Search results for " Neurosurgery"

Detection, Analysis, and Quantification of GPCR Homo- and Heteroreceptor Complexes in Specific Neuronal Cell Populations Using the In Situ Proximity …

2018

GPCR’s receptosome operates via coordinated changes between the receptor expression, their modifications and interactions between each other. Perturbation in specific heteroreceptor complexes and/or their balance/equilibrium with other heteroreceptor complexes and corresponding homoreceptor complexes is considered to have a role in pathogenic mechanisms. Such mechanisms lead to mental and neurological diseases, including drug addiction, depression, Parkinson’s disease, and schizophrenia. To understand the associations of GPCRs and to unravel the global picture of their receptor–receptor interactions in the brain, different experimental detection techniques for receptor–receptor interactions…

A unique view of SARS-CoV-2 through the lens of ORF8 protein

2021

Immune evasion is one of the unique characteristics of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) attributed to its ORF8 protein. This protein modulates the adaptive host immunity through down-regulation of MHC-1 (Major Histocompatibility Complex) molecules and innate immune responses by surpassing the host's interferon-mediated antiviral response. To understand the host's immune perspective concerning the ORF8 protein, a comprehensive study of the ORF8 protein and mutations possessed by it have been performed. Chemical and structural properties of ORF8 proteins from different hosts, such as human, bat, and pangolin, suggest that the ORF8 of SARS-CoV-2 is much closer to OR…

Hearing Without Neuroglobin.

2017

Abstract Neuroglobin (Ngb) is a member of the globin family of respiratory proteins, which was recently observed in many neurons of the auditory pathways. Up to now, however, nothing was known about the role of Ngb in hearing processes. We therefore studied auditory function by recording distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) and auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) in wild-type (C57BL/6N) and Ngb-knockout mice. In KO mice, DPOAE thresholds were moderately augmented in the range of 5–18 kHz, reaching statistical significance at 8 and 10 kHz, while the ABR thresholds were not different between groups. The activation of the efferent system by an additional noise given to the contrala…

Molecular Biology of Atherosclerotic Ischemic Strokes

2020

Among the causes of global death and disability, ischemic stroke (also known as cerebral ischemia) plays a pivotal role, by determining the highest number of worldwide mortality, behind cardiomyopathies, affecting 30 million people. The etiopathogenetic burden of a cerebrovascular accident could be brain ischemia (~80%) or intracranial hemorrhage (~20%). The most common site when ischemia occurs is the one is perfused by middle cerebral arteries. Worse prognosis and disablement consequent to brain damage occur in elderly patients or affected by neurological impairment, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes. Since, in the coming years, estimates predict an exponential increase of people w…

2020

Wheat amylase trypsin inhibitors (ATIs) represent a common dietary protein component of gluten-containing cereals (wheat, rye, and barley). They act as toll-like receptor 4 ligands, and are largely resistant to intestinal proteases, eliciting a mild inflammatory response within the intestine after oral ingestion. Importantly, nutritional ATIs exacerbated inflammatory bowel disease and features of fatty liver disease and the metabolic syndrome in mice. For Alzheimer’s disease (AD), both inflammation and altered insulin resistance are major contributing factors, impacting onset as well as progression of this devastating brain disorder in patients. In this study, we evaluated the impact of die…

The 40-Year Mystery of Insect Odorant-Binding Proteins

2021

International audience; The survival of insects depends on their ability to detect molecules present in their environment. Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) form a family of proteins involved in chemoreception. While OBPs were initially found in olfactory appendages, recently these proteins were discovered in other chemosensory and non-chemosensory organs. OBPs can bind, solubilize and transport hydrophobic stimuli to chemoreceptors across the aqueous sensilla lymph. In addition to this broadly accepted “transporter role”, OBPs can also buffer sudden changes in odorant levels and are involved in hygro-reception. The physiological roles of OBPs expressed in other body tissues, such as mouthpar…

Chronic Stress Modulates Interneuronal Plasticity: Effects on PSA-NCAM and Perineuronal Nets in Cortical and Extracortical Regions.

2018

Chronic stress has an important impact on the adult brain. However, most of the knowledge on its effects is focused on principal neurons and less on inhibitory neurons. Consequently, recent reports have begun to describe stress-induced alterations in the structure, connectivity and neurochemistry of interneurons. Some of these changes appear to be mediated by certain molecules particularly associated to interneurons, such as the polysialylated form of the neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) and components of the perineuronal nets (PNN), specialized regions of the extracellular matrix. These plasticity-related molecules modulate interneuronal structure and connectivity, particularly of …

Phenotypic characterization of MCP-1 expressing neurons in the rat cerebral cortex.

2020

Chemokines are small, secreted molecules that mediate inflammatory reactions. Neurons and astrocytes constitutively express chemokines implicated in the process of neuroinflammation associated with neurodegenerative diseases. The monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) has been widely related to this process. However, the constitutive expression of this molecule by neurons has not been elucidated so far. In this study, we set out to characterize the neurochemical phenotype of MCP-1-expressing neurons in the rat neocortex to infer its role in basal conditions. We observed the presence of two populations of neurons expressing MCP-1: One population of cells with weak expression of MCP-1 cor…

Course of serum autoantibodies in patients after acute angle-closure glaucoma attack

2017

Background The aim of our current investigation was to analyze the autoantibody -reactivities of patients after acute angle closure glaucoma (AACG) by means of a protein microarray approach to identify intraocular pressure (IOP)-dependent antibodies. Methods Collected sera from different study time points (AACG n = 6, 0, 2, 4 and 12 weeks) and control group (CTRL n = 11, 0 and 12 weeks) were analyzed. Protein-microarrays were incubated with sera and occurring immunoreactivities were visualized with fluorescence labeled anti-human-IgG antibodies. To detect changes, spot intensities were digitized and compared with statistical techniques. Results Three autoantibodies with significant level-al…

Neuroprotective and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of a Hydrophilic Saffron Extract in a Model of Glaucoma

2019

Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). An increase in the intraocular pressure is the principal risk factor for such loss, but controlling this pressure does not always prevent glaucomatous damage. Activation of immune cells resident in the retina (microglia) may contribute to RGC death. Thus, a substance with anti-inflammatory activity may protect against RGC degeneration. This study investigated the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects of a hydrophilic saffron extract standardized to 3% crocin content in a mouse model of unilateral, laser-induced ocular hypertension (OHT). Treatment with saffron extract decreased microg…