Endogenous self-peptides guard immune privilege of the central nervous system.

Despite the presence of strategically positioned anatomical barriers designed to protect the central nervous system (CNS), it is not entirely isolated from the immune system. In fact, it remains physically connected to, and can be influenced by, the peripheral immune system. How the CNS retains such responsiveness while maintaining an immunologically unique status remains an outstanding question.

Identification of direct connections between the dura and the brain.

The arachnoid barrier delineates the border between the central nervous system and dura mater. Although the arachnoid barrier creates a partition, communication between the central nervous system and the dura mater is crucial for waste clearance and immune surveillance. How the arachnoid barrier balances separation and communication is poorly understood.

Age-dependent immune and lymphatic responses after spinal cord injury.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) causes lifelong debilitating conditions. Previous works demonstrated the essential role of the immune system in recovery after SCI. Here, we explored the temporal changes of the response after SCI in young and aged mice in order to characterize multiple immune populations within the mammalian spinal cord.

Age-associated suppression of exploratory activity during sickness is linked to meningeal lymphatic dysfunction and microglia activation.

Peripheral inflammation triggers a transient, well-defined set of behavioral changes known as sickness behavior, but the mechanisms by which inflammatory signals originating in the periphery alter activity in the brain remain obscure. Emerging evidence has established meningeal lymphatic vasculature as an important interface between the central nervous system (CNS) and the immune system, responsible for facilitating brain solute clearance and perfusion by cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Here, we demonstrate that meningeal lymphatics both assist microglial activation and support the behavioral response to peripheral inflammation.

Fibromuscular Dysplasia and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Are Dimorphic Sex-Specific Diseases With Shared Complex Genetic Architecture.

Background: The risk of arterial diseases may be elevated among family members of individuals having multifocal fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD). We sought to investigate the risk of arterial diseases in families of individuals with FMD.

Methods: Family histories for 73 probands with FMD were obtained, which included an analysis of 463 total first-degree relatives focusing on FMD and related arterial disorders.

Parenchymal border macrophages regulate the flow dynamics of the cerebrospinal fluid.

Macrophages are important players in the maintenance of tissue homeostasis. Perivascular and leptomeningeal macrophages reside near the central nervous system (CNS) parenchyma, and their role in CNS physiology has not been sufficiently well studied. Given their continuous interaction with the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and strategic positioning, we refer to these cells collectively as parenchymal border macrophages (PBMs).

Effects of Swaddling During Bottle Feeding in Preterm Infants.

Background: Preterm infants have immature oral feeding skills, affecting length of hospital stay and long-term feeding outcomes. Swaddling has positive effects on pain and stress responses, state regulation, and physiological stability in preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Swaddling during bottle feeding may support preterm infant behavioral organization and oral feeding skills.

GABAergic neuronal IL-4R mediates T cell effect on memory.

Mechanisms governing how immune cells and their derived molecules impact homeostatic brain function are still poorly understood. Here, we elucidate neuronal mechanisms underlying T cell effects on synaptic function and episodic memory. Depletion of CD4 T cells led to memory deficits and impaired long-term potentiation.

Skull and vertebral bone marrow are myeloid cell reservoirs for the meninges and CNS parenchyma.

The meninges are a membranous structure enveloping the central nervous system (CNS) that host a rich repertoire of immune cells mediating CNS immune surveillance. Here, we report that the mouse meninges contain a pool of monocytes and neutrophils supplied not from the blood but by adjacent skull and vertebral bone marrow. Under pathological conditions, including spinal cord injury and neuroinflammation, CNS-infiltrating myeloid cells can originate from brain borders and display transcriptional signatures distinct from their blood-derived counterparts.

A Novel Recurrent Genetic Variant Is Associated With a Dysplasia-Associated Arterial Disease Exhibiting Dissections and Fibromuscular Dysplasia.

Objective: While rare variants in the gene have been associated with classical Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and rarely with arterial dissections, recurrent variants in underlying a systemic arteriopathy have not been described. Monogenic forms of multifocal fibromuscular dysplasia (mFMD) have not been previously defined. Approach and Results: We studied 4 independent probands with the pathogenic variant c.

