Perineuronal nets (PNs) are aggregates of extracellular matrix molecules that surround some neurons in the brain. While PNs occur widely across many cortical areas, subcortical PNs are especially associated with motor and auditory systems. The…
A major finding in the visual plasticity literature is that visual deprivation is effective only during an early 'sensitive' period, which is lengthened by dark rearing. Unresolved is whether the visual cortex is in a normally plastic state prior to…
Breast cancer represents one of the most frequently diagnosed cancers and predominant causes of death in women worldwide. The value of preventive therapy to limit the devastating impact of breast cancer is well established. Various plant…
Eight male rats previously trained to discriminate 2.0 mg/kg N-ethyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDE) from its vehicle in a two-lever, food motivated task were utilized to characterize the stimulus properties of MDE. The 5-HT receptor agonists…
This experiment explores the role of two forms of long-term potentiation (LTP) in behavioral memory. NMDA and/or voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCCs) were antagonized pharmacologically at levels that block nmdaLTP and vdccLTP, respectively, in…
A recombinant baculovirus containing the human cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A1 cDNA was constructed and used to express CYP1A1 in Spodoptera frugiperda (SF9) insect cells (0.14+/-0.04 nmol/mg protein, 53+/-14 nmol/liter, N=30). The enzyme represented…
Mitochondrial sterol 27-hydroxylase (CYP27Al) catalyses sterol side-chain oxidation of bile acid synthesis front cholesterol, and the first reaction of the acidic bile acid biosynthetic pathway. Hydrophobic bile acids suppress human CYP27Al gene…
The gene encoding cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase (CYP7A), the rate-limiting enzyme in bile acid synthesis, is transcriptionally regulated by bile acids and hormones. Previously, we have identified two bile acid response elements (BARE) in the…
Cardiovascular diseases are often considered to be a predominantly male health problem, and it has been suggested that testosterone exerts deleterious effects on cardiovascular function; however, few experimental studies support this suggestion.…
Cardiac remodelling is a key risk factor for the development of heart failure in the chronic phase following myocardial infarction. Our previous studies have shown an anti-remodelling role of ACE2 (angiotensin-converting enzyme 2) in vivo during…
We have developed a replaceable bioartificial pancreas to treat diabetes utilizing a unique cocontinous amphiphilic conetwork membrane created for macroencapsulation and immunoisolation of porcine islet cells (PICs). The membrane is assembled from…
To demonstrate improved healing of a midline laparotomy after application of mesenchymal stromal cells and platelet-rich plasma on a collagen matrix and introduce a potential cellular-based therapy for the prevention of incisional hernia formation.…
Amphiphilic polymer membranes were synthesized for macroencapsulation of cells and characterized by select chemical and biological techniques. The membranes were prepared by crosslinking hydrophilic poly(N,N-dimethyl acrylamide) (PDMAAm) main chains…
Jadhav R, Dodd T, Smith E, Bailey E, DeLucia AL, Russell JC, Madison R, Potter B, Walsh K, Jo H, Rocic P. Angiotensin type I receptor blockade in conjunction with enhanced Akt activation restores coronary collateral growth in the metabolic syndrome.…
In the present study we employed current source density analysis to study the major excitatory/inhibitory pathways in rat primary visual cortex in vivo and in vitro. A natural photic stimulus was used in vivo and served as a baseline for…
Middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) is a popular model in experimental stroke research and causes prominent ischemic damage in the forebrain. To characterize metabolic changes induced by MCAO, we have induced permanent MCAO in mice that were…
The pattern of regional expression of a slowtonic myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoform was studied in developing rat soleus intrafusal muscle fibers. Binding of the slow-tonic antibody (ATO) began at the equator of prenatal intrafusal fibers where…
Whether muscle spindles can form in muscles innervated only by afferents was investigated by removing the lumbosacral segment of the spinal cord immediately after crushing the nerve to the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle in newborn rats, and…
Prolactin (PRL) increased basal dopamine (DA) release and attenuated amphetamine (AMPH)-stimulated DA release in vitro from rat corpus striatum in a concentration-dependent manner with 10(-5) M PRL being the most effective. The effects of PRL on DA…
Two factors, the ETS transcription factor ER81 and skeletal muscle-derived neurotrophin-3 (NT3), are essential for the formation of muscle spindles and the function of spindle afferent-motoneuron synapses in the spinal cord. Spindles either…
Recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors are of interest for cochlear gene therapy because of their ability to mediate the efficient transfer and long-term stable expression of therapeutic genes in a wide variety of postmitotic tissues with…
Adult female rats were ovariectomized and received a 21-day release pellet containing either (17)beta-estradiol (0.1 mg), tamoxifen (5.0 mg), a combination of estradiol and tamoxifen or no further treatment. At 14 days following ovariectomy +/-…
In this report we examined the effect of tamoxifen upon the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system. Ovariectomized mice were subjected to one of the following treatments: two subcutaneous injections administered on successive days of the sesame oil…
Background: VEGF-regulated genes in the cervices of pregnant and non-pregnant rodents (rats and mice) were delineated by DNA microarray and Real Time PCR, after locally altering levels of or action of VEGF using VEGF agents, namely siRNA, VEGF…
The inferior colliculus processes nearly all ascending auditory information. Most collicular cells respond to sound, and for a majority of these cells, the responses can be modulated by acetylcholine (ACh). The cholinergic effects are varied and, for…
The present study examines the feedback control governing human cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase mRNA expression in the human hepatoblastoma cell line, Hep G2. Glycochenodeoxycholate (GCDC) and glycodeoxycholate, hydrophobic bile salts, decreased…
Cholesterol 7alpha-hydroxylase, the rate-limiting enzyme in the bile acid synthesis pathway, is down-regulated by taurocholate by way of negative feedback control at the level of gene transcription. The molecular basis of regulation of cholesterol…
We have previously shown that nicotine, the addictive component of tobacco products, alters the blood-brain barrier (BBB) Na+, K+, 2Cl(-) cotransporter (NKCC) during in vitro hypoxia-aglycemia exposure. Attenuation of abluminal NKCC suggests that…
It has been proposed that increased brain cytokines during repeated stressor exposure can contribute to neuropathological changes that lead to the onset of depression. Previous studies demonstrate that norepinephrine acting via beta-adrenergic…
