Distribution of zinc metallothionein I mRNA in rat brain using in situ hybridization

Metallothionein (MT) isoforms I and II were first identified and characterized in our laboratories in several regions of brain, in hippocampal neurons in primary culture, and in retinoblastoma and neuroblastoma cell lines. In this study, by having employed the MT-I cDNA as a probe, we sought to gain additional insight about the function of MT by discerning the regional distribution of its mRNA. Northern blot analyses of brain mRNA revealed that the administration of zinc enhanced dramatically MT-I mRNA (570 bp). The in situ hybridization study revealed that MT-I mRNA was located in several areas of brain, with the highest concentrations found in the cerebellum, hippocampus, and ventricles. The results of these studies are interpreted to suggest that zinc enhances the synthesis of MT mRNA and MT in turn may participate in zinc associated functions in neurons.Abbreviations MT-I Metallothionein I isoform - mRNA Messenger ribonucleic acid - ³⁵S dCTP ³⁵S Deoxycytidine triphosphate - ³²P dCTP ³²P Deoxycytidine triphosphate - icv Intracerebroventricularly - IP Intraperitoneally - PBS Paraformaldehyde phosphate buffered saline solution - Tris 2 amino-2-hydroxymethylpropane-1,3 diol - EDTA Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid - cDNA Complimentary deoxyribonucleic acid - bp Base pair     

运动结构背景对视觉系统神经元反应的调制作用

对蟾蜍的５６个视顶盖神经元的视觉反应进行了定量考察和分析,发现它们不仅对黑目标起反应,也对结构目标起反应．同相运动的结构背景使５３．５％的神经元的反应完全抑制,而异相运动则只有１０％的神经元完全被抑制,却有２１．６％的神经元反应增强．遮盖感受野（ＲＦ）中心区,则同相运动使某些细胞脱抑制,而异相运动使其抑制强度稍有增强．遮盖ＲＦ的外周区,几乎全部研究过的神经元对结构背景运动本身也起反应。本研究还发现,如果预先将一目标放在兴奋性感受野（ＥＲＦ）中央静止不动,并使结构背景在水平方向匀速移动较长时间后突然停止运动,则被研究过的６６个视盖神经元中有２９个发放一串脉冲,即神经元的运动后放电．各个神经细胞放电的脉冲多寡不一。若在ＥＲＦ中央不放置静止目标,仅是结构背景的水平运动不能诱发放电．此效应的出现,既与目标背景间反差符号（即目标为白色或黑色）无关,也与背景的运动方向无关。为诱发这一效应,不仅要求背景运动时间较长（至少在２０秒以上）,而且目标的面积要有足够大。     

Target determination of neurotransmitter phenotype in sympathetic neurons

While the majority of sympathetic neurons are noradrenergic, a minority population are cholinergic. At least one population of cholinergic sympathetic neurons arises during development by a target-dependent conversion from an initial noradrenergic phenotype. Evidence for retrograde specification has been obtained from transplantation studies in which sympathetic neurons that normally express a noradrenergic phenotype throughout life were induced to innervate sweat glands, a target normally innervated by cholinergic sympathetic neurons. This was accomplished by transplanting footpad skin containing sweat gland primordia from early postnatal donor rats to the hairy skin region of host rats. The sympathetic neurons innervating the novel target decreased their expression of noradrenergif traints and developed choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity. In addition, many sweat gland-associated fibers acquired acetylcholinesterase (AChE) staining and VIP immunoreactivity. These studies indicated that sympathetic neurons in vivo alter their neurotransmitter phenotype in response to novel envronmental signals and that sweat glands play a critical role in the cholinergic and peptidergic differentiation of the sympathetic neurons that innervate them. The sweat gland-derived cholinergic differentiation factor is distinct from leukemia inhibitory factor and ciliary neurotrophic factor, two well-characterized cytokines that alter the neurotransmitter properties of cultured sympathetic neurons in a similar fashion. Recent studies indicate that anterograde signalling is also important for the establishment of functional synapses in this system. We have found that the production of cholinergic differentiation activity by sweat glands required sympathetic innervation, and the acquisition and maintenance of secretory competence by sweat glands depends upon functional cholinergic innervation. 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Regulation of vasoactive intestinal peptide expression in sympathetic neurons in culture and after axotomy: The role of cholinergic differentiation factor/leukemia inhibitory factor

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) expression increases in sympathetic neurons when they are grown in dissociated cell or explant cultures and when they are axotomized in vivo. In dissociated cell culture, the magnitude of the VIP increase was reduced when nonneuronal cells were removed and medium conditioned by ganglionic nonneuronal cells increased VIP in neuron-enriched cultures. Antiserum Against cholinergic differentiation factor (also leukemia inhibitory factor; CDF/LIF), but not against ciliary neurotrophic factor, immunoprecipitated this activity. Medium conditioned by sympathetic ganglion explants also contained a VIP-stimulatory molecule that was immunoprecipitated by CDF/LIF antiserum, and CDF/LIF antiserum partially blocked VIP induction in explants. CDF/LIF mRNA was increased in dissociated cell cultures, in ganglion explants and in vivo after axotomy. Our results suggest that CDF/LIF released from ganglionic nonneuronal cells plays an important role in regulating VIP after axotomy. 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Nitric Oxide Synthase Activity Endogenously Modulates NMDA Receptors

Abstract: We tested the possibility that endogenous nitric oxide synthase activity regulated NMDA receptors in primary cultured striatal neurons. We monitored NMDA-induced increase in intra-cellular Ca²⁺ levels with fura-2 ratio imaging, while nitric oxide synthase activity was either increased with l -arginihe (the natural substrate of nitric oxide synthase) or inhibited using nitro- l -arginine (a specific inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase). We found that the NMDA receptor effect was slowly but strongly diminished after an l -arginine (1 m M , 15 min) treatment ( l -arginine preincubation reduced the 100 μM NMDA-induced maximal effect by 30–50%). The l -arginine blockade of NMDA receptors was long-lasting but could be partially reversed by hemoglobin (100 μM , 10 min), which binds nitric oxide. This was not observed when the neurons were treated with l -arginine together with nitro- l -arginine. Our data strongly suggest that physiological nitric oxide synthase activity could regulate NMDA receptors.     

