Relating annual increments of the endangered Blanding's turtle plastron growth to climate

This research is the first published study to report a relationship between climate variables and plastron growth increments of turtles, in this case the endangered Nova Scotia Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii). We used techniques and software common to the discipline of dendrochronology to successfully cross-date our growth increment data series, to detrend and average our series of 80 immature Blanding's turtles into one common chronology, and to seek correlations between the chronology and environmental temperature and precipitation variables. Our cross-dated chronology had a series intercorrelation of 0.441 (above 99% confidence interval), an average mean sensitivity of 0.293, and an average unfiltered autocorrelation of 0.377. Our master chronology represented increments from 1975 to 2007 (33 years), with index values ranging from a low of 0.688 in 2006 to a high of 1.303 in 1977. Univariate climate response function analysis on mean monthly air temperature and precipitation values revealed a positive correlation with the previous year's May temperature and current year's August temperature; a negative correlation with the previous year's October temperature; and no significant correlation with precipitation. These techniques for determining growth increment response to environmental variables should be applicable to other turtle species and merit further exploration.

Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase activity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae: regulation by a high-affinity Zn2+ binding site

Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells were demonstrated to contain lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPtdCho) acyltransferase (E.C. 2.3.1.23) activity. The enzyme displayed Km(app) of 69 microM for lysoPtdCho and 152 microM for oleoyl CoA. Enzyme activity was not affected by the addition of 1 mM Mg2+, Mn2+, Ca2+, or 200 mM EDTA. However, Zn2+ inhibited lysoPtdCho acyltransferase activity to 33% control values at 0.1 mM and to 7% at 1.0 mM Zn2+. To further explore the possibility that lysoPtdCho acyltransferase may contain a high-affinity Zn2+ binding site, we tested the strong Zn2+ chelator o-phenanthroline for its ability to inhibit enzyme activity. LysoPtdCho acyltransferase activity was inhibited to 18 and 27%, respectively, those of control values in the presence of 2 and 1 mM o-phenanthroline, implying that a high-affinity Zn2+ binding site exists in lysoPtdCho acyltransferase or in an accessory protein that is essential for protein stability and/or activity. Saccharomyces cerevisiae lysoPtdCho acyltransferase activity displayed a broad lysoPtdCho fatty acyl chain substrate specificity utilizing lysoPtdCho molecules ranging in length from C10-C20 (the entire range tested). In addition, the enzyme was capable of using the ether-linked analog of lysoPtdCho, 1-O-alkyl-2-hydroxy-sn-3-glycerophosphocholine, as a substrate. The ability of S. cerevisiae to incorporate radiolabeled 1-O-alkyl-2-hydroxy-sn-3-glycerophosphocholine into phosphatidylcholine in vitro was exploited to demonstrate a direct precursor-product relationship between lysoPtdCho molecules and their incorporation into phosphatidylcholine in vivo. Identical labeling results were obtained in S. cerevisiae cells disrupted for their major transacylase activity, PLB1, demonstrating that the incorporation of lysolipid was via acyltransferase, and not transacylase, activity.

NMDA receptor blockade increases in vivo striatal dopamine synthesis and release in rats and mice with incomplete, dopamine-depleting, nigrostriatal lesions

The role of excitatory amino acids (EAAs) in the regulation of striatal dopamine (DA) synthesis and release in rats and mice with incomplete DA-depleting lesions of the nigrostriatal system was investigated using in vivo microdialysis in rats and estimates of striatal in vivo tyrosine hydroxylase activity in mice. Dopaminergic nigrostriatal input to the striatum was partially lesioned in rats with stereotactic perinigral 6-hydroxydopamine injections and in C57BL mice with systemic 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) treatment. In rats, addition of the NMDA receptor antagonist 2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP-5, 10 mM) to dialysate increased local striatal DA release and synthesis. In 6-hydroxydopamine partially lesioned rats, the effects of AP-5 on DA release were significantly diminished, and AP-5 had no significant effect on DA synthesis. Perfusion with the non-NMDA receptor antagonist 6,7-dinitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (DNQX, 1 mM) alone increased DA synthesis slightly, whereas DNQX + AP-5 (10 mM) increased DA synthesis to levels comparable with those observed with AP-5 alone. Local striatal DA synthesis was also increased by addition of the NMDA receptor antagonist (+/-)-3-(2-carboxypiperizin-4-yl)propyl-1-phosphonic acid (CPP, 1 mM) to the perfusion buffer. Local inhibition of nitric oxide synthase with nitro-L-arginine (10 mM) perfused through the striatal microdialysis probe did not alter DA synthesis, suggesting that the effects observed with NMDA receptor blockade are not mediated by nitric oxide. In unlesioned mice, none of the systemically injected EAA receptor antagonists altered striatal DA synthesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Regulation by D2 dopamine receptors of in vivo dopamine synthesis in striata of rats and mice with experimental parkinsonism

The effects of D2 dopamine (DA) receptor antagonism or stimulation by systemic haloperidol or quinpirole, respectively, on in vivo DA synthesis in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rats and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated black mice were assessed by measuring the rate of dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) accumulation following acute inhibition of L-aromatic amino acid decarboxylase with NSD-1015. 6-OHDA and MPTP caused partial lesions of nigrostriatal input to the striatum. Dopamine synthetic capacity was preserved relative to the severity of nigrostriatal lesion over a broad range of DA depletions. An exponential increase in fractional DA synthesis (the ratio DOPA/DA) was observed with increasing DA depletion, suggesting an elevation of the DA synthetic capacity per surviving DA terminal. In both lesioned rats and mice, haloperidol caused a significant increase in fractional DA synthesis above that induced by the lesion alone, while quinpirole significantly depressed fractional DA synthesis. Our results provide evidence that nigrostriatal terminals acquire increased DA synthetic capacity as nigrostriatal lesions exceed 90%, but that the increase in fractional DA synthesis observed in partially lesioned animals is not due to a loss of autoreceptor function. Pharmacological strategies to stimulate DA synthesis and release in moderately advanced Parkinson's disease should be pursued.