Biochemical and morphological characterization of sympathetic neurons grown in a chemically-defined medium

Previous studies have demonstrated that individual neurons from neonatal rat superior cervical ganglion express a mixed adrenergic-cholinergic phenotype when grown under certain tissue culture conditions.^{9,14,15,29,30} The expression of this phenotype is critically influenced by a number of undefined components present in the culture medium.^18,23,33 In the present study, we have examined whether superior cervical ganglion neurons grown on a chemically defined serum-free medium similarly develop dual transmitter expression, or if under these conditions, neurons express only those properties characteristic of their adrenergic heritage. To address this issue, we established that superior cervical ganglion neurons could be maintained in culture for extended periods on the defined medium described by Bottenstein & Sato⁴ in the absence of supporting cells. We then studied the biochemical, immunocytochemical and ultrastructural characteristics of these neurons. We found that in defined medium, superior cervical ganglion neurons continued to express, in a modified form, certain of their expected adrenergic properties, including the development of tyrosine hydroxylase and dopamine-β-hydroxylase activities, stores of endogenous norepinephrine, synaptic vesicles with dense cores and tyrosine hydroxy lase-immunoreactive staining properties. Superior cervical ganglion neurons grown on a defined medium did not, however, acquire cholinergic traits in culture. In this paper we show that choline acetyltransferase activity did not reach detectable levels; the companion paper¹³ documents that cholinergic synapses were not formed.We conclude that superior cervical ganglion neurons, grown under serum-free culture conditions, develop certain properties characteristic of adrenergic neurons and do not express a mixed adrenergic cholinergic phenotype. A companion paper¹³ describes the electrophysiological properties of these neurons and demonstrates the frequent occurrence of electrotonic synapses in these cultures.     

The effect of surface sugars on liposomes in immunopotentiation

The effect of surface sugars of liposomes on the immunological responses to entrapped antigen has been investigated. alpha-Mannose and beta-galactose were grafted on the surface of liposomes containing lysozyme by covalent coupling of p-aminophenyl-D-glycosides to phosphatidyl ethanolamine liposomes using glutaraldehyde. Subcutaneous administration of antigen entrapped in beta-galactose liposomes stimulated an antibody response comparable to that elicited by sugar-free neutral liposomes. However, alpha-mannose bearing liposomes with entrapped lysozyme elicited an immune response similar to that induced by lysozyme in saline. Based on these observations it is suggested that alpha-mannose liposomes, that are specifically recognized by macrophages, are taken up rapidly by receptor mediated endocytosis and that the entrapped antigen is then rapidly degraded, resulting in low antibody production.     

β-Glucuronidase activation of latent aggression-promoting cues in mouse bladder urine

The present study was designed to investigate the chemical properties of the aggression-promoting cues present in bladder urine of male mice. The results of the first experiment confirmed earlier work by demonstrating the presence of an aggression-promoting chemosignal in bladder urine. In Experiment 2, behavioral assays were separately performed on the organic and aqueous layers of bladder urine obtained by repeated dichloromethane extractions. Only the combined organic layers of the initial three extractions demonstrated behavioral activity. A fourth extraction showed no behavioral activity for both organic and aqueous layers. However, the findings of Experiment 3 showed that incubation of the aqueous layer from the third CH₂Cl₂ extraction in β-glucuronidase can free additional aggression-promoting cues into a subsequent CH₂Cl₂ extraction. It is concluded that two forms of the aggression-promoting chemosignal are present in bladder urine. One is lipophilic and behaviorally active, whereas the other is conjugated, possessing latent chemosignal properties.     

Relaxin protects myocardial microvascular endothelial cells from hypoxia-reoxygenation injury北大核心

BACKGROUND: Relaxin can significantly improve cardiac and renal dysfuction caused by pathological factors, inhibit myocardial hypertrophy, have an anti-fibrosis effect, and improve ischemia-reperfusion injury. However, its protective mechanism against hypoxia-reoxygenation injury of endothelial cells remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the protective mechanism of relaxin against hypoxia-reoxygenation injury of myocardial microvascular endothelial cells. METHODS: Mouse myocardial microvascular endothelial cell line (H5V cells) was used for the experiment. Cells were treated by three different interventions: in control group, cells were normally cultured for 33 hours; in model group, cells were treated by 6-hour hypoxia followed by 3-hour reoxygenation); and in relaxin group, 24 hours of routine culture (180 ng/mL relaxin), 6 hours of hypoxia and 3 hours of reoxygenation (180 ng/mL relaxin) were given to simulate myocardial hypoxia-reperfusion injury. Cell permeability and Caspase-3 activity were then detected. Levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1β and interleukin-6 in cell supernatants were detected by ELISA. Expressions of VE-cadherin, Akt, and GSK-3β at mRNA and protein levels were detected by RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Compared with the control group, the cell permeability and expression of caspase-3 increased significantly in the model group (P < 0.05). Compared with the model group, the cell permeability and expression of caspase-3 decreased in the relaxin group (P < 0.05). Moreover, the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1β and interleukin-6 were elevated in the model group, while the levels were significantly decreased after relaxin treatment (all P < 0.05). There were no significantly changes in the mRNA and protein expressions of VE-cadherin, Akt1, and GSK-3β mRNA among three groups (all P > 0.05). Compared with the control group, the expression of phosphorylated VE-cadherin, Akt1 and GSK-3β were decreased in the model group (P < 0.05), and relaxin treatment reversed these changes to the control levels (P < 0.05). To conclude, relaxin treatment could enhance VE-cadherin expression, reduce hypoxiareoxygenation-induced microvascular endothelial cell damage, inhibit inflammatory cytokine release, and reduce cell apoptosis, which may be related to the activation of the Akt/GSK-3β signaling pathway. © 2023, Publishing House of Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research. All rights reserved.     

