Pulsed call sequences as contact calls in Pacific white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens).

Pacific white-sided dolphins are a group-living species and appear to exchange "contact calls" to maintain group cohesion. The aim of this study was to find and characterize their contact calls. Calls were recorded from two females at Osaka Aquarium KAIYUKAN (OAK) and three females at Izu-Mito Sea Paradise (IMSP).

Analysis of DrkA kinase's role in STATa activation.

Dictyostelium STATa is a homologue of metazoan signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs) and is important for morphogenesis. STATa is activated by phosphorylation on Tyr702 when cells are exposed to extracellular cAMP. Although two tyrosine kinase-like (TKL) proteins, Pyk2 and Pyk3, have been definitively identified as STATc kinases, no kinase is known for STATa activation.

Implications of expansin-like 3 gene in Dictyostelium morphogenesis.

Dictyostelium harbors multiple expansin-like genes with generally unknown functions. Thus, we analyzed the expansin-like 3 (expL3) gene and found that its expression was reduced in a null mutant for a STATa gene encoding a transcription factor. The expression of expL3 was developmentally regulated and its transcript was spliced only in the multicellular stages.

Osteoblastic osteosarcoma in a rabbit.

An osteosarcoma developed in the tarsal joint region involving the distal tibia of a domestic rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Micrometastases were present in the lungs. Histologically the tumor was composed of ovoid to short-spindle cells with abundant giant cells, producing irregular islands of osteoids.

Taurine's health influence on Japanese high school girls.

Background: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) in children and adolescents has been increasing at an alarming rate. MS risks during childhood and adolescence adversely affect health conditions in later life. Thus, the characterization of their MS risks is a critical research field.

A case of lymphoma developing in the rabbit cecum.

A rare lymphoma that developed in the cecum of a domestic pet rabbit (6 years old, male, crossbred) was examined pathologically. The tumor consisted of proliferating neoplastic lymphoid cells, which were strongly stained with anti-CD79alpha monoclonal antibody. Electron microscopy revealed the tumor cells were composed of rough endoplasmic reticula and/or dilated rough endoplasmic reticula filled with moderately electron-dense material.

Rolipram depresses [(3)H]2-deoxyglucose uptake in mouse brain and heart in vivo.

The effects of systemic administration of rolipram, a selective phosphodiesterase type 4 inhibitor, on [(3)H]2-deoxyglucose (DG) uptake in brain and peripheral tissues were examined. Rolipram significantly and dose-dependently decreased [(3)H]DG uptake in brain, heart and skeletal muscle. In contrast, the radioactivity concentrations in the plasma of rolipram-treated mice were significantly higher than those of control mice at all times after injection of the tracer.