Swollen Ampulla as an Indicator of Successful Pregnancy in B6C3F1 Recipient Mice used for Assisted Reproduction.

In vitro fertilization (IVF), embryo cryopreservation, and embryo transfer (ET) are assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) that are used extensively for the maintenance of mouse models in animal research. Inbred mouse strains with different genetic backgrounds vary in their reproductive performance. Cryopreservation can affect embryo quality and viability, and the genetic background of ET recipients can influence the ET result.

The role of selective SATB1 deletion in somatostatin expressing interneurons on endogenous network activity and the transition to epilepsy.

Somatostatin (SST) expressing interneurons are the second most abundant group of inhibitory neurons in the neocortex. They mainly target the apical dendrites of excitatory pyramidal cells and are implicated in feedforward and feedback inhibition. In the present study, we employ a conditional knockout mouse, in which the transcription factor Satb1 is selectively deleted in SST-expressing interneurons resulting to the reduction of their number across the somatosensory barrel field.

GABA - and GABA -receptor-mediated regulation of Up and Down states across development.

Slow oscillations, the hallmark of non-REM sleep, and their cellular counterpart, Up and Down states (UDSs), are considered a signature of cortical dynamics that reflect the intrinsic network organization. Although previous studies have explored the role of inhibition in regulating UDSs, little is known about whether this role changes with maturation. This is surprising since both slow oscillations and UDSs exhibit significant age-dependent alterations.

Long-Term Effects of Early Life Seizures on Endogenous Local Network Activity of the Mouse Neocortex.

Understanding the long term impact of early life seizures (ELS) is of vital importance both for researchers and clinicians. Most experimental studies of how seizures affect the developing brain have drawn their conclusions based on changes detected at the cellular or behavioral level, rather than on intermediate levels of analysis, such as the physiology of neuronal networks. Neurons work as part of networks and network dynamics integrate the function of molecules, cells and synapses in the emergent properties of brain circuits that reflect the balance of excitation and inhibition in the brain.