PDE4D regulates Spine Plasticity and Memory in the Retrosplenial Cortex.

The retrosplenial cortex (RSC) plays a critical role in episodic memory, but the molecular mechanisms governing plasticity in this structure are poorly understood. Diverse studies have demonstrated a role for RSC in acquisition, early consolidation and retrieval similar to the hippocampus (HC), as well as in systems consolidation similar to the anterior cingulate cortex. Here, we asked whether established molecular and structural substrates of memory consolidation in the HC also engage in RSC shortly after learning.

Everyday memory: towards a translationally effective method of modelling the encoding, forgetting and enhancement of memory.

The testing of cognitive enhancers could benefit from the development of novel behavioural tasks that display better translational relevance for daily memory and permit the examination of potential targets in a within-subjects manner with less variability. We here outline an optimized spatial 'everyday memory' task. We calibrate it systematically by interrogating certain well-established determinants of memory and consider its potential for revealing novel features of encoding-related gene activation.

Compartmentalized self-replication under fast PCR cycling conditions yields Taq DNA polymerase mutants with increased DNA-binding affinity and blood resistance.

Faster-cycling PCR formulations, protocols, and instruments have been developed to address the need for increased throughput and shorter turn-around times for PCR-based assays. Although run times can be cut by up to 50%, shorter cycle times have been correlated with lower detection sensitivity and increased variability. To address these concerns, we applied Compartmentalized Self Replication (CSR) to evolve faster-cycling mutants of Taq DNA polymerase.

Developmental and extracellular matrix-remodeling processes in rosiglitazone-exposed neonatal rat cardiomyocytes.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of rosiglitazone (Avandia(®)) on gene expression in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes.

Materials & Methods: Myocytes were exposed to rosiglitazone ex vivo. The two factors examined in the experiment were drug exposure (rosiglitazone and dimethyl sulfoxide vs dimethyl sulfoxide), and length of exposure to drug (½ h, 1 h, 2 h, 4 h, 6 h, 8 h, 12 h, 18 h, 24 h, 36 h and 48 h).

Analysis of endocrine disruption in Southern California coastal fish using an aquatic multispecies microarray.

Background: Endocrine disruptors include plasticizers, pesticides, detergents, and pharmaceuticals. Turbot and other flatfish are used to characterize the presence of chemicals in the marine environment. Unfortunately, there are relatively few genes of turbot and other flatfish in GenBank, which limits the use of molecular tools such as microarrays and quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to study disruption of endocrine responses in sentinel fish captured by regulatory agencies.

Development and application of a microarray meter tool to optimize microarray experiments.

Background: Successful microarray experimentation requires a complex interplay between the slide chemistry, the printing pins, the nucleic acid probes and targets, and the hybridization milieu. Optimization of these parameters and a careful evaluation of emerging slide chemistries are a prerequisite to any large scale array fabrication effort. We have developed a 'microarray meter' tool which assesses the inherent variations associated with microarray measurement prior to embarking on large scale projects.