Genetic variation in photoperiodism among naturally photoperiodic rat strains

2001 ◽  
Vol 281 (6) ◽  
pp. R1817-R1824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annaka M. Lorincz ◽  
M. Benjamin Shoemaker ◽  
Paul D. Heideman
Keyword(s):  
Somatic Growth ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Testis Size ◽  
Young Males ◽  
Laboratory Rats ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Critical Photoperiod ◽  
Photoperiodic Responses ◽  
Different Strains ◽  
Long Photoperiod

Rattus norvegicus has been considered nonphotoperiodic, but Fischer 344 (F344) rats are inhibited in growth and reproductive development by short photoperiod (SD). We tested photoresponsiveness of the genetically divergent Brown Norway (BN) strain of rats. Peripubertal males were tested in long photoperiod or SD, with or without 30% food reduction. Young males were photoresponsive, with reductions in testis size, body mass, and food intake in SD and with enhanced responses to SD when food restricted. Photoperiods ≤11 h of light inhibited reproductive maturation and somatic growth, whereas photoperiods of 12 h or more produced little or no response. F344/BN hybrids differ from both parent strains in the timing, amplitude, and critical photoperiod of photoperiodic responses, indicating genetic differences in photoperiodism between these strains. This is consistent with the hypothesis that ancestors of laboratory rats were genetically variable for photoperiodism and that different combinations of alleles for photoperiodism have been fixed in different strains of rats.

scholarly journals Short photoperiod inhibition of growth in body mass and reproduction in ACI, BUF, and PVG inbred rats

Reproduction ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 128 (6) ◽  
pp. 857-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole R Francisco ◽  
Christen M Raymond ◽  
Paul D Heideman
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Food Restriction ◽  
Inbred Strains ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Sprague Dawley ◽  
Rat Strains ◽  
Young Males ◽  
Laboratory Rats ◽  
Photoperiodic Responses ◽  
Inbred Rat

Laboratory rats have been generally considered non-photoresponsive, but strains of laboratory rats have been found to be variable for this trait. Young males of both the Fischer (F344) and Brown Norway strains (BN) suppress reproductive development, food intake and body mass in short winter photoperiod (short days (SD); 8 h light:16 h darkness), and food restriction interacts with SD to enhance the effect of SD alone. Conversely, young male Harlan Sprague Dawley outbred rats, along with other outbred laboratory rats tested, have little or no response to SD except when unmasked by food restriction or other treatments, and have generally been considered nonphotoperiodic. In order to assess how widespread this trait might be among rat strains, and to test for uncoupling of reproductive and nonreproductive responses, we tested 3 additional inbred strains, including ACI, PVG and BUF rats, for photoresponsiveness and for unmasking of photoperiodic responses by food restriction. Young males of all three inbred strains exhibited photoresponsiveness in testis mass (5–20% lower in SD), seminal vesicle mass (20–50% lower in SD), and body mass (5–10% lower in SD). Food restriction also suppressed reproduction, but there was little or no interaction with the effects of photoperiod. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that laboratory rats are genetically variable for photoperiodism, and that photoresponsiveness may be widespread among inbred rat strains, as all five inbred strains tested have shown photoperiodic responses. The results are particularly important because standard research protocols may unknowingly manipulate this pathway in rats, causing unsuspected variability among or within studies.

scholarly journals Impact of cadmium on the level of hepatic metallothioneins, essential elements, and selected enzymes in the experimental rat model

2014 ◽  
Vol 59 (No. 12) ◽  
pp. 548-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Zídková ◽  
M. Melčová ◽  
K. Bartošová ◽  
I. Šestáková ◽  
V. Zídek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enzymatic Activity ◽  
Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Glutathione S Transferase ◽  
Spontaneously Hypertensive ◽  
Laboratory Rats ◽  
Model Study ◽  
Specific Enzymatic Activity ◽  
Different Strains

