18 results match your criteria: "Institute of Physiology (230)[Affiliation]"

In the desert locust (), pheromones are considered to be crucial for governing important behaviors and processes, including phase transition, reproduction, aggregation and swarm formation. The receptors mediating pheromone detection in olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) on the antenna of are unknown. Since pheromone receptors in other insects belong to the odorant receptor (OR) family and are typically co-expressed with the "sensory neuron membrane protein 1" (SNMP1), in our search for putative pheromone receptors of , we have screened the OR repertoire for receptor types that are expressed in SNMP1-positive OSNs.

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Extracellular matrix and its role in conveying glial/neural interactions in health and disease.

J Integr Neurosci

May 2018

Membrane Physiology Division, Institute of Physiology 230, Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany.

We review the concepts and findings that may be related to the occurrence of non-linear glial/neural dynamics involving interactions between polyelectrolytes of the extracellular matrix and the basement membranes that cover the endfeet of glia at CNS interfaces. Distortions of perception and blocking of learning expressed in functional syndromes are interpreted as macroscopic electrochemical patterns that emerge in grey matter through glial/neural interactions.

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Under given environmental conditions, the desert locust () forms destructive migratory swarms of billions of animals, leading to enormous crop losses in invaded regions. Swarm formation requires massive reproduction as well as aggregation of the animals. Pheromones that are detected via the olfactory system have been reported to control both reproductive and aggregation behavior.

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For decades it has been shown that acute changes in gravity have an effect on neuronal systems of human and animals on different levels, from the molecular level to the whole nervous system. The functional properties and gravity-dependent adaptations of these system levels have been investigated with no or barely any interconnection. This review summarizes the gravity-dependent adaptation processes in human and animal organisms from the in vitro cellular level with its biophysical properties to the in vivo motor responses and underlying sensorimotor functions of human subjects.

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The pharmacological control of neuronal excitability in the retinal spreading depression model of migraine.

Curr Med Chem

May 2012

Institute of Physiology (230), Dept. Membrane Physiology, University of Hohenheim, Garbenstr. 30, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany.

Spreading Depression is the underlying patho physiological mechanism for the neurological symptoms of migraine aura and is thought to play a major role in triggering migraine. Therefore it seems reasonable to use the Spreading Depression as a pharmacological tool for anti migraine drugs. Drugs that are able to alter parameters of Spreading Depression should also influence appearance and course of migraine attacks.

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The complex physiology of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract must permanently be adjusted according to the composition of ingested food, which requires continuous monitoring by appropriate sensory systems. Sensing the dietary constituents is thought to be mediated by chemosensory cells residing in the mucosa of the GI tract. We have examined the appearance and differentiation of candidate chemosensory cells at distinct postnatal stages and visualized cells that express gustducin or TRPM5.

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Expression of adiponectin receptor 1 in olfactory mucosa of mice.

Cell Tissue Res

November 2008

Institute of Physiology (230), University of Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599, Stuttgart, Germany.

AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 are receptors for the adipocyte-derived hormone adiponectin, which is an important regulator of glucose and lipid metabolism, and which has also been implicated in the control of food intake and energy homeostasis. In the present study, we have demonstrated that AdipoR1 is expressed in mature sensory neurons of the olfactory mucosa of mice, in a pattern reminiscent of the olfactory marker protein. AdipoR1 expression levels in the olfactory mucosa have been observed to increase gradually during late embryogenesis until adulthood.

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In moths the detection of female-released sex pheromones involves hairlike structures on the male antenna. These long sensilla trichodea usually contain 2-3 chemosensory neurons accompanied by several supporting cells. Previous studies have shown that the pheromone-specific neurons are characterized by a "sensory neuron membrane protein" (SNMP) which is homologous to the CD36 family and localized in the dendrite membrane.

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According to its physicochemical properties, neuronal tissue, including the central nervous system (CNS) and thus the human brain, is an excitable medium, which consequently exhibits, among other things, self-organization, pattern formation and propagating waves. Furthermore, such systems can be controlled by weak external forces. The spreading depression (SD), a propagating wave of excitation-depression, is such an event, which is additionally linked to a variety of medically important situations, classical migraine being just one example.

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Males of the moth species Heliothis virescens are able to detect the female-released pheromone with remarkable sensitivity and specificity, distinguishing between highly related pheromonal compounds. In the past, electrophysiological studies succeeded in assigning sensory hairs to identified compounds revealing three functional types of long sensilla trichodea housing neurons specifically responding to distinct semiochemicals. The specific responsiveness implies that the sensory neurons express different receptor types tuned to pheromone components.

