Search results for "Calcium"
showing 10 items of 1740 documents
Nanohydrogel Formation within the Halloysite Lumen for Triggered and Sustained Release
2018
An easy strategy to obtain nanohydrogels within the halloysite nanotube (HNTs) lumen was investigated. Inorganic reverse micelles based on HNTs and hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromides were dispersed in chloroform, and the hydrophilic cavity was used as a nanoreactor to confine the gel formation based on alginate cross-linked by calcium ions. Spectroscopy and electron microscopy experiments proved the confinement of the polymer into the HNT lumen and the formation of calcium-mediated networks. Biological tests proved the biocompatibility of the hybrid hydrogel. The nanogel in HNTs was suitable for drug loading and sustained release with the opportunity of triggered burst release by chemical …
Halloysite Nanotubes: Controlled Access and Release by Smart Gates
2017
© 2017 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Hollow halloysite nanotubes have been used as nanocontainers for loading and for the triggered release of calcium hydroxide for paper preservation. A strategy for placing end-stoppers into the tubular nanocontainer is proposed and the sustained release from the cavity is reported. The incorporation of Ca(OH) 2 into the nanotube lumen, as demonstrated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) mapping, retards the carbonatation, delaying the reaction with CO 2 gas. This effect can be further controlled by placing the end-stoppers. The obtained material is tested for paper deacidification. We…
Redox signaling in acute pancreatitis
2015
Acute pancreatitis is an inflammatory process of the pancreatic gland that eventually may lead to a severe systemic inflammatory response. A key event in pancreatic damage is the intracellular activation of NF-κB and zymogens, involving also calcium, cathepsins, pH disorders, autophagy, and cell death, particularly necrosis. This review focuses on the new role of redox signaling in acute pancreatitis. Oxidative stress and redox status are involved in the onset of acute pancreatitis and also in the development of the systemic inflammatory response, being glutathione depletion, xanthine oxidase activation, and thiol oxidation in proteins critical features of the disease in the pancreas. On th…
Resonance properties of different neuronal populations in the immature mouse neocortex
2012
In vivo recordings in the immature neocortex revealed spontaneous and sensory-driven oscillatory activity from delta (0.5-4 Hz) to gamma (30-100 Hz) frequencies. In order to investigate whether the resonance properties of distinct neuronal populations in the immature neocortex contribute to these network oscillations, we performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from visually identified neurons in tangential and coronal neocortical slices from postnatal day (P)0-P7 C57Bl/6 mice. Subthreshold resonance was analysed by sinusoidal current injection of varying frequency. All Cajal-Retzius cells showed subthreshold resonance, with an average frequency of 2.6 ± 0.1 Hz (n = 60), which was massiv…
Junctophilin-1 is a modifier gene of GDAP1-related Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.
2014
Mutations in the GDAP1 gene cause different forms of Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease, and the primary clinical expression of this disease is markedly variable in the dominant inheritance form (CMT type 2K; CMT2K), in which carriers of the GDAP1 p.R120W mutation can display a wide range of clinical severity. We investigated the JPH1 gene as a genetic modifier of clinical expression variability because junctophilin-1 (JPH1) is a good positional and functional candidate. We demonstrated that the JPH1-GDAP1 cluster forms a paralogon and is conserved in vertebrates. Moreover, both proteins play a role in Ca(2+) homeostasis, and we demonstrated that JPH1 is able to restore the store-operated Ca…
NG2-expressing cells in the nervous system revealed by the NG2-EYFP-knockin mouse.
2008
The NG2 glycoprotein is a type I membrane protein expressed by immature cells in the developing and adult mouse. NG2+ cells of the embryonic and adult brain have been principally viewed as oligodendrocyte precursor cells but have additionally been considered a fourth glial class. They are likely to be a heterogeneous population. In order to facilitate studies on the function of NG2+ cells and to characterize these cells in situ, we generated an enhanced yellow fluorescent protein (EYFP) “knockin mouse.” EYFP-expressing cells in heterozygous knockin mice expressed the NG2 protein in all regions and at all ages studied. The EYFP+ cells did not express markers of mature glia, developing or mat…
Expression analysis of jagged genes in zebrafish embryos
2005
The interaction of transmembrane Delta and Jagged/Serrate ligands with Notch receptors on neighboring cells is critically involved in cell specification during development. In zebrafish, the early expression of delta but not of jagged genes has been investigated in some detail. We have analyzed the sequence and embryonic expression pattern of the three zebrafish genes jagged1a, jagged1b, and jagged2. These genes, whose transcripts are detectable by in situ hybridization from early somitogenesis, are widely and dynamically expressed in embryos. Coexpression is limited, however, to the notochord and lens (jagged1a and jagged1b) and to the otic vesicle and pronephros (jagged1b and jagged2). Co…
Different α2δ Accessory Subunits Regulate Distinctly Different Aspects of Calcium Channel Function in the Same Drosophila Neurons
2019
AbstractVoltage gated calcium channels (VGCCs) regulate neuronal excitability and translate activity into calcium dependent intracellular signaling. The pore forming α1subunit of high voltage activated (HVA) VGCCs operates not in isolation but associates with α2δ accessory subunits. α2δ subunits can affect calcium channel biophysical properties, surfacing, localization and transport, but theirin vivofunctions are incompletely understood. In vertebrates, it is largely unknown whether different combinations of the four α2δ and the 7 α1subunits mediate different or partially redundant functions or whether different α1/α2δ combinations regulate different aspects of VGCC function. This study cap…
Are dendrites in Drosophila homologous to vertebrate dendrites?
2005
AbstractDendrites represent arborising neurites in both vertebrates and invertebrates. However, in vertebrates, dendrites develop on neuronal cell bodies, whereas in higher invertebrates, they arise from very different neuronal structures, the primary neurites, which also form the axons. Is this anatomical difference paralleled by principal developmental and/or physiological differences? We address this question by focussing on one cellular model, motorneurons of Drosophila and characterise the compartmentalisation of these cells. We find that motorneuronal dendrites of Drosophila share with typical vertebrate dendrites that they lack presynaptic but harbour postsynaptic proteins, display c…
FRET based ratiometric Ca(2+) imaging to investigate immune-mediated neuronal and axonal damage processes in experimental autoimmune encephalomyeliti…
2015
Abstract Background Irreversible axonal and neuronal damage are the correlate of disability in patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS). A sustained increase of cytoplasmic free [Ca2+] is a common upstream event of many neuronal and axonal damage processes and could represent an early and potentially reversible step. New method We propose a method to specifically analyze the neurodegenerative aspects of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by Forster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) imaging of neuronal and axonal Ca2+ dynamics by two-photon laser scanning microscopy (TPLSM). Results Using the genetically encoded Ca2+ sensor TN-XXL expressed in neurons and their corresponding axo…