1-Methyltryptophan treatment ameliorates high-fat diet-induced depression in mice through reversing changes in perineuronal nets.

Depression and obesity are prevalent disorders with significant public health implications. In this study, we used a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mouse model to investigate the mechanism underlying HFD-induced depression-like behaviors. HFD-induced obese mice exhibited depression-like behaviors and a reduction in hippocampus volume, which were reversed by treatment with an indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) inhibitor 1-methyltryptophan (1-MT).

Microglia activation in the hippocampus mediates retinal degeneration-induced depressive-like behaviors via the NLRP3/IL-1β pathway.

Epidemiological studies have shown that patients with glaucoma are more prone to depression, but the mechanism of comorbid depression in patients with glaucoma remains unknown. Excessive neuroinflammation has been shown to participate in glaucoma-induced retinal degeneration and hippocampal neural apoptosis in depression. However, little research has been conducted to determine whether neuroinflammation contributes to glaucoma-induced depression.

Direct conversion of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells into retinal pigment epithelial cells for treatment of retinal degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major vision-threatening disease. Although mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exhibit beneficial neural protective effects, their limited differentiation capacity in vivo attenuates their therapeutic function. Therefore, the differentiation of MSCs into retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells in vitro and their subsequent transplantation into the subretinal space is expected to improve the outcome of cell therapy.

Catalpol ameliorates depressive-like behaviors in CUMS mice via oxidative stress-mediated NLRP3 inflammasome and neuroinflammation.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether catalpol exhibited neuroprotective effects in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) mice through oxidative stress-mediated nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat, and pyrin-domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome and neuroinflammation. Deficits in behavioral tests, including open field test (OFT), forced swim test (FST), and elevated plus-maze test (EPM), were ameliorated following catalpol administration. To study the potential mechanism, western blots, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis and immunofluorescence imaging were performed on the hippocampus samples.

Regulation of indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase in hippocampal microglia by NLRP3 inflammasome in lipopolysaccharide-induced depressive-like behaviors.

In the brain, NLRP3 (Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat, and pyrin-domain-containing 3) inflammasome is mainly expressed in microglia located in the hippocampus and other mood-regulated regions, which are particularly susceptible to stress. The activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and production of the activation products may contribute to the development of depressive disorder and memory deficits. Indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO) is a key factor mediating inflammation and major depressive disorder (MDD).

Melanopsin-expressing retinal ganglion cells are relatively resistant to excitotoxicity induced by N-methyl-d-aspartate.

Excitotoxicity plays an important role in neuronal loss in glaucoma. Previous studies indicate melanopsin-expressing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) are more injury-resistant. However, whether melanopsin-expressing ipRGCs are resistant to N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) induced excitotoxicity is not well understood.

Estrogen therapy to treat retinopathy in newborn mice.

The aim of the present study was to treat retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) with estrogen (E) so as to elucidate the role of E in the pathogenesis of ROP. A total of 120 postnatal 7-day-old (P7) C57BL/6J mice were selected and raised in a high-oxygen environment (75% oxygen) for 5 days, followed by 5 days in normal room air. Different doses of E or normal saline (NS) were injected intraperitoneally during different time-periods, and the mice were divided into 14 groups according dose of E injection (0.

CCR7 enhances TGF-β1-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition and is associated with lymph node metastasis and poor overall survival in gastric cancer.

CCR7 is a G protein-coupled chemokine receptor. In this study, we used immunohistochemistry with tissue microarrays to measure CCR7 expression in tumor specimens from 122 patients with gastric cancer. We show that CCR7 expression is associated with lymph node metastasis (P = 0.

New medium used in the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells to retinal cells is comparable to fetal human eye tissue.

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have the potential to differentiate along the retinal lineage. However, most induction systems are dependent on multiple small molecular compounds such as Dkk-1, Lefty-A, and retinoic acid. In the present study, we efficiently differentiated hPSCs into retinal cells using a retinal differentiation medium (RDM) without the use of small molecular compounds.

