60, and 90 min after the start of peritoneal insufflation of CO₂ were 15, 22, and 25 cmH₂O, respectively. During CDP with TGI, PaCO₂ decreased significantly (p<0.01) from CMV without TGI of 82.1 ± 14.1 to 47.5 ± 5.5, 58.1 ± 9.9 to 40.0 ± 4.6, 47.1 ± 9.4 to 32.7 ± 5.1 mmHg at PIP of 15, 22, and 25 cmH₂O, respectively. The inspired V_T decreased significantly (p<0.05) from CMV without TGI of 18.4 ± 3.9 to 12.8 ± 2.8 ml at PIP of 15 cmH₂O. TGI superimposed on CMV is more effective than CMV alone in enhancing ventilatory efficiency during CDP in rabbits.

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The erythrocyte-exchanged chimera mouse model has become to be a significant tool for studying animal and human (hu) protozoan haemoparasites, though the usefulness of this model varies depending primarily on the acceptability of xenogeneic red blood cells (RBC). To find a superior recipient in comparison with C.B-17/Jcl mouse with severe combined immuno-deficiency (scid) mutation, we examined in this report the non-obese diabetes (NOD)/shi-scid mouse, a recently available strain of SCID. When 2.5 × 10⁸ of fluorescent dye-labeled hu-RBCs were transfused, C.B-17scid mouse eliminated them logarithmically by a simple linear regression, while NOD-scid mouse eradicated hu-RBCs by a unique two-step fashion, i.e., a potent but only briefly functioning RBC eradication followed by a weak steadily functioning step. The means of regression line constance ± their standard deviations (SD) of 205 C.B-17scid and of 213 NOD-scid mice for their short- and long-lasting steps were -0.73 ± 0.63, -0.53 ± 0.25 and -0.16 ± 0.10, respectively. Hu-RBC half-lives determined from these means of C.B-17scid mice and of NOD-scid mice for the short- and long-living steps were 3.6, 4.9 and 16.3 hr, respectively. Higher hu-RBC acceptability of NOD-scid mouse, especially at their long-lasting step, was also demonstrated under at an activated state of mouse innate immunity. Treatment with 1.0 mg heat-killed Candida cells caused an acceleration of hu-RBC elimination in both mouse strains but the magnitudes for the short- and long-living steps of NOD-scid mice evaluated by "stimulation index" were only 1/2.6 and 1/7.6 of C.B-17scid mice, respectively.

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Japanese White rabbits, Wistar rats, ddY mice, Suffolk sheep, and a domestic cat were each orally inoculated with 20-140 third-stage larvae (L3) of Gongylonema pulchrum, isolated from naturally infected dung beetles captured in Aomori Prefecture. Worm recovery rates were 40.0-72.0% in rabbits at 7, 14, and 19 weeks post-infection (PI) and 3.3-25.0% in rats at 19 weeks PI. Those in 2 sheep at 7 weeks PI showed 53.6% and 29.3%. No worms were recovered from the mice and the cat. In the susceptible animals, many worms were found in the esophagus, and a few were present in the pharyngeal mucosa, tongue, buccal mucosa, and cardiac portion of the stomach wall. No distinct morphological differences were observed in the worms from rabbits and sheep. These results indicate that rabbits are very suitable experimental definitive hosts for G. pulchrum.

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Three bovine amphistomes, Calicophoron calicophorum, Orthocoelium streptocoelium and Homalogaster paloniae, are common in Japan. This study was carried out to describe ITS2 sequences in the 3 species, and to evaluate a PCR-RFLP technique based on ITS2 sequence for the species identification in single eggs of the parasites. The ITS2 sequences of the three species contained 19 variable sites including one gap. The sequence difference between species was 4.2-5.3%. The three species of amphistomes were identified based on the difference in the restriction sites of Acc II on the ITS2 sequence.

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Three dog heartworms (Dirofilaria immitis) were detected in the lumen of the right cardiac ventriculus and of the pulmonary artery of a captive female snow leopard (Uncia uncia) that died of pancreatic carcinoma at a zoo in Japan. Neither clinical respiratory nor circulatory symptoms caused by the heartworm infection were observed. The filarial worms were identified as D. immitis from the morphologic characteristics of the esophagus, the presence of faint longitudinal ridges on the cuticular surface, the situation of vulva posterior to the esophagus, and the measurements of the body. The heartworms from the snow leopard were identical to that of D. immitis from dogs in the sequence of the cytochrome oxidase I region in the mitochondrial DNA. This host record is the first of D. immitis in U. uncia.

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One-step RT-PCR procedure without initial RNA extraction step is tested for laser microdissected tissue sample. Unfixed cryosections of liver and kidney tissue of male SD rats were cut using laser microdissection system and directly used as templates for RT-PCR study. To check the sensitivity, 5, 25, 125, and 625 hepatocytes were cut and put in PCR-tube. After DNase treatment and cDNA synthesis with pd(N)6 random primer, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) cDNAs were amplified by 60 thermal cycles. GAPDH-specific bands were observed at as few as 25 hepatocytes. Specificity of this procedure was tested for hepatocytes, renal tubular epithelium and glomerular tissue using albumin PCR primers. Approximately 250 cells were cut and albumin cDNA was amplified as described above. Albumin specific band was observed only in hepatocytes sample. To apply this approach to quantitative PCR, various numbers of hepatocytes were cut and put in 0.2 mL PCR tube. After reverse transcription and 10 cycles of GAPDH cDNA amplification by regular thermal-cycler, PCR solution was transferred to 96-well plate designed for real-time PCR system, and further 40 cycles were performed. As a result, GAPDH cDNAs were successfully amplified with a good correlation between the number of template hepatocytes and the intensity of PCR signal. From these results, we concluded this approach would be very useful for the expression analysis of microdissected pathology samples.

