Characterization of MSCs expressing islet neogenesis associated protein (INGAP): INGAP secretion and cell survival and .

Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are emerging as a new therapy for diabetes. Here we investigate the properties of MSCs engineered to express Islet Neogenesis Associated Protein (INGAP) previously shown to reverse diabetes in animal models and evaluate their potential for anti-diabetic applications in mice. Mouse bone marrow-derived MSCs retrovirally transduced to co-express INGAP, Firefly Luciferase and EGFP (INGAP-MSCs), were characterized and implanted intraperitoneally (IP) into non-diabetic and diabetic C57BL/6 mice (Streptozotocin model) and tracked by live bioluminescence imaging (BLI).

Temporal integration of sound motion: Motion-onset response and perception.

The purpose of our study was to estimate the time interval required for integrating the acoustical changes related to sound motion using both psychophysical and EEG measures. Healthy listeners performed direction identification tasks under dichotic conditions in the delayed-motion paradigm. Minimal audible movement angle (MAMA) has been measured over the range of velocities from 60 to 360 deg/s.

Islet neogenesis associated protein (INGAP) protects pancreatic β cells from IL-1β and IFNγ-induced apoptosis.

The goal of this study was to determine whether recombinant Islet NeoGenesis Associated Protein (rINGAP) and its active core, a pentadecapeptide INGAP (Ingap-p), protect β cells against cytokine-induced death. INGAP has been shown to induce islet neogenesis in diabetic animals, to stimulate β-cell proliferation and differentiation, and to improve islet survival and function. Importantly, Ingap-p has shown promising results in clinical trials for diabetes (phase I/II).

Brain oscillations evoked by sound motion.

The present study investigates the event-related oscillations underlying the motion-onset response (MOR) evoked by sounds moving at different velocities. EEG was recorded for stationary sounds and for three patterns of sound motion produced by changes in interaural time differences. We explored the effect of motion velocity on the MOR potential, and also on the event-related spectral perturbation (ERSP) and inter-trial phase coherence (ITC) calculated from the time-frequency decomposition of EEG signals.

Lateralization of brain responses to auditory motion: A study using single-trial analysis.

The present study investigates hemispheric asymmetry of the ERPs and low-frequency oscillatory responses evoked in both hemispheres of the brain by the sound stimuli with delayed onset of motion. EEG was recorded for three patterns of sound motion produced by changes in interaural time differences. Event-related spectral perturbation (ERSP) and inter-trial phase coherence (ITC) were computed from the time-frequency decomposition of EEG signals.

Type 2 diabetes is associated with suppression of autophagy and lipid accumulation in β-cells.

Both type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are characterized by excessive hyperlipidaemia and subsequent lipid droplet (LD) accumulation in adipose tissue. To investigate whether LDs also accumulate in β-cells of T2D patients, we assessed the expression of PLIN2, a LD-associated protein, in non-diabetic (ND) and T2D pancreata. We observed an up-regulation of PLIN2 mRNA and protein in β-cells of T2D patients, along with significant changes in the expression of lipid metabolism, apoptosis and oxidative stress genes.

Mismatch negativity and psychophysical detection of rising and falling intensity sounds.

Human subjects demonstrate a perceptual priority for rising level sounds compared with falling level sounds. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether or not the perceptual preference for rising intensity can be found in the preattentive processing indexed by mismatch negativity (MMN). Reversed oddball stimulation was used to produce MMNs and to test the behavioral discrimination of rising, falling and constant level sounds.

Hemispheric asymmetry of ERPs and MMNs evoked by slow, fast and abrupt auditory motion.

The current MMN study investigates whether brain lateralization during automatic discrimination of sound stimuli moving at different velocities is consistent with one of the three models of asymmetry: the right-hemispheric dominance model, the contralateral dominance model, or the neglect model. Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded for three patterns of sound motion produced by linear or abrupt changes of interaural time differences. The slow motion (450deg/s) was used as standard, and the fast motion (620deg/s) and the abrupt sound shift served as deviants in the oddball blocks.

