Effect of Cardiac Arrest on Cognitive Impairment and Hippocampal Plasticity in Middle-Aged Rats

Cardiopulmonary arrest is a leading cause of death and disability in the United States that usually occurs in the aged population. Cardiac arrest (CA) induces global ischemia, disrupting global cerebral circulation that results in ischemic brain injury and leads to cognitive impairments in survivors. Ischemia-induced neuronal damage in the hippocampus following CA can result in the impairment of cognitive function including spatial memory. In the present study, we used a model of asphyxial CA (ACA) in nine month old male Fischer 344 rats to investigate cognitive and synaptic deficits following mild global cerebral ischemia. These experiments were performed with the goals of 1) establishing a model of CA in nine month old middle-aged rats; and 2) to test the hypothesis that learning and memory deficits develop following mild global cerebral ischemia in middle-aged rats. To test this hypothesis, spatial memory assays (Barnes circular platform maze and contextual fear conditioning) and field recordings (long-term potentiation and paired-pulse facilitation) were performed. We show that following ACA in nine month old middle-aged rats, there is significant impairment in spatial memory formation, paired-pulse facilitation n dysfunction, and a reduction in the number of non-compromised hippocampal Cornu Ammonis 1 and subiculum neurons. In conclusion, nine month old animals undergoing cardiac arrest have impaired survival, deficits in spatial memory formation, and synaptic dysfunction.     

Lateral Dispersal and Foraging Behavior of Entomopathogenic Nematodes in the Absence and Presence of Mobile and Non-Mobile Hosts

Entomopathogenic nematodes have been classified into cruisers (active searchers) and ambushers (sit and wait foragers). However, little is known about their dispersal and foraging behavior at population level in soil. We studied lateral dispersal of the ambush foraging Steinernema carpocapsae (ALL strain) and cruise foraging Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (GPS11 strain) from infected host cadavers in microcosms (0.05 m²) containing Wooster silt-loam soil (Oxyaquic fragiudalf) and vegetation in the presence or absence of non-mobile and mobile hosts. Results showed that the presence of a non-mobile host (Galleria mellonella larva in a wire mesh cage) enhanced H. bacteriophora dispersal for up to 24 hr compared with no-host treatment, but had no impact on S. carpocapsae dispersal. In contrast, presence of a mobile host (G. mellonella larvae) increased dispersal of S. carpocapsae compared with no host treatment, but had no effect on H. bacteriophora dispersal. Also H. bacteriophora was better at infecting non-mobile than mobile hosts released into the microcosms and S. carpocapsae was better at infecting mobile than non-mobile hosts, thus affirming the established cruiser-ambusher theory. However, results also revealed that a large proportion of infective juveniles (IJs) of both species stayed near (≤ 3.8 cm) the source cadaver (88-96% S. carpocapsae; 67–79% H. bacteriophora), and the proportion of IJs reaching the farthest distance (11.4 cm) was significantly higher for S. carpocapsae (1.4%) than H. bacteriophora (0.4%) in the presence of mobile hosts. S. carpocapsae also had higher average population displacement than H. bacteriophora in the presence of both the non-mobile (5.07 vs. 3.6 cm/day) and mobile (8.06 vs. 5.3 cm/day) hosts. We conclude that the two species differ in their dispersal and foraging behavior at the population level and this behavior is affected by both the presence and absence of hosts and by their mobility.     

Prognostic significance of CHAC1 expression in breast cancer

Molecular Biology Reports - An emerging component of Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) pathway, cation transport regulator homolog 1 (CHAC1) has been conferred with the ability to degrade...     

Protein kinase C epsilon activation delays neuronal depolarization during cardiac arrest in the euthermic arctic ground squirrel

During the pre-hibernation season, arctic ground squirrels (AGS) can tolerate 8 min of asphyxial cardiac arrest (CA) without detectable brain pathology. Better understanding of the mechanisms regulating innate ischemia tolerance in AGS has the potential to facilitate the development of novel prophylactic agents to induce ischemic tolerance in patients at risk of stroke or CA. We hypothesized that neuroprotection in AGS involves robust maintenance of ion homeostasis similar to anoxia-tolerant turtles. Ion homeostasis was assessed by monitoring ischemic depolarization (ID) in cerebral cortex during CA in vivo and during oxygen glucose deprivation in vitro in acutely prepared hippocampal slices. In both models, the onset of ID was significantly delayed in AGS compared with rats. The epsilon protein kinase C (εPKC) is a key mediator of neuroprotection and inhibits both Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase and voltage-gated sodium channels, primary mediators of the collapse of ion homeostasis during ischemia. The selective peptide inhibitor of εPKC (εV1-2) shortened the time to ID in brain slices from AGS but not in rats despite evidence that εV1-2 decreased activation of εPKC in brain slices from both rats and AGS. These results support the hypothesis that εPKC activation delays the collapse of ion homeostasis during ischemia in AGS.     

