Opto-CLIP reveals dynamic FMRP regulation of mRNAs upon CA1 neuronal activation.

Neuronal diversity and function are intricately linked to the dynamic regulation of RNA metabolism, including splicing, localization, and translation. Electrophysiologic studies of synaptic plasticity, models for learning and memory, are disrupted in Fragile X Syndrome (FXS). FXS is characterized by the loss of FMRP, an RNA-binding protein (RBP) known to bind and suppress translation of specific neuronal RNAs.

Erratum: Publisher Correction: Short-term inhalation exposure to cigarette smoke induces oxidative stress and inflammation in lungs without systemic oxidative stress in mice.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s43188-023-00223-y.].

Short-term inhalation exposure to cigarette smoke induces oxidative stress and inflammation in lungs without systemic oxidative stress in mice.

Smoking is a well-established risk factor for various pathologies, including pulmonary diseases, cardiovascular disorders, and cancers. The toxic effects of cigarette smoke (CS) are mediated through multiple pathways and diverse mechanisms. A key pathogenic factor is oxidative stress, primarily induced by excessive formation of reactive oxygen species.

Fear conditioning and extinction distinctively alter bidirectional synaptic plasticity within the amygdala of an animal model of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Synaptic plasticity in the amygdala plays an essential role in the formation and inhibition of fear memory; however, this plasticity has mainly been studied in the lateral amygdala, making it largely uninvestigated in other subnuclei. Here, we investigated long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) to the medial division of the central amygdala (CEm) synapses of juvenile C57BL/6N (B6) and 129S1/SvImJ (S1) mice. We found that in naïve B6 and S1 mice, LTP was not induced at the BLA to CEm synapses, whereas fear conditioning lowered the threshold for LTP induction in these synapses of both B6 and S1 mice.

Understanding the habenula: A major node in circuits regulating emotion and motivation.

Over the last decade, the understanding of the habenula has rapidly advanced from being an understudied brain area with the Latin name 'habena" meaning "little rein", to being considered a "major rein" in the control of key monoaminergic brain centers. This ancient brain structure is a strategic node in the information flow from fronto-limbic brain areas to brainstem nuclei. As such, it plays a crucial role in regulating emotional, motivational, and cognitive behaviors and has been implicated in several neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression and addiction.

Local production of corticotropin-releasing hormone in prefrontal cortex modulates male-specific novelty exploration.

Neuromodulatory substances can be released from distal afferents for communication between brain structures or produced locally to modulate neighboring circuit elements. Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) from long-range neurons in the hypothalamus projecting to the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been shown to induce anxiety-like behaviors. However, the role of CRH produced in the mPFC has not been investigated.

Echinostoma miyagawai Ishii, 1932 (Echinostomatidae) from Ducks in Aceh Province, Indonesia with Special Reference to Its Synonymy with Echinostoma robustum Yamaguti, 1935.

Adult echinostomes having 37 collar spines collected from the intestine of Pitalah ducks in Aceh Province, Indonesia in 2018 were morphologically and molecularly determined to be Echinostoma miyagawai Ishii, 1932 (Digenea: Echinostomatidae). Among 20 ducks examined, 7 (35.0%) were found to be infected with this echinostome, and the number of flukes collected was 48 in total with average 6.

Myostatin A55T Genotype is Associated with Strength Recovery Following Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage.

Myostatin A55T genotype is one of the candidates showing inter-individual variation in skeletal muscle phenotypes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the myostatin A55T genotype on markers of muscle damage after eccentric exercise. Forty-eight young, healthy male college students (age = 24.

Inhalation exposure to cigarette smoke induces endothelial nitric oxide synthase uncoupling and enhances vascular collagen deposition in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Smoking is an acknowledged risk factor for vascular disorders, and vascular complication is a main outcome of diabetes. Hence, we investigated the impact of cigarette smoke on blood vessels in diabetes, postulating that smoking might aggravate diabetic vascular impairment. Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups: control, cigarette smoke-exposed, diabetic, and cigarette smoke-exposed diabetic groups.

Differential Alterations in Cortico-Amygdala Circuitry in Mice with Impaired Fear Extinction.

