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Region Corresponding (region + corresponding)
Selected AbstractsThe expression of Scratch genes in the developing and adult brainDEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS, Issue 9 2006Faustino Marín Abstract The Scratch genes belong to the Snail superfamily of zinc-finger transcription factors present in the metazoa, represented in mammals by the Scratch1 and Scratch2 genes. We have analyzed the expression of these genes in the brain of mice at developmental stages between 9.5 days-post-coitum to adulthood. Both genes are expressed in the mantle layer of the neuroepithelium at mid-gestational stages in all regions except for the region corresponding to the V2 interneuron column, which lacked Scratch2 transcripts. From perinatal to adult stages, the expression patterns of the two genes differ. Scratch1 remains strongly expressed in almost all brain regions, although it is not found in some ventral structures such as motor nuclei and hypothalamic regions. In contrast, Scratch2 expression progressively diminishes and virtually no expression can be detected in the adult brain. Nevertheless, strong expression of Scratch2 is retained in the postnatal cortical subventricular zone, in the inner part of the cerebellar external granular layer, and in the glial cells of the adult vomeronasal nerve. Developmental Dynamoics 235:2586,2591, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Functional segregation of plural regions representing cardinal contours in cat primary visual cortexEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 7 2004Gang Wang Abstract Our previous data based on an imaging study suggested that, in cat area 17, the representations of cardinal orientations overlap less than the representation of their nearby angles. The purpose of this study was to further investigate the underlying single-cell properties. Optical imaging was performed first to map the cortical regions corresponding to the four principal contours, the two cardinals and the two obliques. The cortical region activated by a principal orientation but not by the +10° or ,10° neighbouring angles, namely the area with optically relative independent orientation selectivity (RIOS), was mapped together with the regions that overlapped with the +10° and/or ,10° neighbouring angles (non-RIOS). Electrode penetrations were targeted to the RIOS and non-RIOS regions in each of the four orientations. A comparison between the RIOS and the non-RIOS regions documented a significantly higher percentage of cells with the orientation preference of the cardinal orientations in the cardinal RIOS region than that seen in the other regions. Additionally, the difference in the tuning width of cells between the RIOS and non-RIOS in the cardinal region was significantly larger than the difference between the RIOS and non-RIOS in the oblique region. The cells in the cardinal RIOS region were tuned more sharply and the cells in cardinal non-RIOS region more broadly than the oblique RIOS and/or the non-RIOS region, which showed no significant difference. These data strongly suggest the existence of functional segregation in the region corresponding to the cardinal contours. [source] Neuroplastic Changes in the Brain: A Case of Two Successive Adaptive Changes Within the Motor CortexJOURNAL OF NEUROIMAGING, Issue 3 2010Eytan Raz MD ABSTRACT We describe a case of neuroplasticity associated with both arteriovenous malformation (AVM) and stroke, which occurred in two successive events in the same patient. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during right-hand movement in a young man with a left rolandic AVM detected activation of a region corresponding to the left premotor cortex. The AVM was embolized. A few hours after the last embolization session, the patient sustained an ischemic complication in the left subcortical white matter. A second fMRI detected a lower degree of left premotor cortex activation and strong activation of the contralesional right primary motor cortex and bilateral supplementary motor areas. One month later, in association with clinical recovery, the fMRI activation returned to that observed in the first fMRI, ie, selective activation of the ipsilesional left premotor cortex. This is, to our knowledge, the first description of two distinct functional cortical changes determined by an AVM and a stroke within the motor network. [source] A minor ,-structured conformation is the active state of a fusion peptide of vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein,JOURNAL OF PEPTIDE SCIENCE, Issue 4 2008Carolina G. Sarzedas Abstract Entry of enveloped animal viruses into their host cells always depends on a step of membrane fusion triggered by conformational changes in viral envelope glycoproteins. Vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) infection is mediated by virus spike glycoprotein G, which induces membrane fusion at the acidic environment of the endosomal compartment. In a previous work, we identified a specific sequence in the VSV G protein, comprising the residues 145,164, directly involved in membrane interaction and fusion. In the present work we studied the interaction of pep[145,164] with membranes using NMR to solve the structure of the peptide in two membrane-mimetic systems: SDS micelles and liposomes composed of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine (PC:PS vesicles). The presence of medium-range NOEs showed that the peptide has a tendency to form N - and C -terminal helical segments in the presence of SDS micelles. Analysis of the chemical shift index indicated helix,coil equilibrium for the C -terminal helix under all conditions studied. At pH 7.0, the N -terminal helix also displayed a helix,coil equilibrium when pep[145-164] was free in solution or in the presence of PC:PS. Remarkably, at the fusogenic pH, the region of the N -terminal helix in the presence of SDS or PC:PS presented a third conformational species that was in equilibrium with the helix and random