Assessment of doxorubicin-induced mouse testicular damage by the novel second-harmonic generation microscopy.

Microtubules, maintaining a non-linear structure, are suitable for direct observation in living mammalian by second-harmonic imaging microscopy (SHIM) (a new kind of confocal microscopies). Testes constituted by vast seminiferous microtubules (SM), serve as good candidates for visualization by SHIM. This study employs the SHIM and Western-blot (WB) to assess the cellular-molecular levels of doxorubicin (Dox)-induced mouse testicular damage.

Extendin-4 protects kidney from acute ischemia-reperfusion injury through upregulation of NRF2 signaling.

This study tested the hypothesis that exendin-4 (Ex4) protects kidneys against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury mainly through upregulation of nuclear-factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) signaling and downregulation of oxidative stress. Male-adult Sprague-Dawley rats (n=24) were equally divided into group 1 (sham-operated control), group 2 [IR only, ischemia (1 h)/reperfusion (72 h)] and group 3 (IR-Ex4, 10 μg/kg at 30 min, 24 h, 48 h after IR procedure). The in vitro study demonstrated that the protein expressions of phosphorylated (p)-Akt and Nrf2 were significantly progressively increased at time points of 0/0.

Two Strains of and the Progeny from Their Mating Display Differential Memory-Forming Ability on Associative Learning Tasks.

The pond snail learns and forms long-term memory (LTM) following both operant conditioning of aerial respiratory behavior and classical conditioning of taste aversive behavior. In the present study, we examined whether there are interstrain differences in the ability to form LTM following these two types of conditioning. A strain of (TC1) collected in Alberta, Canada exhibits superior memory-forming ability following aerial respiratory operant conditioning compared to a laboratory-reared strain of from Netherlands known as the Dutch strain.

Withaferin A Induces Oxidative Stress-Mediated Apoptosis and DNA Damage in Oral Cancer Cells.

Withaferin A (WFA) is one of the most active steroidal lactones with reactive oxygen species (ROS) modulating effects against several types of cancer. ROS regulation involves selective killing. However, the anticancer and selective killing effects of WFA against oral cancer cells remain unclear.

Molecular Basis Underlying Leaf Variegation of a Moth Orchid Mutant ( subsp. ).

Leaf variegation is often the focus of plant breeding. Here, we studied a variegated mutant of subsp. , which is usually used as a parent of horticultural breeding, to understand its anatomic and genetic regulatory mechanisms in variegation.

Anti-allergic Hydroxy Fatty Acids from Explored through ChemGPS-NP.

Increasing prevalence of allergic diseases with an inadequate variety of treatment drives forward search for new alternative drugs. Fatty acids, abundant in nature, are regarded as important bioactive compounds and powerful nutrients playing an important role in lipid homeostasis and inflammation. Phytochemical study on Nicolson and Sivadasan (Araceae), a folk anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory medicine, yielded four oxygenated fatty acids, 12-hydroxyoctadec-9,13-dienoic acid methyl ester () and 10-hydroxyoctadec-8,12-dienoic acid methyl ester (), 9-hydroxy-10-octadecenoic acid methyl ester (), and 12-hydroxy-10-octadecenoic acid methyl ester ().

Pterostilbene, a Methoxylated Resveratrol Derivative, Efficiently Eradicates Planktonic, Biofilm, and Intracellular MRSA by Topical Application.

Pterostilbene is a methoxylated derivative of resveratrol originated from natural sources. We investigated the antibacterial activity of pterostilbene against drug-resistant and the feasibility of using it to treat cutaneous bacteria. The antimicrobial effect was evaluated using an culture model and an mouse model of cutaneous infection.

Grape Seed Extract Attenuates Hepatitis C Virus Replication and Virus-Induced Inflammation.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a causative factor leading to hepatocellular carcinoma due to chronic inflammation and cirrhosis. The aim of the study was first to explore the effects of grape seed extract (GSE) in HCV replication, and then to study mechanisms. The results indicated that a GSE treatment showed significant anti-HCV activity and suppressed HCV-elevated cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression.

MiR-182 promotes proliferation and invasion and elevates the HIF-1α-VEGF-A axis in breast cancer cells by targeting FBXW7.

The feature of imperfect complementary effect of miRNAs to mRNAs implies that miRNAs may simultaneously target different mRNAs to affect multiple aspects of tumorigenesis. In our previous results, we demonstrated that miR-182 was over-expressed in breast cancer cell lines and clinical tumor tissues and its up-regulation increased tumorigenicity and invasiveness by repressing a tumor suppressor RECK. In this study, we showed that overexpression miR-182 regulated actin distribution and filopodia formation to increase invasiveness of breast cancer cells.

A Simplified Model of Choice Behavior under Uncertainty.

The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) has been standardized as a clinical assessment tool (Bechara, 2007). Nonetheless, numerous research groups have attempted to modify IGT models to optimize parameters for predicting the choice behavior of normal controls and patients. A decade ago, most researchers considered the expected utility (EU) model (Busemeyer and Stout, 2002) to be the optimal model for predicting choice behavior under uncertainty.

Aliskiren Administration during Early Postnatal Life Sex-Specifically Alleviates Hypertension Programmed by Maternal High Fructose Consumption.

Unlabelled: Key points summary Maternal high-fructose (HF) induces programmed hypertension in adult offspring.Early aliskiren administration prevents HF-induced hypertension in both sexes of adult offspring.HF regulates RAS components in the offspring kidney in a sex-specific manner.

Beyond Authoritarian Personality: The Culture-Inclusive Theory of Chinese Authoritarian Orientation.

In a dyad interaction, respecting and obeying those with high status (authority) is highly valued in Chinese societies. Regarding explicit behaviors, Chinese people usually show respect to and obey authority, which we call authoritarian orientation. Previous literature has indicated that Chinese people have a high degree of authoritarian personality, which was considered a national character.

Low thrombospondin 2 expression is predictive of low tumor regression after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in rectal cancer.

Background: Neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) followed by surgery is the mainstay of treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer. Several heparin-binding associated proteins have been reported to play a critical role in cancer progression. However, the clinical relevancies of such proteins and their associations with CCRT response in rectal cancer have not yet to be fully elucidated.