Shorter Migration Distance and Breeding Latitude Correlate With Earlier Egg-Laying Across the Northeastern Pacific Ocean Range of the Rhinoceros Auklet ().

Models of migratory behavior predict trade-offs between fitness costs and benefits with respect to migration distance. Shorter migration distances may confer a fitness benefit by facilitating earlier breeding, however this is rarely investigated. We tested this hypothesis using a large-scale geolocation (GLS) dataset from 109 rhinoceros auklets (), a differentially migrating seabird, that was tagged at 12 breeding colonies along the Pacific Coast of North America, spanning southern California to the eastern Aleutian Islands, Alaska.

Fatty acid binding protein 5 inhibition attenuates pronociceptive cytokine/chemokine expression and suppresses osteoarthritis pain: A comparative human and rat study.

Objective: Osteoarthritis (OA) is often accompanied by debilitating pain that is refractory to available analgesics due in part to the complexity of signaling molecules that drive OA pain and our inability to target these in parallel. Fatty acid binding protein 5 (FABP5) is a lipid chaperone that regulates inflammatory pain; however, its contribution to OA pain has not been characterized.

Design: This combined clinical and pre-clinical study utilized synovial tissues obtained from subjects with end-stage OA and rats with monoiodoacetate-induced OA.

Monoacylglycerol Lipase and Cyclooxygenase-2 Expression in Osteoarthritic Human Knees.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a progressive degenerative joint disease that presents with significant pain and functional disability. The endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol activates cannabinoid receptors to reduce pain while its hydrolysis by the enzyme monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) generates arachidonic acid, the direct precursor to proalgesic eicosanoids synthesized by cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), highlighting the potential for crosstalk between MAGL and COX-2. While COX-2 expression in human OA cartilage has been described, the distribution of MAGL in knee osteochondral tissue has not been reported and was the goal of the current study.

FABP5 deletion in nociceptors augments endocannabinoid signaling and suppresses TRPV1 sensitization and inflammatory pain.

The endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) produces antinociceptive effects by activating cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1). However, AEA also serves as an agonist at transient receptor potential vanilloid receptor 1 (TRPV1) in nociceptive sensory neurons, which may exacerbate pain. This potential functional duality is highlighted by the failure of an inhibitor of the AEA catabolic enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) to afford pain relief in a clinical trial.

Interannual measures of nutritional stress during a marine heatwave (the Blob) differ between two North Pacific seabird species.

'The Blob', a mass of anomalously warm water in the Northeast Pacific Ocean peaking from 2014 to 2016, caused a decrease in primary productivity with cascading effects on the marine ecosystem. Among the more obvious manifestations of the event were seabird breeding failures and mass mortality events. Here, we used corticosterone in breast feathers (fCort), grown in the winter period during migration, as an indicator of nutritional stress to investigate the impact of the Blob on two sentinel Pacific auk species (family Alcidae).

Exposure to persistent organic pollutants is linked to over-wintering latitude in a Pacific seabird, the rhinoceros auklet, Cerorhinca monocerata.

Seabirds are wide-ranging organisms often used to track marine pollution, yet the effect of migration on exposure over the annual cycle is often unclear. We used solar geolocation loggers and stable isotope analysis to study the effects of post breeding dispersal and diet on persistent organic pollutant (POP) and mercury (Hg) burdens in rhinoceros auklets, Cerorhinca monocerata, breeding on islands along the Pacific Coast of Canada. Hg and four classes of POPs were measured in auklet eggs: organochlorine insecticides (OCs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and perfluoralkyl substances (PFASs).

Geolocator tagging links distributions in the non-breeding season to population genetic structure in a sentinel North Pacific seabird.

We tested the hypothesis that segregation in wintering areas is associated with population differentiation in a sentinel North Pacific seabird, the rhinoceros auklet (Cerorhinca monocerata). We collected tissue samples for genetic analyses on five breeding colonies in the western Pacific Ocean (Japan) and on 13 colonies in the eastern Pacific Ocean (California to Alaska), and deployed light-level geolocator tags on 12 eastern Pacific colonies to delineate wintering areas. Geolocator tags were deployed previously on one colony in Japan.

