Transplantation of bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells improves mechanical hyperalgesia, cold allodynia and nerve function in diabetic neuropathy

Relief from painful diabetic neuropathy is an important clinical issue. We have previously shown that the transplantation of cultured endothelial progenitor cells or mesenchymal stem cells ameliorated diabetic neuropathy in rats. In this study, we investigated whether transplantation of freshly isolated bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) alleviates neuropathic pain in the early stage of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Two weeks after STZ injection, BM-MNCs or vehicle saline were injected into the unilateral hind limb muscles. Mechanical hyperalgesia and cold allodynia in SD rats were measured as the number of foot withdrawals to von Frey hair stimulation and acetone application, respectively. Two weeks after the BM-MNC transplantation, sciatic motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV), sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV), sciatic nerve blood flow (SNBF), mRNA expressions and histology were assessed. The BM-MNC transplantation significantly ameliorated mechanical hyperalgesia and cold allodynia in the BM-MNC-injected side. Furthermore, the slowed MNCV/SNCV and decreased SNBF in diabetic rats were improved in the BM-MNC-injected side. BM-MNC transplantation improved the decreased mRNA expression of NT-3 and number of microvessels in the hind limb muscles. There was no distinct effect of BM-MNC transplantation on the intraepidermal nerve fiber density. These results suggest that autologous transplantation of BM-MNCs could be a novel strategy for the treatment of painful diabetic neuropathy.     

Dystrophin in rod spherules; submembranous dense regions facing bipolar cell processes

 It is known that the retina contains the protein dystrophin in the ribbon synapse, but the ultrastructural analysis is not yet fully elucidated. Our previous study reported that dystrophin is localized under the rod cell membranes in rat retinas. In the present study, we have investigated the relationship between dystrophin-rich regions of rod cell membranes and other neuronal processes in mouse retinas with a monoclonal antibody raised against the human dystrophin C-terminus. Immunoblotting, immunofluorescence stainings, and immunoelectron microscopy were employed. Immunoblotting analysis indicated that mouse retinas possessed some of the dystrophin isoforms of approximately 260 kDa, 140 kDa, and 70 kDa molecular weight. Confocal images showed a punctate appearance in the outer plexiform layer, as previously described. Immunoelectron microscopy showed that dystrophin immunoreactive products were always observed at submembranous dense regions of the rod spherule abutting bipolar processes. These results suggest that retinal dystrophin may be closely involved in signal transmission from rods to bipolar cells. Accepted: 7 May 1997     

The Electrophoretical Analysis of Esterase and Catalase and Its Use in Taxonomical Studies of Mycobacteria

The zymogram patterns of esterases and catalases of mycobacterial strains were studied using the thin layer agar electrophoresis. Though there were some variations, Mycobacterium hominis, M. bovis, M. kansasii, M. fortuitum, M. runyonii, M. avium, M. phlei and M. smegmatis seemed to show species-specific patterns consisting of 2 to 6 esterase bands and one or more catalase bands. The patterns of scotochromogens and nonchromogens were rather variable.     

Comparison of neuronal responses in primate inferior-temporal cortex and feed-forward deep neural network model with regard to information processing of faces

Journal of Computational Neuroscience - Feed-forward deep neural networks have better performance in object categorization tasks than other models of computer vision. To understand the relationship...     

An ESR contrast agent is transported to rat liver through organic anion transporter

Carboxy PROXYL is a useful extracellular paramagnetic contrast reagent in electron spin resonance (ESR) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Active transfer of the probe was investigated using an in situ liver model in rats. Carboxy PROXYL, a nitroxyl spin probe, was perfused into in situ liver perfusion system from Wistar rats. Concentration of nitroxyl form of the spin probe in effluent increased gradually after introducing perfusate with the spin probe and reached a plateau. The disappearance of Carboxy PROXYL from the perfusate was 40%, which could not be explained with its partition coefficient. Administration of non-selective inhibitors of organic anion transporters, p-aminohippuric acid and penicillin G, inhibited competitively and in a dose dependent manner the transfer of Carboxy PROXYL into rat liver in situ, resulting in increases of Carboxy PROXYL in the effluent. The results demonstrate that there is an active transfer system of an ESR contrast reagent into in situ rat liver through organic anion transporters.     

Development of preparative and analytical methods of the hop bitter acid oxide fraction and chemical properties of its components

The bitter acids in hops (Humulus lupulus L.) and beer, such as α-, β-, and iso-α-acids, are known to affect beer quality and display various physiological effects. However, these compounds readily oxidize, and the effect of the oxides on the properties of beer or their potential health benefits are not well understood. In this study, we developed a simple preparative method for the bitter acid oxide fraction derived from hops and designated the constituents as matured hop bitter acids (MHBA). HPLC-PDA-ESI/HRMS and MS² revealed that MHBA are primarily composed of α-acid-derived oxides, which possess a common β-tricarbonyl moiety in their structures similar to α-, β-, and iso-α-acids. We also developed a quantitative analytical method of whole MHBA by HPLC, which showed high precision and reproducibility. Using our newly developed method, the concentration of whole MHBA in several commercial beers was evaluated. Our results will promote the study of bitter acid oxides.