The anisotropy of suprathermal electrons in the Martian ionosphere

Suprathermal electrons are an important population of the Martian ionosphere, either produced by photoionization of atmospheric neutrals or supplied from the Solar Wind (SW). This study is dedicated to an in-depth investigation of the pitch angle distribution of suprathermal electrons at two representative energies, 19−55 eV and 124−356 eV, using the extensive measurements made by the Solar Wind Electron Analyzer on board the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution. Throughout the study, we focus on the overall degree of anisotropy, defined as the standard deviation of suprathermal electron intensity among different directions which is normalized by the mean omni-directional intensity. The available data reveal the following characteristics: (1) In general, low energy electrons are more isotropic than high energy electrons, and dayside electrons are more isotropic than nightside electrons;(2) On the dayside, the anisotropy increases with increasing altitude at low energies but remains roughly constant at high energies, whereas on the nightside, the anisotropy decreases with increasing altitude at all energies;(3) Electrons tend to be more isotropic in strongly magnetized regions than in weakly magnetized regions, especially on the nightside. These observations indicate that the anisotropy is a useful diagnostic of suprathermal electron transport, for which the conversion between the parallel and perpendicular momenta as required by the conservation of the first adiabatic invariant, along with the atmospheric absorption at low altitudes, are two crucial factors modulating the observed variation of the anisotropy. Our analysis also highlights the different roles on the observed anisotropy exerted by suprathermal electrons of different origins.

The regulation of IMF deposition in pectoralis major of fast-and slow-growing chickens at hatching

Background： The lipid from egg yolk is largely consumed in supplying the energy for embryonic growth until hatching. The remaining lipid in the yolk sac is transported into the hatchling＇s tissues. The gene expression profiles of fast-and slow-growing chickens, Arbor Acres（AA） and Beijing-You（BJY）, were determined to identify global differentially expressed genes and enriched pathways related to lipid metabolism in the pectoralis major at hatching.Results： Between these two breeds, the absolute and weight-specific amounts of total yolk energy（TYE） and intramuscular fat（IMF） content in pectoralis major of fast-growing chickens were significantly higher（P 〈 0.01,P 〈 0.01, P 〈 0.05, respectively） than those of the slow-growing breed. IMF content and u-TYE were significantly related（r = 0.9047, P 〈 0.01）. Microarray analysis revealed that gene transcripts related to lipogenesis, including PPARG, RBP7, LPL, FABP4, THRSP, ACACA, ACSS1, DGAT2, and GK, were significantly more abundant in breast muscle of fast-growing chickens than in slow-growing chickens. Conversely, the abundance of transcripts of genes involved in fatty acid degradation and glycometabolism, including ACAT1, ACOX2, ACOX3, CPT1 A, CPT2, DAK, APOO, FUT9, GCNT1,and B4 GALT3, was significantly lower in fast-growing chickens. The results further indicated that the PPAR signaling pathway was directly involved in fat deposition in pectoralis major, and other upstream pathways（Hedgehog, TGFbeta, and cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction signaling pathways） play roles in its regulation of the expression of related genes.Conclusions： Additional energy from the yolk sac is transported and deposited as IMF in the pectoralis major of chickens at hatching. Genes and pathways related to lipid metabolism（such as PPAR, Hedgehog, TGF-beta, and cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction signaling pathways） promote the deposition of IMF in the pectoralis major of fast-growing chickens compared with those that grow more slowly. These findings provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying lipid metabolism and deposition in hatchling chickens.

AMPK Subunit Expression Regulates Intramuscular Fat Content and Muscle Fiber Type in Chickens

The objective of this study was to assess the role of AMPK in intramuscular fat(IMF) and fiber type in chicken muscle. The chickens were slaughtered and their muscles were collected at the ages of 4, 8, and 16 weeks so as to determine the IMF contents, as well as the expression levels of AMPK subunits, regulators of adipogenesis. In addition, the myosin heavy chains(My HCs) in thigh muscle tissues were also measured. The results showed that the IMF contents in 16-week old chickens were higher than those in 4 and 8-week-old chickens(P<0.05).The expression levels of fatty acid synthase(FAS) and fatty aicd translocase CD36(FAT/CD36) m RNA were increased significantly in samples collected at the ages of4 and 16 weeks(P<0.05). The expression levels of My HC IIa and IIb differed significantly among all the developmental stages(P <0.05). The AMPKα2, AMPKγ1,and AMPKγ3 m RNA levels were dramatically decreased with the increase of age(P <0.05). To examine the role of AMPK in adipogenesis regulation, the SV cells were cultured in an adipogenesis medium and treated with AICAR and Compound C respectively, the specific activator and inhibit of AMPK. The Compound C induced dramatically a greater expression of C/EBPβ, SREBP1 and PPARγ(P <0.05). In conclusion, the expression of AMPKα2, AMPKγ1, and AMPKγ3 m RNA is significantly correlated with the adipogenesis in skeletal muscle of chickens.