Hippocampus, time, and memory.

Five experiments were conducted to determine the effects of hippocampal damage on timing and the memory for temporal events. In Experiments 1-3, rats were trained to discriminate between auditory signals that differed in both duration (2 or 8 s) and rate (2 or 16 cycles/s). Half of the rats were trained to discriminate duration, and half were trained to discriminate rate.

Intracellular trafficking pathways involved in the gene transfer of nano-structured calcium phosphate-DNA particles.

Nano-structured calcium phosphate (NanoCaP) particles have been proven to be a powerful means of non-viral gene delivery. In order to better understand the mechanisms through which NanoCaPs-mediated mammalian cell transfection is achieved, we have sought to define the intracellular trafficking pathways involved in the cellular uptake and intracellular processing of these particles. Previous work has indicated that NanoCaP-DNA complexes are most likely internalized via endocytosis, however the subsequent pathways involved have not been determined.

Cell derived hierarchical assembly of a novel phosphophoryn-based biomaterial.

Phosphophoryn (PP) is an acidic phosphoprotein belonging to the small integrin-bindingligand N-linked glycoprotein (SIBLING) protein family. PP is highly phosphorylated with approximately 200 phosphates per molecule and has a high affinity for calcium. The aim of this manuscript is to demonstrate that PP has the ability to self-assemble when it is overexpressed in a mammalian cell in the presence of calcium.

Nanostructured calcium phosphates (NanoCaPs) for non-viral gene delivery: influence of the synthesis parameters on transfection efficiency.

Calcium phosphate (CaP) based approaches remain an attractive option for delivering plasmid DNA (pDNA) into cultured cells. However, despite their appeal, current synthesis methodologies typically yield lower, less consistent transfection efficiencies when compared to viral approaches. Therefore, we report here a novel method to consistently synthesize efficient, nano-sized, mono-dispersed CaP-pDNA particles; accomplished by optimizing both the stoichiometry (Ca/P ratio) of the CaP particles as well as the mode in which the calcium and phosphate precursor solutions are mixed.

Nanostructured calcium phosphates for biomedical applications: novel synthesis and characterization.

Materials play a key role in several biomedical applications, and it is imperative that both the materials and biological aspects are clearly understood for attaining a successful biological outcome. This paper illustrates our approach to implement calcium phosphates as gene delivery agents. Calcium phosphates (CaP) belong to the family of biocompatible apatites and there are several CaP phases, the most ubiquitous being hydroxyapatite (HAp, Ca(10)(PO(4))(6)(OH)(2).