Different neurotoxicity and seeding activity between α-synuclein oligomers formed in plasma of patients with Parkinson's disease and multiple system atrophy.

Previous studies have shown that α-synuclein (α-Syn) aggregates derived from the brains of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and multiple system atrophy (MSA) exhibit different phosphorylation, cytotoxicity, and seeding activity. However, the mechanism underlying the differences remains poorly understood. Here, recombinant human α-Syn was incubated in the plasma of patients with PD and MSA, and the oligomers formed in the plasma (PD-O-α-Syn and MSA-O-α-Syn) were purified and analyzed for their phosphorylation, cytotoxicity and seeding activity.

AUV-Aided Optical-Acoustic Hybrid Data Collection Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning.

Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs)-assisted mobile data collection in underwater wireless sensor networks (UWSNs) has received significant attention because of their mobility and flexibility. To satisfy the increasing demand of diverse application requirements for underwater data collection, such as time-sensitive data freshness, emergency event security as well as energy efficiency, in this paper, we propose a novel multi-modal AUV-assisted data collection scheme which integrates both acoustic and optical technologies and takes advantage of their complementary strengths in terms of communication distance and data rate. In this scheme, we consider the age of information (AoI) of the data packet, node transmission energy as well as energy consumption of the AUV movement, and we make a trade-off between them to retrieve data in a timely and reliable manner.

Hypoxic stress accelerates the propagation of pathological alpha-synuclein and degeneration of dopaminergic neurons.

Aims: The etiology of Parkinson's disease (PD) is complex and the mechanism is unclear. It has become a top priority to find common factors that induce and affect PD pathology. We explored the key role of hypoxia in promoting the pathological propagation of α-synuclein (α-syn) and the progression of PD.

Increase in membrane surface expression and phosphorylation of TRPC3 related to olfactory dysfunction in α-synuclein transgenic mice.

Olfactory impairment is an initial non-motor symptom of Parkinson's disease that causes the deposition of aggregated α-synuclein (α-syn) in olfactory neurons. Transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) channels are a diverse group of non-selective Ca entry channels involved in the progression or pathogenesis of PD via Ca homeostatic regulation. However, the relationship between TRPC and α-syn pathology in an olfactory system remains unclear.

The Protective Effects of Mogroside V Against Neuronal Damages by Attenuating Mitochondrial Dysfunction via Upregulating Sirtuin3.

Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are thought to play a dominant role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). Mogroside V (MV), extracted from Siraitia grosvenorii, exhibits antioxidant-like activities. The aim of this study was to investigate the function of MV in neuroprotection in PD and to reveal its mechanism of action.

Involvement of Scratch2 in GalR1-mediated depression-like behaviors in the rat ventral periaqueductal gray.

Galanin receptor1 (GalR1) transcript levels are elevated in the rat ventral periaqueductal gray (vPAG) after chronic mild stress (CMS) and are related to depression-like behavior. To explore the mechanisms underlying the elevated GalR1 expression, we carried out molecular biological experiments in vitro and in animal behavioral experiments in vivo. It was found that a restricted upstream region of the gene, from -250 to -220, harbors an E-box and plays a negative role in the promoter activity.

Virus-Mediated Overexpression of ETS-1 in the Ventral Hippocampus Counteracts Depression-Like Behaviors in Rats.

ETS-1 is a transcription factor that is a member of the E26 transformation-specific (ETS) family. Galanin receptor 2 (GalR2), a subtype of receptors of the neuropeptide galanin, has been shown to have an antidepressant-like effect after activation in rodents. Our previous study has shown that overexpression of ETS-1 increases the expression of GalR2 in PC12 phaeochromocytoma cells.

Localization Based on MAP and PSO for Drifting-Restricted Underwater Acoustic Sensor Networks.

Localization is a critical issue for Underwater Acoustic Sensor Networks (UASNs). Existing localization algorithms mainly focus on localizing unknown nodes (location-unaware) by measuring their distances to beacon nodes (location-aware), whereas ignoring additional challenges posed by harsh underwater environments. Especially, underwater nodes move constantly with ocean currents and measurement noises vary with distances.

STVF: Spatial-Temporal Variational Filtering for Localization in Underwater Acoustic Sensor Networks.

Localization is one of the critical services in Underwater Acoustic Sensor Networks (UASNs). Due to harsh underwater environments, the nodes often move with currents continuously. Consequently, the acoustic signals usually propagate with varying speeds in non-straight lines and the noise levels change frequently with the motion of the nodes.

MicroRNA-15b-5p targets ERK1 to regulate proliferation and apoptosis in rat PC12 cells.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in multiple biological processes, and many miRNAs have been shown to regulate cell proliferation and apoptosis. In this study, we investigated the role of miR-15b-5p in cell proliferation and apoptosis in PC12 cells. We found that overexpression of miR-15b-5p could decrease cell proliferation and induce apoptosis and cytotoxic activities in PC12 cells.

Depression-like behavior in rat: Involvement of galanin receptor subtype 1 in the ventral periaqueductal gray.

The neuropeptide galanin coexists in rat brain with serotonin in the dorsal raphe nucleus and with noradrenaline in the locus coeruleus (LC), and it has been suggested to be involved in depression. We studied rats exposed to chronic mild stress (CMS), a rodent model of depression. As expected, these rats showed several endophenotypes relevant to depression-like behavior compared with controls.

Characterization of the Rat GAL2R Promoter: Positive Role of ETS-1 in Regulation of the Rat GAL2R Gene in PC12 Cells.

Galanin receptor 2 (GAL2R) is a G protein-coupled receptor for the neuropeptide galanin that regulates many important physiological functions and pathological processes. To investigate the molecular mechanism governing GAL2R gene transcription, the rat GAL2R promoter was isolated and analyzed. We found that the region from -320 to -300 of the GAL2R promoter contains two putative ETS-1 elements and plays an important role in regulating GAL2R promoter activity.

Altered expression of neuropeptide Y receptors caused by focal cortical dysplasia in human intractable epilepsy.

Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is a common cause of pharmacologically-intractable epilepsy, however, the precise mechanisms underlying the epileptogenicity of FCD remains to be determined. Neuropeptide Y (NPY), an endogenous anticonvulsant in the central nervous system, plays an important role in the regulation of neuronal excitability. Increased expression of NPY and its receptors has been identified in the hippocampus of patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy, presumed to act as an endogenous anticonvulsant mechanism.

Energy balanced strategies for maximizing the lifetime of sparsely deployed underwater acoustic sensor networks.

Underwater acoustic sensor networks (UWA-SNs) are envisioned to perform monitoring tasks over the large portion of the world covered by oceans. Due to economics and the large area of the ocean, UWA-SNs are mainly sparsely deployed networks nowadays. The limited battery resources is a big challenge for the deployment of such long-term sensor networks.