Novel Uveal Melanoma Patient-Derived Organoid Models Recapitulate Human Disease to Support Translational Research.

Purpose: A lack of representative human disease models has limited the translation of new and more effective treatments in uveal melanoma (UM), the most common primary adult intraocular malignancy. To fill this critical need, we developed and characterized a multicenter biobank of UM patient-derived organoids (PDOs).

Methods: UM patients requiring enucleation from 2019 to 2024 donated tumor tissue for PDO generation.

Robotic Ultrasound and Novel Collagen Analyses for Polycystic Kidney Disease Research Using Mice.

Key Points: Robotic ultrasound performed favorably compared with magnetic resonance imaging for evaluating total kidney volume. Collagen evaluation by two novel methods of picrosirius red imaging were more informative than the standard method by brightfield imaging. Findings can improve research by increasing speed and access to total kidney volume determination and sensitivity of collagen assessment.

Utility of new image-derived biomarkers for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease prognosis using automated instance cyst segmentation.

New image-derived biomarkers for patients affected by autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease are needed to improve current clinical management. The measurement of total kidney volume (TKV) provides critical information for clinicians to drive care decisions. However, patients with similar TKV may present with very different phenotypes, often requiring subjective decisions based on other factors (e.

Sequence analysis and function of mosquito aeCCC2 and Drosophila Ncc83 orthologs.

Dipteran insects have genes that code for two different Na-dependent cation-chloride cotransporter (CCC) paralogs. Aedes aegypti aeNKCC1 is an ortholog of Drosophila melanogaster Ncc69, a bumetanide-sensitive Na-K-2Cl cotransporter (NKCC). Aedes aegypti aeCCC2 and aeCCC3 are orthologs of Drosophila Ncc83.

Use of 3D Robotic Ultrasound for In Vivo Analysis of Mouse Kidneys.

Common modalities for in vivo imaging of rodents include positron emission tomography (PET), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound (US). Each method has limitations and advantages, including availability, ease of use, cost, size, and the use of ionizing radiation or magnetic fields. This protocol describes the use of 3D robotic US for in vivo imaging of rodent kidneys and heart, subsequent data analysis, and possible research applications.

Assessing Polycystic Kidney Disease in Rodents: Comparison of Robotic 3D Ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is an inherited disorder characterized by renal cyst formation and enlargement of the kidney. PKD severity can be staged noninvasively by measuring total kidney volume (TKV), a promising biomarker that has recently received regulatory qualification. In preclinical mouse models, where the disease is studied and potential therapeutics are evaluated, the most popular noninvasive method of measuring TKV is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Expression of the regulated isoform of the electrogenic Na/HCO cotransporter, NBCe1, is enriched in pacemaker interstitial cells of Cajal.

Interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs) generate electrical slow waves, which are required for normal gastrointestinal motility. The mechanisms for generation of normal pacemaking are not fully understood. Normal gastrointestinal contractility and electrical slow-wave activity depend on the presence of extracellular HCO.

Specialized stellate cells offer a privileged route for rapid water flux in renal tubule.

Insects are highly successful, in part through an excellent ability to osmoregulate. The renal (Malpighian) tubules can secrete fluid faster on a per-cell basis than any other epithelium, but the route for these remarkable water fluxes has not been established. In , we show that 4 genes of the major intrinsic protein family are expressed at a very high level in the fly renal tissue: the aquaporins (AQPs) and and the aquaglyceroporins and As predicted from their structure, and by their transport function by expressing these proteins in oocytes, Drip, Prip, and Eglp2 show significant and specific water permeability, whereas Eglp2 and Eglp4 show very high permeability to glycerol and urea.

Cloning, function, and localization of human, canine, and Drosophila ZIP10 (SLC39A10), a Zn transporter.

Zinc (Zn) is the second most abundant trace element, but is considered a micronutrient, as it is a cofactor for many enzymes and transcription factors. Whereas Zn deficiency can cause cognitive immune or metabolic dysfunction and infertility, excess Zn is nephrotoxic. As for other ions and solutes, Zn is moved into and out of cells by specific membrane transporters: ZnT, Zip, and NRAMP/DMT proteins.