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Urinary stone disease, particularly calcium oxalate, is common in both humans and cats. Calcifying nanoparticles (CNP) are spherical nanocrystallite material, and are composed of proteins (fetuin, albumin) and inorganic minerals. CNP are suggested to play a role in a wide array of pathologic mineralization syndromes including urolithiasis. We documented the development of a clinically relevant protocol to assess urinary CNP in 9 healthy cats consuming the same diet in a controlled environment using Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis (NTA®). NTA® is a novel method that allows for characterization of the CNP in an efficient, accurate method that can differentiate these particles from other urinary submicron particulates. The predominant nanoscale particles in feline urine are characteristic of CNP in terms of their size, their ability to spontaneously form under suitable conditions, and the presence of an outer layer that is rich in calcium and capable of binding to hydroxyapatite binders such as alendronate and osteopontin. The expansion of this particle population can be suppressed by the addition of citrate to urine samples. Further, compounds targeting exosomal surfaces do not label these particulates. As CNP have been associated with a number of significant urologic maladies, the method described herein may prove to be a useful adjunct in evaluating lithogenesis risk in mammals.

The potential of dynamic gadolinium diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA)-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for the examination of obstructive nephropathy was analyzed in 27 subjects (five healthy subjects, seven patients with dilated nonobstructed kidneys, six patients with acute obstruction, and nine patients with chronic obstruction) with use of a 1.5-T magnet. Morphologic findings were compared with quantitative analysis of temporal changes in signal intensity. Dynamic postcontrast images of the normal kidney demonstrated four phases of enhancement; cortical enhancement phase, early tubular phase, ductal phase, and excretory phase. The pattern of enhancement in dilated nonobstructed kidneys was similar to that in normal kidneys. In acutely obstructed kidneys, cortical enhancement was similar to that in normal kidneys (17% increase), but medullary enhancement was higher than normal, resulting in diminished corticomedullary differentiation. The early tubular phase was prolonged (until 2.5 minutes after injection), with delayed appearance of the ductal and excretory phases. In chronically obstructed kidneys, the increase in cortical intensity was less than that in normal kidneys (13% increase). The early tubular phase was prolonged, and the ductal phase was diminished or absent.

Extraction of Triton Photosystem II chloroplast fragments with 0.2% methanol in hexane for 3 h results in the removal of 90 to 95% of the plastoquinone in the original preparation. The extracted fragments (chlorophyll:plastoquinone ratio, 900: 1) showed no P-680 photooxidation at 15 K after a single laser flash. The extracted fragments also showed no light-induced C-550 absorbance change at 77 K. Reconstitution of the primary reaction of Photosystem II, as evidenced by restoration of low-temperature photooxidation of P-680, could be obtained by the addition of plastoquinone A but not by the addition of beta-carotene. The addition of beta-carotene plus plastoquinone A restored the C-550 absorbance change. These results indicate that plastoquinone functions as the primary electron acceptor of Photosystem II and that beta-carotene does not play a direct role in the primary photochemistry but is required for the C-550 absorbance change.