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It is important to assess the effect on zooplankton when perform the environmental protection or restoration technology, especially removing algal blooms, because algae were the major primary producer in algal lakes. The influence on zooplankton community after half a year of algal blooms removed by chitosan-modified soils in Taihu Lake was assessed and the rationality of carrying out the process semiannually was evaluated in the present study. Morphological composition and genetic diversity of zooplankton community were investigated by microscope checkup and polymerase chain reaction-denatured gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). A total of 44 zooplankton taxa (23 protozoa, 17 rotifers, 3 copepoda and 1 cladocera) were detected by microscope checkup, and a total of 91 bands (28 bands amplified by primers F1427-GC and R1616, 63 bands amplified by primers Fung-GC and NS1) were detected by PCR-DGGE. The results of cluster analysis or detrended correspondence analysis indicated that there was no considerable difference in morphological composition of zooplankton and DGGE profiles between experimental and control sites, and DGGE profiles could represent the biologic diversity. The study showed that zooplankton community could recover original condition after half year of algal blooms removed by chitosan-modified soils and it was acceptable to apply this process semiannually. In addition, the results revealed that PCR-DGGE could be applied to investigate the impacts of the environmental protection or restoration engineering on zooplankton community diversity.

Using artificial systems to simulate natural lake environments with cyanobacterial blooms, we investigated plankton community succession by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) fingerprinting and morphological method. With this approach, we explored potential ecological effects of a newly developed cyanobacterial blooms removal method using chitosan-modified soils. Results of PCR-DGGE and morphological identification showed that plankton communities in the four test systems were nearly identical at the beginning of the experiment. After applying the newly developed and standard removal methods, there was a shift in community composition, but neither chemical conditions nor plankton succession were significantly affected by the cyanobacteria removal process. The planted Vallisneria natans successfully recovered after cyanobacteria removal, whereas that in the box without removal process did not. Additionally, canonical correspondence analysis indicated that other than for zooplankton abundance, total phosphorus was the most important environmental predictor of planktonic composition. The present study and others suggest that dealing with cyanobacteria removal using chitosan-modified soils can play an important role in controlling cyanobacterial blooms in eutrophicated freshwater systems.

The clinical use of HIV protease inhibitors is associated with insulin resistance and other metabolic changes that increase long-term cardiovascular risk. Since the failing heart has increased reliance on glucose, the influence of drug exposure on glucose homeostasis, myocardial glucose uptake, cardiac function, and survival was determined in TG9 mice, an established transgenic model of dilated cardiomyopathy generated by cardiac-specific overexpression of Cre-recombinase, as these animals progressed to overt heart failure. Beginning on day of life 75, TG9 mice and nontransgenic littermate controls were given a daily 10 mg/kg intraperitoneal injection of HIV protease inhibitors (ritonavir, lopinavir/ritonavir 4:1, atazanavir, atazanavir/ritonavir 4:1) or vehicle. Glucose tolerance testing, measurement of in vivo myocardial 2-deoxyglucose uptake, and echocardiography were performed before and 30 min following drug administration. The progression of dilated cardiomyopathy in TG9 animals was accompanied by impaired glucose tolerance, which was acutely exacerbated by exposure to ritonavir. Ritonavir and lopinavir precipitated acute, decompensated heart failure and death from pulmonary edema in TG9 mice. However, atazanavir, which does not inhibit glucose transport, had no effect. These studies demonstrate that, in the presence of dilated cardiomyopathy, HIV protease inhibitors that impair glucose transport induce acute, decompensated heart failure. The potential for HIV protease inhibitors to contribute to or exacerbate cardiomyopathy in human patients warrants further investigation.

The 16S and 18S rRNA genes of planktonic organisms derived from five stations with nutrient gradients in Lake Donghu, China, were studied by PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) fingerprinting, and the relationships between the genetic diversity of the plankton community and biotic/abiotic factors are discussed. The concentrations of total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), NH(4)-N and As were found to be significantly related (P<0.05) to morphological composition of the plankton community. Both chemical and morphological analyses suggested that temporal heterogeneity was comparatively higher than spatial heterogeneity in Lake Donghu. Although the morphological composition was not identical to the DGGE fingerprints in characterizing habitat similarity, the two strongest eutrophic stations (I and II) were always initially grouped into one cluster. Canonical correspondence analysis suggested that the factors strongly correlated with the first two ordination axes were seasonally different. The concentrations of TN and TP and the densities of rotifers and crustaceans were generally the main factors related to the DGGE patterns of the plankton communities. The study suggested that genetic diversity as depicted by metagenomic techniques (such as PCR-DGGE fingerprinting) is a promising tool for ecological study of plankton communities and that such techniques are likely to play an increasingly important role in assessing the environmental conditions of aquatic habitats.