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Candidate pheromone binding proteins of the silkmoth Bombyx mori.

Invert Neurosci

December 2006

Institute of Physiology (230), University of Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.

Pheromone reception is thought to be mediated by pheromone binding proteins (PBPs) in the aqueous lymph of the antennal sensilla. Recent studies have shown that the only known PBP of Bombyx mori (BmorPBP1) appears to be specifically tuned to bombykol but not to bombykal, raising the question of whether additional subtypes may exist. We have identified two novel genes, which encode candidate PBPs (BmorPBP2, BmorPBP3).

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The enormous capacity of the male silkmoth Bombyx mori in recognizing and discriminating bombykol and bombykal is based on distinct sensory neurons in the antennal sensilla hairs. The hydrophobic pheromonal compounds are supposed to be ferried by soluble pheromone-binding proteins (PBPs) through the sensillum lymph toward the receptors in the dendritic membrane. We have generated stable cell lines expressing the candidate pheromone receptors of B.

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Immunolocalization of a candidate pheromone receptor in the antenna of the male moth, Heliothis virescens.

Invert Neurosci

March 2006

Institute of Physiology (230), University of Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599, Stuttgart, Germany

Pheromone recognition in insects is thought to involve distinct receptor proteins in the dendritic membrane of antennal sensory neurons. We have generated antibodies directed against a peptide derived from the sequence of the candidate pheromone receptor HR13 from Heliothis virescens. The antibodies specifically labelled the cell bodies of a distinct neuron population housed in male-specific pheromone-sensitive sensilla.

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Candidate pheromone receptors of the silkmoth Bombyx mori.

Eur J Neurosci

April 2005

University of Hohenheim, Institute of Physiology (230), Garbenstrasse 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.

Communication via specific chemical signals is vitally important for the reproductive behaviour of many species. The first identified sex-attractant pheromone was bombykol from the silkmoth Bombyx mori. This female-released signalling compound is perceived by the male moth with extreme sensitivity and specificity.

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Formation and maturation of olfactory cilia monitored by odorant receptor-specific antibodies.

Histochem Cell Biol

June 2005

Institute of Physiology (230), University of Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.

The responsiveness of olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) is based on odorant receptors (ORs) residing in the membrane of chemosensory cilia. It is still elusive as to when and how olfactory cilia are equipped with OR proteins rendering them responsive to odorants. To monitor the appearance of OR proteins in sensory compartments of OSNs, the olfactory epithelium of mice at various stages of prenatal development (lasting 19 days from conception) was investigated using immunohistochemical approaches and antibodies specific for different OR subtypes.

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Genes encoding candidate pheromone receptors in a moth (Heliothis virescens).

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

August 2004

Institute of Physiology 230, University of Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.

The remarkable responsiveness of male moths to female released pheromones is based on the extremely sensitive and selective reaction of highly specialized sensory cells in the male antennae. These cells are supposed to be equipped with male-specific receptors for pheromonal compounds, however, the nature of these receptors is still elusive. By using a combination of genomic sequence analysis and cDNA-library screening, we have cloned various cDNAs of the tobacco budworm Heliothis virescens encoding candidate olfactory receptors.

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A candidate olfactory receptor subtype highly conserved across different insect orders.

J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol

July 2003

Institute of Physiology (230), University of Hohenheim, Garbenstr. 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.

Candidate olfactory receptors of the moth Heliothis virescens were found to be extremely diverse from receptors of the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster and the mosquito Anopheles gambiae, but there is one exception. The moth receptor type HR2 shares a rather high degree of sequence identity with one olfactory receptor type both from Drosophila (Dor83b) and from Anopheles (AgamGPRor7); moreover, in contrast to all other receptors, this unique receptor type is expressed in numerous antennal neurons. Here we describe the identification of HR2 homologues in two further lepidopteran species, the moths Antheraea pernyi and Bombyx mori, which share 86-88% of their amino acids.

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The antennae of moths have been an invaluable model for studying the principles of odour perception. In spite of the enormous progress in understanding olfaction on the molecular level, for the moth one of the key elements in olfactory signalling, the odourant receptors, are still elusive. We have assessed a genome database of a heliothine moth (Heliothis virescens, Noctuidae) and employed exon-specific probes to screen an antennal cDNA library of this species.

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