Lens stem cells may reside outside the lens capsule: an hypothesis.

In this paper, we consider the ocular lens in the context of contemporary developments in biological ideas. We attempt to reconcile lens biology with stem cell concepts and a dearth of lens tumors.Historically, the lens has been viewed as a closed system, in which cells at the periphery of the lens epithelium differentiate into fiber cells.

Polybrominated diphenyl ether in sewage sludge in Germany.

Sewage sludge samples from 11 municipal waste water treatment plants in Germany were collected from March 2002 to June 2003. Total Tri- to HpBDE concentrations (sum of significant congeners BDE 28, 47, 99, 153, 154 and 183) ranged from 12.5 to 288 (median 108) and DeBDE (BDE 209) concentrations from 97.

Overexpression of connexin43 alters the mutant phenotype of midgestational wnt-1 null mice resulting in recovery of the midbrain and cerebellum.

The midbrain-hindbrain (MHB) junction plays a key role in the patterning of the embryonic neural tube and the formation of brain structures such as the cerebellum. The mitogen wnt-1 is critical for cerebellar development, as evidenced by the lack of MHB region and cerebellar formation in the wnt-1 null embryo. We have generated wnt-1 null embryos overexpressing the gap junction gene connexin43 by crossing wnt-1 null heterozygotes into the CMV43 mouse line.

Gap junctions assemble in the presence of cytoskeletal inhibitors, but enhanced assembly requires microtubules.

The role of cytoskeletal elements in gap junction (GJ) assembly has been studied using Novikoff hepatoma cells treated with cytochalasin B (CB) to disrupt actin filaments or with colchicine or nocodazole to disrupt microtubules. After 60 min of cell reaggregation, freeze-fracture was used to evaluate quantitatively the "initiation," "maturation," and "growth" phases of GJ assembly. The development of junctional permeability to fluorescent dyes was also analyzed.

Persistent bissilylated arenium ions.

A series of bissilylated arenium ions 1 with different substitution patterns on the aryl ring have been synthesized by hydride abstraction from 2-aryl-substituted 2,6-dimethyl-2,6-disilaheptanes (2) via transient silylium ions. The arenium ions have been identified by their characteristic NMR chemical shifts, (delta(29)Si=19.1-25.