Mechanical Strain of Corneal Epithelium Influences the Expression of Genes Implicated in Keratoconus.

Purpose: Although mechanical injury to the cornea (e.g. chronic eye rubbing) is a known risk factor for keratoconus progression, how it contributes to loss of corneal integrity is not known.

Human RAMP1 overexpressing mice are resistant to migraine therapies for motion sensitivity.

Both enhanced motion-induced nausea and increased static imbalance are observed symptoms in migraine and especially vestibular migraine (VM). Motion-induced nausea and static imbalance were investigated in a mouse model, nestin/hRAMP1, expressing elevated levels of human RAMP1 which enhances CGRP signaling in the nervous system, and compared to non-affected littermate controls. Behavioral surrogates such as the motion-induced thermoregulation and postural sway center of pressure (CoP) assays were used to assess motion sensitivity.

Quantitative Optical Redox Imaging of Melanoma Xenografts with Different Metastatic Potentials.

To develop imaging biomarkers for tumors aggressiveness, our previous optical redox imaging (ORI) studies of the reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and oxidized flavoproteins (Fp, containing flavin adenine dinucleotide, i.e., FAD) in tumor xenografts of human melanoma associated the high optical redox ratio (ORR = Fp/(Fp + NADH)) and its heterogeneity to the high invasive/metastatic potential, without having reported quantitative results for NADH and Fp.

An extremely electron poor Au(III) trication bearing acetonitrile ligands.

The synthesis and structural characterization of an electron poor Au(III) trication bearing 2 imidazole and 2 acetonitrile ligands is described. The new complex is capable of aryl C-H metalation with the formation of a monomesitylene complex and also demonstrated to be highly oxidizing in the rapid room temperature conversion of cyclohexene to benzene.