FABP5 coordinates lipid signaling that promotes prostate cancer metastasis.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is defined by dysregulated lipid signaling and is characterized by upregulation of lipid metabolism-related genes including fatty acid binding protein 5 (FABP5), fatty acid synthase (FASN), and monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL). FASN and MAGL are enzymes that generate cellular fatty acid pools while FABP5 is an intracellular chaperone that delivers fatty acids to nuclear receptors to enhance PCa metastasis. Since FABP5, FASN, and MAGL have been independently implicated in PCa progression, we hypothesized that FABP5 represents a central mechanism linking cytosolic lipid metabolism to pro-metastatic nuclear receptor signaling.

FABP1 controls hepatic transport and biotransformation of Δ-THC.

The increasing use of medical marijuana highlights the importance of developing a better understanding of cannabinoid metabolism. Phytocannabinoids, including ∆-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), are metabolized and inactivated by cytochrome P450 enzymes primarily within the liver. The lipophilic nature of cannabinoids necessitates mechanism(s) to facilitate their intracellular transport to metabolic enzymes.

Beach-cast debris surveys on Triangle Island, British Columbia, Canada indicate the timing of arrival of 2011 Tōhoku tsunami debris in North America.

We conducted beach-cast debris transect surveys on Triangle Island, British Columbia, Canada in 2012-2017 to (1) establish a baseline against which to track future changes in stranded debris on this small, uninhabited island; and (2) time the arrival in western North America of debris released by the 2011 Tōhoku tsunami. Most (90%) of the six-year total of 6784 debris items tallied was composed of Styrofoam or plastic. The number of debris items peaked in 2014 (waste Styrofoam, rope) and 2015 (waste plastic, wood), and cumulative totals for all debris types were ca.

Egg size is independent of variation in pre-breeding feather corticosterone in Cassin's auklets during favorable oceanographic conditions.

The measurement of corticosterone levels in feathers (fCort) is gaining recognition as an effective means for describing links between stages of the annual cycle in birds. Many seabirds are especially good models for exploring these links, or carryover effects, due to their migratory behavior and reproductive investment in a single-egg clutch. Here, we measure fCort in Cassin's auklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus) breast feathers at two colonies in British Columbia during 2011, a year of favorable oceanographic conditions, and examine its relationship with egg size.

Two forage fishes as potential conduits for the vertical transfer of microfibres in Northeastern Pacific Ocean food webs.

We assessed the potential role played by two vital Northeastern Pacific Ocean forage fishes, the Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes personatus) and Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii), as conduits for the vertical transfer of microfibres in food webs. We quantified the number of microfibres found in the stomachs of 734 sand lance and 205 herring that had been captured by an abundant seabird, the rhinoceros auklet (Cerorhinca monocerata). Sampling took place on six widely-dispersed breeding colonies in British Columbia, Canada, and Washington State, USA, over one to eight years.

Fatty-acid-binding protein 5 controls retrograde endocannabinoid signaling at central glutamate synapses.

Endocannabinoids (eCBs) are lipid-signaling molecules involved in the regulation of numerous behaviors and physiological functions. Released by postsynaptic neurons, eCBs mediate retrograde modulation of synaptic transmission and plasticity by activating presynaptic cannabinoid receptors. While the cellular mechanisms by which eCBs control synaptic function have been well characterized, the mechanisms controlling their retrograde synaptic transport remain unknown.

Fatty acid-binding protein 5 controls microsomal prostaglandin E synthase 1 (mPGES-1) induction during inflammation.

Fatty acid-binding proteins (FABPs) are intracellular lipid carriers that regulate inflammation, and pharmacological inhibition of FABP5 reduces inflammation and pain. The mechanism(s) underlying the anti-inflammatory effects associated with FABP5 inhibition is poorly understood. Herein, we identify a novel mechanism through which FABP5 modulates inflammation.

Low incidence of plastics in food loads delivered to nestlings by a zooplanktivorous seabird over a 21-year period.

We quantified the amount of plastic found in food loads delivered to nestlings in Cassin's Auklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus), a small, zooplanktivorous seabird, on Triangle Island, British Columbia, in 1996-2016. The density of plastic in surrounding waters is moderately high, yet few food loads contained any plastic (3 of 850), and none more than two pieces. That result accords well with previous observations on the other four North Pacific auklets (Aethia spp.

Fatty-acid-binding protein inhibition produces analgesic effects through peripheral and central mechanisms.

Background Fatty-acid-binding proteins (FABPs) are intracellular carriers for endocannabinoids, N-acylethanolamines, and related lipids. Previous work indicates that systemically administered FABP5 inhibitors produce analgesia in models of inflammatory pain. It is currently not known whether FABP inhibitors exert their effects through peripheral or central mechanisms.

