Copulation patterns in captive hamadryas baboons: a quantitative analysis.

For primates, as for many other vertebrates, copulation which results in ejaculation is a prerequisite for reproduction. The probability of ejaculation is affected by various physiological and social factors, for example reproductive state of male and female and operational sex-ratio. In this paper, we present quantitative and qualitative data on patterns of sexual behaviour in a captive group of hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas), a species with a polygynous-monandric mating system.

1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D3 and dexamethasone induce the cyclooxygenase 1 gene in osteoclast-supporting stromal cells.

Commitment of members of the monocyte/macrophage family to the bone resorptive phenotype, in vitro, requires contact, of these osteoclast precursors, with osteoblasts or related stromal cells. The osteoclast-inductive properties of these stromal cells are typically expressed, however, only in the presence of steroid hormones such as 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25D3) and dexamethasone (DEX). To gain insight into the means by which steroid treated accessory cells induce osteoclast differentiation we asked, using differential RNA display (DRD), if gene expression by this stromal cell population differs from that of their untreated, non-osteoclastogenic counterpart.

The human PTH2 receptor: binding and signal transduction properties of the stably expressed recombinant receptor.

We have generated a series of stably transfected HEK-293 cell lines expressing the newly identified alternate human PTH receptor (hPTH2 receptor). This receptor subtype is selectively activated by N-terminal PTH-(1-34) and not the corresponding N-terminal (1-34) region of the functionally and structurally related hormone, PTH-related protein (PTHrP). A total of 20 distinct clones displaying different levels of PTH-responsive cAMP production were analyzed.

Generation and characterization of human kidney cell lines stably expressing recombinant human PTH/PTHrP receptor: lack of interaction with a C-terminal human PTH peptide.

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) exerts its biological action by binding to membrane-bound, G-protein coupled receptors expressed predominantly in bone and kidney. In this study, we describe the production and characterization of a panel of cell lines, derived from a human embryonic kidney cell line (HEK-293), each of which stably express different amounts of the recombinant human PTH/parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) receptor (Rc). A total of 52 distinct clones displaying different levels of PTH-responsive cAMP production were analyzed; three clones were chosen for more detailed evaluation.