Genetic selection of the ambush foraging entomopathogenic nematode,Steinernema carpocapsae for enhanced dispersal and its associated trade-offs

Dispersal of organisms is influenced by environmental and innate population variability. It results in redistribution of populations with potential consequences for gene flow, population resilience and stability, and evolutionary diversification of traits in response to specific selection pressures. However, dispersal behavior in soil-dwelling organisms is understudied. Species of entomopathogenic nematodes, a group of soil-inhabiting lethal insect parasites used in biological pest control show a dichotomy in foraging behavior. Some species have been classified as ambushers while others as cruisers. We previously discovered that the ambush foraging Steinernema carpocapsae possesses a small group of sprinters that disperse faster than the fastest moving cruisers. In this study, we genetically selected S. carpocapsae for enhanced dispersal in the absence of hosts by capturing the fastest and farthest reaching infective juveniles (IJs) emanating from a nematode-infected Galleria mellonella cadaver, in soil. S. carpocapsae showed positive response to selection for dispersal with 13–23 and 21–37 fold increase in the percent IJs dispersing to the farthest distance from the source cadaver, after five and ten rounds of selection, respectively. There was also a significant increase in the average displacement of the selected lines (6.85–7.54 cm/day) than the foundation population (5.54 cm/day) maintained by passing through G. mellonella larvae in Petri dishes. The overall mean realized heritability for dispersal was 0.60. The farthest reaching IJs of the selected lines comprised more males (72 %) than the foundation population (44 %) at most time points. Trade-offs associated with enhanced dispersal included reduced reproduction capacity and nictation ability, a trait associated with ambush foraging. In conclusion, this study revealed the costs and benefits associated with selection for enhanced dispersal in a soil-dwelling insect parasite, enhancing our understanding of the evolution of new behavioral patterns, which could have important implications in biological control.     

Synergistic inhibitory effect of nicotine plus oral contraceptive on mitochondrial complex-IV is mediated by estrogen receptor-β in female rats

Chronic nicotine and oral contraceptive (NOC) exposure caused significant loss of hippocampal membrane-bound estrogen receptor-beta (ER-β) in female rats compared with exposure to nicotine alone. Mitochondrial ER-β regulates estrogen-mediated mitochondrial structure and function; therefore, investigating the impact of NOC on mitochondrial ER-β and its function could help delineate the harmful synergism between nicotine and OC. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that NOC-induced loss of mitochondrial ER-β alters the oxidative phosphorylation system protein levels and mitochondrial respiratory function. This hypothesis was tested in hippocampal mitochondria isolated from female rats exposed to saline, nicotine, OC or NOC for 16 days. NOC decreased the mitochondrial ER-β protein levels and reduced oxygen consumption and complex IV (CIV) activity by 34% and 26% compared with saline- or nicotine-administered groups, respectively. We also observed significantly low protein levels of all mitochondrial-encoded CIV subunits after NOC as compared with the nicotine or saline groups. Similarly, the silencing of ER-β reduced the phosphorylation of cyclic-AMP response element binding protein, and also reduced levels of CIV mitochondrial-encoded subunits after estrogen stimulation. Overall, these results suggest that mitochondrial ER-β loss is responsible for mitochondrial malfunction after NOC.     

A Novel C-Terminal CIB2 (Calcium and Integrin Binding Protein 2) Mutation Associated with Non-Syndromic Hearing Loss in a Hispanic Family

Hearing loss is a complex disorder caused by both genetic and environmental factors. Previously, mutations in CIB2 have been identified as a common cause of genetic hearing loss in Pakistani and Turkish populations. Here we report a novel (c.556C>T; p.(Arg186Trp)) transition mutation in the CIB2 gene identified through whole exome sequencing (WES) in a Caribbean Hispanic family with non-syndromic hearing loss. CIB2 belongs to the family of calcium-and integrin-binding (CIB) proteins. The carboxy-termini of CIB proteins are associated with calcium binding and intracellular signaling. The p.(Arg186Trp) mutation is localized within predicted type II PDZ binding ligand at the carboxy terminus. Our ex vivo studies revealed that the mutation did not alter the interactions of CIB2 with Whirlin, nor its targeting to the tips of hair cell stereocilia. However, we found that the mutation disrupts inhibition of ATP-induced Ca²⁺ responses by CIB2 in a heterologous expression system. Our findings support p.(Arg186Trp) mutation as a cause for hearing loss in this Hispanic family. In addition, it further highlights the necessity of the calcium binding property of CIB2 for normal hearing.