Neuronal regeneration in the area postrema of adult mouse medulla oblongata following glutamate-induced neuronal elimination.

Neural stem cells and/or progenitor cells (NSCs/NPCs) in the subventricular and subgranular zones of the adult mammal forebrain generate new neurons and are involved in partial repair after injury. Recently, NSCs/NPCs were identified in the area postrema (AP) of the medulla oblongata of the hindbrain. In this study, we used the properties of fenestrate capillaries to observe specific neuronal elimination in the AP of adult mice and investigated subsequent neuronal regeneration by neurogenesis.

Effects of peripheral administration of lipopolysaccharide on chronic sickness responses in TRPM8-deficient mice.

Transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8) is a cold-sensing thermoreceptor cation channel; however, its functional role in endotoxin-induced neuroinflammation remains unclear. In the present study, we investigated chronic sickness responses in TRPM8 knockout (KO) mice during lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sepsis. The intraperitoneal administration of 5 mg/kg LPS generated longer-lasting hypothermia in TRPM8 KO mice than in wild-type (WT) mice.

Transcytosis of tanycytes in the circumventricular organs of adult mouse brain.

Tanycytes are specialized ependymal cells lining the ventricular spaces of the adult brain and thereby provide an interface between the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and brain parenchyma. They act as energy homeostasis, neuroendocrine regulation, and CSF-brain barrier; however, their functional significance in CSF-brain communication currently remains unknown. In the present study, we investigated the presence of tanycytic transcytosis using fluorescent tracers; a GM1 ligand, cholera toxin B (CTB), and a mannose-6-phosphate/insulin-like growth factor-Ⅱ receptor ligand, wheat germ agglutinin (WGA).