甲醛对原癌基因c-myc、MDM2及抑癌基因p53的影响

为研究吸入性甲醛的毒性能否进入动物骨髓组织,引起骨髓组织基因表达发生改变,选择小鼠某些原癌基因和抑癌基因为研究对象,以SPF级balb/c雄性小鼠为材料,采用动态吸入方式染毒2周(5+2模式),染毒浓度分别为0, 0.5, 3.0mg/m3,用半定量RT-PCR方法检测不同浓度甲醛对小鼠染毒后骨髓组织细胞中c-myc、MDM2和p53基因表达的变化.结果表明,在不同浓度的甲醛暴露条件下,与空白对照组相比,小鼠骨髓组织中的c-myc基因,MDM2基因和p53基因表达均发生改变,在3.0mg/m3浓度组与空白对照组存在显著差异(P<0.05), c-myc基因,MDM2基因呈现表达上调,p53基因则呈现表达下调.吸入性甲醛的毒性能进入动物骨髓组织,并能引起骨髓组织基因表达发生改变.     

Treatment and skin decontamination of sarin intoxicated mice

Abstract

This study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of oral treatment and skin decontamination with the mineral cationic carrier in sarin-intoxicated mice. Mice were contaminated with increasing percutaneous sarin doses and decontaminated. Furthermore, the surviving mice were treated per os. The behavioral patterns of the surviving animals were monitored for 72?h, including the animals’ posture, desire for food and water, and approach and touch response. The results showed the mineral cationic carrier to be capable of efficiently decontaminating animals percutaneous poisoned with triple lethal dose. The comparison of behavioral pattern of control animals against those treated per os showed statistically significant differences. Oral treatment with mineral cationic carrier may be a detoxification tool against nerve agents’ poisoning, and this merits further research.     

纳米Fe3O4对小鼠肺细胞的氧化损伤

纳米Fe3O4作为一种功能材料,在生物医药、生物靶向材料、微波吸收材料和高梯度磁分离器等方面应用前景广阔,其潜在的生物毒性也备受关注。为研究纳米Fe3O4对生物体可能造成的氧化损伤,以昆明小鼠为受试体,设置5、10、20和40mg·kg-14个染毒组,腹腔注射染毒7d后,测定小鼠肺组织中活性氧(reactive oxygen species,ROS)、还原型谷胱甘肽(glutathione,GSH)和丙二醛(malondialdehyde,MDA)的含量。结果显示,随着纳米Fe3O4染毒剂量的升高,肺组织ROS和MDA含量逐渐上升,GSH含量逐渐降低,各指标均呈一定的剂量-效应关系。剂量≥10mg·kg-1,肺组织ROS含量与对照组相比有显著差异(p<0.05);剂量≥20mg·kg-1,肺组织MDA含量与对照组相比有显著差异(p<0.05);剂量≥40mg·kg-1,肺组织GSH含量与对照组相比有显著差异(p<0.05)。研究表明,较高剂量(≥20mg·kg-1)的纳米Fe3O4颗粒材料会引起小鼠肺细胞的氧化损伤。     

丙烯腈对小鼠精液运动参数的影响(Effects of Acrylonitrile on Sperm Motility in Male Mice)

为探讨丙烯腈(Acrylonitrile,AN)对雄性小鼠的生殖毒性作用机制,将250只SPF级昆明种雄性小鼠按体重随机分为5组:3个AN染毒组(1.25、2.50、5.00mg·kg-1)、1个阴性对照组(生理盐水0.01mL·g-1)和1个阳性对照组(环磷酰胺40mg·kg-1),腹腔注射染毒5d,每天1次.于初次染毒后第7、14、21、28、35d分五批处死小鼠,检测分析小鼠精子运动参数的变化.结果表明,5个观察终点各剂量组精液参数(精子密度、活动度、运动速度、运动方式参数、空间位移程度)变化与阴性对照均无显著差异(p>0.05).提示,在试验浓度范围内,AN对小鼠精子运动参数无影响.     

