Will the white blood cells tell? A potential novel tool to assess broiler chicken welfare.

This study assessed qualitative and quantitative leukocyte evaluation as potential broiler chicken welfare indicators, contributing to the limited literature on white blood cell (WBC) morphology as a diagnostic tool for welfare. Broiler chicken welfare within four poultry houses (PH) 1 to 4, each on a different farm, was assessed using on-field indicators of affective states and health, and WBC morphology was examined. Affective states were evaluated using the Qualitative Behavior Assessment (QBA), with 25 behavioral expressions scored on a visual analogue scale (VAS) and grouped into two categories.

Phasic oxygen dynamics confounds fast choline-sensitive biosensor signals in the brain of behaving rodents.

Cholinergic fast time-scale modulation of cortical physiology is critical for cognition, but direct local measurement of neuromodulators in vivo is challenging. Choline oxidase (ChOx)-based electrochemical biosensors have been used to capture fast cholinergic signals in behaving animals. However, these transients might be biased by local field potential and O-evoked enzymatic responses.

Simultaneous measurement of cholinergic tone and neuronal network dynamics in vivo in the rat brain using a novel choline oxidase based electrochemical biosensor.

Acetylcholine (ACh) modulates neuronal network activities implicated in cognition, including theta and gamma oscillations but the mechanisms remain poorly understood. Joint measurements of cholinergic activity and neuronal network dynamics with high spatio-temporal resolution are critical to understand ACh neuromodulation. However, current electrochemical biosensors are not optimized to measure nanomolar cholinergic signals across small regions like hippocampal sub-layers.

Neurovascular coupling in hippocampus is mediated via diffusion by neuronal-derived nitric oxide.

The coupling between neuronal activity and cerebral blood flow (CBF) is essential for normal brain function. The mechanisms behind this neurovascular coupling process remain elusive, mainly because of difficulties in probing dynamically the functional and coordinated interaction between neurons and the vasculature in vivo. Direct and simultaneous measurements of nitric oxide (NO) dynamics and CBF changes in hippocampus in vivo support the notion that during glutamatergic activation nNOS-derived NO induces a time-, space-, and amplitude-coupled increase in the local CBF, later followed by a transient increase in local O2 tension.

Effect of autologous stem cells on regenerated bone during distraction osteogenesis by Ilizarov technique in the radius of dogs. Histomorphometric analysis.

Purpose: To investigate by histomorphometry the distraction osteogenesis by Ilizarov technique in dog radius with the use of autologous stem cells in regenerated bone.

Methods: Ten dogs (20 radiuses) underwent the osteotomy of 20% of extension of their radiuses, and osteogenic distraction using the Ilizarov technique after this procedure at rate of 1mm per day divided into 0.5mm every 12 hours.

Biomimetic sensor based on hemin/carbon nanotubes/chitosan modified microelectrode for nitric oxide measurement in the brain.

A novel biomimetic microsensor for measuring nitric oxide (NO) in the brain in vivo was developed. The sensor consists of hemin and functionalized multi-wall carbon nanotubes covalently attached to chitosan via the carbodiimide crosslinker EDC followed by chitosan electrodeposition on the surface of carbon fiber microelectrodes. Cyclic voltammetry supported direct electron transfer from the Fe(III)/Fe(II) couple of hemin to the carbon surface at -0.

Nitric oxide signaling in the brain: translation of dynamics into respiration control and neurovascular coupling.

The understanding of the unorthodox actions of neuronal-derived nitric oxide ((•)NO) in the brain has been constrained by uncertainties regarding its quantitative profile of change in time and space. As a diffusible intercellular messenger, conveying information associated with its concentration dynamics, both the synthesis via glutamate stimulus and inactivation pathways determine the profile of (•)NO concentration change. In vivo studies, encompassing the real-time measurement of (•)NO concentration dynamics have allowed us to gain quantitative insights into the mechanisms inherent to (•)NO-mediated signaling pathways.

Nitric oxide inactivation mechanisms in the brain: role in bioenergetics and neurodegeneration.

During the last decades nitric oxide ((•)NO) has emerged as a critical physiological signaling molecule in mammalian tissues, notably in the brain. (•)NO may modify the activity of regulatory proteins via direct reaction with the heme moiety, or indirectly, via S-nitrosylation of thiol groups or nitration of tyrosine residues. However, a conceptual understanding of how (•)NO bioactivity is carried out in biological systems is hampered by the lack of knowledge on its dynamics in vivo.

Evidence for a pathway that facilitates nitric oxide diffusion in the brain.

Nitric oxide (()NO) is a diffusible messenger that conveys information based on its concentration dynamics, which is dictated by the interplay between its synthesis, inactivation and diffusion. Here, we characterized ()NO diffusion in the rat brain in vivo. By direct sub-second measurement of ()NO, we determined the diffusion coefficient of ()NO in the rat brain cortex.

Brain nitric oxide inactivation is governed by the vasculature.

The mechanisms underlying nitric oxide ((•)NO) synthesis and inactivation in the brain are essential determinants of (•)NO neuroactivity. Although (•)NO production is well characterized, the pathways of inactivation in vivo remain largely unknown. Here, we characterize the kinetics and the major mechanism of (•)NO inactivation in the rat brain cortex and hippocampus in vivo by measuring locally applied (•)NO with carbon-fiber microelectrodes (CFMs) and ceramic-based microelectrode arrays (MEAs).

A comparative study of carbon fiber-based microelectrodes for the measurement of nitric oxide in brain tissue.

The measurement of Nitric oxide (NO) in real-time has been a major concern due to the involvement of this ubiquitous free radical modulator in several physiological and pathological pathways in tissues. Here we performed a study aiming at evaluating different types of carbon fibers, namely Textron, Amoco, Courtaulds and carbon nanotubes (University of Kentucky) covered with Nafion/o-phenylenediamine (o-PD) for NO measurement in terms of sensitivity, LOD, response time and selectivity against major potential interferents in the brain (ascorbate, nitrite and dopamine). The results indicate that, as compared with the other carbon fibers and nanotubes, Textron carbon fiber microelectrodes coated with two layers of Nafion and o-PD exhibited better characteristics for NO measurement as they are highly selective against ascorbate (>30,000:1), nitrite (>2000:1) and dopamine (>80:1).

In vivo real-time measurement of nitric oxide in anesthetized rat brain.

During the last two decades nitric oxide (.NO) gas has emerged as a novel and ubiquitous intercellular modulator of cell functions. In the brain, .