The number of conspecific alarm substance donors notably influences the behavioural responses of zebrafish subjected to a traumatic stress procedure.

Zebrafish (Danio rerio) represents a complementary pre-clinical model in stress and anxiety research. Conspecific alarm substance (CAS), an alarm pheromone secreted by injured fish, acts as a warning signal and modulates fear responses. Given their schooling nature and that injury precedes CAS release, varying fresh CAS concentrations extracted from different numbers of CAS-donating zebrafish may uniquely influence trauma-related behaviours.

In vitro development of a radicular cyst: A morphological investigation of a spheroid cyst-like model associated with fibroblasts.

Objective: The aim of this study was to improve the in vitro model of tooth radicular cyst previously developed by incorporating stromal components and to describe histologic analysis.

Design: A radicular cystogenesis-like 3D model was generated using HaCaT cells (1 × 10) to developing spheroid. After 24 h, spheroids were embedded in non-polymerized collagen in combination with 1 × 10 fibroblast cells (HaCaT + 1 × 10 hFIB) to mimic stromal microenvironment.

Impact of Sample Storage Time and Temperature on the Stability of Respiratory Viruses and Enteric Viruses in Wastewater.

Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) has been widely used to track SARS-CoV-2 as well as many other viruses in communities during the COVID pandemic and post-pandemic. However, it is still not clear how temperature and storage time would influence the stability of viruses in wastewater. In this study, we assessed the stability of SARS-CoV-2, pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV), influenza viruses A (IAV) and B (IBV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and enteric viruses in raw wastewater stored at room temperature, 4 °C, and -20 °C for 3 and 6 days.

Posttraumatic anxiety-like behaviour in zebrafish is dose-dependently attenuated by the alpha-2A receptor agonist, guanfacine.

Traumatic stress exposure increases noradrenaline (NA) release, which contributes to anxiety and impaired risk-appraisal. Guanfacine, a selective alpha-2A adrenergic receptor agonist, has been used to treat stress-related disorders characterised by impaired prefrontal cortex function. By acting on both presynaptic inhibitory autoreceptors and postsynaptic heteroreceptors, guanfacine attenuates stress reactivity and enhances cognition.

Differential impact of pegfilgrastim, a recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor, on the neutrophil count of male and female deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii).

Background: An increasing body of research implicates inflammatory processes, including alterations in the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), in the pathophysiology of psychiatric illness. The deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii) is commonly studied for its naturalistic expression of compulsive-like behaviour. Towards future efforts to gain an understanding of how innate and adaptive immune processes might be involved in this model, we aimed to study the effects of pegfilgrastim, a pegylated recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (g-CSF) analogue, on the NLR of both male and female deer mice.

Passively administered fluoxetine reaches the juvenile brain of FSL rats and reduces antioxidant defences, without altering serotonin turnover.

Background: Fluoxetine is present in breast milk, yet it is unclear to what extent it, or its active metabolite, norfluoxetine, reaches the brain of the infant and what the effects of such exposure on neurobiological processes are. We therefore aimed to quantify the concentration of passively administered fluoxetine and norfluoxetine in the whole brains of exposed Flinders sensitive line (FSL) offspring and establish their influence on serotonergic function and redox status.

Methods: Adult FSL dams received fluoxetine (10 mg/kg/day), or placebo for fourteen days, beginning on postpartum day 04.

Intraoperative Assessment of Noninvasive Left Ventricular Myocardial Work Indices in Patients Undergoing Aortic Valve Replacement.

Objective: Evaluation of noninvasive left ventricular (LV) myocardial work (MW) enables insights into cardiac contractility and efficacy beyond conventional echocardiography. However, there is limited intraoperative data on patients undergoing surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR). The aim of this study was to describe the feasibility and the intraoperative course of this technique of ventricular function assessment in these patients and compare it to conventional two (2D)- and three-dimensional (3D) echocardiographic measurements and strain analysis.

Learning semi-supervised enrichment of longitudinal imaging-genetic data for improved prediction of cognitive decline.

Background: Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is a progressive memory disorder that causes irreversible cognitive decline. Given that there is currently no cure, it is critical to detect AD in its early stage during the disease progression. Recently, many statistical learning methods have been presented to identify cognitive decline with temporal data, but few of these methods integrate heterogeneous phenotype and genetic information together to improve the accuracy of prediction.

Gamification as a tool to teach key concepts in microbiology to bachelor-level students in biology: a case study using microbial interactions and soil functioning.

Microbiology is a difficult topic to teach given that the objects of study are mostly invisible to the learner. The majority of university students beginning their training in biology are more interested in natural objects that can be seen with the naked eye. Nonetheless, micro-organisms are key components of the biosphere and a good microbiological background is required for a thorough training in natural sciences.

Maternal Voice and Tactile Stimulation Modulate Oxytocin in Mothers of Hospitalized Preterm Infants: A Randomized Crossover Trial.

Prematurity is a major risk factor for perinatal stress and neonatal complications leading to systemic inflammation and abnormal mother-infant interactions. Oxytocin (OT) is a neuropeptide regulating the inflammatory response and promoting mother-infant bonding. The release of this hormone might be influenced by either vocal or tactile stimulation.

Exploring the Binding Affinity of the ARR2 GARP DNA Binding Domain via Comparative Methods.

Plants have evolved signaling mechanisms such as the multi-step phosphorelay (MSP) to respond to different internal and external stimuli. MSP responses often result in gene transcription regulation that is modulated through transcription factors such as B-type Arabidopsis response regulator (ARR) proteins. Among these proteins, ARR2 is a key component that is expressed ubiquitously and is involved in many aspects of plant development.

