Fasting induced cytoplasmic Fto expression in some neurons of rat hypothalamus.

Fat mass and obesity associated protein (Fto) is a nucleic acid demethylase, with a preference for thymine or uracil, according to the recent structural data. This fact suggests that methylated single-stranded RNA, rather than DNA, may be the primary Fto substrate. Fto is abundantly expressed in all hypothalamic sites governing feeding behavior.

The effect of vasopressin 1b receptor (V1bR) blockade on HPA axis activity in rats exposed to acute heat stress.

Thermal stressors such as low and high ambient temperature elicit an abundance of neuroendocrine responses including activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and arginine vasopressin (AVP) release. The exposure to heat is a particularly interesting model for studying AVP action because this kind of stressor represents not only an unpleasant experience but also a threat to osmotic homeostasis. As AVP has long been recognized as a hormone involved in the modulation of HPA axis activity, the aim of this study was to elucidate the role of AVP in acutely heat-exposed rats using Nelivaptan, a selective vasopressin 1b receptor (V1bR) antagonist.

Time-dependent effects of starvation on serum, pituitary and hypothalamic leptin levels in rats.

Leptin is produced by white adipose tissue and other cell types and is involved in both short- and long-term appetite control. Here we studied effects of starvation on serum, pituitary and hypothalamic levels of leptin during 72 h period. Each of the starved groups was sacrificed simultaneously with the group of ad libitum fed animals.

Ivan Djaja (Jean Giaja) and the Belgrade School of Physiology.

The founder of physiology studies in the Balkans and the pioneer of research on hypothermia, Ivan Djaja (Jean Giaja) was born 1884 in L'Havre. Giaja gained his PhD at the Sorbonne in 1909. In 1910 he established the first Chair of Physiology in the Balkans and organized the first Serbian Institute for Physiology at the School of Philosophy of the University of Belgrade.

Cholecystokinin-producing (I) cells of intestinal mucosa in dexamethasone-treated rats.

The aim of this study was to investigate the morphological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural changes of cholecystokinin-producing (I) cells of gastrointestinal mucosa in dexamethasone-treated rats (D). After 12-daily intraperitoneal administration of 2mg/kg dexamethasone, rats developed diabetes similar to human diabetes mellitus type 2. The mean diameter of the duodenum was significantly decreased due to significant reduction of volume fraction and profile area of lamina propria.