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Research over the past 50 years has demonstrated the existence of circadian or daily rhythmicity in the body core temperature of a large number of mammalian species. However, previous studies have failed to identify daily rhythmicity of body temperature in dogs. We report here the successful recording of daily rhythms of rectal temperature in female Beagle dogs. The low robustness of the rhythms (41% of maximal robustness) and the small range of excursion (0.5°C) are probably responsible for previous failures in detecting rhythmicity in dogs.

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The growth of Salmonella Choleraesuis was examined in Rappaport Vassiliadis broth (RV) and Hajna-tetrathionate broth (HTT) at 37 and 42°C. As the enrichment in RV at 37°C was satisfactory for isolating S. Choleraesuis, we used this enrichment for isolation from the samples collected from 15 asymptomatic pigs reared on a S. Choleraesuis contaminated farm. S. Choleraesuis was frequently isolated from six pigs (40.0%) under field conditions. The isolation of other Salmonella serovars than S. Choleraesuis was attempted by using both RV enrichment at 37°C and HTT enrichment at 42°C. Salmonella organisms were isolated from 156 (44.8%) of 348 fecal samples and more frequently with HTT at 42°C (43.4%) than with RV at 37°C (20.9%). If other serovars in addition to S. Choleraesuis are to be surveyed, HTT enrichment should be used in combination with RV enrichment.

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A rigid-type of polyethylene T-cannula was fitted into the anterior ileum of six horses in order to improve the cannulation techniques. A piece of polyethylene net was fastened onto the intestinal wall around the cannula to prevent dislodgment of the cannula by promoting a secure adhesion between the ileum and the abdominal wall. The cannula barrel sheathed with silicone tubing was exteriorized through a stab incision at the lateral ventral wall on the transverse line of the second lumber vertebra, and a flange was screwed onto the barrel. The feeding regime gradually increased concentrate without roughage prevented any colic signs. The use of these techniques succeeded in the ileal cannulation with no leakage of digesta.

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To clarify the endocrinological characteristics of the mares with granulosa theca cell tumor (GTCT), peripheral plasma samples from the 6 mares affected with GTCT were collected before and after the surgical removal of the affected ovary. Concentrations of testosterone (T), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), immunoreactive-inhibin (ir-INH), progesterone (P) and estradiol-17β (E₂) in the plasma samples were measured by radioimmunoassay. Before removal of GTCT in all cases, the concentrations of T were significantly higher than those of normal mares at the breeding and non-breeding seasons, whereas plasma concentrations of FSH, LH, ir-INH, P and E₂ were lower. After surgical removal of the affected ovary, the circulatory concentrations of T was declined, but the concentrations of other hormones were constantly low as compared with those of normal mares. The present study suggests that 1) the source of higher T may be due to the abnormal follicles in ovary of GTCT, 2) in the case of GTCT the elevated level of T is observed due to the lack of aromatase, and 3) the high level of T is a typical characteristics for GTCT in mares. It is also suggested 4) due to the elevated levels of T the concentrations of gonadotropins may be suppressed.

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Effects of a one-generation exposure to a natural estrogen, 17β-estradiol (E2), and environmental pollutants such as bisphenol A (BPA) and tributyltin chloride (TBTCL) on the number of germ cells were investigated in the hermaphrodite Caenorhabditis elegans. The eggs of gravid adult worms isolated by alkaline hypochlorite treatment were seeded on a test chemical-containing NGM (nematode growth medium) agar plate without cholesterol. After incubation for 6 days at 16°C, the germ cells of adult worms were stained with 4', 6-diamino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride (DAPI). The staining procedure was completed within one hour and the stained germ cells were counted under a fluorescence microscope without dissection. The number of germ cells in the worms treated with E2 (10^-10-10^-6 M) and BPA (10^-9-10 ^-5 M) was significantly increased. Maximal increases were observed at 10^-8 M E2 (156 ± 15.3% of control) and 10^-5 M BPA (168 ± 20.0 % of control). TBTCL (10^-9-10^-6 M) significantly decreased the number of germ cells. The minimal decrease was observed at 10^-6 M TBTCL (30.2 ± 3.51% of control). These results indicate that changes in the number of germ cells are a sensitive indicator of the effects of chemicals on the reproductive system. Since the method described in this paper is a novel, simple, time- and money-saving bioassay, C. elegans is an excellent model with which to determine the reproductive toxicity of chemicals including environmental pollutants.

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Two field isolates of feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1) designated as 00-015 and 00-035, were obtained from cats diagnosed as feline viral rhinotracheitis (FVR) in Japan. To analyze the character of recent FHV-1, these two isolates and our laboratory strain C7301 were inoculated experimentally to specific-pathogen-free cats. Although all cats showed typical FVR symptoms, more severe clinical symptoms were observed on cats infected with the isolates 00-015 and 00-035 compared with those of C7301-infected cats. Severe ocular lesions including conjunctivitis were found in the cats infected with the isolates, indicating that the recent FHV-1 has a potential to induce severe FVR symptoms including ocular lesions.

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