The impacts of climate change, energy policy and traditional ecological practices on future firewood availability for Diné (Navajo) People.

Local-scale human-environment relationships are fundamental to energy sovereignty, and in many contexts, Indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) is integral to such relationships. For example, Tribal leaders in southwestern USA identify firewood harvested from local woodlands as vital. For Diné people, firewood is central to cultural and physical survival and offers a reliable fuel for energy embedded in local ecological systems.

Language fouls in teaching ecology: why traditional metaphors undermine conservation literacy.

We believe that the language commonly used in teaching actually hinders the creation of conservation literacy. We examined four frequently used ecology and environmental studies textbooks and considered the ways in which commonly used language can obscure or enhance an understanding of ecology and conservation. Specifically, we used the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis (a.

Comparison of two formulations of cyclosporin A in the treatment of severe atopic dermatitis. Aa double-blind, single-centre, cross-over pilot study.

Background: Cyclosporin A (CsA) has been shown to be highly effective in the therapy of atopic dermatitis (AD). However, little information exists on the treatment of AD patients with Sandimmun Neoral(R) (Neoral), a microemulsion of CsA with improved pharmacokinetic properties in comparison to Sandimmun(R).

Objective: We have compared the efficacy and tolerability of Sandimmun and Neoral.

Beta-subunits co-determine the sensitivity of rat neuronal nicotinic receptors to antagonists.

We have investigated the effect of 4 ganglionic cholinergic antagonists (hexamethonium, mecamylamine, pentolinium, trimetaphan) on rat alpha 3 beta 2 and alpha 3 beta 4 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) expressed in Xenopus oocytes. Current responses were elicited by fast application of acetylcholine on voltage-clamped oocytes (holding potentialVh = -80mV). Concentration-inhibition curves were used to get estimates of IC50, the antagonist concentration yielding 50% reduction of the peak current.

Unusual pharmacology of (+)-tubocurarine with rat neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors containing beta 4 subunits.

We have investigated the functional properties of four rat neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor types expressed in Xenopus oocytes after injection of pairwise combinations of mRNA encoding alpha 2 or alpha 3 receptor subunits with mRNA encoding beta 2 or beta 4 receptor subunits. Current responses evoked by rapid application of cholinergic agonists (acetylcholine, nicotine, or 1,1-dimethyl-4-phenylpiperazinium) were recorded from voltage-clamped oocytes. Substituting BaCl2 for CaCl2 in the external solution increased the apparent Kd values of beta 4 subunit-containing receptors for acetylcholine but decreased the apparent Kd values of beta 2 subunit-containing receptors.

Expression of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit genes in the rat autonomic nervous system.

In the autonomic nervous system efferent signals are relayed in sympathetic and parasympathetic ganglia. Fast synaptic transmission between pre- and postsynaptic neurons is achieved by neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). There is still little known about the subunit composition of these receptors.

Beta subunits determine the time course of desensitization in rat alpha 3 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

Standard two-electrode voltage-clamp techniques were used to investigate some of the pharmacological and functional properties of two types of rat neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes after pairwise injection of alpha 3 beta 4 or alpha 3 beta 2 mRNAs. Currents of several microA amplitude were elicited by fast application of micromolar concentrations of either acetylcholine (ACh) or 1,1-dimethyl-4-piperazine (DMPP). The activation of either receptor type by DMPP showed cooperativity (Hill coefficient, n greater than or equal to 1.

Dexamethasone and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, but not cyclosporine A, inhibit production of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor in human fibroblasts.

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) stimulates granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) production in human fibroblasts and other mesenchymal cells. However, relatively little is known about agents that downregulate cytokine production in these cells. In the present report we show that dexamethasone (Dexa), a synthetic glucocorticoid, markedly reduced GM-CSF production in TNF alpha-stimulated fibroblasts at both the protein and the RNA levels.

Changes in the conductance of the neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor channel induced by magnesium.

We have investigated the effect of magnesium on the single-channel conductance of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in nerve growth-factor treated rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. The patch-clamp technique was used to record single-channel currents from cell attached and excised, outside-out patches in the presence of various internal and external Mg2+ concentrations. Mg2+ reduced the single-channel conductance in a concentration-dependent manner with an IC50 of 9.

Desensitization of the acetylcholine receptor of frog end-plates measured in a Vaseline-gap voltage clamp.

1. Desensitization of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor of the frog end-plate was investigated in dissociated frog muscle fibres using the Vaseline-gap clamp method so that a wide range of well-defined agonist concentrations could be used without having to use alpha-bungarotoxin to reduce currents, and so that the intracellular medium could be controlled. 2.

Monomeric and dimeric IgG1 as probes for assessing high-affinity and low-affinity receptors for IgG on human monocyte-derived macrophages and on activated macrophages.

From a panel of IgG1 myeloma proteins, only one was found to interact with human monocyte FcR in a manner similar to that of polyclonal IgG. This protein was used in binding studies involving human macrophage Fc receptors. A monomeric fraction depleted of dimeric and polymeric IgG1 was crosslinked with bis-diazonium benzidine, and a fraction highly enriched in cross linked IgG1 dimers was radiolabeled.

Ca2+ channel modulation by 8-bromocyclic AMP in cultured heart cells.

Modulation of ion channels is of increasing interest as it is an important step in the regulation of cellular functions. We have analysed the effect of 8-bromocyclic AMP on Ca2+ channels in cultured cardiac cells by the patch-clamp method and report here that there was a large increase in the probability of opening of the channels. On the basis of a recently proposed kinetic reaction scheme we suggest that cyclic AMP-dependent phosphorylation of Ca2+ channels primarily promotes the forward rate constants which lead to the open state of a Ca2+ channel during depolarization.

Sodium channels in cultured cardiac cells.

Primary cardiac cell cultures were prepared from the hearts of neonatal rats. The patch-clamp method (Hamill, Marty, Neher, Sakmann & Sigworth, 1981) was applied for studying whole-cell Na+ currents and single-channel Na+ currents, respectively. Whole-cell recordings yielded voltage- and time-dependent Na+ currents which could be blocked by tetrodotoxin.

Ca2+ -activated K+ conductance in internally perfused snail neurons is enhanced by protein phosphorylation.

Depolarizing voltage steps induce inward and outward currents in voltage-clamped, internally perfused neurons from the snail Helix roseneri. Addition of the catalytic subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (ATP:protein phosphotransferase, EC 2.7.