Bisphenol B Exposure Promotes Melanoma Progression via Dysregulation of Lipid Metabolism in C57BL/6J Mice.

The increasing incidence of cancer underscore the necessity of investigating contributors such as endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), including bisphenol A (BPA). Although BPA's risks are well-documented, comprehensive studies on its substitutes, such as bisphenol B (BPB), are limited. Dysregulated lipid metabolism is a hallmark of cancer progression.

Structural prediction of GluN3 NMDA receptors.

-methyl--aspartate (NMDA) receptors are heterotetrametric ion channels composed of two obligatory GluN1 subunits and two alternative GluN2 or GluN3 subunits, forming GluN1-N2, GluN1-N3, and GluN1-N2-N3 type of NMDA receptors. Extensive research has focused on the functional and structural properties of conventional GluN1-GluN2 NMDA receptors due to their early discovery and high expression levels. However, the knowledge of unconventional GluN1-N3 NMDA receptors remains limited.

Intergenerational metabolism-disrupting effects of maternal exposure to plasticizer acetyl tributyl citrate (ATBC).

Environmental chemicals and pollutants are increasingly recognized for their potential transgenerational effects. Acetyl tributyl citrate (ATBC), a widely used plasticizer substituting di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), was identified as an inducer of lipogenesis in male mice by our previous research. This study aimed to investigate the impact of ATBC exposure on the metabolic homeostasis of female mice and simultaneously evaluate its intergenerational effects.

Projection neurons from medial entorhinal cortex to basolateral amygdala are critical for the retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory.

The medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) is crucial for contextual memory, yet its role in context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory remains unclear. This study investigated the role of the MEC and its projection neurons from MEC layer 5 to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) (MEC neurons) in context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory. Results show that context activates the MEC in morphine withdrawal mice, and the inactivation of the MEC inhibits context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory.

Different projection neurons of basolateral amygdala participate in the retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory with diverse molecular pathways.

Context-induced retrieval of drug withdrawal memory is one of the important reasons for drug relapses. Previous studies have shown that different projection neurons in different brain regions or in the same brain region such as the basolateral amygdala (BLA) participate in context-induced retrieval of drug withdrawal memory. However, whether these different projection neurons participate in the retrieval of drug withdrawal memory with same or different molecular pathways remains a topic for research.

Brain glucose metabolism and dopamine transporter changes in rats with morphine-induced conditioned place preference.

Addiction to morphine is a chronic brain disease leading to compulsive abuse. Drug addiction animal models with and without conditioned place preference (CPP) training have been used to investigate cue-elicited drug craving. We used F-fluorodeoxyglucose ( F-FDG) and C-2-β-carbomethoxy-3-β-(4-fluorophenyl)tropane ( C-CFT) micro-PET/CT scans to examine the regional changes in brain glucose metabolism and dopamine transporter (DAT) availability to study their relationship underlying drug memory in morphine-treated rat models with and without CPP.

Nucleus accumbens circuit disinhibits lateral hypothalamus glutamatergic neurons contributing to morphine withdrawal memory in male mice.

The lateral hypothalamus (LH) is physiologically critical in brain functions. The LH also plays an important role in drug addiction. However, neural circuits underlying LH involvement of drug addiction remain obscure.

Alteration of neuroinflammation detected by F-GE180 PET imaging in place-conditioned rats with morphine withdrawal.

Background: Accumulating evidence indicates that neuroinflammation (NI) significantly contributes to drug addiction, but the conversion of NI after drug withdrawal is not clear. Here, we conducted F-flutriciclamide (GE180) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to investigate the conversion of NI during drug withdrawal and conditioning-induced aversion by measuring the change in microglial activation with F-GE180.

Methods: Twelve male adult Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to morphine withdrawal by the administration of naloxone, and six of them were used to model conditioned place aversion (CPA).

Activation of Rac1 Has an Opposing Effect on Induction and Maintenance of Long-Term Potentiation in Hippocampus by Acting on Different Kinases.

Rac1 is a small GTPase of the Rho family. A previous study showed that the activation of Rac1 had an opposing effect on induction and maintenance of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus. However, the molecular mechanism underlying this opposing effect remains to be addressed.