129S1/SvImJ (S1) mice exhibit selective impairments in fear extinction, though the mechanisms underlying these impairments are not fully understood. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) consists of the prelimbic cortex (PL) and infralimbic cortex (IL), which are known to be involved in fear conditioning and extinction, respectively. The PL and IL project to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) that also plays an important role in both mechanisms.

Gene-environment interaction counterbalances social impairment in mouse models of autism.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communication deficits and repetitive/restricted behaviors. Although gene-environment interactions may explain the heterogeneous etiology of ASD, it is still largely unknown how the gene-environment interaction affects behavioral symptoms and pathophysiology in ASD. To address these questions, we used Cntnap2 knockout mice (genetic factor, G) exposed to valproic acid during embryonic development (environmental factor, E) as a gene-environment interaction (G × E) model.

Comparative Toxicity Study of Docetaxel and Nanoxel, a Docetaxel-Loaded Micellar Formulation Using Cultured and Blood Cells.

Nanoxel-PM (Nanoxel) is a docetaxel-loaded methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol)--poly(D,L-lactide) (mPEG-PDLLA). This newly developed and marketed nanoformulation exhibits an improved pharmacokinetic profile, efficacy, and safety. Although the safety of Nanoxel to docetaxel as well as its bioequivalence must be clinically confirmed, all biological activities have not been examined in or studies.

Systemic Cellular Activation Mapping of an Extinction-Impaired Animal Model.

Fear extinction diminishes conditioned fear responses and impaired fear extinction has been reported to be related to anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We and others have reported that 129S1/SvImJ (129S1) strain of mice showed selective impairments in fear extinction following successful auditory or contextual fear conditioning. To investigate brain regions involved in the impaired fear extinction of 129S1 mice, we systemically analyzed c-Fos expression patterns before and after contextual fear conditioning and extinction.

Pharmacological modulation of AMPA receptor rescues social impairments in animal models of autism.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder, featuring social communication deficit and repetitive/restricted behaviors as common symptoms. Its prevalence has continuously increased, but, till now, there are no therapeutic approaches to relieve the core symptoms, particularly social deficit. In previous studies, abnormal function of the glutamatergic neural system has been proposed as a critical mediator and therapeutic target of ASD-associated symptoms.

Impaired Hippocampal Synaptic Plasticity and Enhanced Excitatory Transmission in a Novel Animal Model of Autism Spectrum Disorders with Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase Overexpression.

Recently, we have reported that animals with telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) overexpression exhibit reduced social interaction, decreased preference for novel social interaction and poor nest-building behaviors symptoms that mirror those observed in human autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Overexpression of TERT also alters the excitatory/inhibitory (E/I) ratio in the medial prefrontal cortex. However, the effects of TERT overexpression on hippocampal-dependent learning and synaptic efficacy have not been investigated.

Exposure to Stressors Facilitates Long-Term Synaptic Potentiation in the Lateral Habenula.

The lateral habenula (LHb) is a small part of the epithalamus that projects to monoamine centers in the brain. Previously, neurotransmission onto the LHb was shown to be abnormally potentiated in animal models of depression. However, synaptic plasticity in this brain area and the effect of stressor exposure on synaptic plasticity of the LHb have not been investigated.

Differential Effects between Cigarette Total Particulate Matter and Cigarette Smoke Extract on Blood and Blood Vessel.

The generation and collection of cigarette smoke (CS) is a prerequisite for any toxicology study on smoking, especially an CS exposure study. In this study, the effects on blood and vascular function were tested with two widely used CS preparations to compare the biological effects of CS with respect to the CS preparation used. CS was prepared in the form of total particulate matter (TPM), which is CS trapped in a Cambridge filter pad, and cigarette smoke extract (CSE), which is CS trapped in phosphate-buffered saline.

Hippocampus-dependent cognitive enhancement induced by systemic gintonin administration.

Background: A number of neurological and neurodegenerative diseases share impaired cognition as a common symptom. Therefore, the development of clinically applicable therapies to enhance cognition has yielded significant interest. Previously, we have shown that activation of lysophosphatidic acid receptors (LPARs) via gintonin application potentiates synaptic transmission by the blockade of K(+) channels in the mature hippocampus.