Behaviourally driven gene expression reveals song nuclei in hummingbird brain

Hummingbirds have developed a wealth of intriguing features, such as backwards flight, ultraviolet vision, extremely high metabolic rates, nocturnal hibernation, high brain-to-body size ratio and a remarkable species-specific diversity of vocalizations. Like humans, they have also developed the rare trait of vocal learning, this being the ability to acquire vocalizations through imitation rather than instinct. Here we show, using behaviourally driven gene expression in freely ranging tropical animals, that the forebrain of hummingbirds contains seven discrete structures that are active during singing, providing the first anatomical and functional demonstration of vocal nuclei in hummingbirds. These structures are strikingly similar to seven forebrain regions that are involved in vocal learning and production in songbirds and parrots--the only other avian orders known to be vocal learners. This similarity is surprising, as songbirds, parrots and hummingbirds are thought to have evolved vocal learning and associated brain structures independently, and it indicates that strong constraints may influence the evolution of forebrain vocal nuclei.     

Aerodynamics of the hovering hummingbird

Despite profound musculoskeletal differences, hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are widely thought to employ aerodynamic mechanisms similar to those used by insects. The kinematic symmetry of the hummingbird upstroke and downstroke has led to the assumption that these halves of the wingbeat cycle contribute equally to weight support during hovering, as exhibited by insects of similar size. This assumption has been applied, either explicitly or implicitly, in widely used aerodynamic models and in a variety of empirical tests. Here we provide measurements of the wake of hovering rufous hummingbirds (Selasphorus rufus) obtained with digital particle image velocimetry that show force asymmetry: hummingbirds produce 75% of their weight support during the downstroke and only 25% during the upstroke. Some of this asymmetry is probably due to inversion of their cambered wings during upstroke. The wake of hummingbird wings also reveals evidence of leading-edge vortices created during the downstroke, indicating that they may operate at Reynolds numbers sufficiently low to exploit a key mechanism typical of insect hovering. Hummingbird hovering approaches that of insects, yet remains distinct because of effects resulting from an inherently dissimilar-avian-body plan.     

猕猴大肠5-羟色胺免疫活性细胞的免疫组织化学研究

以免疫组织化学ＳＰ法显示猕猴大肠含５－ ＨＴ的细胞,并用Ｗｅｉｂｅｌ体视学方法对其进行了定量分析．结果表明,猕猴大肠５－ ＨＴ免疫活性内分泌细胞的密度在结肠离心段最高,直肠密度中等,盲肠和结肠向心段最低．５－ ＨＴ免疫反应阳性细胞多分布在肠腺处,其形态多样,大多为锥形、梭形、圆形等．有些细胞的基底部有突起,突起的末端含有５－ ＨＴ阳性物质;有些细胞的５－ ＨＴ阳性物质释放到腺腔或肠腔面．     

酵母培养物对土杂鸡生产性能及营养物质代谢率的影响

本试验旨在研究酵母培养物对土杂鸡生产性能及营养物质代谢率的影响,试验选择28日龄健康、体重相近的土杂鸡200只,随机分为5组,设1个对照组,饲喂基础日粮,其余4个为试验组(Ⅰ、Ⅱ、Ⅲ、Ⅳ组),在基础日粮中分别添加0.15%、0.20%、0.25%、0.30%的酵母培养物。结果表明:与对照组相比,各酵母培养物组肉鸡的平均日增体质量和平均日采食量均显著高于对照组(P0.05);试验Ⅱ、Ⅲ、Ⅳ组的料重比均显著低于对照组(P0.05),其中试验Ⅱ组的最低;与对照组相比,所有试验组粗蛋白质(CP)代谢率均明显提高(P﹤0.01);粗脂肪(EE)代谢率有提高趋势,但差异不显著(P0.05);试验I、Ⅱ组的钙、磷代谢率明显提高(P0.05);试验Ⅱ、Ⅲ、Ⅳ组的表观代谢率(ME)显著提高(P0.05),且试验Ⅱ的最高。结论:综合分析,本试验在土杂鸡日粮中酵母培养物的适宜添加量为0.2%。     

大学生基础代谢率的调查研究

<正> 前言基础代谢(basal metabolism)是人体正常觉醒状态下维持生命活动所必须的最低限度的能量代谢,通常以每小时每平方米体表面积所散发的热量来表示,故也称基础代谢率(basal metabolic rate,BMR)。它是个体间进行比较的标准,也是临床上衡量机体能量代谢是否正常及诊断某些疾病的指标之一。关于国人的基础代谢,解放前后均有不少研究,但因测量方法不同,对象和人数不一,因而结论各异。目前,国内所有生理学教材引用的均是吴襄等1943年发表的数据。随着时代的推移,社会的变迁,人民生活的改善,国人的基础代谢率是否发生变化已成为值得探讨的问题。     

