A hemolymph major anionic peptide, HemaP, motivates feeding behavior in the sweetpotato hornworm, Agrius convolvuli.

We recently identified a novel feeding-modulating peptide, hemolymph major anionic peptide (HemaP), designated Bommo-HemaP (B-HemaP), from hemolymph of the silkworm Bombyx mori. B-HemaP has a unique biological activity in modulating the regular frequency of feeding motivation, which is accompanied by increased foraging behaviors. To confirm the conservation of the HemaP-regulated feeding mechanism in lepidopteran species, we purified and sequenced two candidate peptides from the hemolymph of larvae of the sweet potato hornworm Agrius convolvuli. Unlike B. mori, A. convolvuli had two forms of HemaP, which were designated Agrco-HemaP-1 (A-HemaP-1) and Agrco-HemaP-2 (A-HemaP-2). The amino acid sequence of A-HemaP-2 was identical with that of A-HemaP-1, except for O-glycosylation on the fifth amino acid, threonine, within the N-terminal region. The amino acid sequence of A-HemaP-1/A-HemaP-2 had only 32% identity with B-HemaP. Structural analysis revealed that the carbohydrate moiety of A-HemaP-2 was an α-GalNAc residue. Injection of A-HemaP-1, A-HemaP-2 and recombinant A-HemaP-1 (rA-HemaP-1) individually caused a significant increase in foraging behaviors in A. convolvuli larvae, and no significant differences were observed among these three A-HemaPs. The CD spectra of these three A-HemaPs were quite similar, and all had α-helix-rich secondary structures. Although A-HemaP-1 and B-HemaP did not exhibit cross-reactivity at any injection doses examined, HemaP might be a conserved molecule among lepidopteran species that can modulate feeding motivation through the fluctuation of peptide levels in hemolymph.

Central projections of the wing afferents in the hawkmoth, Agrius convolvuli.

Flight behaviors in various insect species are closely correlated with their mechanical and neuronal properties. Compared to locusts and flies which have been intensively studied, moths have "intermediate" properties in terms of the neurogenic muscle activations, power generation by indirect muscles, and two-winged-insect-like flapping behavior. Despite these unique characteristics, little is known about the neuronal mechanisms of flight control in moths. We investigated projections of the wing mechanosensory afferents in the central nervous system (CNS) of the hawkmoth, Agrius convolvuli, because the mechanosensory proprioceptive feedback has an essential role for flight control and would be presumably optimized for insect species. We conducted anterograde staining of nine afferent nerves from the fore- and hindwings. All of these afferents projected into the prothoracic, mesothoracic and metathoracic ganglia (TG1, 2 and 3) and had ascending fibers to the head ganglia. Prominent projection areas in the TG1-3 and suboesophageal ganglion (SOG) were common between the forewing, hindwing and contralateral forewing afferents, suggesting that information from different wings are converged at multiple levels presumably for coordinating wing flapping. On the other hand, differences of projections between the fore- and hindwing afferents were observed especially in projection areas of the tegulae in the TG1 and contralateral projections of the anterior forewing nerve in the TGs and SOG, which would reflect functional differences between corresponding mechanoreceptors on each wing. Afferents comprising groups of the campaniform sensilla at the wing bases had prominent ascending pathways to the SOG, resembling the head-neck motor system for gaze control in flies. Double staining of the wing afferents and flight or neck motoneurons also indicated potential connectivity between them. Our results suggest multiple roles of the wing proprioceptive feedback for flight and provide the anatomical basis for further understanding of neuronal mechanisms of the flight system in moths.

Application of the powder of porous titanium carbide ceramics to a reusable adsorbent for environmental pollutants.

The aim of this study is to investigate the utilization of the powder of porous titanium carbide (TiC) ceramics as a novel adsorbent or a material for solid-phase extraction (SPE). The adsorption and elution of inorganic and organic pollutants, Pb(II), 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), to the material were evaluated. The cartridge packed with TiC ceramics powder was used for the extraction test of pollutants. The solution containing pollutants at 1.0 µg mL(-1) was passed through the TiC cartridge, and the substances were almost quantitatively removed. Furthermore, the pollutants retained in the cartridge were eluted with 3N HCl for Pb(II) and with methanol for organic pollutants. The recoveries of pollutants were over 80%. In addition, we used the TiC cartridge for the solid-phase extraction of water samples (500 mL each of the distilled water and the river water) by adding pollutants at determined concentrations. Every pollutant was adsorbed almost quantitatively, and eluted by 3N HCl or methanol. From these results, we concluded that the powder of porous TiC ceramics is a useful reusable adsorbent for the water cleanup and solid-phase extraction.