[Motion-Onset Responses During Active and Passive Listening to the Moving Sound Stimuli].

This study investigated the energy-onset and motion-onset responses (N1, P2, cN 1 and cP2 components of the auditory evoked potential) elicited by moving sound stimuli in the passive and active listening conditions. In the passive conditions the subjects were distracted from auditory information; in active conditions they lo- calized the starting and final points of the stimulus trajectory. The sound movement to the left/right from the head midline was produced by linear-changes of the interaural time delay (ITD).

[ACTIVE AND PASSIVE DISCRIMINATION OF MOVING SOUNDS: RHYTHMIC ACTIVITY OF HUMAN BRAIN].

The spectral dynamics of the EEG rhythmicity during active and passive discrimination of stationary and moving sound stimuli presented according to the oddball paradigm were investigated. Standard stimuli represented stationary midline sounds. Deviant stimuli simulated smooth and stepwise sound source motion (to the left/right from head midline) produced by linear and stepwise changes of interaural time delay.

[Topography of the Event-Related Brain Responses during Discrimination of Auditory Motion in Humans].

The present study investigates the hemispheric asymmetry of auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) and mismatch negativity (MMN) during passive discrimination of the moving sound stimuli presented according to the oddball paradigm. The sound movement to the left/right from the head midline was produced by linear changes of the interaural time delay (ITD). It was found that the right-hemispheric N1 and P2 responses were more prominent than the left-hemispheric ones, especially in the fronto-lateral region.

[ACTIVE AND PASSIVE DISCRIMINATION OF MOVING SOUNDS: EVENT-RELATED RESPONSES OF HUMAN BRAIN].

The current study investigates auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) and mismatch negativity (MMN) during active and passive discrimination of stationary and moving sound stimuli presented according to the oddball paradigm. Standard stimuli represented stationary midline sounds. Deviant stimuli simulated sound source location shifts (to the left/right from head midline) produced by linear or stepwise changes of interaural time delay (ITD).

Islet Neogenesis Associated Protein (INGAP) induces the differentiation of an adult human pancreatic ductal cell line into insulin-expressing cells through stepwise activation of key transcription factors for embryonic beta cell development.

Regeneration of β-cells in diabetic patients is an important goal of diabetes research. Islet Neogenesis Associated Protein (INGAP) was discovered in the partially duct-obstructed hamster pancreas. Its bioactive fragment, pentadecapeptide 104-118 (INGAP-P), has been shown to reverse diabetes in animal models and to improve glucose homeostasis in patients with diabetes in clinical trials.

[Sensitivity of the hearing system to the velocity of auditory motion: difference thresholds and mismatch negativity].

The parallel psychophysical and MMN study focused at the sensitivity of human hearing system to variations in velocity of sound image movement. The motion of sound stimuli with various velocities in the 450 deg/s to 732 deg/s range in increments of 6 deg/s to the left or to the right from the head midline was simulated by introducing linear changes of interaural delay into dichotic stimuli. The psychophysical experiments were designed according to the 2-alternative forced choice paradigm.

Contextual effects on preattentive processing of sound motion as revealed by spatial MMN.

The magnitude of spatial distance between sound stimuli is critically important for their preattentive discrimination, yet the effect of stimulus context on auditory motion processing is not clear. This study investigated the effects of acoustical change and stimulus context on preattentive spatial change detection. Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded for stationary midline noises and two patterns of sound motion produced by linear or abrupt changes of interaural time differences.

[Objective and subjective indexes of auditory motion processing].

The study focused at the objective and subjective indexes of human hearing system sensitivity towards different types of moving sound stimuli. The experiment employed two methods: electrophysiological (MMN recording) and psychophysical method (two-alternative forced choice). Two types of spatial sound stimuli simulated gradual and abrupt sound motion from the head midline.

