Investigating the effects of 7-ketocholesterol on retinal pigment epithelium bioenergetics.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is associated with formation of drusen, clusters of lipids, and oxidized lipid products under the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). 7-Ketocholesterol (7KC) is a form of oxidized cholesterol present in drusen and is hypothesized to play a role in AMD pathogenesis. The association of 7KC with cellular toxicity and inflammation, key elements of AMD pathology, has been demonstrated.

Investigating the Effect of Esterification on Retinal Pigment Epithelial Uptake Using Rhodamine B Derivatives.

Purpose: This study investigated the effects of esterification and increased lipophilicity on cellular penetration, accumulation and retention in ARPE-19-nic cells using ester functionalized rhodamine B dyes.

Methods: Rhodamine B was esterified to generate four dyes with increasing lipophilicity. Cellular uptake, retention and mitochondrial localization were investigated in vitro using ARPE-19-nic cells using direct intracellular and extracellular and mitochondrial fluorescence quantitation, confocal and high-resolution live cell imaging and co-localization with Mito-GFP.

Protection of human retinal pigment epithelial cells from oxidative damage using cysteine prodrugs.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the major causes of vision loss in the elderly in most developed countries. Among other causes, oxidative stress in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) has been hypothesized to be a major driving force of AMD pathology. Oxidative stress could be treated by antioxidant administration into the RPE cells.

A profile of circulating vascular progenitor cells in human neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

Background/objective: A subset of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) subjects appears to be refractory to the effects of anti-VEGF treatment and require frequent intravitreal injections. The vascular phenotype of the choroidal neovascular (CNV) lesions may contribute to the resistance. Animal studies of CNV lesions have shown that cells originating from bone marrow are capable of forming varying cell types in the lesions.

At-vessel mortality of skates (Rajidae) taken in coastal fisheries and evidence of longer-term survival.

Data on the vigour and at-vessel mortality (AVM) of 6798 skates (comprising Raja clavata n = 6295; R. brachyura n = 208; R. undulata n = 185, R.

Survival of European plaice discarded from coastal otter trawl fisheries in the English Channel.

Species that have a high likelihood of surviving the discarding process have become great concern since the European Union reformed the Common Fisheries Policy and enacted a landing obligation prohibiting the discarding any individuals of species under quota. Among species presenting an elevated survival potential, plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) is one of the most discarded in the coastal otter trawl fishery in the English Channel. The objective of this study is to provide the most reliable estimates of plaice survival after release in commercial conditions, and to identify the factors that influence survival rates.

Eph receptor interclass cooperation is required for the regulation of cell proliferation.

Cancer often arises by the constitutive activation of mitogenic pathways by mutations in stem cells. Eph receptors are unusual in that although they regulate the proliferation of stem/progenitor cells in many adult organs, they typically fail to transform cells. Multiple ephrins and Eph receptors are often co-expressed and are thought to be redundant, but we here describe an unexpected dichotomy with two homologous ligands, ephrin-B1 and ephrin-B2, regulating specifically migration or proliferation in the intestinal stem cell niche.

Method development to quantify Bv8 expression in circulating CD11b+ cells in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) exhibiting Anti-VEGF refractoriness.

A subset of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) subjects appears to be refractory to the effects of anti-VEGF treatment and require frequent intravitreal injections. Prokineticin-2 (Bv8) expression in CD11b(+) cells has been linked to anti-VEGF response. We have developed a reproducible method to quantify gene expression in circulating CD11b + cells.

Involving stakeholders in the commissioning and implementation of fishery science projects: experiences from the U.K. Fisheries Science Partnership.

Following from similar initiatives worldwide, the U.K.'s Fisheries Science Partnership (FSP) was established in 2003 to provide the fishing industry with opportunities to propose and participate in scientific studies in collaboration with fishery scientists.

Contact repulsion controls the dispersion and final distribution of Cajal-Retzius cells.

