Project description:Purpose: Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has revolutionized systems-based analysis of cellular functions. The goal of this study is to compare NGS-derived salivary gland transcriptome profilings (RNA-seq) to better understand the molecular nature of the physiological differences in adult murine salivary glands. Methods: Major murine salivary gland mRNA profiles were generated by deep sequencing, in triplicate, using Illumina HiSeq 2000. The sequence reads that passed quality filters were analyzed at the gene level with STAR followed by Cufflinks. In vivo NaCl reabsorption measurements were performed for validation. Results: Using an optimized data analysis workflow, we mapped about 15 million sequence reads per sample to the mouse genome (build mm10) and identified 1991 genes that were differentially expressed across three major salivary glands. RNA-seq data provided valuable insights into the nature of the functional differences among the major salivary glands Conclusions: Our study represents the first detailed analysis of murine salivary gland transcriptomes, with biologic replicates, generated by RNA-seq technology. Our results confirm functions of many genes, identified using genetically modified mice. We conclude that RNA-seq-based transcriptome characterization would offer a comprehensive and sensitive evaluation of the gene expression.
Project description:Few studies have assessed the patterns of parasite populations of rodents over a longitudinal gradient in Chile. In this work, the gastrointestinal helminthic fauna of invasive rodents in Chile was examined to assess the association between their presence/absence and abundance with latitude, host sex, and host body condition, and to assess the coexistence and correlation of the abundance between parasite species. Rodents were obtained from 20 localities between 33 and 43°S. Helminths were extracted from the gastrointestinal tract and identified morphologically. Overall, 13 helminth taxa were obtained. The most frequently identified parasite species was Heterakis spumosa, and the most abundant was Syphacia muris, while Physaloptera sp. was the most widely distributed. No locality presented with a coexistence that was different from that expected by chance, while the abundance of five helminthic species correlated with the abundance of another in at least one locality, most likely due to co-infection rather than interaction. Host sex was associated with parasite presence or abundance, and female sex-biased parasitism was notably observed in all cases. Body condition and latitude presented either a positive or negative association with the presence or abundance of parasites depending on the species. It is notable that the likely native Physaloptera sp. is widely distributed among invasive rodents. Further, gravid females were found, suggesting spillback of this species to the native fauna. The low frequency and abundance of highly zoonotic hymenolepid species suggest that rodents are of low concern regarding gastrointestinal zoonotic helminths.
Project description:SUUR protein was found to be a major component of three repressive chromatin states named BLACK, BLUE and GREEN chromatins. Here we addressed a question of developmental dynamics of these chromatin states using SUUR as a marker. SUUR binding in larval salivary glands, brains and 12-14 hours embryos was determined using DamID technique.
Project description:The Norway rat has important impacts on our life. They are amongst the most used research subjects, resulting in ground-breaking advances. At the same time, wild rats live in close association with us, leading to various adverse interactions. In face of this relevance, it is surprising how little is known about their natural behaviour. While recent laboratory studies revealed their complex social skills, little is known about their social behaviour in the wild. An integration of these different scientific approaches is crucial to understand their social life, which will enable us to design more valid research paradigms, develop more effective management strategies, and to provide better welfare standards. Hence, I first summarise the literature on their natural social behaviour. Second, I provide an overview of recent developments concerning their social cognition. Third, I illustrate why an integration of these areas would be beneficial to optimise our interactions with them.
Project description:BackgroundMurine kobuviruses (MuKV) are newly recognized picornaviruses first detected in murine rodents in the USA in 2011. Little information on MuKV epidemiology in murine rodents is available. Therefore, we conducted a survey of the prevalence and genomic characteristics of rat kobuvirus in Guangdong, China.ResultsFecal samples from 223 rats (Rattus norvegicus) were collected from Guangdong and kobuviruses were detected in 12.6% (28) of samples. Phylogenetic analysis based on partial 3D and complete VP1 sequence regions showed that rat kobuvirus obtained in this study were genetically closely related to those of rat/mouse kobuvirus reported in other geographical areas. Two near full-length rat kobuvirus genomes (MM33, GZ85) were acquired and phylogenetic analysis of these revealed that they shared very high nucleotide/amino acids identity with one another (95.4%/99.4%) and a sewage-derived sequence (86.9%/93.5% and 87.5%/93.7%, respectively). Comparison with original Aichivirus A strains, such human kobuvirus, revealed amino acid identity values of approximately 80%.ConclusionOur findings indicate that rat kobuvirus have distinctive genetic characteristics from other Aichivirus A viruses. Additionally, rat kobuvirus may spread via sewage.
Project description:Inflammation is a key component of pathological angiogenesis. Here we induce cornea neovascularisation using sutures placed into the cornea, and sutures are removed to induce a regression phase. We used whole transcriptome microarray to monitor gene expression profies of several genes
Project description:Proteins produced in the salivary glands of arthropod herbivores can function as effectors to modify plant defense responses. To obtain a set of candidate, salivary gland specific genes for the mite herbivore Tetranychus urticae, mites were dissected and the head region was recovered. Specifically, the proterosoma was dissected from 250 mites. This includes the salivary glands, and other nearby tissue (given their small size, exact micro-dissection of salivary glands was not possible). As a reference for assessing differential expression to identify genes that might be salivary gland specific, three replicates of 100 whole mites were used. Female mites, which are much larger than males, were used in all cases for collection of RNA.
Project description:Individual differences in behaviors are seen across many species, and investigations have focused on traits linked to aggression, risk taking, emotionality, coping styles, and differences in cognitive systems. The current study investigated whether there were individual differences in proactive interference tasks in rats (Rattus Norvegicus), and tested hypotheses suggesting that these tasks should load onto a single factor and there should be clusters of rats who perform well or poorly on these tasks. The performance of 39 rats was tested across three learning tasks that all involved disengagement from an irrelevant previously learned stimulus to a relevant stimulus: latent inhibition (LI), partial reinforcement extinction effect (PREE), and reversal learning (RL). An exploratory factor analysis revealed the existence of one factor underlying performance. A cluster analysis revealed the existence of sets of rats displaying either weak LI and strong PREE and RL effects, or vice versa. These findings suggest that proactive interference may be based on a single underlying psychological system in rats.