The response of different strains of laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus L.) on both acute (via intraperitoneal injection) and chronic (via drinking water and/or diet) cadmium intoxication was investigated in the model study. The rat strains Long Evans (LE), Spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR), and Brown Norway (BN) were tested and compared, and total Cd levels and metallothionein (MT) concentrations were determined in the liver of experimental animals. The liver MT concentrations were determined by using adsorptive chronopotentiometry and modified Brdička reaction and were significantly correlated (r = 0.965) with the total liver Cd content. Moreover, the Cd application resulted in increasing zinc liver contents confirming intensive MT synthesis in the rat liver. In the blood plasma, specific enzymatic activity of glutathione reductase (GR) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) was determined suggesting increasing activity of GR with the amount of applied Cd for all three strains, whereas ambiguous results have been found for the activity of GST. Therefore, MT concentrations seemed to be more sensitive indicators of the Cd intoxication compared to the assessment of the specific enzymatic activity.  

scholarly journals Age-related declines in thirst and salt appetite responses in male Fischer 344×Brown Norway rats

2014 ◽  
Vol 135 ◽  
pp. 180-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Thunhorst ◽  
Terry Beltz ◽  
Alan Kim Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Brown Norway ◽  
Salt Appetite ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Norway Rats

scholarly journals The Effects of Aging on Indices of Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in the Female Fischer 344/Nnia X Brown Norway/BiNia Rat Heart

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Fannin ◽  
Kevin M. Rice ◽  
Srininvas Thulluri ◽  
Ravi Kumar Arvapalli ◽  
Paulette Wehner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Superoxide Anion ◽  
Caspase 3 ◽  
Nitrosative Stress ◽  
Descriptive Study ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Rodent Models ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Stress Markers ◽  
Effects Of Aging

Oxidative-nitrosative stress may play a role in age-associated cardiovascular disease as implied by recent studies.However, limited research has been conducted using aged female rodent models. In this study, we examined hearts obtained from 6-, 26-, and 30-month old female Fischer 344/Nnia x Brown Norway/BiNia (F344xBN) rats in order to examine how aging affects levels of cardiac oxidative-nitrosative stress and apoptosis. Oxidative (superoxide anion and 4-HNE) and nitrosative (protein nitrosylation) stress markers were increased 180 ± 17 %, 110 ± 3 %, and 14 ± 2 %, respectively in 30-month hearts compared to the hearts of 6-month female rats. Coincident with these changes in oxidative-nitrosative stress, aging was also found to be associated with increases in the number of Tdt-mediated dUTP nick labeling (TUNEL)-positive cardiomyocytes, alterations in the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, and elevated cleavage of caspase-3. Regression analysis demonstrates significant correlation in the age-associated changes markers of oxidative–nitrosative stress with changes in apoptotic signaling. The findings from this descriptive study imply that age-associated increases in mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis may be associated with the increase in oxidative-nitrosative stress in the aging F344xBN female heart.

scholarly journals Skeletal muscle IGF-binding protein-3 and -5 expressions are age, muscle, and load dependent

2003 ◽  
Vol 284 (2) ◽  
pp. E340-E350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Espen E. Spangenburg ◽  
Tsghe Abraha ◽  
Tom E. Childs ◽  
J. Scott Pattison ◽  
Frank W. Booth
Keyword(s):  
Mrna Expression ◽  
Soleus Muscle ◽  
Gastrocnemius Muscle ◽  
Muscle Size ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Type I ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Muscle Aging ◽  
Muscle Groups ◽  
Igfbp 3

The purpose of the current study was to examine IGFBP-3, -4, and -5 mRNA and protein expression levels as a function of muscle type, age, and regrowth from an immobilization-induced atrophy in Fischer 344 × Brown Norway rats. IGFBP-3 mRNA expression in the 4-mo-old animals was significantly higher in the red and white portions of the gastrocnemius muscle compared with the soleus muscle. However, there were no significant differences in IGFBP-3 mRNA expression among any of the muscle groups in the 30-mo-old animals. There were no significant differences in IGFBP-5 mRNA expression in any of the muscle groups, whereas in the 30-mo-old animals there was significantly less IGFBP-5 mRNA expression in the white gastrocnemius compared with the red gastrocnemius muscles. Although IGFBP-3 and -5 proteins were detected in the type I soleus muscle with Western blot analyses, no detection was observed in the type II red and white portions of the gastrocnemius muscle. Aging from adult (18 mo) to old animals (30 mo) was associated with decreases in IGFBP-3 mRNA and protein and IGFBP-5 protein only in the soleus muscle. After 10 days of recovery from 10 days of hindlimb immobilization, IGFBP-3 mRNA and protein increased in soleus muscles from young (4-mo) rats; however, only IGFBP-3 protein increased in the old (30-mo) rats. Whereas there were no changes in IGFBP-5 mRNA expression during recovery, IGFBP-5 protein in the 10-day-recovery soleus muscle did increase in the young, but not in the old, rats. Because one of the functions of IGFBPs is to modulate IGF-I action on muscle size and phenotype, it is hypothesized that IGFBP-3 and -5 proteins may have potential modulatory roles in type I fiber-dominated muscles, aging, and regrowth from atrophy.