Cajal-Retzius (CR) cells play a fundamental role in the development of the mammalian cerebral cortex. They control the formation of cortical layers by regulating the migration of pyramidal cells through the release of Reelin. The function of CR cells critically depends on their regular distribution throughout the surface of the cortex, but little is known about the events controlling this phenomenon.

Reelin induces EphB activation.

The integration of newborn neurons into functional neuronal networks requires migration of cells to their final position in the developing brain, the growth and arborization of neuronal processes and the formation of synaptic contacts with other neurons. A central player among the signals that coordinate this complex sequence of differentiation events is the secreted glycoprotein Reelin, which also modulates synaptic plasticity, learning and memory formation in the adult brain. Binding of Reelin to ApoER2 and VLDL receptor, two members of the LDL receptor family, initiates a signaling cascade involving tyrosine phosphorylation of the intracellular cytoplasmic adaptor protein Disabled-1, which targets the neuronal cytoskeleton and ultimately controls the positioning of neurons throughout the developing brain.

Fishery discards: factors affecting their variability within a demersal trawl fishery.

Discards represent one of the most important issues within current commercial fishing. It occurs for a range of reasons and is influenced by an even more complex array of factors. We address this issue by examining the data collected within the Danish discard observer program and describe the factors that influence discarding within the Danish Kattegat demersal fleet over the period 1997 to 2008.

Species composition of skates (Rajidae) in commercial fisheries around the British Isles and their discarding patterns.

Recent regulations have required European nations to report commercial landings of Rajidae (skates) to species level since 2008. Morphological similarities between some species, variability in colouration and regional differences in common names may compromise the accuracy of some of these data. An increased proportion of rajid landings reported by the U.

EphB2 tyrosine kinase-dependent forward signaling in migration of neuronal progenitors that populate and form a distinct region of the dentate niche.

The dentate gyrus (DG) is one of two areas in the mature brain where stem cells reside to continuously produce new neurons throughout adulthood. While much research has focused on the DG for its roles in adult neurogenesis, little is known regarding how this key region of the brain initially develops to form its distinct architecture. We show here that the murine EphB2 receptor tyrosine kinase is critical for embryonic/postnatal development of a specific region of the DG known as the lateral suprapyramidal blade (LSB).

EphB signaling controls lineage plasticity of adult neural stem cell niche cells.

Stem cells remain in specialized niches over the lifespan of the organism in many organs to ensure tissue homeostasis and enable regeneration. How the niche is maintained is not understood, but is probably as important as intrinsic stem cell self-renewal capacity for tissue integrity. We here demonstrate a high degree of phenotypic plasticity of the two main niche cell types, ependymal cells and astrocytes, in the neurogenic lateral ventricle walls in the adult mouse brain.

Dissociation of EphB2 signaling pathways mediating progenitor cell proliferation and tumor suppression.

Signaling proteins driving the proliferation of stem and progenitor cells are often encoded by proto-oncogenes. EphB receptors represent a rare exception; they promote cell proliferation in the intestinal epithelium and function as tumor suppressors by controlling cell migration and inhibiting invasive growth. We show that cell migration and proliferation are controlled independently by the receptor EphB2.

Reducing discards of fish at sea: a review of European pilot projects.

This paper is about improving the viability of discard-reduction pilot projects. One way to address the problem of wasteful discarding of fish at sea is to initiate pilot projects to trial potential solutions, such as selective gear, area closures, discard bans and data enhancement, which could subsequently be adopted by the fishing industry, either voluntarily or through regulation. However, such pilot projects are often difficult both to set up and to sustain through to completion and implementation.

EphB receptors regulate stem/progenitor cell proliferation, migration, and polarity during hippocampal neurogenesis.

The adult brain maintains two regions of neurogenesis from which new neurons are born, migrate to their appropriate location, and become incorporated into the circuitry of the CNS. One of these, the subgranular zone of the hippocampal dentate gyrus, is of primary interest because of the role of this region in learning and memory. We show that mice lacking EphB1, and more profoundly EphB1 and EphB2, have significantly fewer neural progenitors in the hippocampus.