Search results for "Musculoskeletal"
showing 10 items of 1714 documents
Nondestructive fluorescence-based quantification of threose-induced collagen cross-linking in bovine articular cartilage.
2012
Extensive collagen cross-linking affects the mechanical competence of articular cartilage: it can make the cartilage stiffer and more brittle. The concentrations of the best known cross-links, pyridinoline and pentosidine, can be accurately determined by destructive high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). We explore a nondestructive evaluation of cross-linking by using the intrinsic fluorescence of the intact cartilage. Articular cartilage samples from bovine knee joints were incubated in threose solution for 40 and 100 h to increase the collagen cross-linking. Control samples without threose were also prepared. Excitation-emission matrices at wavelengths of 220 to 950 nm were acquir…
The ultrastructure of articular cartilage of the chicken's knee joint
1993
The articular cartilage and synovial membrane of immature and mature chicken knee joints were studied by light, scanning and transmission microscopy. The findings differed from human articular cartilage and we conclude that the chicken knee joint is not suitable as a model for human joint degeneration.
Reversible stress-induced lipid body formation in fast twitch rat myofibers
2012
We analyzed the existence of lipid bodies (LBs) in the fast twitch rat flexor digitorum brevis (FDB) myofibers and found that these structures were scarce. However, isolation procedure of the myofibers, heath shock, viral infection or the glycosylation inhibitor tunicamycin induced formation of the LBs, which were stationary structures flanking Z lines. We next infected FDB myofibers with recombinant Semliki Forest virus expressing caveolin 3-yellow fluorescent protein (cav3-YFP) since this chimeric protein was targeted to the LBs facilitating their further analysis. Photobleaching experiments showed that the LBs recovered cav 3-YFP extremely slowly, indicating that they were not continuous…
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…
Alternative splicing products of the tenascin gene distinguish rat liver fat storing cells from arterial smooth muscle cells and skin fibroblasts
1992
Abstract Fat storing-(Ito-)cells (FSC) transform into a myofibroblast-like cell type during liver fibrogenesis. A similar development can be observed in cell culture. At the moment, a definite marker to differentiate transformed FSC from smooth muscle cells (SMC) is not available. We recently found that FSC, SMC and skin fibroblasts (SF) synthesize tenascin, a novel matrix protein. As it is reported that various tissues express different tenascin forms by the mechanism of alternative pre-mRNA splicing, we analyzed the tenascin transcripts in these cell types. Total RNA extracted from cultured FSC, SMC and SF, analyzed by Northern blot hybridization, showed a 7.2 kb transcript in FSC, a 8.7 …
AAV vector-mediated overexpression of CB1 cannabinoid receptor in pyramidal neurons of the hippocampus protects against seizure-induced excitoxicity.
2010
The CB1 cannabinoid receptor is the most abundant G-protein coupled receptor in the brain and a key regulator of neuronal excitability. There is strong evidence that CB1 receptor on glutamatergic hippocampal neurons is beneficial to alleviate epileptiform seizures in mouse and man. Therefore, we hypothesized that experimentally increased CB1 gene dosage in principal neurons would have therapeutic effects in kainic acid (KA)-induced hippocampal pathogenesis. Here, we show that virus-mediated conditional overexpression of CB1 receptor in pyramidal and mossy cells of the hippocampus is neuroprotective and moderates convulsions in the acute KA seizure model in mice. We introduce a recombinant a…
Tenectin, a novel extracellular matrix protein expressed during Drosophila melanogaster embryonic development
2006
1567-133X (Print) Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; During Drosophila embryonic development, various morphogenetic processes require the remodeling of the extracellular matrix. In a previous study, we have identified and characterized a cDNA encoding a novel putative extracellular matrix protein named tenebrin, in the beetle Tenebrio molitor. Here, we examine the expression of the Drosophila ortholog, referred to as Tenectin (Tnc), during embryonic development. Tnc is expressed in the majority of tissues of neuroectodermic origin such as hindgut, foregut, tracheal system, anal plate, and CNS. In the CNS, the Tnc transcript is restricted to a few cells, whereas the protein is…
Polysialic acid is required for dopamine D2 receptor-mediated plasticity involving inhibitory circuits of the rat medial prefrontal cortex.
2011
Decreased expression of dopamine D2 receptors (D2R), dysfunction of inhibitory neurotransmission and impairments in the structure and connectivity of neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) are involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and major depression, but the relationship between these changes remains unclear. The polysialylated form of the neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM), a plasticity-related molecule, may serve as a link. This molecule is expressed in cortical interneurons and dopamine, via D2R, modulates its expression in parallel to that of proteins related to synapses and inhibitory neurotransmission, suggesting that D2R-targeted antipsychotics/antidepressants…
Central pain processing in patients with shoulder pain : a review of the literature
2017
Background Shoulder pain is a common health problem in which changes in shoulder structure cannot always explain the patient's perceived pain. Central sensitization (CS) might play a role in a subgroup of these patients. Methods The literature was systematically reviewed to address the role of CS in patients with shoulder pain. Electronic databases PubMed and Web of Knowledge were searched for relevant studies. Results Eighteen full-text articles were included, methodological quality was scored, and information was extracted. Studies were clustered on those studying patients with musculoskeletal (MSK) shoulder pain and those studying patients with hemiplegic shoulder pain (HSP). In particul…
Effectiveness of Neural Mobilization Techniques in the Management of Musculoskeletal Neck Disorders with Nerve-Related Symptoms: A Systematic Review …
2021
Abstract Objective The objective was to assess the effectiveness of neural mobilization (NM) techniques in the management of musculoskeletal neck disorders with nerve-related symptoms (MND-NRS). Methods We conducted a systematic review with meta-analysis, using pain intensity, disability, perceived function, cervical range of motion, and mechanosensitivity as the main outcome measures. Results The systematic review included 22 studies (n = 978). More favorable outcomes were observed for NM on pain intensity compared with control interventions (standardized mean differences (SMDs) −0.92; 95% CI −1.66−0.18), but not compared with other treatments (OTs) (SMD 1.06; 95% CI −0.02 to 2.15). Regard…