The rarity of twins: a result of an evolutionary battle between mothers and daughters—or do they agree?

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that parent–offspring conflict over parental investment might have led to the rarity of dizygotic twins in humans. We explored the theoretical prediction that twins maximize their inclusive fitness by the death of a co-twin, while mothers of twins maximize fitness by raising both twins to independence. We used life history data (1700–1900) from two parishes in Central Norway to compare differences in inclusive fitness (measured as number of children reared to the age of 16 years, using Hamilton's rule) between twins and mothers of twins. Our results show that twins maximize their inclusive fitness by the death of a co-twin, while mothers of twins raise more children by rearing both twins to adulthood. However, because twins growing up as singletons may produce higher or at least equal number of offspring than the sum of the two twins growing up together, mothers might gain more grandchildren by allowing twins to grow up as singletons. To conclude, both selfish twins and their mothers might benefit by the death of a co-twin, indicating that there is no parent–offspring conflict responsible for the rareness of twins in these human populations. Finally, we discuss the results in the light of “The Insurance Egg Hypothesis” and “The Natural Selection Hypothesis”.     

彗星试验检测酚类化合物对小鼠脾脏细胞DNA损伤的研究

应用彗星试验技术,研究了酚类化合物对小鼠脾脏细胞DNA的损伤作用,试验结果表明,12种酚类化合物对小鼠脾脏细胞均能引起不同程度的DNA损伤,并呈现剂量效应关系.与对照组相比,均有显著性差异(P＜0 05,P＜0 01).试验结果亦表明,其DNA的损伤程度与化学结构有一定的关系.      

苦马豆素致糖基转移酶活性改变对小鼠生殖激素分泌的影响

苦马豆素是疯草主要有毒成分,抑制α-甘露糖苷酶的活性,引起N-聚糖加工过程失调。笔者课题组前期研究得出:苦马豆素致糖蛋白激素(促卵泡素和促黄体素)糖基化位点上糖链结构发生改变,引起促性腺激素功能发生改变。而苦马豆素中毒对家畜生殖激素分泌的调节机制尚不明确。苦马豆素腹腔注射对小鼠进行染毒,收集妊娠期和分娩期小鼠的血液、子宫和卵巢组织,检测糖基转移酶活性、生殖激素水平及其受体mRNA和类固醇限速酶蛋白质表达量。结果表明:在妊娠和分娩期,苦马豆素致子宫内膜固有层大量低聚糖蓄积,显著抑制N-聚糖加工过程关键糖基转移酶的活性(P0.05);染毒组小鼠血液的生殖激素包括促卵泡素(FSH)、促黄体素(LH)、雌激素(E2)和孕酮(P4)水平显著低于对照组(P0.05)。在整个妊娠周期,染毒组小鼠4种激素受体mRNA的表达量显著低于对照组(P0.05)。在妊娠后期,染毒组小鼠3-β羟基类固醇脱氢酶(3-βHSD)和芳香化酶(CYP19A1)蛋白表达量显著低于对照组(P0.05)。苦马豆素可使N-聚糖加工紊乱,引起促性腺激素分泌降低,进一步降低生殖激素受体和性类固醇激素限速酶的表达量,致使性类固醇激素分泌下降,导致生殖激素分泌紊乱,最终结果造成机体繁殖性能下降。     