肌苷产生菌枯草芽孢杆菌分批发酵的代谢流分析

为了更好地掌握代谢规律和代谢方式，代谢流作为一个关键而重要的变量需要测定．然而，由于代谢流测定的困难，在许多代谢研究中代谢流并没有被完全应用．在肌苷高产菌枯草芽孢杆菌中，利用得到的实验数据包括葡萄糖的消耗速率和代谢主产物以及副产物的形成速率，利用代谢通量平衡模型，得到糖酵解、三羟酸循环及磷酸戊糖途径的代谢流，并对其进行了分析．     

大鲵消化道的解剖学和组织学研究

本文报道了中国大鲵消化道各部分的形态结构、长度和组织结构,并观察了饥饿和饱食后消化道的变化,消化道各部分的差别主要在粘膜层和肌层。食道粘膜为复层柱状上皮,其中含有杯状细胞胃粘膜上皮为单层柱状上皮,肠粘膜上皮为含有杯状细胞的柱状上皮;在肠粘膜上皮下,有许多细胞隐窝。饥饿后,胃肠萎缩,粘膜层减薄、胃腺和隐窝等组织结构减少。饱食后,则胃肠上皮和胃体积增大,细胞处于旺盛的消化吸收状态。     

Functional metagenomic profiling of nine biomes

Microbial activities shape the biogeochemistry of the planet and macroorganism health. Determining the metabolic processes performed by microbes is important both for understanding and for manipulating ecosystems (for example, disruption of key processes that lead to disease, conservation of environmental services, and so on). Describing microbial function is hampered by the inability to culture most microbes and by high levels of genomic plasticity. Metagenomic approaches analyse microbial communities to determine the metabolic processes that are important for growth and survival in any given environment. Here we conduct a metagenomic comparison of almost 15 million sequences from 45 distinct microbiomes and, for the first time, 42 distinct viromes and show that there are strongly discriminatory metabolic profiles across environments. Most of the functional diversity was maintained in all of the communities, but the relative occurrence of metabolisms varied, and the differences between metagenomes predicted the biogeochemical conditions of each environment. The magnitude of the microbial metabolic capabilities encoded by the viromes was extensive, suggesting that they serve as a repository for storing and sharing genes among their microbial hosts and influence global evolutionary and metabolic processes.     

Insulin-regulatable tissues express a unique insulin-sensitive glucose transport protein

At least three different glucose transport systems exist in mammalian cells. These are: (1) the constitutively active, facilitative carrier characteristic of human erythrocytes, Hep G2 (ref. 2) cells and rat brain; (2) the Na-dependent active transporter of kidney and small intestine; and (3) the facilitative carrier of rat liver (B. Thorens and H. F. Lodish, personal communication). A fourth possible glucose transport system is the insulin-dependent carrier that may be specific to muscle and adipose tissue. This transporter resides primarily in an intracellular compartment in resting cells from where it translocates to the cell surface upon cellular insulin exposure. This raises the question of whether hormonal regulation of glucose transport is conferred by virtue of a tissue-specific signalling mechanism or a tissue-specific glucose transporter. Here we present data supporting the latter concept based upon a monoclonal antibody against the fat cell glucose transporter that identifies a unique, insulin-regulatable glucose transport protein in muscle and adipose tissue.     

99mTc标记葡萄糖衍生物肿瘤显像药物的现状与展望

糖酵解是肿瘤细胞代谢的主要能量来源．与正常细胞相比，肿瘤细胞代谢更旺盛，因此对葡萄糖的摄取更为显著．基于此，放射性核素标记的葡萄糖及其衍生物可以用于肿瘤显像．由于99mTc优良的核性质，通过99Mo-99mTc发生器方便获得且99mTc标记药物可通过药盒化制备，因此99mTc标记葡萄糖衍生物肿瘤显像剂成为99mTc标记肿瘤放射性药物的研究热点之一．本文对各类99mTc标记的葡萄糖衍生物肿瘤显像剂的研究进展进行了评述，并对其发展方向进行了展望．      

Subcellular localization of several heavy metals of Hg, Cd and Pb in human liver

Liver, as an important metabolic and detoxicological organ of human body, can be used as a good bioindicator for evaluating body burden of environmental pollutants. Its elemental contents and their chemical forms are closely related to the status of human health and disease. In this paper, the liver samples collected from normal subjects were separated to different subcellular fractions of nuclei, mitochondria, lysosome, microsome and cytosol by differential centrifugation. Then their concentrations of heavy metals of As, Pb, Cd, and Hg were determined by atomic absorption and atomic fluorescent spectroscopy. Our results show no significant difference with literature ones when comparing their gross concentrations. In the case of their subcellular distribution, the Hg concentrations are higher in mitochondrial, microsomal and cytosolic fractions; the Cd concentrations are higher in cytosolic and mitochondrial fractions, while As highest in nuclear fraction. The highest concentration of Pb is found in microsomal fraction with similarity to Fe. Mercury in liver is mainly in the form of inorganic, and methylmercury ranged from 9% to 50% with the average value of 20.9% 13.3%. These results indicate that the cellular distribution and the accumulated target organelles are quite different among these heavy metals, which suggest their various pathways and toxic mechanism in vivo.     

