Coturnix

About: Coturnix is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 953 publications have been published within this topic receiving 23305 citations.

The relationship between limb muscle and endothelial cells migrating from single somite.

Abstract: Somites contribute myogenic and endothelial precursor cells to the limb bud. Transplantations of single somites have shown the pattern of muscle cell distribution from individual somites to individual limb muscles. However, the pattern of the endothelial cell distribution from individual somites to the limb has not been characterized. We have mapped quail muscle and endothelial cell distribution in the distal part of the chick limb after single somite transplantation to determine if there is a spatial relationship between muscle and endothelial cells originating from the same somite. Single brachial somites from quail donor embryos were transplanted into chick embryos, and, following incubation, serial sections were stained with a quail-endothelial cell-specific monoclonal antibody (QH-1), an anti-quail antibody (QCPN) and an anti-desmin antibody to distinguish the quail endothelial and muscle cells from chick cells. Our results show that transplants of somite 16-21 each gave rise to quail endothelial cells in the wing. The anterioposterior position of the blood vessels formed by somitic endothelial cells corresponded to the craniocaudal position of the somite from which they have originated. Endothelial cells were located not only in the peri- and endomysium but also in the subcutaneous, intermuscular, perineural and periost tissues. There was no strict correlation between the distribution of muscle and endothelial cell from a single transplanted somite. Blood vessels formed by grafted quail endothelial cells could invade the muscle that did not contain any quail muscle cells, and conversely a muscle composed of numerous quail muscle cells was lacking any endothelial cells of quail origin. Furthermore, a chimeric limb with very little quail muscle cells was found to contain numerous quail endothelial cells and vice versa. These results suggest that muscle and endothelial cells derived from the same somite migrate on different routes in the developing limb bud.

Pineal control of photo-endocrine responses in growing Japanese quail.

Abstract: The influence of the photo period, of pinealectomy and of bilateral enucleation on several endocrine organ weights of Japanese quail (Coturnix cotumix japonica) have been explored. At 5 weeks after hatching, pituitary, adrenal and gonadal weights were higher, and thyroid weight was lower, in birds maintained under continuous light (24L/OD) than in those held under a short phoroperiod (8L/16D) for 3 weeks. Blinded birds did not differ from sham-pinealectomized ones in these endocrine parameters. Pinealectomy abolished the photoperiod-dependent responses of the adrenal and thyroid, while pituitary and gonadal weights were unaffected. At 6 weeks after hatching, the previously observed thyroid response was not as pronounced, and pinealectomy no longer altered the adrenal response to the photoperiod. Thus, the photoperiod and the pineal appear to be important for maturation of several endocrine glands, and the eyes do not seem to be necessary for these photo-endocrine responses in Japanese quail. (Endocrinolog...

Oral and intramuscular toxicity of inorganic and organic mercury chloride to growing quail.

Abstract: The lethal toxicity of inorganic (HgCl2) and organic (CH3HgCl) mercury chloride was compared for Coturnix (Japanese quail, Coturnix japonica) of different ages from hatch through adulthood by single-dose acute oral and intramuscular injections and by a 5-d dietary trial. Sublethal mercury toxicity was studied by evaluation of plasma and brain cholinesterase activity. CH3HgCl was more toxic than HgCl2 in all tests at each age tested. LD50s consistently increased over the first 4 wk for both acute methods and both mercurials and then stabilized. The striking difference between single-dose acute and 5-d dietary tests was that CH3HgCl averaged about twice as toxic as HgCl2 by both acute methods, compared to 100 times as toxic by the dietary method. For example, at 2 wk of age, the oral LD50s for CH3HgCl and HgCl2 were 18 and 42 mg/kg and the dietary LC50s were 47 and 5086 ppm. When birds were fed HgCl2 and developed clinical signs of intoxication, they could recover once treatment was withdrawn; however, on CH3HgCl, clinical signs often commenced after treatment was withdrawn, and then actually intensified for several days and culminated in death.

Sexual fetishism in a quail (Coturnix japonica) model system: test of reproductive success.

Abstract: In the present study, the authors explored the reproductive consequences of fetishistic behavior in a previously developed animal model of sexual fetishism (F Koksal et al, 2004) Male domesticated quail (Coturnix japonica) received sexual conditioning trials in which a terrycloth object (the conditioned stimulus [CS]) was paired with the opportunity to copulate with a female quail (the unconditioned stimulus) Approximately half of the male quail came to copulate with the CS object and were considered to have developed fetishistic behavior Each of the male quail was then tested with a female quail, whose eggs were incubated to determine rates of fertilization The CS object was present for 30 s before and during the copulation test Fetishistic male quail were slower to achieve cloacal contact with the female quail and showed less efficient copulatory behavior However, they fertilized a greater proportion of eggs than nonfetishistic male quail These results are unexpected from previous studies of the relationship between reproductive success and copulatory behavior and are discussed in terms of how fetishistic behavior directed toward an inanimate object may modify male-female interactions

Decreased membrane fluidity and beta-adrenergic responsiveness in atherosclerotic quail.

Abstract: The effects of increased cholesterol on erythrocyte membrane fluidity and beta-adrenergic function were studied in a quail model of atherosclerosis. Birds fed a cholesterol-supplemented diet developed severe atherosclerosis and hypercholesterolemia after 6 wk. This cholesterol-enriched diet led to a markedly elevated serum cholesterol and a 26% increase in the cholesterol-to-phospholipid ratio in erythrocyte membranes. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectra measured with 5- and 12-doxyl-stearic acid spin-label probes were used to estimate the order of quail erythrocyte membranes. Membrane preparations from cholesterol-fed birds were more highly ordered near the membrane leaflet surface, as well as deeper in the membrane interior, compared with controls. beta-Adrenergic receptor stimulation of adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate accumulation was blunted in erythrocytes from the hypercholesterolemic quail. There was no change in beta-receptor density or affinity in the cholesterol-enriched membranes. These studies demonstrate that cholesterol incorporation into erythrocyte membranes in vivo is associated with decreased membrane fluidity and decreased beta-adrenergic responsiveness. The atherosclerotic quail may serve as a useful model to further probe the sequelae of hypercholesterolemia on the function of integral membrane proteins.