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This study aimed to determine the minimum anesthetic concentration (MAC) and dose-related cardiovascular effects of isoflurane during controlled ventilation in cinereous vultures (Aegypius monachus). The MAC was determined for 10 cinereous vultures as the midpoint between the end-tidal isoflurane concentration that allows gross purposeful movement and that which prevents the movement in response to clamping a pedal digit. Immediately after the MAC was determined, the cardiovascular effects of isoflurane at 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 times the MAC were investigated in seven of the 10 birds. The MAC of isoflurane for 10 cinereous vultures during controlled ventilation was 1.06 +/- 0.07% (mean +/- SD). When the isoflurane concentration was increased to 1.5 and 2.0 times the MAC, there was significant dose-dependent decrease in the arterial blood pressure. However, the heart rate did not change over a range of 1.0 to 2.0 times the MAC.

In this paper, whole-bacteria SELEX (WB-SELEX) strategy was adopted to isolate specific aptamers against Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Round selection for V. parahaemolyticus was conducted 11 rounds, including two negative selection rounds. It was determined through real-time PCR amplification and post-SELEX experiment. The selected aptmers had high binding property and specificity to V. parahaemolyticus. Of 28 aptamers tested, VPCA-apta#1 had the highest binding affinity compared to other aptamer candidates obtained. To detect V. parahaemolyticus, aptamer based SPR biosensor platform was constructed and pathogenic bacteria sensing was conducted in two steps. The first step was to construct 5'-biotinylated VPCA-apta#1 binding probe. The second step was to incubate V. parahaemolyticus and test microbes in functionalized SA sensor chip in parallel. Our platform showed significant activity for detecting and discriminating V. parahaemolyticus from other enteric species such as Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Sigella sonnei, and Vibrio fischeri. This is the first report on the use of whole-SELEX to isolate DNA aptamers specific for V. parahaemolyticus. We demonstrated the feasibility of using aptamer platform for the detection of V. parahaemolyticus in various food supplies. It might be used in multiple points of care for diagnosing Vibriosis.

The expression of immunogenic markers after differentiation of umbilical cord blood (UCB)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) has been poorly investigated and requires extensive in vitro and in vivo testing for clinical application. The expression of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) classes on UCB-derived MSC was tested by Fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis and immunocytochemical staining. The undifferentiated MSC were moderately positive for HLA-ABC, but almost completely negative for HLA-DR. The MSC differentiated to chondrocytes expressed neither HLA-ABC nor HLA-DR. The proliferation of MSC was not significantly affected by the allogeneic lymphocytes stimulated with concanavalin A. The responder lymphocytes showed no significant decrease in proliferation in the presence of the MSC, but the apoptosis rate of the lymphocytes was increased in the presence of MSC. Taken together, these findings indicate that UCB-derived MSC differentiated to chondrocytes expressed less HLA class I and no class II antigens. The MSC showed an immunomodulatory effect on the proliferation and apoptosis of allogeneic lymphocytes. These data suggest that the differentiated and undifferentiated allogeneic MSC derived from umbilical cord blood can be a useful candidate for allogeneic cell therapy and transplantation without a major risk of rejection.