黑羽型番鸭不同生长期的能量代谢和饲料能量同化率

研究了黑羽型番鸭不同生长期的能量代谢、饲料能量摄入及其同化率,结果表明:雏鸭的代谢本与体重呈强的线性负相关(鸭,r=-0.88,t=4.9>t_(0.01);鸭,r=-0.855,t=4.36>t_(0.01)),不同周龄雏鸭的摄食量、能量摄入、可代谢能量和生长能量的增长值与体重的增长情况基本一致,能量同化率除1周龄(42.66％)较低外,其余各周龄均保持在82.44～90.52％之间。     

Hydrolytic stability of biomolecules at high temperatures and its implication for life at 250 degrees C

The upper temperature at which a living system can exist is limited by the hydrolytic breakdown rate of its chemical constituents. The peptide bonds of proteins, the phosphodiester and N-glycosyl bonds in RNA and DNA, and the pyrophosphate and N-glycosyl bonds in nucleotides such as ATP and NAD are among the more important bonds that will undergo hydrolysis. The decomposition of biomolecules via non-hydrolytic pathways such as decarboxylations and dehydrations may also be critical factors in determining this upper temperature limit. Baross and Deming recently reported 'black smoker' bacteria, which they isolated from deep-sea hydrothermal vents, growing at 250 degrees C. Here I have attempted to establish the rates for the hydrolysis and/or decomposition of critical biomolecules to determine their ability to exist at this temperature. My results clearly indicate that if these organisms exist, and if their metabolic reactions occur in an aqueous environment, they could not survive at this temperature if they were composed of biomolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids, due to the very rapid rate of decomposition of such molecules.     

日粮中添加柑桔皮粉对蛋鸡营养物质代谢的影响

将笼养的48周龄黄金褐蛋鸡10只随机分为两组,每组5只。试验组在基础日粮中添加2 5%的柑桔皮粉,对照组仅喂基础日粮,在49周龄进行物质代谢试验。结果表明:试验组鸡日粮中粗蛋白质、粗脂肪、粗纤维和粗灰分等营养物质的表观代谢率均有提高,依次分别比对照组提高5 53、2 56、3 39、3 44个百分点,经t检验,与对照组鸡日粮中各相同营养物质表观代谢率间均差异显著(P<0 05),说明用柑桔皮粉作添加剂,能明显提高上述各营养物质的表观代谢率,使经粪尿排出的营养物质量减少,有利于蛋鸡对营养物质的消化吸收和利用,从而提高产蛋率和产蛋量。     

Deep sub-seafloor prokaryotes stimulated at interfaces over geological time

The sub-seafloor biosphere is the largest prokaryotic habitat on Earth but also a habitat with the lowest metabolic rates. Modelled activity rates are very low, indicating that most prokaryotes may be inactive or have extraordinarily slow metabolism. Here we present results from two Pacific Ocean sites, margin and open ocean, both of which have deep, subsurface stimulation of prokaryotic processes associated with geochemical and/or sedimentary interfaces. At 90 m depth in the margin site, stimulation was such that prokaryote numbers were higher (about 13-fold) and activity rates higher than or similar to near-surface values. Analysis of high-molecular-mass DNA confirmed the presence of viable prokaryotes and showed changes in biodiversity with depth that were coupled to geochemistry, including a marked community change at the 90-m interface. At the open ocean site, increases in numbers of prokaryotes at depth were more restricted but also corresponded to increased activity; however, this time they were associated with repeating layers of diatom-rich sediments (about 9 Myr old). These results show that deep sedimentary prokaryotes can have high activity, have changing diversity associated with interfaces and are active over geological timescales.     

Allometric cascade as a unifying principle of body mass effects on metabolism

The power function of basal metabolic rate scaling is expressed as aM(b), where a corresponds to a scaling constant (intercept), M is body mass, and b is the scaling exponent. The 3/4 power law (the best-fit b value for mammals) was developed from Kleiber's original analysis and, since then, most workers have searched for a single cause to explain the observed allometry. Here we present a multiple-causes model of allometry, where the exponent b is the sum of the influences of multiple contributors to metabolism and control. The relative strength of each contributor, with its own characteristic exponent value, is determined by the control contribution. To illustrate its use, we apply this model to maximum versus basal metabolic rates to explain the differing scaling behaviour of these two biological states in mammals. The main difference in scaling is that, for the basal metabolic rate, the O(2) delivery steps contribute almost nothing to the global b scaling exponent, whereas for the maximum metabolic rate, the O(2) delivery steps significantly increase the global b value.     