Light pulse duration differentially regulates mouse locomotor suppression and phase shifts.

Brief exposure of mice to nocturnal light causes circadian rhythm phase shifts, simultaneously inducing locomotor suppression, a drop in body temperature, and associated sleep. The exact nature of the relationship between these light-induced responses is uncertain, although locomotor suppression and phase shift magnitudes are related to stimulus irradiance. Whether stimulus duration has similar effects is less clear.

Retinofugal projections in the mouse.

The laboratory mouse is increasingly a subject for visual system investigation, but there has been no comprehensive evaluation of this species' visual projections. Here, projections were visualized and mapped following intraocular injection of cholera toxin B subunit. Tissue was processed using standard procedures applied to 30 μm free-floating sections with diaminobenzidine as the chromogen.

Drugs that prevent mouse sleep also block light-induced locomotor suppression, circadian rhythm phase shifts and the drop in core temperature.

Exposure of mice to a brief light stimulus during their nocturnal active phase induces several simultaneous behavioral or physiological responses, including circadian rhythm phase shifts, a drop in core body temperature (Tc), suppression of locomotor activity and sleep. Each response is triggered by light, endures for a relatively fixed interval and does not require additional light for expression. The present studies address the ability of the psychostimulant drugs, methamphetamine (MA), modafinil (MOD) or caffeine (CAF), to modify the light-induced responses.

Brief light stimulation during the mouse nocturnal activity phase simultaneously induces a decline in core temperature and locomotor activity followed by EEG-determined sleep.

Light exerts a variety of effects on mammals. Unexpectedly, one of these effects is the cessation of nocturnal locomotion and the induction of behavioral sleep (photosomnolence). Here, we extend the initial observations in several ways, including the fundamental demonstration that core body temperature (T(c)) drops substantially (about 1.

Separation of function for classical and ganglion cell photoreceptors with respect to circadian rhythm entrainment and induction of photosomnolence.

Four studies were performed to further clarify the contribution of rod/cone and intrinsically photoreceptive retinal ganglion cells to measures of entrainment, dark preference, light-induced locomotor suppression and photosomnolence. Wild type (WT), retinally degenerate (rd/rd), and melanopsin-less (OPN4⁻/⁻) mouse strains were compared. In Experiment 1, mice were exposed to a graded photoperiod in which approximately 0.

Neurons identified by NeuN/Fox-3 immunoreactivity have a novel distribution in the hamster and mouse suprachiasmatic nucleus.

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) has several structural characteristics and cell phenotypes shared across species. Here, we describe a novel feature of SCN anatomy that is seen in both hamster and mouse. Frozen sections through the SCN were obtained from fixed brains and stained for the presence of immunoreactivity to neuronal nuclear protein (NeuN-IR) using a mouse monoclonal antibody which is known to exclusively identify neurons.

Two components of nocturnal locomotor suppression by light.

In nocturnal rodents, millisecond light ("flash") stimuli can induce both a large circadian rhythm phase shift and an associated state change from highly active to quiescence followed by behavioral sleep. Suppression of locomotion ("negative masking") is an easily measured correlate of the state change. The present mouse studies used both flashes and longer light stimuli ("pulses") to distinguish initiation from maintenance effects of light on locomotor suppression and to determine whether the locomotor suppression exhibits temporal integration as is thought to be characteristic of phase shift responses to pulse, but not flash, stimuli.

Millisecond light pulses make mice stop running, then display prolonged sleep-like behavior in the absence of light.

Masking, measured as a decrease in nocturnal rodent wheel running, is a visual system response to rod/cone and retinal ganglion cell photoreception. Here, the authors show that a few milliseconds of light are sufficient to initiate masking, which continues for many minutes without additional photic stimulation. C57J/B6 mice were tested using flash stimuli previously shown to elicit large circadian rhythm phase shifts.

Targeted destruction of photosensitive retinal ganglion cells with a saporin conjugate alters the effects of light on mouse circadian rhythms.

Non-image related responses to light, such as the synchronization of circadian rhythms to the day/night cycle, are mediated by classical rod/cone photoreceptors and by a small subset of retinal ganglion cells that are intrinsically photosensitive, expressing the photopigment, melanopsin. This raises the possibility that the melanopsin cells may be serving as a conduit for photic information detected by the rods and/or cones. To test this idea, we developed a specific immunotoxin consisting of an anti-melanopsin antibody conjugated to the ribosome-inactivating protein, saporin.