Utilization of silkworm cocoon waste as a sorbent for the removal of oil from water.

The aim of this study is to investigate the utilization of silkworm cocoon waste, such as pierced or stained cocoons, as a sorbent material for the removal of motor and vegetable oils from water. The oil-sorption capacity, rate and reusability of the material were evaluated. The results show the high sorption capacity of the silkworm cocoon waste sorbent (42-52 g(oil)/g(sorbent) for motor oil and 37-60 g(oil)/g(sorbent) for vegetable oil). The oil sorbed onto the material could be recovered by squeezing the sorbent, and the squeezed material showed an oil-sorption capacity over 15 g(oil)/g(sorbent). We concluded that the material shows a high performance as a low cost and environmental friendly sorbent for the removal of oil from water.

Heavy-ion microbeam system at JAEA-Takasaki for microbeam biology.

Research concerning cellular responses to low dose irradiation, radiation-induced bystander effects, and the biological track structure of charged particles has recently received particular attention in the field of radiation biology. Target irradiation employing a microbeam represents a useful means of advancing this research by obviating some of the disadvantages associated with the conventional irradiation strategies. The heavy-ion microbeam system at JAEA-Takasaki, which was planned in 1987 and started in the early 1990's, can provide target irradiation of heavy charged particles to biological material at atmospheric pressure using a minimum beam size 5 mum in diameter. A variety of biological material has been irradiated using this microbeam system including cultured mammalian and higher plant cells, isolated fibers of mouse skeletal muscle, silkworm (Bombyx mori) embryos and larvae, Arabidopsis thaliana roots, and the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. The system can be applied to the investigation of mechanisms within biological organisms not only in the context of radiation biology, but also in the fields of general biology such as physiology, developmental biology and neurobiology, and should help to establish and contribute to the field of "microbeam biology".

Development of the irradiation method for the first instar silkworm larvae using locally targeted heavy-ion microbeam.

To carry out the radio-microsurgery study using silkworm, Bombyx mori, we have already developed the specific irradiation systems for eggs and third to fifth instar larvae. In this study, a modified application consisting of the first instar silkworm larvae was further developed using heavy-ion microbeams. This system includes aluminum plates with holes specially designed to fix the first instar silkworm larvae during irradiation, and Mylar films were used to adjust energy deposited for planning radiation doses at certain depth. Using this system, the suppression of abnormal proliferation of epidermal cells in the knob mutant was examined. Following target irradiation of the knob-forming region at the first instar stage with 180-mum-diameter microbeam of 220 MeV carbon (12C) ions, larvae were reared to evaluate the effects of irradiation. The results indicated that the knob formation at the irradiated segment was specially suppressed in 5.9, 56.4, 66.7 and 73.6% of larvae irradiated with 120, 250, 400 and 600 Gy, respectively, but the other knob formations at the non-irradiated segments were not suppressed in either irradiation. Although some larva did not survive undesired non-targeted exposure, our present results indicate that this method would be useful to investigate the irradiation effect on a long developmental period of time. Moreover, our system could also be applied to other species by targeting tissues, or organs during development and metamorphosis in insect and animals.

Synthesis of silk fibroin-insulin bioconjugates and their characterization and activities in vivo.

The regenerated liquid silk fibroin with an average molecular mass of about 60 kDa consists of 18 kinds of amino acids containing approximately 10% of polar amino acids with hydroxyl and amino groups such as serine and lysine. The liquid silk fibroin is coupled covalently with insulin molecules through these strongly polar side groups by using glutaraldehyde. The physicochemical properties of the silk fibroin-insulin (SF-Ins) bioconjugates were investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the quantitative measurement of insulin. The biological activities of the insulin bioconjugates were characterized in vitro and in vivo. The SF-Ins constructs obtained by 5 h of covalent crosslinking showed much higher recovery (about 70%) and in vitro stability in human serum than bovine serum albumin-insulin (BSA-Ins) derivatives. The results in human serum indicated that the half-life in vitro of the biosynthesized SF-Ins derivatives was 2.1 and 1.7 times more than that of BSA-Ins conjugates and native insulin, respectively. The immunogenicity of the regenerated silk fibroin and the antigenicity of silk fibroin-modified insulin were not observed in both rabbits and rats. The pharmacological activity of the SF-Ins bioconjugates in diabetic rats evidently lengthened and was about 3.5 times as long as that of the native insulin, nearly 21 h. The bioconjugation of insulin with the regenerated silk fibroin greatly improved its physicochemical and biological stability.