NMDA受体在β-淀粉样蛋白引起海马神经元突触蛋白改变中的作用

为了研究NMDA受体活性对Aβ引发的海马神经元突触蛋白表达变化的影响,本文运用免疫细胞化学方法检测不同浓度NMDA受体激动剂以及拮抗剂对Aβ诱导的海马神经元突触蛋白变化的影响。结果显示:NMDA可浓度依赖性地缓解Aβ25-35引起的突触蛋白synaptophysin与PSD-95的减少。抑制突触内NMDA受体,NMDA缓解Aβ减少突触蛋白的作用减弱;抑制突触外NMDA受体,对抗Aβ的作用无显著变化。本研究结果提示NMDA受体活性改变影响Aβ诱导的突触蛋白减少,突触内NMDA受体激活可对抗Aβ的毒性作用。突触内NMDA受体活性减弱可能在谷氨酸兴奋毒性中发挥作用。     

Immunochemical characterization of mouse brain-associated theta (Thy-1) antigen.

The Thy-1 antigens or rat brain and thymus have been isolated and chemically characterized, but those of mice have not been identified. Moreover, it is uncertain whether the antigens are glycolipids or glycoproteins. This study with highly purified preparations of gangliosides GM₁, ¹GD_1a, GD_1b and GT_1b from bovine brain and several ganglioside fractions from mouse brain showed that Thy-1 activity does not reside in gangliosides, but rather in the chloroform-methanol-insoluble residue of brain remaining after extraction of gangliosides. The antigen could be solubilized from this residue with a non-ionic detergent. The antigenic activity of the solubilized preparation was heat-labile but resistant to periodate. The chemical properties of the Thy-1 antigen of mouse brain are discussed.     

Activity of human erythrocyte gangliosides as a receptor to HVJ

Liposomes could bind and fuse efficiently to human erythrocytes in the presence of HVJ when they contained gangliosides isolated from human erythrocytes. Sialosylparagloboside, which has a terminal sequence of NeuAcα2?3Ga1β1?4GlcNac, has a much higher receptor activity to the virus than GD_1a, GD_1b, GT_1b, and GT_1a, all of which contain the terminal sequence of NeuAcα2?3Galβ1?3GalNAc or NeuAcα2?8NeuAcα2?3Galβ1?3GalNAc. The activity of sialosylparagloboside is comparable to that of glycophorin, a major sialoglycoprotein of human erythrocytes, when compared on the basis of the required amount (as sialic acid) of compounds. The high affinity of sialosylparagloboside to the viral HANA protein is also suggested by the finding that it showed high inhibitory activity against HVJ-mediated binding of glycophorin liposomes to erythrocytes. Sialosylparagloboside was also highly susceptible to the viral sialidase, the other biological function of HANA protein.     

Comparative structural analysis of calmodulins from Trypanosoma brucei, T. congolense, T. vivax, Tetrahymena thermophila and bovine brain

Calmodulin is an intracellular calcium receptor protein utilized extensively by eukaryotic cells to mediate responsiveness to calcium signals. The present study evaluates the effects on protein structure of amino acid substitutions in trypanosome calmodulin. Calmodulin conformation, hydrophobicity and antigenic determinants are compared among Trypanosoma brucei, Trypanosoma congolense, Trypanosoma vivax, Tetrahymena thermophila and bovine brain. Trypanosome calmodulin differs from brain and Tetrahymena calmodulins based upon isoelectric point, retention time on a C-2/C-18 reverse phase column and interaction with polyclonal antibodies against trypanosome calmodulin by radioimmunoassay or Western procedures. These same analyses do not distinguish trypanosome calmodulins from each other. Polyclonal antibodies against Tetrahymena calmodulin are equally specific and do not recognize the trypanosome or brain calmodulins. Calcium-induced exposure of hydrophobic binding sites are quantitated using the fluorescent probe, N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine. All calmodulins, regardless of source, enhance the fluorescence of N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine 3-4 fold in the presence of calcium. These data demonstrate the extent to which functional calmodulins vary in their structures. We conclude that African trypanosomes share a common calmodulin that is structurally distinct from calmodulin of vertebrates or Tetrahymena.     

Pathogenesis of antiphospholipid syndrome: recent insights and emerging concepts

Introduction: Even though our understanding of the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has improved tremendously over the last decades, we are still not in a position to replace symptomatic anticoagulation by pathogenesis based causal treatments.

Areas covered: Recent years have provided further insights into pathogenetically relevant mechanisms. These include a differentiation of pathogenic subtypes of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL), novel mechanisms modulating disease activity, for example, extracellular vesicles and microRNA, and novel players in pathogenesis, for example, neutrophils and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs).

Expert commentary: It is evident that aPL induce a proinflammatory and procoagulant state and recent data suggest that different aPL species activate different signaling pathways which sometimes converge into a common cellular response. This implies that presence of more than one aPL species may disproportionally increase the risk for the major manifestations of APS, that is, thrombosis and fetal loss. Further delineation of the pathogenic mechanisms will hopefully provide clues to causal rather than symptomatic treatments of APS.