0000000000293765
AUTHOR
Jochen Roeper
Inhibition of histone deacetylation rescues phenotype in a mouse model of Birk-Barel intellectual disability syndrome
Mutations in the actively expressed, maternal allele of the imprinted KCNK9 gene cause Birk-Barel intellectual disability syndrome (BBIDS). Using a BBIDS mouse model, we identify here a partial rescue of the BBIDS-like behavioral and neuronal phenotypes mediated via residual expression from the paternal Kcnk9 (Kcnk9pat) allele. We further demonstrate that the second-generation HDAC inhibitor CI-994 induces enhanced expression from the paternally silenced Kcnk9 allele and leads to a full rescue of the behavioral phenotype suggesting CI-994 as a promising molecule for BBIDS therapy. Thus, these findings suggest a potential approach to improve cognitive dysfunction in a mouse model of an impri…
The relationship between medical students’ media use and learning progress
The acquisition of warranted domain-specific knowledge is essential for practical work in medicine. The medical field, however, suffers from 'information overload', and students and physicians rely...
Neuronal activity triggers uptake of hematopoietic extracellular vesicles in vivo
Communication with the hematopoietic system is a vital component of regulating brain function in health and disease. Traditionally, the major routes considered for this neuroimmune communication are by individual molecules such as cytokines carried by blood, by neural transmission, or, in more severe pathologies, by the entry of peripheral immune cells into the brain. In addition, functional mRNA from peripheral blood can be directly transferred to neurons via extracellular vesicles (EVs), but the parameters that determine their uptake are unknown. Using varied animal models that stimulate neuronal activity by peripheral inflammation, optogenetics, and selective proteasome inhibition of dop…
Patterns of domain-specific learning among medical undergraduate students in relation to confidence in their physiology knowledge : insights from a pre–post study
Research FocusThe promotion of domain-specific knowledge is a central goal of higher education and, in the field of medicine, it is particularly essential to promote global health. Domain-specific knowledge on its own is not exhaustive; confidence regarding the factual truth of this knowledge content is also required. An increase in both knowledge and confidence is considered a necessary prerequisite for making professional decisions in the clinical context. Especially the knowledge of human physiology is fundamental and simultaneously critical to medical decision-making. However, numerous studies have shown difficulties in understanding and misconceptions in this area of knowledge. Therefo…
Positive Learning in the Internet Age: Developments and Perspectives in the PLATO Program
The Internet has become the main informational entity, i.e., a public source of information. The Internet offers many new benefits and opportunities for human learning, teaching, and research. However, by providing a vast amount of information from innumerable sources, it also enables the manipulation of information; there are countless examples of disseminated misinformation and false data in mass and social media. Much of the information presented online is conflicting, preselected, or algorithmically obscure, often colliding with fundamental humanistic values and posing moral or ethical problems.