Synaptic inputs to displaced intrinsically-photosensitive ganglion cells in macaque retina.

Ganglion cells are the projection neurons of the retina. Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) express the photopigment melanopsin and also receive input from rods and cones via bipolar cells and amacrine cells. In primates, multiple types of ipRGCs have been identified.

Phasic signaling in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis during fear learning predicts within- and across-session cued fear expression.

While results from many past studies have implicated the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) in mediating the expression of sustained negative affect, recent studies have highlighted a more complex role for BNST that includes aspects of fear learning in addition to defensive responding. As BNST is thought to encode ambiguous or unpredictable threat, it seems plausible that it may be involved in encoding early cued fear learning, especially immediately following a first tone-shock pairing when the conditioned stimulus-unconditioned stimulus (CS-US) contingency is not fully apparent. To investigate this, we conducted in vivo electrophysiological recording studies to examine neural dynamics of BNST units during cued fear acquisition and recall.

Effect of hillslope aspect on landform characteristics and erosion rates.

Understanding the effect of aspect on landform characteristics and erosion rates is an important prerequisite for soil and water conservation in hilly areas. In a cultivated area of the Chinese Loess Plateau, hillslope length, gradient and aspect (east, west, south, and north) were measured on two typical Mao (round loess hill), and net soil loss and location (upper, middle and lower positions) were studied using the Cs tracing loss ratio. Hillslope length on different aspects was in the order, north > west > east >south, but gradient changes were inconsistent and more complicated.

Bipolar versus monopolar transurethral resection of the prostate for benign prostatic hyperplasia: safe in patients with high surgical risk.

Here, we compared the effects of bipolar and monopolar transurethral resection of the prostate (B-TURP, M-TURP) for treating elderly patients (≥75 years) with benign prostatic hyperplasia(BPH) who had internal comorbidities. Eligible BPH patients were aged ≥75 years and had at least one internal comorbidity. In this open-label, prospective trial, patients were assigned to B-TURP (n = 75) and M-TURP (n = 88) groups.

Reduced serum levels of vasostatin-2, an anti-inflammatory peptide derived from chromogranin A, are associated with the presence and severity of coronary artery disease.

Aims: We here investigated the endothelial effects of the chromogranin A-derived peptide vasostatin-2 and its relation to coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods And Results: We assessed the impact of recombinant vasostatin-1 and vasostatin-2 on tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα)-, angiotensin II-, and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL)-induced expression of adhesion molecules in human arterial endothelial cells. Vasostatin-1 and vasostatin-2 levels were examined in coronary endarterectomy specimens (n= 23), atherosclerotic aortas (n= 16), non-significant-atherosclerotic internal mammary arteries (n= 30), and non-atherosclerotic aortas (n= 10), as well as in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from severe CAD patients (n= 50) and healthy volunteers (n= 21).

Using 137Cs to quantify the sediment delivery ratio in a small watershed.

Understanding the sediment delivery ratio (SDR) is important in controlling sediments for the sustainable development of natural resources and in the design of the construction such as dams and reservoirs. The purpose of this investigation is to determine the SDR by the (137)Cs tracing method in a small watershed in the Sichuan Hilly Basin of China. In the study watershed, different land plots are divided according to the land use type, and 97 sampling sites were selected from these plots.

Poly[[aqua(mu(7)-ethylenediaminetetraacetato)dicadmium(II)] monohydrate].

The title compound, {[Cd(2)(C(10)H(12)N(2)O(8))(H(2)O)].H(2)O}(n), consists of two crystallographically independent Cd(II) cations, one ethylenediaminetetraacetate (edta) tetraanion, one coordinated water molecule and one solvent water molecule. The coordination of one of the Cd atoms, Cd1, is composed of five O atoms and two N atoms from two tetraanionic edta ligands in a distorted pentagonal-bipyramidal coordination geometry.

Three-dimensional microchannels in biodegradable polymeric films for control orientation and phenotype of vascular smooth muscle cells.

The poor mechanical strength and vasoactivity of current small-diameter tissue engineered blood vessels (TEBVs) remain unsolved problems. Given the plasticity of smooth muscle cells (SMCs), 1 of the main limitations of current scaffolding techniques is the difficulty in controlling SMC phenotype shifts in vitro. A synthetic phenotype allows the cells to rapidly proliferate and produce extracellular matrix (ECM), whereas a shift to contractile phenotype with organized ECM ultimately provides a functional blood vessel.

Tannic acid, a potent inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase.

Increasing evidence supports the hypothesis that tannic acid, a plant polyphenol, exerts anticarcinogenic activity in chemically induced cancers. In the present study, tannic acid was found to strongly inhibit tyrosine kinase activity of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFr) in vitro (IC50 = 323 nM). In contrast, the inhibition by tannic acid of p60(c-src) tyrosine kinase (IC50 = 14 microM) and insulin receptor tyrosine kinase (IC50 = 5 microM) was much weaker.