Description of International Caenorhabditis elegans Experiment first flight (ICE-FIRST)

Traveling, living and working in space is now a reality. The number of people and length of time in space is increasing. With new horizons for exploration it becomes more important to fully understand and provide countermeasures to the effects of the space environment on the human body. In addition, space provides a unique laboratory to study how life and physiologic functions adapt from the cellular level to that of the entire organism. Caenorhabditis elegans is a genetic model organism used to study physiology on Earth. Here we provide a description of the rationale, design, methods, and space culture validation of the ICE-FIRST payload, which engaged C. elegans researchers from four nations. Here we also show C. elegans growth and development proceeds essentially normally in a chemically defined liquid medium on board the International Space Station (10.9 day round trip). By setting flight constraints first and bringing together established C. elegans researchers second, we were able to use minimal stowage space to successfully return a total of 53 independent samples, each containing more than a hundred individual animals, to investigators within one year of experiment concept. We believe that in the future, bringing together individuals with knowledge of flight experiment operations, flight hardware, space biology, and genetic model organisms should yield similarly successful payloads.

Expression of Neuropeptide Y gene in mouse testes during testicular development

AIM

To elucidate the distribution and regulation of Neuropeptide Y (NPY) gene expression in testes under physiological and pathophysiological conditions, such as testicular development, fasting and experimental cryptorchidism.

METHODS

In the first experiment, C57BL/6J male mice at the ages of 3 days as well as 2, 3, 5 and 8 weeks were used. In the second and third experiments, adult C57BL/6J male mice were subjected to fasting for 48 h and experimental cryptorchidism for 72 h. The NPY transcripts were detected by isotopic in situ hybridization histochemistry.

RESULTS

The NPY transcripts were exclusively expressed in the interstitial cells regardless of the age groups and experimental conditions. The NPY mRNA levels were found to increase significantly with age (from the neonatal to prepubertal period [P<0.01] and from the prepubetal to postpubertal period [P<0.01]). Food deprivation for 48 h resulted in a significant increase in the NPY mRNA levels in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus (P<0.01), but not in the testes. Experimental cryptorchidism for 72 h failed to regulate the NPY gene expression in the testes.

CONCLUSION

NPY gene expression is distributed in Leydig cells and increases in line with testicular development. The regulation of testicular NPY is different from that of hypothalamic NPY.

Checkpoint and physiological apoptosis in germ cells proceeds normally in spaceflown Caenorhabditis elegans

It is important for human life in space to study the effects of environmental factors during spaceflight on a number of physiological phenomena. Apoptosis plays important roles in development and tissue homeostasis in metazoans. In this study, we have analyzed apoptotic activity in germ cells of the nematode C. elegans, following spaceflight. Comparison of the number of cell corpses in wild type or ced-1 mutants, grown under either ground or spaceflight conditions, showed that both pachytene-checkpoint apoptosis and physiological apoptosis in germ cells occurred normally under spaceflight conditions. In addition, the expression levels of the checkpoint and apoptosis related genes are comparable between spaceflight and ground conditions. This is the first report documenting the occurrence of checkpoint apoptosis in the space environment and suggests that metazoans, including humans, would be able to eliminate cells that have failed to repair DNA lesions introduced by cosmic radiation during spaceflight.

Venepuncture is preferable to heel lance for blood sampling in term neonates

BACKGROUND

The analgesic effect of oral sucrose in newborn infants undergoing painful procedures is generally accepted. For blood sampling, some studies have shown that venepuncture (VP) is less painful than heel lance (HL).

OBJECTIVE

To determine the least painful and most effective method among blood sampling by VP or HL with or without sucrose.

DESIGN

Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trial.

SUBJECTS

A total of 100 healthy, full term newborn infants being screened for inborn errors of metabolism were randomly allocated to one of four experimental groups (25 infants in each). Intervention and

OUTCOME MEASURE

Seven specially trained nurses took turns to carry out blood sampling two minutes after administration of oral sucrose or water. Neonatal pain was assessed by the neonatal facial coding system (NFCS), as well as by crying.

RESULTS

Without sucrose, the NFCS score was higher in the HL group than the VP group during blood sampling (median 58 v 23, p<0.001). Oral sucrose significantly reduced the score of the HL group (58 v 47, p<0.01) and also tended to reduce the score of the VP group (23 v 2, p<0.1). However, the HL with sucrose group still had a higher score than the VP without sucrose group (47 v 23, p<0.01). Crying and the total procedure time showed the same trends as the NFCS score.

CONCLUSIONS

VP is less painful and more effective than HL for blood sampling in newborn infants. Although oral sucrose may have an additive analgesic effect, it is not necessarily required if VP is used for blood sampling.

Leukocytapheresis treatment for pyoderma gangrenosum

A 42-year-old man presented with painful erythema with pustules and multiple small ulcers on the shins. He had suffered from ulcerative colitis (UC) and received oral glucocorticosteroid and salicylazosulfapyridine therapies for 7 years. Biopsy of the lesion demonstrated mixed cellular infiltrates with dominant neutrophils. The patient was diagnosed with pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) and underwent leukocytapheresis (LCAP), an extracorporeal leucocyte removal therapy, once a week for 5 weeks without changing the doses of the oral medications. The skin lesions as well as clinical signs of UC rapidly improved after LCAP, and no recurrence was seen during a follow-up period. There were no major complications during LCAP. LCAP will provide an effective and safe tool for the treatment of PG.