Projection from the basolateral amygdala to the anterior cingulate cortex facilitates the consolidation of long-term withdrawal memory.

The process through which early memories are transferred to the cerebral cortex to form long-term memories is referred to as memory consolidation, and the basolateral amygdala (BLA) is an important brain region involved in this process. Although functional connections between the BLA and multiple brain regions are critical for the consolidation of withdrawal memory, whether the projection from the BLA to the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is involved in the formation or consolidation of withdrawal memory remains unclear. In this paper, we used a chemical genetic method to specifically label the BLA-ACC projection in a combined morphine withdrawal and conditioned place aversion (CPA) animal model.

A Conditioning-Strengthened Circuit From CA1 of Dorsal Hippocampus to Basolateral Amygdala Participates in Morphine-Withdrawal Memory Retrieval.

Conditioned context-induced retrieval of drug withdrawal memory contributes to drug relapse. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is an important brain region that is involved in conditioned context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory. However, the upstream pathways of the activation of the BLA by conditioned context remains to be studied.

Morphine selectively disinhibits glutamatergic input from mPFC onto dopamine neurons of VTA, inducing reward.

Ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine (DA) neurons presynaptic glutamate release plays a very important role in the mechanism of morphine. Previously, a study from our lab found that morphine disinhibited glutamatergic input onto the VTA-DA neurons, which was an important mechanism for the morphine-induced increase in the VTA-DA neuron firing and related behaviors (Chen et al., 2015).

Holocene ENSO variability in the South China Sea recorded by high-resolution oxygen isotope records from the shells of Tridacna spp.

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the principal climatic system in the modern Pacific Ocean, and it potentially influences the global climate. The South China Sea (SCS), in the western tropical Pacific, is significantly affected by ENSO activity. We have conducted a high-resolution oxygen isotope study of the shells of one modern and four fossil Tridacna from the Xisha Islands in the SCS.

Crucial role of feedback signals from prelimbic cortex to basolateral amygdala in the retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory.

An important reasons for drug relapse is the retrieval of drug withdrawal memory induced by conditioned context. Previous studies have suggested that the basolateral amygdala (BLA) plays an important role in conditioned context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory. However, the downstream neuronal circuits of the activation of the BLA in conditioned context-induced retrieval of morphine withdrawal memory remain unknown.

Key determinants for morphine withdrawal conditioned context-induced increase in Arc expression in anterior cingulate cortex and withdrawal memory retrieval.

Addiction memory is subjected to time-dependent shifts toward neocortex in remote period to promote long-term addiction memory storage, which plays an important role in drug relapse. However, how the activity and neuroplasticity of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) change after contextual morphine withdrawal conditioning and what factors determine this change remain to be determined. In this paper, using immunohistochemical and single-cell microinjection techniques, combining behavioral assay, we found that (1) contextual withdrawal conditioning increases the expression of c-Fos, but not Arc, in the ACC in morphine withdrawal mice; (2) at the first day after conditioning, conditioned context has no influence on the expression of c-Fos and Arc in the ACC in morphine withdrawal mice; (3) at the 14th day after conditioning, conditioned context increases the expression of both c-Fos and Arc in the ACC in morphine withdrawal mice; (4) the inhibition of dendritic spines of the ACC or projection neurons from the CA3 of the hippocampus to the ACC attenuates the conditioned context-induced increase of Arc expression in the ACC and abolishes the retrieval of withdrawal memory at the 14th day after conditioning.

[Troubleshooting of bioinequivalence of compound valsartan tablets].

The study aims to evaluate the bioequivalence of valsartan hydrochlorothiazide tablets, and to investigate the potential cause of bioinequivalence. This was a single-center study with an open, randomized double-way crossover design. Test and reference preparations containing 160 mg of valsartan and 25 mg of hydrochlorothiazide were given to 36 healthy male volunteers.

Preliminary evidence for a 1000-year-old tsunami in the South China Sea.

The risk of large, devastating tsunamis in the South China Sea and its surrounding coastal region is commonly underestimated or unrecognized due to the difficulty of differentiating tsunami from storm deposits. As a consequence, few convincing records have documented tsunami deposits in this region. Here we report preliminary evidence from Xisha Islands in the South China Sea for a large tsunami around AD 1024.