[Perceptual categories for auditory motion as reflected in mismatch negativity].

Auditory evoked response and mismatch negativity potential have been studied using the reversed odd-ball paradigm of standard and deviant stimulus presentation. In the experiments, three types of spatial sound stimuli (stationary and moving either gradually or abruptly from the head midline) were presented in three configurations. Each configuration employed one stimulus type as standard and the other two types as deviants.

[Amino acids content in the blood serum of patients with multiple sclerosis].

Content of amino acids in the blood serum using ion-exchange chromatography and a quantitative crystalloscopic "closed drop" method was measured in 105 patients with multiple sclerosis of different severity. The relation between the dynamics of content of glutamic, asparagine acids and glycine and the disease severity was determined. The highest level of glutamic acid was found in the patients with severe disease course.

Discrimination of auditory motion patterns: the mismatch negativity study.

The aim of the present study is to test whether mismatch negativity (MMN) response can be elicited by changes in auditory motion dynamics. The discrimination of auditory motion patterns was investigated using psychophysical and electrophysiological methods in the same group of subjects. Auditory event-related potentials (ERP) were recorded for stationary midline noises and moving noises shifting to the left/right from the head midline.

Mechanisms of action of islet neogenesis-associated protein: comparison of the full-length recombinant protein and a bioactive peptide.

Islet neogenesis-associated protein (INGAP) was discovered in the partially duct-obstructed hamster pancreas as a factor inducing formation of new duct-associated islets. A bioactive portion of INGAP, INGAP(104-118) peptide (INGAP-P), has been shown to have neogenic and insulin-potentiating activity in numerous studies, including recent phase 2 clinical trials that demonstrated improved glucose homeostasis in both type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients. Aiming to improve INGAP-P efficacy and to understand its mechanism of action, we cloned the full-length protein (rINGAP) and compared the signaling events induced by the protein and the peptide in RIN-m5F cells that respond to INGAP with an increase in proliferation.

[Event-related potentials of human brain in spatial hearing].

The review presents the data concerning auditory event-related potentials and their "mismatch negativity" component under conditions of stationary and moving sound source localization. Both free-field and dichotic experimental conditions are considered. The interhemispheric asymmetry of the brain responses elicited by the sound sources of various spatial properties is also discussed.

[Forecast ability of the auditory system during perception of gradually or abruptly moving short sound images].

The ability to localize endpoints of sound image trajectories was studied in comparison with stationary sound image positions. Sound images moved either gradually or abruptly to the left or right from the head midline. Different types of sound image movement were simulated by manipulating the interaural time delay.

Long-term in vitro human pancreatic islet culture using three-dimensional microfabricated scaffolds.

Human pancreatic islet in vitro culture is very challenging and requires the presence of various extra cellular matrix (ECM) components in a three-dimensional environment, which provides mechanical and biological support. The development of such an environment is vital in providing favourable conditions to preserve human islets in long-term culture. In this study, we investigated the effects of human islet culture within various three-dimensional environments; collagen I gel, collagen I gel supplemented with ECM components fibronectin and collagen IV, and microfabricated scaffold with ECM-supplemented gel.

[Auditory perception sluggishness during short moving sound image localization].

Displacement of the perceived position of the starting points relative to the objective one during the moving sound source localization is an example of the auditory perception sluggishness. The ability to localize starting and end points of sound image trajectories was studied in comparison with stationary sound image positions. Sound images moved gradually or abruptly to the left or right from the head midline.

How does mismatch negativity reflect auditory motion?

Recent studies have shown that the mismatch negativity (MMN), a change-specific component of the auditory event-related potential (ERP), is accurately tracking the spatial location of the stationary sound source. The aim of the present study was to estimate the parameters of MMNs evoked by auditory motion and to compare the motion discrimination measured by MMN in normally hearing subjects with the psychophysical data obtained in the same group of subjects. The auditory motion was simulated by introducing variable interaural time differences (ITDs) into the deviant stimuli.