Haarlinge als Pelztierschmarotzer

Ohne Zusammenfassung Mit 5 Abbildungen     

The Marine-Derived Kinase Inhibitor Fascaplysin Exerts Anti-Thrombotic Activity

Background: The marine-derived kinase inhibitor fascaplysin down-regulates the PI3K pathway in cancer cells. Since this pathway also plays an essential role in platelet signaling, we herein investigated the effect of fascaplysin on thrombosis. Methods: Fascaplysin effects on platelet activation, platelet aggregation and platelet-leukocyte aggregates (PLA) formation were analyzed by flow cytometry. Mouse dorsal skinfold chambers were used to determine in vivo the effect of fascaplysin on photochemically induced thrombus formation and tail-vein bleeding time. Results: Pre-treatment of platelets with fascaplysin reduced the activation of glycoprotein (GP)IIb/IIIa after protease-activated receptor-1-activating peptide (PAR-1-AP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) stimulation, but did not markedly affect the expression of P-selectin. This was associated with a decreased platelet aggregation. Fascaplysin also decreased PLA formation after PMA but not PAR-1-AP and ADP stimulation. This may be explained by an increased expression of CD11b on leukocytes in PAR-1-AP- and ADP-treated whole blood. In the dorsal skinfold chamber model of photochemically induced thrombus formation, fascaplysin-treated mice revealed a significantly extended complete vessel occlusion time when compared to controls. Furthermore, fascaplysin increased the tail-vein bleeding time. Conclusion: Fascaplysin exerts anti-thrombotic activity, which represents a novel mode of action in the pleiotropic activity spectrum of this compound.     

Die Pharaoameise(Monomorium pharaonis)

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Effect of colostrum intake on alpha-lactalbumin concentrations in serum of calves.

Seven Friesian calves were fed colostrum for four days beginning within 24 hours of birth, and milk thereafter. The concentration of alpha-lactalbumin in serum was measured by specific radioimmunoassay and compared to IgG assayed by electroimmunodiffusion. Serum concentrations of alpha-lactalbumin peaked at 387 +/- 85 ng ml-1 within eight hours of initial intake of colostrum, declining to 12 +/- 3 ng ml-1 by day 6. IgG rose steadily to 17 mg ml-1 by 48 hours of birth and remained relatively constant thereafter. The temporal pattern of alpha-lactalbumin in serum following colostrum intake confirms previous studies suggesting reduced absorption of colostral proteins between 24 and 36 hours. The presence of variable amounts of alpha-lactalbumin in serum even after 17 days, however, indicates limited transfer of milk-derived proteins across the gut at this time. The data further show that cessation of maximal gut transfer does not relate to molecular weight of transferred protein.     

Zum Tode von Günther Enderlein

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Rare structural variants disrupt multiple genes in neurodevelopmental pathways in schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a devastating neurodevelopmental disorder whose genetic influences remain elusive. We hypothesize that individually rare structural variants contribute to the illness. Microdeletions and microduplications >100 kilobases were identified by microarray comparative genomic hybridization of genomic DNA from 150 individuals with schizophrenia and 268 ancestry-matched controls. All variants were validated by high-resolution platforms. Novel deletions and duplications of genes were present in 5% of controls versus 15% of cases and 20% of young-onset cases, both highly significant differences. The association was independently replicated in patients with childhood-onset schizophrenia as compared with their parents. Mutations in cases disrupted genes disproportionately from signaling networks controlling neurodevelopment, including neuregulin and glutamate pathways. These results suggest that multiple, individually rare mutations altering genes in neurodevelopmental pathways contribute to schizophrenia.     

Evolutionary formation of new centromeres in macaque

A systematic fluorescence in situ hybridization comparison of macaque and human synteny organization disclosed five additional macaque evolutionary new centromeres (ENCs) for a total of nine ENCs. To understand the dynamics of ENC formation and progression, we compared the ENC of macaque chromosome 4 with the human orthologous region, at 6q24.3, that conserves the ancestral genomic organization. A 250-kilobase segment was extensively duplicated around the macaque centromere. These duplications were strictly intrachromosomal. Our results suggest that novel centromeres may trigger only local duplication activity and that the absence of genes in the seeding region may have been important in ENC maintenance and progression.