scholarly journals Strain dependence of the airway response to dry-gas hyperpnea challenge in the rat

1999 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
pp. 152-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
X. X. Yang ◽  
W. S. Powell ◽  
L. J. Xu ◽  
J. G. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Tidal Volume ◽  
Receptor Antagonist ◽  
Spontaneous Breathing ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Pulmonary Resistance ◽  
Strain Dependence ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Airway Response ◽  
Airway Responses ◽  
Strain Dependent

The aim of the study was to investigate strain dependence and mechanisms of airway responses to dry-gas hyperpnea challenge in the rat. We studied responses in a strain that is hyperresponsive to methacholine, Fischer 344 (F-344); in two normoresponsive strains, Lewis and ACI; and in an atopic but normoresponsive strain, Brown Norway (BN). We examined the effects of a neurokinin (NK) 1-receptor (CP-99994), an NK2-receptor (SR-48968), and a leukotriene D4(LTD4)-receptor antagonist (pranlukast) on responses to hyperpnea challenge in BN rats. The animals were ventilated with a tidal volume of 8 ml/kg and a frequency of 150 breaths/min with either a dry or humidified mixture of 5% CO2-95% O2 for 5 min for hyperpnea challenge, whereas responses to challenge were measured during spontaneous breathing. Pulmonary resistance increased after dry-gas challenge in BN and ACI but not in F-344 and Lewis rats. CP-99994, SR-48968, and pranlukast significantly attenuated the increase in pulmonary resistance after dry-gas challenge. There were no significant differences in responsiveness to airway challenge with LTD4 among the BN, F-344 and ACI rats. We conclude that responses to dry-gas hyperpnea challenge are strain dependent in rats and are mediated by NKs and LTD4.

scholarly journals Effect of aging on rat skeletal muscle beta-AR function in male Fischer 344 x brown Norway rats

1996 ◽  
Vol 270 (2) ◽  
pp. R462-R468 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. M. Larkin ◽  
J. B. Halter ◽  
M. A. Supiano
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Sympathetic Nervous System ◽  
Cardiac Muscle ◽  
Brown Norway ◽  
Sympathetic Nervous System Activity ◽  
System Activity ◽  
Fischer 344 ◽  
Nervous System Activity ◽  
Sympathetic Nervous

In this study, we tested the hypothesis that, in the male Fischer 344 x Brown Norway (F344xBN) rat, aging would be associated with an increase in sympathetic nervous system activity and a decrease in skeletal muscle beta-adrenergic-receptor (beta-AR) density and function. Radioligand-binding studies using [125I] iodocyanopindolol were done to evaluate beta-AR density (Bmax) and antagonist-binding affinity in gastrocnemius and cardiac muscle from 6-, 18-, and 28-mo-old male F344xBN rats. beta-AR function was measured as adenylyl cyclase (AC) activity stimulated by the beta-AR agonist isoproterenol (Iso, 10(-4) M). Basal arterial plasma norepinephrine (pNE) concentrations were higher in the 28-than in the 6- and 18-mo-old rats. Bmax was greatest and Iso-stimulated AC activity was unchanged in gastrocnemius muscle of the 28-mo-old age group. In contrast, there was an age-associated decrease in Bmax and Iso-stimulated AC activity in cardiac muscle. In conclusion, there was an age-associated increase in pNE concentrations in male F344xBN rats, suggesting an increase in sympathetic nervous system activity. In addition, there was an age-associated increase in skeletal muscle beta-AR density, whereas in skeletal muscle beta-AR-stimulated AC activity remained unchanged with age.

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