Effectiveness of group acceptance and commitment therapy in treating depression for acute stroke patients.

Objectives: To date, the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for acute stroke patients has not been well recognized. The study aimed to discover the effectiveness of group-based ACT in treating depression for acute stroke patients.

Methods: We conducted a randomized controlled trial with 140 acute stroke patients with depression.

In the human sperm nucleus, nucleosomes form spatially restricted domains consistent with programmed nucleosome positioning.

In human sperm, a fraction of its chromatin retains nucleosomes that are positioned on specific sequences containing genes and regulatory units essential for embryonic development. This nucleosome positioning (NP) feature provides an inherited epigenetic mark for sperm. However, it is not known whether there is a structural constraint for these nucleosomes and, if so, how they are localized in a three-dimensional (3D) context of the sperm nucleus.

Real-time observation of nucleoplasmin-mediated DNA decondensation and condensation reveals its specific functions as a chaperone.

Fertilization requires decondensation of promatine-condensed sperm chromatin, a dynamic process serving as an attractive system for the study of chromatin reprogramming. Nucleoplasmin is a key factor in regulating nucleosome assembly as a chaperone during fertilization process. However, knowledge on nucleoplasmin in chromatin formation remains elusive.

Assisted reproduction causes placental maldevelopment and dysfunction linked to reduced fetal weight in mice.

Compelling evidence indicates that stress in utero, as manifested by low birth weight (LBW), increases the risk of metabolic syndrome in adulthood. Singletons conceived by assisted reproductive technology (ART) display a significant increase in LBW risk and ART offspring have a different metabolic profile starting at birth. Here, used mouse as a model, we found that ART resulted in reduced fetal weight and placental overgrowth at embryonic day 18.

Epigenetic silencing of microRNA-149 in cancer-associated fibroblasts mediates prostaglandin E2/interleukin-6 signaling in the tumor microenvironment.

Tumor initiation and growth depend on its microenvironment in which cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in tumor stroma play an important role. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and interleukin (IL)-6 signal pathways are involved in the crosstalk between tumor and stromal cells. However, how PGE2-mediated signaling modulates this crosstalk remains unclear.

The Kunming mouse: as a model for age-related decline in female fertility in human.

To ascertain whether the Kunming (KM) mouse is an available model for age-related decline in female fertility in human or not, oocytes from young (6-8 weeks), middle-aged (9 months) and aged (12 months) female mice were compared with respect to number of oocytes, frequency of in-vitro maturation (IVM) and in-vitro fertilization (IVF), and meiotic chromosome segregation and alignment. The mean number of pups born per mouse decreased significantly from the young to the middle-aged and the aged mice. The mean number of ovarian follicles, ovarian germinal vesicle oocytes and ovulated MII oocytes decreased significantly with maternal age.

Effect of age, GV transfer and modified nucleocytoplasmic ratio on PKCα in mouse oocytes and early embryos.

Protein kinase C (PKC) is a family of Ser/Thr protein kinases that can be activated by Ca2+, phospholipid and diacylglycerol. There is evidence that PKC plays key roles in the meiotic maturation and activation of mammalian oocytes. The present study aimed to monitor the effect of age, germinal vesicle (GV) transfer and modified nucleoplasmic ratio on the subcellular distribution profile of PKCα, an important isozyme of PKC, in mouse oocytes undergoing meiotic maturation and following egg activation.

Modified agarose gel for high-performance Southern blotting of short DNA fragments.

Southern blotting is a common method used for the study of gene organization. Current methods of DNA transfer for Southern blotting, however, can be inefficient for high concentration agarose gels. Here, we report a method for high-performance Southern blotting of short DNA fragments such as nucleosomal DNAs by using a discontinuous agarose zone gel.

ERK binds, phosphorylates InsP3 type 1 receptor and regulates intracellular calcium dynamics in DT40 cells.

Modulation on the duration of intracellular Ca(2+) transients is essential for B-cell activation. We have previously shown that extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK) can phosphorylate inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor type 1 (IP(3)R1) at serine 436 and regulate its calcium channel activity. Here we investigate the potential physiological interaction between ERK and IP(3)R1 using chicken DT40 B-cell line in which different mutants are expressed.

Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor type 1 phosphorylation and regulation by extracellular signal-regulated kinase.

Type 1 inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP(3)R1) is a widely expressed intracellular calcium-release channel found in many cell types. The operation of IP(3)R1 is regulated through phosphorylation by multiple protein kinases. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) has been found involved in calcium signaling in distinct cell types, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear.

Expression of HSG is essential for mouse blastocyst formation.

It has been shown recently that hyperplasia suppressor gene (HSG) is a powerful regulator for cell proliferation and has a critical role in mitochondrial fusion in many cells. However, little is known about its expression, localization, and function during oocyte maturation and early embryogenesis. In this study, with indirect immunofluorescent staining and Western blotting, we found that HSG was expressed in mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryos which primarily exhibited a submembrane distribution pattern in the cytoplasm.

Strontium promotes calcium oscillations in mouse meiotic oocytes and early embryos through InsP3 receptors, and requires activation of phospholipase and the synergistic action of InsP3.

Background: Sr2+ is the most efficient agent for mouse oocyte activation and functions by inducing Ca2+ oscillations. However, its specific mechanism of action remains unknown. Here we investigated the specificity and possible mechanism of Sr2+-induced Ca2+ oscillations in mouse oocytes and early embryos.

Nucleocytoplasmic ratio of fully grown germinal vesicle oocytes is essential for mouse meiotic chromosome segregation and alignment, spindle shape and early embryonic development.

Background: This study examined the effect of nucleocytoplasmic ratio of fully grown germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes on meiotic chromosome segregation and alignment, spindle shape, Ca(2+) oscillations and capacity of early embryonic development in mouse.

Methods: GV oocytes with reduced volume (equal to 1/5 to 4/5 of an intact oocyte) were made by micromanipulation to remove different amounts of cytoplasm, and then matured and fertilized in vitro.

Results: When >1/2 of GV oocyte cytoplasm was removed, the time-course of GV breakdown (GVBD) was delayed and oocyte maturation rate decreased significantly.

Transfer of germinal vesicle to ooplasm of young mice could not rescue ageing-associated chromosome misalignment in meiosis of oocytes from aged mice.

Background: [corrected] Transferring a germinal vesicle (GV) from an aged woman's oocyte into ooplasm from a younger woman has been proposed as a possible way to overcome the problem of age-related decline in female fertility. Here we assessed this possibility by determining whether ooplasts derived from young mice could rescue ageing-associated chromosome misalignment in meiosis of oocytes from aged mice.

Methods: Three groups of reconstructed oocytes, young GV-young cytoplast (group YY), aged GV-young cytoplast (group AY), and young GV-aged cytoplast (group YA), were created by micromanipulation and electrofusion.

Mammalian freeze-dried sperm can maintain their calcium oscillation-inducing ability when microinjected into mouse eggs.

Mammalian freeze-dried sperm can maintain their genetic integrity and event support full development to term when microinjected into mature oocytes. However, it is unknown whether freeze-dried sperm can still maintain their calcium oscillation-inducing capability. Here, we microinjected mouse and bovine freeze-dried sperm into mouse MII oocytes and examined their calcium oscillation-inducing ability following intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).

Two types of new ferritin cDNA sequences from Xenopus laevis germinal vesicle oocytes.

Some of Xenopus ferritin cDNA family genes have already been sequenced. In this study, we report that two ferritin cDNA genes have been cloned from the Xenopus laevis germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes. The deduced proteins have different lengths with varied sequences when compared with the published Xenopus ferritins.