Publications by authors named "L M Kitzes"
Purpose: To characterize a recently developed model, the retinal degenerate immunodeficient S334ter line-3 rat (SD-Foxn1 Tg(S334ter)3Lav) (RD nude rat), and to test whether transplanted rat fetal retinal sheets can elicit lost responses to light.
Methods: National Institutes of Health nude rats (SD-Foxn1 Tg) with normal retina were compared to RD nude rats with and without transplant for morphology and visual function. Retinal sheets from transgenic rats expressing human placental alkaline phosphatase (hPAP) were transplanted into the subretinal space of RD nude rats between postnatal day (P) 26 and P38.
The aim of this study was to compare glial-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) treatment with brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) treatment of retinal transplants on restoration of visual responses in the superior colliculus (SC) of the S334ter line 3 rat model of rapid retinal degeneration (RD). RD rats (age 4-6 weeks) received subretinal transplants of intact sheets of fetal retina expressing the marker human placental alkaline phosphatase (hPAP). Experimental groups included: (1) untreated retinal sheet transplants, (2) GDNF-treated transplants, (3) BDNF-treated transplants, (4) none surgical, age-matched RD rats, (5) sham surgery RD controls, (6) progenitor cortex transplant RD controls, and (7) normal pigmented rat controls.
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- - Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS) is a birth defect disorder often caused by mutations in the NIPBL gene, affecting chromosome cohesion and gene expression.
- - In a study with mice carrying a mutation in the Nipbl gene, researchers observed several CdLS-related defects, including growth delays, facial abnormalities, and high early mortality rates.
- - The research indicates that even a slight decrease in NIPBL levels (around 30%) leads to significant gene expression changes, particularly affecting genes related to body fat and potentially contributing to the symptoms of CdLS.
In the natural acoustic environment sounds frequently arrive at the two ears in quick succession. The responses of a cortical neuron to acoustic stimuli can be dramatically altered, usually suppressed, by a preceding sound. The purpose of this study was to determine if the binaural interaction evoked by a preceding sound is involved in subsequent suppressive interactions observed in auditory cortex neurons.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe overall purpose of this study is to examine the behavior of primary auditory cortex (AI) units in the three-dimensional stimulus space that resembles normal listening conditions, viz., level at the two ears and frequency. A binaural-level response area (LRA) is the response to a matrix of contralateral and ipsilateral stimuli presented at a single frequency.
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