碲化镉量子点Cd~(2+)释放对小鼠肝、肾组织毒作用的研究

探讨碲化镉量子点(cadmium telluride quantum dots,Cd Te QDs)Cd2+释放与其体内毒性之间的关系。将24只雄性ICR小鼠(24.7~26.8g)随机分为4组,每组6只,分别为0 nmol组(对照组)、5 nmol染毒组、50 nmol染毒组和500 nmol染毒组(以Cd2+的摩尔浓度计算)。采用尾静脉注射方式进行染毒,染毒组注射0.15 ml不同浓度的Cd Te QDs溶液,对照组注射同等体积的生理盐水。染毒24h后小鼠脱臼处死,计算脏器系数,进行血常规和血清生化指标分析以及肝、肾组织的病理组织学检查。选取金属硫蛋白(metallothionein,MT)作为生物体内游离Cd2+水平的生物标志物,通过酶联免疫吸附实验(ELISA)和免疫组织化学技术检测小鼠肝、肾组织中的MT水平。结果表明,各染毒组小鼠肝、肾脏器系数与对照组相比,差异无统计学意义(P0.05),尿素氮水平与对照组相比显著降低(P0.01)。随着染毒剂量增加,小鼠肝、肾组织病理改变逐渐加重,肝细胞可见不同程度的水性样变和肿胀;肾小管管腔水肿、肾上皮细胞水样变性,以及远曲小管水肿。染毒组小鼠肝、肾组织中MT的含量与对照组相比明显升高(P0.05),且随着染毒剂量增加MT表达增强。研究结果提示,Cd Te QDs对小鼠肝、肾组织具有一定的毒作用,其毒作用大小与Cd Te QDs降解释放的游离Cd2+含量呈正相关。     

Characteristics of fear of crime in evacuation shelters after the Great East Japan Earthquake

After the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011, numerous evacuees had to stay in evacuation shelters such as school gymnasiums. In general, after a disaster, ensuring the safety and security of evacuees in evacuation shelters is a serious problem. Consequently, many of these evacuees feared that they would be victims of crime in the shelters or that their evacuated homes would be burgled. To examine what factors evoke a general fear of crime in shelters and burglary of evacuated homes, we conducted an online questionnaire on 300 evacuees in Miyagi Prefecture who had stayed at such shelters. From a factor analysis of fear of 16 specific kinds of crime in shelters, we extracted two factors representing fear of property and female-related crime. We then found that a general fear of crime in shelters was associated with being young and a fear of female-related crime, while a fear of burglary of evacuated homes was associated with being female, owning a detached house, and fear of property crime. Based on these results, we provide recommendations aiming to help reduce the fear of crime in shelters and burglary of evacuated homes.     

Effects of age and sex ratios on offspring recruitment rates in translocated black rhinoceros

Success of animal translocations depends on improving postrelease demographic rates toward establishment and subsequent growth of released populations. Short‐term metrics for evaluating translocation success and its drivers, like postrelease survival and fecundity, are unlikely to represent longer‐term outcomes. We used information theory to investigate 25 years of data on black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) translocations. We used the offspring recruitment rate (ORR) of translocated females—a metric integrating survival, fecundity, and offspring recruitment at sexual maturity—to detect determinants of success. Our unambiguously best model (AICω = 0.986) predicted that ORR increases with female age at release as a function of lower postrelease adult rhinoceros sex ratio (males:females). Delay of first postrelease reproduction and failure of some females to recruit any calves to sexual maturity most influenced the pattern of ORRs, and the leading causes of recruitment failure were postrelease female death (23% of all females) and failure to calve (24% of surviving females). We recommend translocating older females (≥6 years old) because they do not exhibit the reproductive delay and low ORRs of juveniles (<4 years old) or the higher rates of recruitment failure of juveniles and young adults (4–5.9 years old). Where translocation of juveniles is necessary, they should be released into female‐biased populations, where they have higher ORRs. Our study offers the unique advantage of a long‐term analysis across a large number of replicate populations—a science‐by‐management experiment as a proxy for a manipulative experiment, and a rare opportunity, particularly for a large, critically endangered taxon such as the black rhinoceros. Our findings differ from previous recommendations, reinforce the importance of long‐term data sets and comprehensive metrics of translocation success, and suggest attention be shifted from ecological to social constraints on population growth and species recovery, particularly when translocating species with polygynous breeding systems.