Developmental origin of the posterior pigmented epithelium of iris.

Iris epithelium is a double-layered pigmented cuboidal epithelium. According to the current model, the neural retina and the posterior iris pigment epithelium (IPE) are derived from the inner wall of the optic cup, while the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and the anterior IPE are derived from the outer wall of the optic cup during development. Our current study shows evidence, contradicting this model of fetal iris development.

TGF-β1-induced expression of Id-1 is associated with tumor progression in gastric cancer.

Transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and inhibitor of differentiation/DNA-binding 1 (Id-1) have been shown to be associated with aggressive metastatic behavior of cancer cells in many malignant tumors. However, their role in gastric cancer (GC) has not been established. In this study, we investigated the relationship between expression of Id-1 and TGF-β1 in GC as well as their association with GC progression.

CCR7 expression and intratumoral FOXP3+ regulatory T cells are correlated with overall survival and lymph node metastasis in gastric cancer.

The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic value of chemokine receptor CCR7 expression and intratumoral FOXP3(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) in gastric cancer. CCR7(+) tumor cells and FOXP3(+) Tregs were assessed by immunohistochemistry in tissue microarrays containing gastric cancer from 133 patients. Prognostic effects of low or high CCR7 and FOXP3 expression were evaluated by Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis, as well as the correlation between CCR7 positive score and intratumoral FOXP3(+) cell number in a longitudinal assessment.

Dizocilpine reduces head diameter of dendritic spines in the hippocampus of adolescent rats.

Cognitive deficits are the core symptoms of schizophrenia. Spine deficits have been found in hippocampus of schizophrenia patients, and were associated with cognitive impairments. N-methyl-D-asparate receptors (NMDARs) had been known to play a critical role in synaptic pruning and stabilization during adolescence.

The new targets of ouabain in retinal interneurons of Sprague-Dawley rats.

Ouabain is both a cardiac glycoside used in therapy of congestive heart failure and an endogenous steroid hormone. It specifically binds to Na(+), K(+)-ATPase (NKA) and blocks its activity. Overdose of ouabain induces retinal damage.

Preferential regeneration of photoreceptor from Müller glia after retinal degeneration in adult rat.

To determine whether photoreceptor degeneration can stimulate Müller glia to transdifferentiate into neurons in adult mammalian retina, N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) was injected to induce complete loss of photoreceptors. Following MNU administration, Müller glia underwent reactive gliosis characterized by up-regulation of glial fibrillar acidic protein and nestin, and initiated proliferation through the cyclin D1 and D3 related pathways. Some Müller glia-derived cells were induced to express rhodopsin exclusively.

Sonic hedgehog promotes stem-cell potential of Müller glia in the mammalian retina.

Müller glia have been demonstrated to display stem-cell properties after retinal damage. Here, we report this potential can be regulated by Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling. Shh can stimulate proliferation of Müller glia through its receptor and target gene expressed on them, furthermore, Shh-treated Müller glia are induced to dedifferentiate by expressing progenitor-specific markers, and then adopt cell fate of rod photoreceptor.

[Role of different oxygen concentration and different period of oxygen exposure in pathogenesis of retinopathy in neonatal mice].

Objective: To evaluate the role of different oxygen concentration (FiO2) and different period of oxygen exposure on oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR) in neonatal mice and to provide evidences for proper clinical oxygen therapy.

Methods: Two hundred and four 7-day-old (P7) C57BL/6J mice were exposed to different FiO2 30%, 50% and 75% for 5, 7 and 9 days. The mice were divided into eight groups: groups 1 - 3 (n = 24 in each) were exposed to 30% oxygen for 5, 7 and 9 days, respectively; groups 4 - 6 (n = 24 in each) were exposed to 50% oxygen for 5, 7 and 9 days, respectively; group 7 (n = 30) was exposed to 75% hyperoxia for 5 days; group 8 (n = 30) was exposed to room air.