Expression of Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor CSF-1 in Spinal Cord Neurons in Mice with Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis.

In mice with acute and chronic models of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a quantitative study of the dynamics of CSF-1 and IL-34 protein levels in the spinal cord and blood plasma was conducted by ELISA and the specificity of CSF-1 expression in spinal cord cells was examined by immunohistological methods. A significant increase in the level of CSF-1 in the spinal cord was detected and populations of motoneurons with intense CSF-1 immunoreactivity were identified in mice with acute and chronic EAE. The obtained results suggest a possible role of CSF-1 in the pathogenesis and progression of EAE/multiple sclerosis.

How temperature-dependent silicate weathering acts as Earth's geological thermostat.

Earth's climate may be stabilized over millennia by solubilization of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO) as minerals weather, but the temperature sensitivity of this thermostat is poorly understood. We discovered that the temperature dependence of weathering expressed as an activation energy increases from laboratory to watershed as transport, clay precipitation, disaggregation, and fracturing increasingly couple to dissolution. A simple upscaling to the global system indicates that the temperature dependence decreases to ~22 kilojoules per mole because (i) the lack of runoff limits weathering and retains base metal cations on half the land surface and (ii) other landscapes are regolith-shielded and show little weathering response to temperature.

Polymer Kernels as Compact Carriers for Suspended Cardiomyocytes.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) constitute a potential source of patient-specific human cardiomyocytes for a cardiac cell replacement therapy via intramyocardial injections, providing a major benefit over other cell sources in terms of immune rejection. However, intramyocardial injection of the cardiomyocytes has substantial challenges related to cell survival and electrophysiological coupling with recipient tissue. Current methods of manipulating cell suspensions do not allow one to control the processes of adhesion of injected cells to the tissue and electrophysiological coupling with surrounding cells.

Changes in the Neuronal Population of the Spinal Cord of Mice with Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis as a Model of Multiple Sclerosis.

We performed a quantitative study of the neuronal population in the spinal cord of mice with acute and chronic model of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Immunohistological/immunofluorescent analysis with motor neuron marker ChAT revealed a significant decrease in the number of motor neurons in the ventral horns of the lumbar spinal cord in the acute form of autoimmune encephalomyelitis, with the further appearance of large empty (containing no motor neurons) areas in the ventral horns in the chronic form. The development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis is accompanied by degradation and death of neurons, in particular ChAT motor neurons.

Do Human iPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes Cultured on PLA Scaffolds Induce Expression of CD28/CTLA-4 by T Lymphocytes?

Many research groups have developed various types of tissue-engineered cardiac constructs. However, the immunological properties of such artificial tissues are not yet fully understood. Previously, we developed microfiber scaffolds carrying human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CM).