A mouse model of Bardet-Biedl Syndrome has impaired fear memory,which is rescued by lithium treatment

Primary cilia are microtubule-based organelles present on most cells that regulate many physiological processes, ranging from maintaining energy homeostasis to renal function. However, the role of these structures in the regulation of behavior remains unknown. To study the role of cilia in behavior, we employ mouse models of the human ciliopathy, Bardet-Biedl Syndrome (BBS). Here, we demonstrate that BBS mice have significant impairments in context fear conditioning, a form of associative learning. Moreover, we show that postnatal deletion of BBS gene function, as well as congenital deletion, specifically in the forebrain, impairs context fear conditioning. Analyses indicated that these behavioral impairments are not the result of impaired hippocampal long-term potentiation. However, our results indicate that these behavioral impairments are the result of impaired hippocampal neurogenesis. Two-week treatment with lithium chloride partially restores the proliferation of hippocampal neurons which leads to a rescue of context fear conditioning. Overall, our results identify a novel role of cilia genes in hippocampal neurogenesis and long-term context fear conditioning.     

Effect of Fe and Cd Co-Exposure on Testicular Steroid Metabolism,Morphometry, and Spermatogenesis in Mice

Biological Trace Element Research - The mechanism of testicular toxicity of simultaneous multiple exposures to metals is poorly understood. Previous studies reported that the toxic effect of...     

Application of creeping flow through a linearly absorbing slit filled with porous medium to diseased renal tubules

Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology - In this paper, we have discussed the flow of a Newtonian fluid through a slit filled with porous medium and linearly reabsorbing porous walls. The...     

IND-enzymes: a repository for hydrolytic enzymes derived from thermophilic and psychrophilic bacterial species with potential industrial usage

Extremophiles - Biocatalysts provide many advantages over the traditional chemically assisted processes prevalent in industries. Consequently, the search for novel enzymes has increased over the...     

Study of parameters implicated in the biodeterioration of mild steel in the presence of different species of sulphate-reducing bacteria

Two different species of sulphate-reducing bacteria, strain classified by NCIMB as Desulfovibrio desulfuricans subspecies desulfuricans New Jersey (8313) isolated from the corroding heat exchanger, and SRB species recovered from a corroding ship hull anchored off the Indonesian coast (Indo isolate) were grown as laboratory batch cultures. Several factors such as the surface finish of substratum, metabolic activity of planktonic and sessile bacterial populations, initial attachment of cells to surfaces and subsequent formation of biofilms on the process of biodeterioration of mild steel in the presence of these two different species of SRB were investigated. The corrosion rates of mild steel were estimated by weight loss measurements and correlated with the density of sessile SRB population. The yield and composition of extracellular polymers released into the bulk phase of culture media were determined and the amount of dissolved hydrogen sulphide was monitored. The results revealed differences between SRB species in their aggressiveness towards mild steel under identical growth conditions, emphasising the importance of biochemistry and physiology of SRB for the biocorrosion process. Biochemical and genetic characterisation of SRB isolates chosen for this study are currently in progress.