Neuroscience and Neurobiology Commons^™

Effect Of Redox-Cycling Agents On Nitric Oxide Synthase Activity In Vitro And Modulation Of Protein Expression In Vivo: No Nitric Oxide Synthase In Mitochondria, Priya Venkatakrishnan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This Dissertation describes studies conducted in three areas dealing with the interaction of redox-active compounds with the flavin- and heme- containing enzyme, neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS). They are as follows:

I. Studies were initiated using extracts from several varieties of tobacco to identify constituent(s) that could interact with nNOS. Results from [¹⁴C]-L-arginine to [¹⁴C]-L-citrulline conversion assays to which tobacco extracts were individually added, indicate that there are nNOS inhibitors present in tobacco and they are non-polar, lipophilic and non-volatile in nature. In addition, results from assays in which the tobacco-derived redox-active compound, 2,3,6- …

The Distribution Of Apolipoprotein E In Mouse Olfactory Epithelium, Britto Nathan, Sreenivas Nannapaneni, Salina Gairhe, Ikemefuna Nwosu, Robert Struble

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Previous studies from our laboratory suggest that apolipoprotein (apoE), a lipid transporting protein, facilitates olfactory nerve regeneration. We have shown that apoE is enriched in the olfactory nerve and around the glomeruli of the olfactory bulb (OB). The studies reported herein were undertaken to identify possible sources of apoE in the olfactory epithelium (OE). Immunoblotting results revealed apoE expression in the OE of wild-type (WT) mice, but not in apoE deficient/knockout (KO) mice. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that the perikarya and processes of sustentacular (Sus) cells expressed apoE-like immunoreactivity. Minimal neuronal apoE immunostaining was seen, although apoE was observed in the …

The Distribution Of Apolipoprotein E In Mouse Olfactory Epithelium, Britto P. Nathan, Sreenivas Nannapaneni, Salina Gairhe, Ikemefuna Nwosu, Robert G. Struble

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Previous studies from our laboratory suggest that apolipoprotein (apoE), a lipid transporting protein, facilitates olfactory nerve regeneration. We have shown that apoE is enriched in the olfactory nerve and around the glomeruli of the olfactory bulb (OB). The studies reported herein were undertaken to identify possible sources of apoE in the olfactory epithelium (OE). Immunoblotting results revealed apoE expression in the OE of wild-type (WT) mice, but not in apoE deficient/knockout (KO) mice. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that the perikarya and processes of sustentacular (Sus) cells expressed apoE-like immunoreactivity. Minimal neuronal apoE immunostaining was seen, although apoE was observed in the …

In Situ Muscle Power Differs Without Varying In Vitro Mechanical Properties In Two Insect Leg Muscles Innervated By The Same Motor Neuron, Anna N. Ahn, Kenneth Meijer, Robert J. Full

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

The mechanical behavior of muscle during locomotion is often predicted by its anatomy, kinematics, activation pattern and contractile properties. The neuromuscular design of the cockroach leg provides a model system to examine these assumptions, because a single motor neuron innervates two extensor muscles operating at a single joint. Comparisons of the in situ measurements under in vivo running conditions of muscle 178 to a previously examined muscle (179) demonstrate that the same inputs (e.g. neural signal and kinematics) can result in different mechanical outputs. The same neural signal and kinematics, as determined during running, can result in different mechanical functions, …

Exposure Of Nervous System Cells To Polychlorinated Biphenyls (Pcbs), Results In Alterations Of Neurotrophic Factor Expression, Gordon H. Gurley

Dissertations

Toxic insult by PCBs results in learning and memory deficits in humans. Alterations in expression of neurotrophic factors (NF) and/or their receptors have been linked to changes in learning and memory. How PCBs affect cognition is not known. We suggest that PCBs affect cognition by altering NF expression.

We exposed cultured C6 rat glioblastoma cells (an astrocyte cell-line) to medium containing PCB (Aroclor 1254 (10ppm)). Control cells were treated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) or regular medium. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) were used to determine glial cell-line derived neurotrophic factor(GDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) concentrations in all samples. We also …

The Effect Of Tgf-B And Egf On Mmp-2 Activation And Mt1-Mmp Phosphorylation In U87mg And T98g Human Glioma Cells, Jacquelyn B. Knupp

Honors Theses

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a high-grade, malignant brain tumor of astrocyte origin, invades normal brain tissue and most often results in death ofthe patient withinayearofdiagnosis. In order to invade the surrounding tissue and thereby metastasize, these tumor cells must migrate through the extracellular matrix. The pmpose ofthis research project is to investigate the family ofmatrix metalloproteinases responsible for extracellular degradation. Specifically, this investigation looks at MMP-2 activation via MT 1-MMP and the possible importance of phosphorylation of the tyrosine residue on the cytoplasmic tail of MTl-MMP. U87wildtypegliomacellsaswellasT98 p53 mutant glioma cells were treated with transforming growth factor beta (TGF-P). Preliminary results …