The clonal and mutational evolution spectrum of primary triple-negative breast cancers

Primary triple-negative breast cancers (TNBCs), a tumour type defined by lack of oestrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and ERBB2 gene amplification, represent approximately 16% of all breast cancers. Here we show in 104 TNBC cases that at the time of diagnosis these cancers exhibit a wide and continuous spectrum of genomic evolution, with some having only a handful of coding somatic aberrations in a few pathways, whereas others contain hundreds of coding somatic mutations. High-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) revealed that only approximately 36% of mutations are expressed. Using deep re-sequencing measurements of allelic abundance for 2,414 somatic mutations, we determine for the first time-to our knowledge-in an epithelial tumour subtype, the relative abundance of clonal frequencies among cases representative of the population. We show that TNBCs vary widely in their clonal frequencies at the time of diagnosis, with the basal subtype of TNBC showing more variation than non-basal TNBC. Although p53 (also known as TP53), PIK3CA and PTEN somatic mutations seem to be clonally dominant compared to other genes, in some tumours their clonal frequencies are incompatible with founder status. Mutations in cytoskeletal, cell shape and motility proteins occurred at lower clonal frequencies, suggesting that they occurred later during tumour progression. Taken together, our results show that understanding the biology and therapeutic responses of patients with TNBC will require the determination of individual tumour clonal genotypes.     

脂质体冷冻干燥及其对药品的包封率

利用差示扫描量热仪(DSC)测量了以葡萄糖、蔗糖、甘露醇、海藻糖作为保护剂的脂质体悬浮液的玻璃化转变温度Tg，研究了冷冻干燥工艺对脂质体质量的影响，并讨论了上述保护剂对脂质体在冷冻干燥过程中的保护效果，结果表明：以海藻糖作为保护剂的脂质体的玻璃化转变温度Tg最高为-30．4℃，而以葡萄糖作为保护剂的取最低为-39℃；在冻结和冷冻干燥过程中，以海藻糖作为保护剂的脂质体的粒径变化最小，以葡萄糖为保护剂的脂质体粒径变化最大。还对脂质体包封水溶性药物喃氟啶和脂溶性药物维生素A进行了冻干研究，并利用WATERS高效液相色谱仪测量了冻干后脂质体对药物的包封率。结果显示：以海藻糖为保护剂的脂质体对药品的包封率较高，泄露少，而以葡萄糖为保护剂的脂质体对药品的包封率较低，泄露多。通过研究得出海藻糖是一种较好的保护剂，并优化了脂质体冷冻干燥工艺。     

蒲棒浸提液机制下黑木耳发酵方法及相关检测

通过单因素实验与正交实验,研究得到在蒲棒浸提液基质下黑木耳发酵的最适碳、氮源及其最优配方.取其发酵最佳菌龄的发酵醪液做匀浆处理,用于培养供试黑腹果蝇,进行果蝇寿命实验,观察记录其对果蝇生存寿命的影响.结果表明:最优发酵配方各组分质量分数分别为葡萄糖3%,玉米粉3%,豆饼粉2%,酵母膏0.5%,磷酸二氢钾0.1%,硫酸镁0.1%;在发酵至120 h时,鲜菌丝质量达到最大,为32.57 g.在果蝇基础培养基内添加体积分数为30%的发酵醪液匀浆时,果蝇的半数死亡期延长率、平均延寿率和最高延寿率最大,且均与对照组有显著性差异(P<0.05).     

Pancreatic amylin and calcitonin gene-related peptide cause resistance to insulin in skeletal muscle in vitro

Insulin resistance occurs in a variety of conditions, including diabetes, obesity and essential hypertension, but its underlying molecular mechanisms are unclear. In type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus, it is insulin-resistance in skeletal muscle, the chief site of insulin-mediated glucose disposal in humans, that predominantly accounts for the low rates of glucose clearance from the blood, and hence for impaired glucose tolerance. Human type 2 diabetes is characterized by a decrease in non-oxidative glucose storage (muscle glycogen synthesis), and by the deposition of amyloid in the islets of Langerhans. Amylin is a 37-amino-acid peptide which is a major component of islet amyloid and has structural similarity to human calcitonin gene-related peptide-2 (CGRP-2; ref. 8). CGRP is a neuropeptide which may be involved in motor activity in skeletal muscle. We now report that human pancreatic amylin and rat CGRP-1 are potent inhibitors of both basal and insulin-stimulated rates of glycogen synthesis in stripped rat soleus muscle in vitro. These results may provide a basis for a new understanding of the molecular mechanisms that cause insulin resistance in skeletal muscle.