Striatal adenosine A receptor involvement in normal and large nest building deer mice: Perspectives on compulsivity and anxiety.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by recurring obsessive thoughts and repetitive behaviors that are often associated with anxiety and perturbations in cortico-striatal signaling. Given the suboptimal response of OCD to current serotonergic interventions, there is a need to better understand the psychobiological mechanisms that may underlie the disorder. In this regard, investigations into adenosinergic processes might be fruitful.

Defensive and offensive behaviours in a Kleefstra syndrome mouse model.

Kleefstra syndrome in humans is characterized by a general delay in development, intellectual disability and autistic features. The mouse model of this disease (Ehmt1) expresses anxiety, autistic-like traits, and aberrant social interactions with non-cagemates. To investigate how Ehmt1 mice behave with unfamiliar conspecifics, we allowed adult, male animals to freely interact for 10 min in a neutral, novel environment within a host-visitor setting.

Multifaceted Target Specificity Analysis as a Tool in Antimicrobial Drug Development: Type III Pantothenate Kinases as a Case Study.

The research and development of a new antimicrobial drug using a target-based approach raises the question of whether any resulting hits will also show activity against the homologous target in other closely related organisms. While an assessment of the similarities of the predicted interactions between the identified inhibitor and the various targets is an obvious first step in answering this question, no clear and consistent framework has been proposed for how this should be done. Here we developed Multifaceted Target Specificity Analysis (MTSA) and applied it to type III pantothenate kinase (PanK ) - an essential enzyme required for coenzyme A biosynthesis in a wide range of pathogenic bacteria - as a case study to establish if targeting a specific organism's PanK would lead to a narrow- or broad-spectrum agent.

Increased depressive-like behaviour of postpartum Flinders sensitive and resistant line rats is reversed by a predictable postpartum stressor.

During the peripartum period, women are at an increased risk to develop perinatal distress, presenting as symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. Yet, due to practical and ethical restrictions, our understanding of this condition remains limited. Animal studies that focus on the neuropsychiatric mechanisms associated with the postpartum period, often ignore the genetical predisposition factor.

Multiple Light-Dark Signals Regulate Expression of the DEAD-Box RNA Helicase CrhR in PCC 6803.

Since oxygenic photosynthesis evolved in the common ancestor of cyanobacteria during the Archean, a range of sensing and response strategies evolved to allow efficient acclimation to the fluctuating light conditions experienced in the diverse environments they inhabit. However, how these regulatory mechanisms are assimilated at the molecular level to coordinate individual gene expression is still being elucidated. Here, we demonstrate that integration of a series of three distinct light signals generate an unexpectedly complex network regulating expression of the sole DEAD-box RNA helicase, CrhR, encoded in sp.

An in vitro evaluation of the WIRELE-x electronic apex locator.

This study evaluated the accuracy of the Wirele-X (Forum Tec, Ashkelon, Israel), a novel Bluetooth-enabled wireless electronic apex locator. Thirty-one extracted teeth with mature apices were used. Under 10X magnification, the actual canal lengths were determined.

Scaling multi-instance support vector machine to breast cancer detection on the BreaKHis dataset.

Motivation: Breast cancer is a type of cancer that develops in breast tissues, and, after skin cancer, it is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women in the United States. Given that an early diagnosis is imperative to prevent breast cancer progression, many machine learning models have been developed in recent years to automate the histopathological classification of the different types of carcinomas. However, many of them are not scalable to large-scale datasets.

Feasibility of the EQ-5D in the elderly population: a systematic review of the literature.

Purpose: The EQ-5D-3L and 5L are widely used generic preference-based instruments, which are psychometrically sound with the general population, but little is known about the instruments' feasibility in the elderly. Therefore, this systematic review summarises the available literature with regard to the feasibility properties of the instruments in the elderly population.

Methods: We conducted a systematic search in PubMed, PsycInfo and EuroQol databases using pre-specified vocabulary and inclusion/exclusion criteria to identify publications until November 2020.

Transposition and duplication of MADS-domain transcription factor genes in annual and perennial species modulates flowering.

The timing of reproduction is an adaptive trait in many organisms. In plants, the timing, duration, and intensity of flowering differ between annual and perennial species. To identify interspecies variation in these traits, we studied introgression lines derived from hybridization of annual and perennial species, and , respectively.

A scalable and highly immunogenic virus-like particle-based vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.

Background: SARS-CoV-2 caused one of the most devastating pandemics in the recent history of mankind. Due to various countermeasures, including lock-downs, wearing masks, and increased hygiene, the virus has been controlled in some parts of the world. More recently, the availability of vaccines, based on RNA or adenoviruses, has greatly added to our ability to keep the virus at bay; again, however, in some parts of the world only.

[Confusional syndrome in the emergency room: from diagnosis to management].

Delirium is an emergency and can have serious consequences. On the arrival at the emergency room of an elderly person, it should be systematically checked for confusional syndrome. If it is confirmed, a systematic and rapid etiological assessment carried out in the emergency room allows the identification of predisposing and precipitating factors.

Inflammation, fibrosis and skeletal muscle regeneration in LGMDR9 are orchestrated by macrophages.

Aims: Variable degrees of inflammation, necrosis, regeneration and fibrofatty replacement are part of the pathological spectrum of the dystrophic process in alpha dystroglycanopathy LGMDR9 (FKRP-related, OMIM #607155), one of the most prevailing types of LGMDs worldwide. Inflammatory processes and their complex interplay with vascular, myogenic and mesenchymal cells may have a major impact on disease development. The purpose of our study is to describe the specific immune morphological features in muscle tissue of patients with LGMDR9 to enable a better understanding of the phenotype of muscle damage leading to disease progression.