Advanced glycation end product (AGE)-immunoreactive materials in chronic prurigo patients receiving a long-standing haemodialysis

We report two patients with chronic prurigo who suffered from chronic renal failure and were treated by haemodialysis. Histological examination of pruritic nodules revealed that the papillary dermis of the lesional skin was eosinophilic and amorphous, and free from dermal cell infiltration. Immunohistochemical study demonstrated that advanced glycation end product (AGE)-immunoreactive materials accumulated in the papillary dermis of the lesional skin. This immunohistochemical finding was never observed in the nonlesional skin adjacent to prurigo nodules of the present cases, and renal disease-free prurigo skin (n = 6) and nonprurigo skin of haemodialysis patients (n = 3). AGE-modified materials in the papillary dermis may be related to the pathogenesis of prurigo nodules in the haemodialysis patients.

Activation of estrogen response element dependent transcription by thyroid hormone with increase in estrogen receptor levels in a rat pituitary cell line, GH3

Interrelationships between thyroid hormone and estrogen actions have been documented with regard to a variety of physiological functions. Both hormones stimulate transcription of target genes by binding to their nuclear receptors that interact with specific responsive elements (estrogen and thyroid hormone response elements, i.e ERE and TRE, respectively) in the regulatory regions of the gene. In vitro studies have suggested that interplay between the two hormones might be due to cross-talk at hormone responsive elements, with the respective hormone receptors and ligands able to interact, although physiological relevance has yet to be proved. We have proposed a simpler mechanism for thyroid hormone effects on estrogen responses via increase in estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) with resultant increase in progesterone receptors, prolactin production and tumor growth. A pituitary cell line, GH3, has been widely used to investigate the function of mammo-somatotropic cells, especially regarding regulation of GH and prolactin production. In the present study, an ERE-luc reporter was transfected into GH3 cells and the responses to endogenous ERalpha were examined. We demonstrated that: (1)l -3,5,3'-triiodothyronine (T3) induces mRNA expression of ERalpha; (2) T3 alone is able to induce ERE-luc activity and this is inhibited by OH-tamoxifen; (3) T3 synergistically acts on estradiol (E2)-induced ERE responses; and (4) ERE-luc activity is enchanted by co-transfection of an ERalpha expression vector. These results support the hypothesis that estrogen responses are potentiated by T3 through up-regulation of ERalpha levels.

Unique evolution of Bivalvia arginine kinases

The clams Pseudocardium, Solen, Corbicula and Ensis possess a unique form of arginine kinase (AK) with a molecular mass of 80 kDa and an unusual two-domain structure, a result of gene duplication and subsequent fusion. These AKs also lack two functionally important amino acid residues, Asp(62) and Arg(193), which are strictly conserved in other 40-kDa AKs and are assumed to be key residues for stabilizing the substrate-bound structure. However, these AKs show higher enzyme activity. The cDNA-derived amino acid sequences of 40-kDa AKs from the blood clam Scapharca broughtonii and the oyster Crassostrea gigas were determined. While Asp(62) and Arg(193) are conserved in Scapharca AK, these two key residues are replaced by Asn and Lys, respectively, in Crassostrea AK. The native enzyme from Crassostrea and both of the recombinant enzymes show an enzyme activity similar to that of two-domain clam AKs and at least twofold higher than that of other molluskan AKs. Although the replacement of Asp(62) or Arg(193) by Gly in normal AK causes a considerable decrease in V(max) (6-15% of wild-type enzyme) and a two- to threefold increase in K(m) for arginine, the same replacement in Scapharca AK had no pronounced effect on enzyme activity. Together with the observation that bivalve AKs are phylogenetically distinct from other molluskan AKs, these results suggest that bivalve AKs have undergone a unique molecular evolution; the characteristic stabilizing function of residues 62 and 193 has been lost and, consequently, the enzyme shows higher activity than normal.

Effects of environmental estrogenic compounds on growth of a transplanted estrogen responsive pituitary tumor cell line in rats

The modifying effects of three endocrine disrupting chemicals on the promotion phase of estrogen dependent tumor development were investigated with a transplantable rat pituitary cell line, MtT/E-2. The EDCs examined were genistein (Gen), a phytoestrogen, p-nonylphenol (NP), a surfactant and atrazine (Atz), a herbicide. Since potential exposure is through food and drinking water, oral administration was examined in the present study. Gen and NP stimulated in vitro MtT/E-2 growth at concentrations of 10(-8) and 10(-6) M, respectively, while Atz did not show any effects. The estrogenic activity was further confirmed by measuring transcription of an ERE-luciferase reporter transiently transfected in the cells. When MtT/E-2 cells are inoculated into ovariectomized female F344 rats, estrogen dependent tumors develop providing a simple and sensitive model to examine modulation effects of estrogenic compounds in the promotion phase. Ovariectomized F344 rats implanted with MtT/E-2 were fed diet containing NP or Gen at 25 and 250 mg/kg, or Atz at 5, 50 and 500 mg/kg. NP and Atz did not exert any modifying effects on pituitary tumor development, while Gen at 250 mg/kg exhibited a promotion influence. These results indicate that Gen might facilitate the estrogen responsive tumor development if only the promotion phase is concerned, while NP and Atz at doses used in the present study were without effect.

Midline Prostatic Cysts in Healthy Men: Incidence and Transabdominal Sonographic Findings

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to use transabdominal sonography to investigate the incidence of midline prostatic cysts in healthy men.

CONCLUSION

Midline prostatic cysts represent a common variant in asymptomatic men. In a patient with urologic symptoms, detection of a midline prostatic cyst requires a focused examination to determine whether the cyst represents a normal variant or is the cause of symptoms.