Contribution of circulating hemocytes to the regeneration of heavy ion beams (12C5+) irradiated hematopoietic organs in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, through the way of phagocytosis of injured cells after invasion.

Heavy ion beam irradiation has promising effects on tumor therapy. Our previous study using the domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori, showed that this irradiation could seriously damage larval hematopoietic organs but they would regenerate later. In the in vitro irradiation, most hemocytes died when hematopoietic organs and wing discs connected with epidermis were directionally irradiated from epidermis to hematopoietic organ and then cultured so as to exclude circulating hemocytes. A few hemocytes had escaped irradiation according to extremely low hematopoiesis in vitro. Almost no hemocytes could incorporate BrdU at 60 h after irradiation, with which living and proliferating hemocytes are also labeled. In the absence of circulating hemocytes, the irradiation-escaped hemocytes in the organs were not enough for cleaning all dead cells because lots of small dead bodies remained in situ post-irradiation. After irradiating hematopoietic organs in larvae (in vivo irradiation), only a few apoptotic cells were found when given the same length of recovery time, and most hemocytes maintained normal morphology. Many hemocytes incorporated BrdU when tested at the same time as the in vitro irradiation but this number was lower than that measured for control organs. Circulating hemocytes, labeled by fluorescent microbeads through phagocytosis before irradiation, were found to have invaded the in vivo irradiated hematopoietic organs where they help the irradiation-escaped hemocytes to clear dead cells in the process of regeneration. Hematopoiesis of the regenerated hematopoietic organs did not fully recover to the level of the control organs according to the number of hemocytes produced in tissue culture. Some of the released hemocytes obviously underwent apoptosis, suggesting a far-reaching bystander effect of carbon ion beams irradiation on hemocytes inside. From these results, it is suggested that, together with irradiation-escaped hemocytes, the invaded circulating hemocytes took part in the regeneration of heavy ion beams irradiated hematopoietic organs through the way of phagocytosis of injured hemocytes in vivo.

Synthesis, characterization and immunogenicity of silk fibroin-L-asparaginase bioconjugates.

L-asparaginase (ASNase) is one basic drug in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Because its half-life time is too short and it is easy to arouse allergic reaction, use in practical clinic is considerably limited. Silk fibroin (SF) with different molecular mass from 40 to 120 kDa is a natural biocompatible protein and could be used as a novel bioconjugate for enzyme modification to overcome its usual shortcomings mentioned above. When the enzyme was bioconjugated covalently with the water-soluble fibroin by glutaraldehyde, the enzyme kinetic properties and immune characteristics in vivo of the resulting silk fibroin-L-asparaginase (SF-ASNase) bioconjugates were investigated in detail. The results show that the modified ASNase was characterized by its higher residual activity (nearly 80%), increased heat and storage stability and resistance to trypsin digestion, and its longer half-life (63 h) than that of intact ASNase (33 h). The abilities of intact and modified ASNases to arouse allergic reaction are 2(4) and 2(1) antibody titers, respectively. Bioconjugation of silk fibroin significantly helps to reduce the immunogenicity and antigenicity of the enzyme. The apparent Michaelis constants of the modified ASNase (K(m(app))=0.844 x 10(-3)mol L(-1)) was approximately six times lower than that of enzyme alone, which suggests that the affinity of the enzyme to substrate l-asparagine elevated when bioconjugated covalently with silk fibroin. SF-ASNase bioconjugates could overcome the common shortcomings of the native form. Therefore, the modified ASNase coupled with silk fibroin has the potential values of being studied and developed as a new bioconjugate drug.

Hemocyte differentiation in the hematopoietic organs of the silkworm, Bombyx mori: prohemocytes have the function of phagocytosis.

