A Contemplative Biofeedback Intervention for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Feasibility of a Community-Based Treatment

Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback - As the number of diagnosed adults living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) continues to grow, a lack of resources and lack of available interventions...     

Comparison of gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric and microbiological assays for 5-fluorouracil in plasma

The concentrations of 5-fluorouracil in 99 plasma samples were determined by both microbiological and gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric assays. The values determined by the two methods were similar (correlation coefficient = 0.90). A regression of the natural logarithms of the concentrations (0.01-94 micrograms ml-1) determined by the two methods gave a line whose slope and intercept were not statistically different (p greater than 0.05) from 1 and 0 respectively. Thus, the microbiological assay has specificity over a sufficient concentration range to serve as a practical routine laboratory method for the determination of 5-fluorouracil.     

Trem2 restrains the enhancement of tau accumulation and neurodegeneration by β-amyloid pathology

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Glucocorticoid-induced alterations in collagen of neonatal mouse condylar cartilage

Neonatal mice were treated with a single dose of triamcinolone hexacetonide, a long-acting synthetic analogue of cortisol, and their mandibular condyles were studied ultrastructurally ten days thereafter. A pronounced decrease in the number and size of matrix granules (proteoglycans) was found in the cartilaginous matrix of triamcinolone-treated condyles. In contrast, a marked increase concomitant with significant structural changes was noted in collagen fibrils. An obvious enhancement of collagen fibrillogenesis was noticed in the pre-mineralizing extracellular matrix. Atypical, wider than normal, banded collagen fibrils were found to form dense meshworks which appeared to lack any specific orientation or organization. It is proposed that glucocorticoid hormones, given systemically to neonatal mice, interfere with regulatory mechanisms involved with the biosynthesis of cartilaginous matrical macromolecules, i.e., proteoglycans and collagen and thereby promote certain aging processes within active growth centers.     

Gene silencing of mannose 6-phosphate reductase in the parasitic weed Orobanche aegyptiaca through the production of homologous dsRNA sequences in the host plant

Orobanche spp. (broomrape) are parasitic plants which subsist on the roots of a wide range of hosts, including tomato, causing severe losses in yield quality and quantity. Large amounts of mannitol accumulate in this parasitic weed during development. Mannose 6-phosphate reductase (M6PR) is a key enzyme in mannitol biosynthesis, and it has been suggested that mannitol accumulation may be very important for Orobanche development. Therefore, the Orobanche M6PR gene is a potential target for efforts to control this parasite. Transgenic tomato plants were produced bearing a gene construct containing a specific 277-bp fragment from Orobanche aegyptiaca M6PR-mRNA, in an inverted-repeat configuration. M6PR-siRNA was detected in three independent transgenic tomato lines in the R1 generation, but was not detected in the parasite. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis showed that the amount of endogenous M6PR mRNA in the tubercles and underground shoots of O. aegyptiaca grown on transgenic host plants was reduced by 60%–80%. Concomitant with M6PR mRNA suppression, there was a significant decrease in mannitol level and a significant increase in the percentage of dead O. aegyptiaca tubercles on the transgenic host plants. The detection of mir390, which is involved with cytoplasmic dsRNA processing, is the first indication of the existence of gene-silencing mechanisms in Orobanche spp. Gene silencing mechanisms are probably involved with the production of decreased levels of M6PR mRNA in the parasites grown on the transformed tomato lines.     

Effects of different concentrations of serum on cartilage growth in an organ culture system

Summary The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of various concentrations of serum on the behavior of neonatal condylar cartilage when cultured in an organ culture system. Mandibular condylar cartilages were obtained from newborn ICR mice, of which the zone of undifferentiated chondroprogenitor cells along with a few layers of young cartilage cells were cultivated at the medium-air interface. The incubation medium included fetal bovine serum at concentrations ranging from 0 to 10%, and the explants were kept in vitro up to 10 d. The serum-free medium maintained the chondrogenic expression, and the overall size of the cartilagenous protion of the explants increased with the decrease of the concentrations of serum in the medium. When explants were labeled with [³H]thymidine and were then processed for autoradiography, the peak of labeling was noticed at 48 h, a feature that recapitulated itself in all cultures (73, 140, 175, 201, and 129 labeled cells per chondroprogenitor zone in explants grown in 0, 1, 2.5, 5, and 10%, respectively). It can be concluded that serum-free medium maintains the chondrogenic phenotype of condylar cartilage in vitro. This study was supported in part by a research grant from the Gesellschaft fur Biotechnologische Forschung mbH, Braunschweig-Stockheim, Federal Republic of Germany.     

Multiple sclerosis risk gene Mertk is required for microglial activation and subsequent remyelination

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