Effect of dietary fermented mushroom bed on egg production in laying hens.

Egg productivity is declined by stress. It has been reported that some food supplements can improve the egg productivity due to a reduction of environmental stress. We evaluated the effect of fermented waste mushroom bed (FWMB) as a dietary additive on egg productivity.

Topical application of plant extracts containing xanthine derivatives can prevent UV-induced wrinkle formation in hairless mice.

Background: Plants are the source of important products with nutritional and therapeutic value. Topical or oral administration of some plant extracts has been shown to reduce photodamage. Cacao bean and cola nut are popular edible plants that contain polyphenols and xanthine derivatives.

Establishment of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay system to detect the amino terminal secretory form of rat Erc/Mesothelin.

By representational difference analysis, we previously identified the rat Erc (Expressed in renal carcinoma) gene that was more abundantly expressed in the renal carcinoma tissues of Eker rats than in the rat normal kidney. In this study, we raised antibodies against the amino-terminal portion of the rat Erc, and demonstrated the existence of a approximately 30-kDa secretory form in the supernatant of cultured cells derived from rat renal carcinoma. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system using these antibodies detected high concentrations of this form in the sera of Eker rats bearing renal carcinomas, and in the sera of rats transplanted with mesothelioma cells.

HZE radiation effects for hereditary renal carcinomas.

Eker rat known as a model of hereditary renal carcinoma (RC) is an example of Mendelian dominantly inherited predisposition to a specific cancer in experimental animals. We investigate the effects of simulated space radiation on carcinogenesis using HIMAC. We estimated RBE from the Eker rats exposed to the heavy-ions, C (290 MeV/u) and Fe (500 MeV/u) ions, comparing to the effects of X-ray irradiation.

Ergocalciferol promotes in vivo differentiation of keratinocytes and reduces photodamage caused by ultraviolet irradiation in hairless mice.

Background: Ergocalciferol (VD(2)) is usually administered orally and it is metabolized to produce its biologically active metabolites in the liver and kidney. Active vitamin D is a well-known potent regulator of cell growth and differentiation.

Purpose: Active vitamin D such as 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3)) prevents photodamage, including wrinkles and morphologic alterations.

Niban gene is commonly expressed in the renal tumors: a new candidate marker for renal carcinogenesis.

Functional inactivation of tuberous sclerosis 2 gene (Tsc2) leads to renal carcinogenesis in the hereditary renal carcinoma Eker rat models. Recent studies revealed a role of tuberin, a TSC2 product, in suppressing the p70 S6 kinase (p70S6K) activity via inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). Phosphorylated S6 protein, a substrate of p70S6K, was expressed in the early lesions in Eker rats, and this expression was suppressed by the treatment of rapamycin, an inhibitor of mTOR.

A germ-line insertion in the Birt-Hogg-Dubé (BHD) gene gives rise to the Nihon rat model of inherited renal cancer.

A rat model of hereditary renal carcinoma (RC) was found in a rat colony of the Sprague-Dawley strain in Japan and named the "Nihon" rat. In heterozygotes, RCs, predominantly the clear cell type, develop from early preneoplastic lesions, which began to appear as early as 3 weeks of age, to adenocarcinomas by the age of 6 months. The Nihon rat is an example of a Mendelian dominantly inherited predisposition for development of RCs like the Eker (Tsc2 gene mutant) rat.

Presence of a modifier gene(s) affecting early renal carcinogenesis in the Tsc2 mutant (Eker) rat model.

The Eker (Tsc2 mutant) rat model of renal carcinoma is an example of Mendelian dominantly inherited predisposition to a specific cancer. Effects of genetic background on renal carcinogenesis in the Eker rat model (Eker/Eker > Eker/BN strain) indicate the presence in the BN rat genome of a modifier gene(s) that suppresses tumorigenesis. The identification of such a modifier gene(s) might help clarify the diversity of tuberous sclerosis in humans.

Variation of variable number of tandem repeat sequences in the 3'-untranslated region of primate dopamine transporter genes that affects reporter gene expression.

Genetic polymorphism has been reported in the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) of the human dopamine transporter (DAT) gene and the variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) polymorphism has been proposed to be associated with normal personal traits or psychoneurological disorders. To assess the variation of this region in nonhuman primates, we amplified the VNTR regions by the polymerase chain reaction in several species of apes and monkeys, and determined their DNA sequences. The 3'-UTR of the chimpanzee DAT gene was also polymorphic and alleles with one or two unit(s) of a 40 bp sequence were found, while all gorillas and orangutans examined had only 2-repeat allele.

Identification of the coding sequences responsible for Tsc2-mediated tumor suppression using a transgenic rat system.

Hereditary renal carcinomas in the Eker rat are caused by germline retrotransposon insertion in the tuberous sclerosis-2 (Tsc2) gene. We established previously a transgenic Eker rat model into which was introduced a wild-type Tsc2 gene. The embryonic lethality of mutant homozygotes and renal carcinogenesis of heterozygotes were completely suppressed by this transgene (Tg).

N-ethyl-N-hydroxyethylnitrosamine (EHEN)-induced renal and hepatocarcinogenesis in the tumor suppressor Tsc2 transgenic rat.

Hereditary renal carcinomas (RCs) develop in Tsc2 gene mutant (Eker) rats around the age of 1 year. We previously reported that Tsc2 mutations were detected in chemically (N-ethyl-N-hydroxyethylnitrosamine (EHEN) and diethylnitrosamine)-induced non-Eker rat RCs, suggesting an involvement of Tsc2 alteration in rat RC development. In this study, we evaluated the effect of extra copies of the Tsc2 gene on renal and hepatocarcinogenesis that was induced by EHEN in vivo.