Hemocytes isolated from the larval hematopoietic organs of the silkworm were classified following staining with acridine orange and propidium iodide. Among the hemocytes isolated from the hematopoietic organs of whole fifth larval and wandering stages, most were prohemocytes (60%-70%) and oenocytoids (30%-40%). Granulocytes comprised only about 0.5%-1% at the wandering stage and were even rarer at other stages; no spherulocytes or plasmatocytes were found. Therefore, hemocyte differentiation inside larval hematopoietic organs is not as extensive as previously thought. Following 10-30 min in vitro culture of hemocytes isolated from larval hematopoietic organs, many young granulocytes and plasmatocytes appeared. Furthermore, during phagocytosis assays, prohemocytes were seen to adopt the morphology of plasmatocytes, containing fragments of phagocytosed cells. Our results underline the similarities between Drosophila and Bombyx hematopoiesis.

In planta transformation of kenaf plants (Hibiscus cannabinus var. aokawa No. 3) by Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

Kenaf was transformed by inoculation of Agrobacterium tumefaciens onto the meristems of young plants in pots. The transformation was demonstrated by three lines of evidence: a phenotypic inheritance from T(0) to T(1) plants, detection of the transgene in both T(0) and T(1) plants, and rescue of plasmids composed of T-DNA of the binary vector and flanking plant genomic DNA from T(1) plants.

Classification of larval circulating hemocytes of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, by acridine orange and propidium iodide staining.

Circulating hemocytes of the silkworm can be classified by fluorescence microscopy following staining with acridine orange and propidium iodide. Based on their fluorescence characteristics, three groups of circulating hemocytes can be distinguished. The first group, granulocytes and spherulocytes, is positive for acridine orange and contain bright green fluorescent granules when observed by fluorescence microscopy. In granulocytes, these green granules are heterogeneous and relatively small. In contrast, in spherulocytes, the green granules appear more homogenous and larger. The second group of hemocytes consists of prohemocytes and plasmatocytes. These cells appear faint green following staining with acridine orange and do not contain any green fluorescent granules in the cytoplasm. Prohemocytes are round, and their nuclei are dark and clear within a background of faint green fluorescence. Inside the nucleus there are one or two small bright green fluorescent bodies. Plasmatocytes are irregularly shaped and their nuclei are invisible. Oenocytoids belong to the third group, and their nuclei are positive for propidium iodide. Therefore, all five types of circulating hemocytes of the silkworm, including many peculiar ones that are difficult to identify by light microscopy, can now be easily classified by fluorescence microscopy following staining with acridine orange and propidium iodide. In addition, we show that hemocytes positive for acridine orange and propidium iodide are in fact living cells based on assays for hemocyte composition, phagocytosis, and mitochondrial enzyme activity.

Applicability of radiosurgery with heavy ion beams to inactivate specific organs in living organisms.

It was the aim of the study to test the applicability of radiosurgery in inactivating a specific organ through local irradiation with heavy ion beams. Silkworms were exposed to whole-body or local irradiation with carbon ion beams ((12)C(5+), 18.3 MeV/u, range=1.1 mm). After irradiation at the wandering stage, no significant differences were observed regarding either survival or cocoon quality between locally irradiated larvae and controls. Only localized effects were seen, such as the deletion of wings and functional disorders of the reproduction primordium, depending on both irradiation dose and site. This observation was not true for whole-body irradiated larvae. After local irradiation of the hemopoietic organs at the 4th instar premolting stage, the hemocyte densities were clearly reduced and the hemopoietic organ capacity was disrupted. The change in hemocyte densities was accompanied by changes of hemolymph components. These results show that radiosurgery utilizing heavy ion beams can destroy a specific organ or tissue in a living organism.

Effects of heavy-ion radiosurgery on the hemopoietic function of the silkworm Bombyx mori.

To study the effects of heavy-ion radiosurgery on the hemopoietic function of a silkworm, hemopoietic organs of larvae were locally irradiated with carbon-ion beams, and the changes in the hemocyte density and in the hemocyte function were investigated. When the larvae were irradiated by 50 Gy to 300 Gy carbon ions on the 3rd day of the 4th instar, the hemocyte densities did not change for a while, though they gradually increased at a later stage, but were finally still significantly lower than those of unirradiated controls. The hemocyte densities of the larvae irradiated at different developmental stages showed suppressed increments, and carbon-ion irradiation given to larvae at early stages compared to the later stages had a significant suppressive effect on the hemocyte densities. On unilateral irradiated larvae a hemocyte intermediate increment between those of bilateral irradiated larvae and unirradiated controls was observed. The percentage of dead hemocytes was obviously higher for irradiated larvae than unirradiated controls during the later 5th instar. Thus, it is evident that carbon-ion radiosurgery on hemopoietic organs of silkworm induced not only a quantitative change, but also a qualitative change in the hemocytes.