We investigated the anatomical organization of glomeruli in the antennal lobes (ALs) of male silkmoths. We reconstructed 10 different ALs and established an identification procedure for individual glomeruli by using size, shape, and position relative to anatomical landmarks. Quantitative analysis of these morphological characteristics supported the validity of our identification strategy. The glomerular organization of the ALs was roughly conserved between different ALs. However, we found individual variations that were reproducibly observed. The combination of a digital atlas with other experimental techniques, such as electrophysiology, optical imaging, and genetics, should facilitate a more in-depth analysis of sensory information processing in silkmoth ALs.

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is the progressive phenotype of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease associated with the metabolic syndrome. The existence of autoimmune features in NASH has been reported, but its significance remains unclear. We herein report the autoantibody profile of 54 patients with histologically proven NASH and further determined the development of autoimmunity in three different murine NASH models (monosodium glutamate, CDAA (choline-deficient L-amino acid-defined), and TSOD (Tsumura Suzuki, Obese Diabetes)) at 48 weeks of age. Forty-eight percent (26/54) of NASH cases were positive for antinuclear (ANA) or antimitochondrial antibody and manifested histological signs of overlap with autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis, respectively. These patients were significantly older (60 ± 10 versus 50 ± 16 years), more frequently women (81 % versus 43 %), and with more severe portal inflammatory infiltrate compared with patients without autoimmunity. In one third of mice, regardless of the model, we observed a marked lymphoid infiltrate with non-suppurative cholangitis, and several cases were ANA-positive, but none AMA-positive. Our data suggest that autoimmunity may share some pathogenetic traits with the chronic inflammation of NASH, possibly related to advanced age.

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These results suggest that the hepatocellular injuries associated with interface and lobular hepatitis in AIH and PBC with interface hepatitis may not be identical.