coil. The N -terminal helix content decreases pH and the minor ,-structured conformation becomes more prevalent at the fusogenic pH. These data point to a ,-conformation as the fusogenic active structure-which is in agreement with the X-ray structure, which shows a ,-hairpin for the region corresponding to pep[145-164]. Copyright © 2007 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Photoacoustic monitoring of neovascularities in grafted skinLASERS IN SURGERY AND MEDICINE, Issue 3 2006Mutsuo Yamazaki MS Abstract Background and Objective In skin grafting, evaluation of graft adhesion to the recipient site in the early postgrafting period is important. However, conventional diagnoses such as visual observation and thermography required about 1 week to obtain results and these methods cannot give quantitative information on the adhesion of a skin graft. We proposed a new method for monitoring adhesion of grafted skin that is based on measurement of photoacoustic signals. To investigate the validity of the method, we performed experiments using rat autografts models. Study Design/Materials and Methods Grafted skin in a rat was irradiated with 200 µJ, 532-nm nanosecond laser pulses, and photoacoustic signals were detected with a piezoelectric transducer placed on the skin at various postgrafting time. Temporal profiles of the signals were converted to depth profiles using an assumed sound velocity of 1,500 m/second. Histological analysis was performed to observe neovascularities formed in the grafts. Results At 6 hours postgrafting, a photoacoustic signal peak appeared in the depth region corresponding to the graft. The results of histological analysis also showed formation of neovascularities in the graft after 6 hours postgrafting, indicating that photoacoustic signal peaks observed in the graft originated from the neovascularities, which are an indication of graft adhesion. For up to 24 hours postgrafting, no significant difference was observed between the results of visual observation and laser Doppler imaging of the same grafted skins. Conclusion We have demonstrated that photoacoustic signals originating from neovascularities in grafts can be sensitively detected in the early postgrafting period, suggesting the validity of photoacoustic measurement for adhesion monitoring of skin grafts. Lasers Surg. Med. 38:235,239, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Polycarbonate/SiC nanocomposites,influence of nanoparticle dispersion on molecular mobility and gas transport,POLYMERS FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES, Issue 2-3 2005Martin Böhning Abstract Plasma synthesized silicon carbide (SiC) nanoparticles were dispersed in dichloromethane/poly(bisphenol-A-carbonate) (PC) solutions by high power ultrasonification. Samples were then prepared by film casting under well adapted preparation conditions. The influence of the SiC nanoparticles on the molecular mobility of the PC is studied by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy. No effect on the cooperative segmental mobility (glass transition) was detected. But the relaxation region corresponding to localized fluctuations is strongly broadened and the activation energy is reduced with increasing nanoparticle concentration. The most significant change was observed in the relaxation region between , - and , -process. The gas transport properties of these nanocomposite films are characterized in terms of permeability, diffusivity and solubility. Results can be interpreted based on an altered local free volume distribution and a change of molecular mobility of the polymer matrix near the nanoparticle surface which is in agreement with the dielectric results. Concentration dependent CO2 permeation experiments reveal a significant reduction of plasticization effects in the nanocomposites compared to the pure PC. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Heterologous expression, crystallization and preliminary X-ray characterization of CcCel6C, a glycoside hydrolase family 6 enzyme from the basidiomycete Coprinopsis cinereaACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION F (ELECTRONIC), Issue 2 2009Yuma Kurakata CcCel6C is a gene that encodes a glycoside hydrolase family 6 (GH6) enzyme in the Coprinopsis cinerea genome. In the evolutionary tree of GH6 enzymes, the encoded enzyme was closely related to Cel6B from Humicola insolens, previously called endoglucanase VI, while its amino-acid sequence revealed a region corresponding to the C-terminal active-site-enclosing loop typical of cellobiohydrolase II. Here, the crystallization of CcCel6C produced in Escherichia coli is reported. The square prismatic crystal belonged to the triclinic space group P1, with unit-cell parameters a = 44.04, b = 45.11, c = 48.90,Å, , = 77.81, , = 87.34, , = 68.79°. Diffraction data were collected to 1.6,Å resolution. [source] Expression, purification and crystallization of the SARS-CoV macro domainACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION F (ELECTRONIC), Issue 4 2006Hélène Malet Macro domains or X domains are found as modules of multidomain proteins, but can also constitute a protein on their own. Recently, biochemical and structural studies of cellular macro domains have been performed, showing that they are active as ADP-ribose-1,,-phosphatases. Macro domains are also present in a number of positive-stranded RNA viruses, but their precise function in viral replication is still unknown. The major human pathogen severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) encodes 16 non-structural proteins (nsps), one of which (nsp3) encompasses a macro domain. The SARS-CoV nsp3 gene region corresponding to amino acids 182,355 has been cloned, expressed in Escherichia coli, purified and crystallized. The crystals belong to space group P21, with unit-cell parameters a = 37.5, b = 55.6, c = 108.9,Å, , = 91.4°, and the asymmetric unit contains either two or three molecules. Both native and selenomethionine-labelled crystals diffract to 1.8,Å. [source] | ||||||||||||||||