Search results for "Choline"

Cholinesterase Activity and Hematological Parameters as Biomarkers of Sublethal Molinate Exposure in Anguilla anguilla

2000

Cholinesterase (ChE) activity was measured in plasma, whole blood [using 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) and 2-PDS as chromophores], brain, and whole eyes of Anguilla anguilla exposed to a sublethal concentration of 11.15 mg/L (one-third of the 96-h LC(50)) of the carbamate herbicide molinate. ChE activity was evaluated after 6, 24, 48, 72, and 96 h of pesticide exposure. Results indicated that ChE activity in eel tissues decreased as time of exposure increased, especially in eel blood. Eels exposed to molinate were transferred to a pesticide-free water for a recovery period of 4 days and ChE activity was also evaluated. Results indicated that ChE activity for those animals with preexpo…

Response and Recovery of Brain Acetylcholinesterase Activity in the European Eel,Anguilla anguilla,Exposed to Fenitrothion

1998

European eel (Anguilla anguilla) were exposed to sublethal fenitrothion concentrations in a continuous flow-through system for 4 days. Brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity was evaluated after 2, 8, 12, 24, 32, 48, 56, 72, and 96 h pesticide exposure. Results indicated that AChE activity in eel brains decreased as the concentration of fenitrothion increased. The pesticide induced significant inhibitory effects on the AChE activity ofA. anguilla,ranging from >40% inhibition at a sublethal concentration of 0.02 ppm to >60% inhibition at a sublethal concentration of 0.04 ppm. Eel were exposed to both fenitrothion concentrations for 96 h and then allowed a period of recovery in pesticide-f…

Sphingomyelin inhibition of Ciona intestinalis (Tunicata) cytotoxic hemocytes assayed against sheep erythrocytes

1995

Hemocytes from the ascidian, Ciona intestinalis, are capable of lysing erythrocytes in vitro following cell membrane contact. With the aim of examining the mechanism of cytotoxicity, we performed inhibition experiments with lipid components of erythrocyte membranes. Cholesterol is not an inhibitor, whereas, among the phospholipids tested, (sphingomyelin, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylethanolamine) sphingomyelin inhibits the hemolytic activity of hemocytes. However, thin layer chromatography showed that sphingomyelinase activity was not contained in the chloroform-methanol extracts from hemocyte debris. The inhibition capacity of the components ceramide and phosphorylc…

Central nicotinic receptors, neurotrophic factors and neuroprotection

2000

The multiple combinations of nAChR subunits identified in central nervous structures possess distinct pharmacological and physiological properties. A growing number of data have shown that compounds interacting with neuronal nAChRs have, both in vivo and in vitro, the potential to be neuroprotective and that treatment with nAChR agonists elicit long-lasting improving of cognitive performance in a variety of behavioural tests in rats, monkeys and humans. Epidemiological and clinical studies suggested also a potential neuroprotective/trophic role of (-)-nicotine in neurodegenerative disease, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Taken together experimental and clinical data largely ind…

Hsp60 is actively secreted by human tumor cells

2010

Background Hsp60, a Group I mitochondrial chaperonin, is classically considered an intracellular chaperone with residence in the mitochondria; nonetheless, in the last few years it has been found extracellularly as well as in the cell membrane. Important questions remain pertaining to extracellular Hsp60 such as how generalized is its occurrence outside cells, what are its extracellular functions and the translocation mechanisms that transport the chaperone outside of the cell. These questions are particularly relevant for cancer biology since it is believed that extracellular chaperones, like Hsp70, may play an active role in tumor growth and dissemination. Methodology/Principal Findings S…

Enzyme-Controlled Nanodevice for Acetylcholine-Triggered Cargo Delivery Based on Janus Au–Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles

2017

[EN] This work reports a new gated nanodevice for acetylcholine-triggered cargo delivery. We prepared and characterized Janus Au-mesoporous silica nanoparticles functionalized with acetylcholinesterase on the Au face and with supramolecular b-cyclodextrin: benzimidazole inclusion complexes as caps on the mesoporous silica face. The nanodevice is able to selectively deliver the cargo in the presence of acetylcholine via enzyme-mediated acetylcholine hydrolysis, locally lowering the pH and opening the supramolecular gate. Given the key role played by ACh and its relation with Parkinson's disease and other nervous system diseases, we believe that these findings could help design new therapeuti…

Nicotinic Receptors in Human Brain

1994

A vast knowledge is currently available on the molecular biology and the pharmacology of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) in the mammalian central nervous system (CNS) (Sargent, 1993). Only few attempts have been made to approach the expression of nAChRs at the level of functional systems, considering the different cell types involved and their connectivity. This aspect is of particular importance in order to evaluate nAChR expression under pathological conditions. Histochemical techniques have proven to be useful since immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization can be performed on human autopsy tissue and allow for a cell type-specific localization of nAChR proteins and nAChR …

Expression of muscarinic receptors on the murine embryonic stem cell line CGR8

2013

Murine muscle engineered from dermal precursors: an in vitro model for skeletal muscle generation, degeneration and fatty infiltration.

2013

Skeletal muscle can be engineered by converting dermal precursors into muscle progenitors and differentiated myocytes. However, the efficiency of muscle development remains relatively low and it is currently unclear if this is due to poor characterization of the myogenic precursors, the protocols used for cell differentiation, or a combination of both. In this study, we characterized myogenic precursors present in murine dermospheres, and evaluated mature myotubes grown in a novel three-dimensional culture system. After 5-7 days of differentiation, we observed isolated, twitching myotubes followed by spontaneous contractions of the entire tissue-engineered muscle construct on an extracellul…

Essential oil of Citrus lumia Risso: Phytochemical profile, antioxidant properties and activity on the central nervous system

2018

Citrus lumia Risso Essential oil Antioxidant properties Anti-cholinesterase activity Cytotoxicity Neuroactive effects 1. Introduction Plants that produce essential oils (EOs) represent a large part of natural flora and an important resource in various fields such as pharmaceutical, food and cosmetic industries, due to their flavor, fra- grance and biological activity (Swamy et al., 2016). EOs play a pivotal role in the growth and colonization of plants, giving color and scent to reproductive organs, attracting pollinators, favoring seed dispersion (Sharifi-Rad et al., 2017), and defending the plant against abiotic (light, temperature, etc.) and biotics (herbivores, harmful insects and pa- t…