[Histological Study on Integumentary and Digestive System of Hirudo nipponica].

Objective: The integumentary and digestive system of Hirudo nipponica were studied,in order to protect the precious Chinese herbal medicine. Methods: The histological study of integumentary and digestive system of Hirudo nipponica by histological methods were carried out by microscopical method. Results: The body wall of Hirudo nipponica could be divided into five layers, including cuticular layer, epithelial layer, dermis layer, muscle layer and grape-like tissue. The digestive system was composed ofmouth,pharyngeal,esophagus,crop,intestine,rectum and anus. Conclusion: This study can provide the basic data for the artificial breeding, research in pathology and physiological functions of Hirudo nipponica.

[Study on Reproductive Performance of Hirudio nipponica].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the reproductive performance of Hirudo nipponica under artificial cultivation, in order to provide reference for the commercial rearing and breeding industry of this species. METHODS: The mean number of cocoons, cocoon weight, hatching numbers of cocoons, and the effect of parent leeches weight and density on reproductive performance were investigated. RESULTS: The mean number of cocoons produced by parent leeches was 0.9000 ± 0.5525, the range was from 0 to 2. The hatching number of cocoons were between 3 and 21, and the weight of cocoons were from 0.05 to 0.25 g. Length of newly hatched juvenile was 1.21 ± 0.22 cm, and the range was from 0.82 to 1.55 cm. It was found that the parent leeches weight, density and the cocoons weight were positively correlated to the reproductive performance of Hirudio nipponica. CONCLUSION: In artificial cultivation, moderate weight, age and density of parent leeches is necessary to be chose for increasing the reproductive performance of Hirudio nipponica.

[Phenological characteristics of introduced Polygonum viviparum from high altitude to low altitude area].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the phenological characteristics of Polygonum viviparum introduced from high altitude to low altitude area. METHODS: To introduce the root and seed of Polygonum viviparum from high altitude to low altitude area and collect their growth and phenological data. RESULTS: In low altitude area, Polygonum viviparum germinated at the beginning of March, grew from March to the end of July, withered during the whole August due to high temperature, recovered from the end of August to the beginning of October, and then withered again due to low temperature. Its reproduction lasted from April to the end of July, stagnated from the beginning of August to the middle of September, and recovered from the middle of September to the end of October. CONCLUSION: The high temperature of August in low altitude area is the bottleneck season for Polygonum viviparum, yet it can grow normally while such technologies are applied to its culture as early seeding, culture seedling with fertilizing soil ball, complete overshadow etc.

[Expression of subtilisin-like protease gene from Hirsutella sinensis before and after infecting Hepialus gonggaensis].

To address the role of Pr1 gene in the process of Hirsutella sinensis infecting Hepialus gonggaensis, differential expression of subtilisin-like protease gene was detected. In the present study, Pr1 gene analogues from H. sinensis were obtained by PCR strategy using specific primers designed from conserved regions of Pr1 gene reported in the GenBank. Then we detected the changes in the expression of Pr1 gene before and after infecting H. gonggaensis using real-time quantitative PCR. We obtained the partial sequence of Pr1 gene with the length of 535 bp (GenBank accession: KC009680). Real-time PCR results showed that the expression level of Pr1 gene was significantly different among 8 samples (P < 0.01). Pr1 gene showed the obvious higher expression level (2-3 folds) after infecting the H. gonggaensis, suggesting that the Pr1 gene may play an important role in the process of H. sinensis infecting H. gonggaensis. The present study paves a way for further identification on infectivity assessment of H. sinensis.

Anti-herpes simplex virus activities of bioactive extracts from Antrodia camphorata mycelia.

BACKGROUND: Antrodia camphorata, a traditional Chinese medicine, is widely used in the treatment of liver diseases and cancers. Anti-inflammatory properties have also been described. HSV infection represents one of the most serious public health concerns globally because of its devastating impact. Searching for new antiviral agents, especially those with different mechanisms of action, is a crucial goal and there is an unmet need for alternative and complementary therapy against HSV infection. In this study, anti-herpes screening was performed with extracts from A. camphorata mycelia. METHODS: MTT assay, fractional inhibitory concentration index and median-effect principle were used to evaluate antiviral activity and to calculate drug combination effect. RESULTS: Crude ethanol extracts and isolated constituents showed inhibition of HSV replication at a very low concentration. Fraction A and antrodin A showed viral inhibitory effect with reduction of viral cell-to-cell spread. In addition, neither fraction A nor antrodin A showed interaction in combination with acyclovir. CONCLUSIONS: A. camphorata mycelia and antrodin A might have potential use as anti-HSV agents and are promising candidates for future antiviral drug design.

[Study on toxic effects of ammonia on embryonic and yolk-sac stage larvae of rare minnow].

To investigate the toxicity to fish which were exposed to ammonia during early life stages. This study choose rare minnow which is unique to China for experimental subject. Representative toxicological endpoints were observed and recorded during the development of embryo and yolk-sac stage larvae. Meanwhile, selected ammonia transporter protein Rhbg gene as a toxicity parameter to reflect the changes of rare minnow embryos Rhbg gene expression. The result shows that ammonia we have chosen in this research had an influence on many toxic effects including the hatching rate of fry, mortality rate, the slowing of heart rate and arrhythmia, unformed functional swim bladder, the decreasing of body length and weight and the occurrence of pericardium and yolk-sac edema etc. But other toxicological endpoints have relatively weak effect. The ammonia also affect the Rhbg gene expression changes, especially that of Rhbg gene at 72 hours post-fertilization distinctly. Rhbg may have important functions to facilitate ammonia transport during rare minnow embryo stages.