Tachykinins Potentiate N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Responses in Acutely Isolated Neurons from the Dorsal Horn

Abstract: Substance P and neurokinin A both potentiated N -methyl- d -aspartate (NMDA)-induced currents recorded in acutely isolated neurons from the dorsal horn of the rat. To elucidate the mechanism underlying this phenomenon, we measured the effects of tachykinins and glutamate receptor agonists on [Ca²⁺]_i in these cells. Substance P, but not neurokinin A, increased [Ca²⁺]_i in a subpopulation of neurons. The increase in [Ca²⁺]_i was found to be due to Ca²⁺ influx through voltage-sensitive Ca²⁺ channels. Substance P and neurokinin A also potentiated the increase in [Ca²⁺]_i produced by NMDA, but not by α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid, kainate, or 50 m M K⁺. Phorbol esters enhanced the effects of NMDA and staurosporine inhibited the potentiation of NMDA effects by tachykinins. It is concluded that activation of protein kinase C may mediate the enhancement of NMDA effects by tachykinins in these cells. However, the effects of tachykinins on [Ca²⁺]_i can be dissociated from their effects on NMDA receptors.     

Differences in growth of neurons from normal and regenerated teleost spinal cord in vitro

Summary Explants and dissociated cells from normal adult spinal cord and regenerating cord of the teleostApteronotus albifrons were grown in vitro for periods of 8 to 12 wk. During this time the neurons showed extensive neurite outgrowth. Neurite outgrowth from tissue explants and dissociated cells of regenerated spinal cord starts sooner and is more profuse than that from normal (unregenerated) cord. Neurite outgrowth is maximized by using adhesive substrata and a high density of explants or dissociated cells. Inasmuch asApteronotus does regenerate its spinal cord naturally after injury, whereas mammals do not, this culture system will be useful to study factors that control (permit) regeneration of spinal neurons in this adult vertebrate.     

Uptake and metabolism of glutamate and aspartate by astroglial and neuronal preparations of rat cerebellum

Astrocytes, neuronal perikarya and synaptosomes were prepared from rat cerebellum. Kinetics of high and low affinity uptake systems of glutamate and aspartate, nominal rates of¹⁴CO₂ production from [U–¹⁴C]glutamate, [U–¹⁴C]aspartate and [1–¹⁴C]glutamate and activities of enzymes of glutamate metabolism were studied in these preparations. The rate of uptake and the nomial rate of production of¹⁴CO₂ from these amino acids was higher in the astroglia than neuronal perikarya and synaptosomes. Activities of glutamine synthetase and glutamate dehydrogenase were higher in astrocytes than in neuronal perikarya and synaptosomes. Activities of glutaminase and glutamic acid decarboxylase were observed to be highest in neuronal perikarya and synaptosomes respectively. These results are in agreement with the postulates of theory of metabolic compartmentation of glutamate while others (presence of glutaminase in astrocytes and glutamine synthetase in synaptosomes) are not. Results of this study also indicated that (i) at high extracellular concentrations, glutamate/aspartate uptake may be predominantly into astrocytes while at low extracellular concentrations, it would be into neurons (ii) production of -ketoglutarate from glutamate is chiefly by way of transamination but not by oxidative deamination in these three preparations and (iii) there are topographical differences glutamate metabolism within the neurons.     

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) pathways and reproductive control in elasmobranchs

Synopsis Immunoreactive (ir) gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is localized in many neurons of the terminal nerve (TN) and midbrain tegmentum, while few ir-cells are observed in the preoptic area and ventral hypothalamus. The paucity of preoptic ir-cells may relate to an unusual feature of the elasmobranch pituitary, i.e. a lack of portal control of gonadotropin-producing cells. TN and midbrain GnRH-ir neurons may be major sources of GnRH used to modulate or otherwise control both pituitary and brain cells via delivery through the systemic circulation. These ir-nuclei also appear to directly innervate CNS regions (the preoptic area, habenula and clasper control area of the spinal cord) involved in sexual functions. Important regulatory mechanisms, represented by interactions between GnRH pathways and sex-steroid concentrating neurons, are likely to occur in the preoptic area, habenula and midbrain tegmentum.     

动态神经网络中的同步振荡

目前有一种假设认为同一视觉对象是由一群神经元的同步振荡活动来表征的。这一神经元发放活动的时间特性,是解决视觉信息处理中“结合问题（Ｂｉｎｄｉｎｇｐｒｏｂｌｅｍ）”的可能机制。本文用我们所提出的一种简化现实性神经网络模型［１］所构造的时滞非线性振子网络［２］,模拟生物神经网络的同步振荡活动。并考虑了振子各参数的设置与振荡活动的关系,以及网络振子间耦联对同步活动的影响．