To explore the relationships between community composition and the environment in a reservoir ecosystem, plankton communities from the Three Gorges Reservoir Region were studied by PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis fingerprinting. Bacterial and eukaryotic operational taxonomic units (OTUs), generated by DGGE analysis of the PCR-amplified 16S and 18S rRNA genes, were used as surrogates for the dominant "biodiversity units". OTU composition among the sites was heterogeneous; 46.7% of the total bacterial OTUs (45) and 64.1% of the eukaryotic OTUs (39) were identified in less than half of the sampling sites. Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA) clustering of the OTUs suggested that the plankton communities in the Xiangxi River sites were not always significantly different from those from the Yangtze River sites, despite clear differences in their environmental characterizations. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was applied to further investigate the relationships between OTU composition and the environmental factors. The first two CCA ordination axes suggested that the bacterial community composition was primarily correlated with the variables of NO(3-)-N, dissolved oxygen (DO), and SiO3(2-)-Si, whereas, the eukaryotic community was mainly correlated with the concentrations of DO, PO4(3-)-P, and SiO3(2-)-Si.

The remarkable regenerative potential of the liver is well known. Recent investigations have shown that this regenerative response is impaired in mouse models of fatty liver disease. Other studies demonstrate that mice engineered for liver-specific overexpression of the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) develop significant hepatic steatosis. These observations suggest that precise regulation of hepatic PPARgamma activity may be essential for normal liver regeneration. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed the effects of PPARgamma-activating thiazolidinediones on liver regeneration in the rodent partial hepatectomy model. Thiazolidinediones with different PPARgamma-activating potencies were administered to mice, and those mice were subjected to partial hepatectomy and analyzed for resulting effects on hepatocellular proliferation and signaling pathways important during normal liver regeneration. The results showed that thiazolidinediones suppress liver regeneration with efficacies that correlate with their relative PPARgamma-activating potencies. These studies provide the first evidence linking regulation of PPARgamma activity and the hepatic regenerative response.

The clinical use of HIV protease inhibitors (PIs) is associated with the development of peripheral insulin resistance. The incidence and degree of impaired glucose tolerance observed in treated patients vary considerably between drugs, however. To compare the ability of HIV PIs to alter peripheral glucose disposal acutely in a genetically identical model system at therapeutically relevant drug levels, healthy lean male rats previously naive to PI exposure were given ritonavir, amprenavir, lopinavir/ritonavir (4:1), or atazanavir by continuous intravenous infusion to achieve steady state drug levels of 10 or 25 muM rapidly. Under euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp conditions, a dose-dependent reduction in the peripheral glucose disposal rate (Rd) was observed with all the PIs except atazanavir. The rank order of sensitivity was ritonavir, lopinavir, and then amprenavir. Changes in skeletal muscle and heart 2-deoxyglucose (2-DOG) uptake correlated with reductions in Rd. All 3 of these PIs also produced significant reductions in 2-DOG uptake into primary rat adipocytes in vitro. Atazanavir had no effect on glucose uptake in vitro or in vivo. The in vivo potency of PIs to impair peripheral glucose disposal acutely correlates with the degree of insulin resistance observed in HIV-infected patients receiving these drugs. Preclinical testing of novel candidate PIs in a rodent model system may be useful in identifying the future risk of altering glucose homeostasis.

Leukocyte recruitment to the airway lumen is a central feature of inflammatory conditions such as asthma and respiratory viral infection. Characterization of mediators that regulate leukocyte recruitment in these conditions revealed increased IL-12 p40 homodimer (p80) levels were associated with enhanced airway macrophage accumulation. To examine this association, we used in vivo and in vitro assays to demonstrate p80, but not IL-12 or p40, provided a macrophage chemoattractant signal. Macrophages from genetically deficient mice indicated p80-dependent chemotaxis was independent of IL-12 and required IL-12Rbeta1 (Rbeta1) expression. Furthermore, analysis of murine cell lines and primary culture macrophages revealed Rbeta1 expression, with an intact cytoplasmic tail, was necessary and sufficient to mediate p80-dependent chemotaxis. To examine the role for Rbeta1 in mediating macrophage accumulation in vivo, we contrasted Sendai virus-driven airway inflammation in wild-type and Rbeta1-deficient mice. Despite similar viral burden and production of the macrophage chemoattractant p80, the Rbeta1-deficient mice displayed a selective decrease in airway macrophage accumulation and resistance to viral-dependent mortality. Thus, Rbeta1 mediates p80-dependent macrophage chemotaxis and inhibition of the p80-Rbeta1 interaction may provide a novel anti-inflammatory strategy to manipulate the inflammation associated with asthma and respiratory viral infection.