Use of GMI-1271, an E-selectin antagonist, in healthy subjects and in 2 patients with calf vein thrombosis.

Background: There is an unmet need for antithrombotic treatments for venous thromboembolic disease that do not increase bleeding risk. Selectins are cell adhesion molecules that augment thrombosis by activating immune cells to initiate the coagulation cascade. GMI-1271, a potent small-molecule E-selectin antagonist, has been shown in mouse models to decrease thrombus burden with a low risk of bleeding.

Pilot test of a home-based program to prevent perceived insufficient milk.

Problem: Although the World Health Organization and American Academy of Pediatrics recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, only 22% of U.S. mothers do so.

Interventions that Enhance Breastfeeding Initiation, Duration, and Exclusivity: A Systematic Review.

Objective: The purpose of this review was to evaluate breastfeeding interventions trialed to date and recommend directions for future needs in breastfeeding research.

Methods: A literature review was conducted using PubMed, CINAHL Plus, and PsycINFO databases to identify studies that evaluated efficacy or effectiveness of breastfeeding interventions on breastfeeding initiation, duration, or exclusivity as a primary, secondary, or tertiary outcome. Combinations of search terms included breastfeeding, feeding behavior, prenatal/patient education, health promotion, social support, perinatal/prenatal/intrapartum/postnatal care, and postpartum period.

Factors Altering Pyruvate Excretion in a Glycogen Storage Mutant of the Cyanobacterium, Synechococcus PCC7942.

Interest in the production of carbon commodities from photosynthetically fixed CO2 has focused attention on cyanobacteria as a target for metabolic engineering and pathway investigation. We investigated the redirection of carbon flux in the model cyanobacterial species, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942, under nitrogen deprivation, for optimized production of the industrially desirable compound, pyruvate. Under nitrogen limited conditions, excess carbon is naturally stored as the multi-branched polysaccharide, glycogen, but a block in glycogen synthesis, via knockout mutation in the gene encoding ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (glgC), results in the accumulation of the organic acids, pyruvate and 2-oxoglutarate, as overflow excretions into the extracellular media.

Bacterial community affects toxin production by Gymnodinium catenatum.

The paralytic shellfish toxin (PST)-producing dinoflagellate Gymnodinium catenatum grows in association with a complex marine bacterial community that is both essential for growth and can alter culture growth dynamics. Using a bacterial community replacement approach, we examined the intracellular PST content, production rate, and profile of G. catenatum cultures grown with bacterial communities of differing complexity and composition.

The effect of Diel temperature and light cycles on the growth of nannochloropsis oculata in a photobioreactor matrix.

A matrix of photobioreactors integrated with metabolic sensors was used to examine the combined impact of light and temperature variations on the growth and physiology of the biofuel candidate microalgal species Nannochloropsis oculata. The experiments were performed with algal cultures maintained at a constant 20 °C versus a 15 °C to 25 °C diel temperature cycle, where light intensity also followed a diel cycle with a maximum irradiance of 1920 µmol photons m(-2) s(-1). No differences in algal growth (Chlorophyll a) were found between the two environmental regimes; however, the metabolic processes responded differently throughout the day to the change in environmental conditions.

Comparison of Thraustochytrids Aurantiochytrium sp., Schizochytrium sp., Thraustochytrium sp., and Ulkenia sp. for production of biodiesel, long-chain omega-3 oils, and exopolysaccharide.

Heterotrophic growth of thraustochytrids has potential in coproducing biodiesel for transportation, as well as producing a feedstock for omega-3 long-chain (≥C20) polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA), especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) for use in nutraceuticals. In this study, we compared eight new endemic Australian thraustochytrid strains from the genera Aurantiochytrium, Schizochytrium, Thraustochytrium, and Ulkenia for the synthesis of exopolysaccharide (EPS), in addition to biodiesel and LC-PUFA. Aurantiochytrium sp.