Hybrid Offspring of C57BL/6J Mice Exhibit Improved Properties for Neurobehavioral Research.

C57BL/6 is the most commonly used mouse strain in neurobehavioral research, serving as a background for multiple transgenic lines. However, C57BL/6 exhibit behavioral and sensorimotor disadvantages that worsen with age. We bred FVB/NJ females and C57BL/6J males to generate first-generation hybrid offspring (FVB/NJ x C57BL/6J)F1.

Bidirectional Optogenetic Control of Inhibitory Neurons in Freely-Moving Mice.

Objective: Optogenetic manipulations of excitable cells enable activating or silencing specific types of neurons. By expressing two types of exogenous proteins, a single neuron can be depolarized using light of one wavelength and hyperpolarized with another. However, routing two distinct wavelengths into the same brain locality typically requires bulky optics that cannot be implanted on the head of a freely-moving animal.

The effect of regulating molecules on the structure of the PPAR-RXR complex.

The PPAR-RXR complex is one of the most significant and prevalent regulatory systems, controlling lipid metabolism by gene expression. Both proteins are members of the nuclear hormone receptor family, consisting of a ligand-binding domain (LBD), a hinge and a DNA binding domain (DBD). The two proteins form a heterodimer in the nucleus.

The Interaction of FABP with Kapα.

Gene-activating lipophilic compounds are carried into the nucleus when loaded on fatty-acid-binding proteins (FABP). Some of these proteins are recognized by the α-Karyopherin (Kapα) through its nuclear localization signal (NLS) consisting of three positive residues that are not in a continuous sequence. The Importin system can distinguish between FABP loaded with activating and non-activating compounds.