The rate of de novo structural variation is increased in in vitro-produced offspring and preferentially affects the paternal genome.

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), including in vitro maturation and fertilization (IVF), are increasingly used in human and animal reproduction. Whether these technologies directly affect the rate of de novo mutation (DNM), and to what extent, has been a matter of debate. Here we take advantage of domestic cattle, characterized by complex pedigrees that are ideally suited to detect DNMs and by the systematic use of ART, to study the rate of de novo structural variation (dnSV) in this species and how it is impacted by IVF.

Preliminary investigations for the development of a virtual reality-based English-language communication program: Using the Delphi method.

The purpose of this study was to gather opinions from experts via the Delphi method to inform the future development of a virtual reality based English language communication program for university level students in Korea. The participants, who consisted of a panel of experts and professors who majored in English language and multimedia education, completed three Delphi surveys based on Context, Input, Process, and Product evaluation, which is referred to as CIPP. In the first Delphi survey, the participants answered multiple choice questions and open-ended questions related to four areas relevant to the development of a virtual reality based program.

Genomic analysis on pygmy hog reveals extensive interbreeding during wild boar expansion.

Wild boar (Sus scrofa) drastically colonized mainland Eurasia and North Africa, most likely from East Asia during the Plio-Pleistocene (2-1Mya). In recent studies, based on genome-wide information, it was hypothesized that wild boar did not replace the species it encountered, but instead exchanged genetic materials with them through admixture. The highly endangered pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) is the only suid species in mainland Eurasia known to have outlived this expansion, and therefore provides a unique opportunity to test this hybridization hypothesis.

Object recognition using metric shape.

Most previous studies of 3D shape perception have shown a general inability to visually perceive metric shape. In line with this, studies of object recognition have shown that only qualitative differences, not quantitative or metric ones can be used effectively for object recognition. Recently, Bingham and Lind (2008) found that large perspective changes (≥ 45°) allow perception of metric shape and Lee and Bingham (2010) found that this, in turn, allowed accurate feedforward reaches-to-grasp objects varying in metric shape.

Default-mode-like network activation in awake rodents.

During wakefulness and in absence of performing tasks or sensory processing, the default-mode network (DMN), an intrinsic central nervous system (CNS) network, is in an active state. Non-human primate and human CNS imaging studies have identified the DMN in these two species. Clinical imaging studies have shown that the pattern of activity within the DMN is often modulated in various disease states (e.

Discovery of N-(1-ethylpropyl)-[3-methoxy-5-(2-methoxy-4-trifluoromethoxyphenyl)-6-methyl-pyrazin-2-yl]amine 59 (NGD 98-2): an orally active corticotropin releasing factor-1 (CRF-1) receptor antagonist.

The design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationships of a novel series of pyrazines, acting as corticotropin releasing factor-1 (CRF-1) receptor antagonists, are described. Synthetic methodologies were developed to prepare a number of substituted pyrazine cores utilizing regioselective halogenation and chemoselective derivatization. Noteworthy, an efficient 5-step synthesis was developed for the lead compound 59 (NGD 98-2), which required no chromatography.

Monosodium iodoacetate-induced joint pain is associated with increased phosphorylation of mitogen activated protein kinases in the rat spinal cord.

Background: Intra-articular injection of monosodium iodoacetate (MIA) in the knee joint of rats disrupts chondrocyte metabolism resulting in cartilage degeneration and subsequent nociceptive behavior that has been described as a model of osteoarthritis (OA) pain. Central sensitization through activation of mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPKs) is recognized as a pathogenic mechanism in chronic pain. In the present studies, induction of central sensitization as indicated by spinal dorsal horn MAPK activation, specifically ERK and p38 phosphorylation, was assessed in the MIA-OA model.

Large perspective changes yield perception of metric shape that allows accurate feedforward reaches-to-grasp and it persists after the optic flow has stopped!

Lee et al. (Percept Psychophys 70:1032-1046, 2008a) investigated whether visual perception of metric shape could be calibrated when used to guide feedforward reaches-to-grasp. It could not.

Glutamatergic (N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor) hypofrontality in schizophrenia: too little juice or a miswired brain?

Dopamine D2 receptor blockade has been an obligate mechanism of action present in all medications that effectively treat positive symptoms of schizophrenia (e.g., delusions and hallucinations) and have been approved by regulatory agencies since the 1950s.

The perception of 3-D shape from shadows cast onto curved surfaces.

In a natural environment, cast shadows abound. Objects cast shadows both upon themselves and upon background surfaces. Previous research on the perception of 3-D shape from cast shadows has only examined the informativeness of shadows cast upon flat background surfaces.

Poor shape perception is the reason reaches-to-grasp are visually guided online.

Both judgment studies and studies of feedforward reaching have shown that the visual perception of object distance, size, and shape are inaccurate. However, feedback has been shown to calibrate feedfoward reaches-to-grasp to make them accurate with respect to object distance and size. We now investigate whether shape perception (in particular, the aspect ratio of object depth to width) can be calibrated in the context of reaches-to-grasp.

Repeated stimulation of CRF receptors in the BNST of rats selectively induces social but not panic-like anxiety.

Increased extra-hypothalamic corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) neurotransmission has been suggested as one putative factor in the pathophysiology of anxiety disorders. We have previously reported that administering repeated subanxiogenic doses (termed 'priming') of the CRF receptor agonist urocortin 1 (Ucn1) into the basolateral amygdala (BLA) of rats elicited long-lasting behavioral changes in social interaction (SI) and elevated plus maze (EPM) tests of anxiety. Although substantial similarity exists, the bed nucleus of the stria terminals (BNST) and the amygdala are thought to play distinct roles in anxiety responses.

Glia mechanisms in mood regulation: a novel model of mood disorders.

Introduction: Recent evidence in clinical and preclinical studies has implicated glutamate neurotransmissions in pathophysiology of mood disorders. The regulation of amino acid neurotransmission, i.e.

The mGlu2/3 receptor agonist LY354740 suppresses immobilization stress-induced increase in rat prefrontal cortical BDNF mRNA expression.

Both a 5-hydroxytryptamine2A (5-HT2A) agonist and immobilization stress previously have been shown to differentially alter brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA expression in the neocortex and hippocampus. Both 5-HT2A receptor activation and immobilization stress also increase glutamate release in the rat prefrontal cortex. Given that the metabotropic glutamate2/3 receptor (mGluR2/3) agonist (1S,2S,5R,6S)-2-aminobicyclo[3.

The visual perception of length along intrinsically curved surfaces.

The ability of observers to perceive three-dimensional (3-D) distances or lengths along intrinsically curved surfaces was investigated in three experiments. Three physically curved surfaces were used: convex and/or concave hemispheres (Experiments 1 and 3) and a hyperbolic paraboloid (Experiment 2). The first two experiments employed a visual length-matching task, but in the final experiment the observers estimated the surface lengths motorically by varying the separation between their two index fingers.