Glucocorticoid Hormone Levels Increase With Group Size And Parasite Load In Cliff Swallows, Samrrah A. Raouf, Linda C. Smith, Mary Bomberger Brown, John C. Wingfield, Charles R. Brown

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Animals often cope with adverse events by releasing glucocorticoid hormones, which in turn promote increased energy assimilation. In captive animals, crowding also leads to increased glucocorticoid activity, probably because of increased levels of social competition. We investigated how group size and ectoparasite infestations affected endogenous levels of the glucocorticoid hormone, corticosterone, in colonial cliff swallows, Petrochelidon pyrrhonota, in southwestern Nebraska, USA. Parasites were removed from some colonies by fumigating nests. Baseline levels of corticosterone in breeding adults varied significantly with whether parasites were present, colony size (measured by total number of active nests at a site), and nesting stage. …

The Role Of Cuticular Pheromones In Courtship Conditioning Of Drosophila Males, Kathleen King Siwicki, Paul Nicholas Riccio , '05, Lisa Ladewski , '02, F. Marcillac, L. Dartevelle, Stephanie Alexis Cross , '04, J.-F. Ferveur

Biology Faculty Works

Courtship conditioning is an associative learning paradigm in Drosophila melanogaster, wherein male courtship behavior is modified by experience with unreceptive, previously mated females. While the training experience with mated females involves multiple sensory and behavioral interactions, we hypothesized that female cuticular hydrocarbons function as a specific chemosensory conditioned stimulus in this learning paradigm. The effects of training with mated females were determined in courtship tests with either wild-type virgin females as courtship targets, or with target flies of different genotypes that express distinct Cuticular hydrocarbon (CH) profiles. Results of tests with female targets that lacked the normal CH profile, and …

Plasticity In Selective Phonotaxis And Neuronal Responses Of Acheta Domesticus, Benjamin Alejandro Navia

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Plasticity of phonotaxis in Acheta domesticus was evaluated in 207 young (5-7 days) and 328 old (28 days) female crickets. Of those that responded (508), their phonotaxis was grouped into selective (80% of young and 34% of old) and unselective (66% of old and 20% of young) on the basis of their responses to syllable period (SP). Two additional subcategories were also found. Some females were selective to the longer syllable periods (18% young, 20% old) while others were selective to the shorter syllable periods (7% young and 12% old). The L3 prothoracic auditory interneuron exhibits a decrementing response to …

Human Stick Balancing: Tuning Lèvy Flights To Improve Balance Control, Juan Luis Cabrera, John Milton

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

State-dependent, or parametric, noise is an essential component of the neural control mechanism for stick balancing at the fingertip. High-speed motion analysis in three dimensions demonstrates that the controlling movements made by the fingertip during stick balancing can be described by a Lévy flight. The Lévy index, , is approximately 0.9; a value close to optimal for a random search. With increased skill, the index does not change. However, the tails of the Lévy distribution become broader. These observations suggest a Lévy flight that is truncated by the properties of the nervous and musculoskeletal system; the truncation decreasing as skill …

Synaptic Transformations Underlying Highly Selective Auditory Representations Of Learned Birdsong, Melissa J. Coleman, Richard Mooney

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Stimulus-specific neuronal responses are a striking characteristic of several sensory systems, although the synaptic mechanisms underlying their generation are not well understood. The songbird nucleus HVC (used here as a proper name) contains projection neurons (PNs) that fire temporally sparse bursts of action potentials to playback of the bird's own song (BOS) but are essentially silent when presented with other acoustical stimuli. To understand how such remarkable stimulus specificity emerges, it is necessary to compare the auditory-evoked responsiveness of the afferents of HVC with synaptic responses in identified HVC neurons. We found that inactivating the interfacial nucleus of the nidopallium …

Changes In Gdnf Protein Content Of Skeletal Muscle Following Involuntary Exercise Are Long Lived, Kyle R. Kinnell, Monica J. Czarnopys, John Spitsbergen

Biological Sciences Faculty and Graduate Student Research

Glial-cell line derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is a neurotrophic factor produced by skeletal muscle. GDNF has been shown to be potent survival factor for motor neurons. We have previously shown that GDNF content in skeletal muscle is altered following exercise and GDNF levels 24 hours after the last bout of exercise are significantly different than those measured immediately after exercise. We sought to determine how long after exercise do GDNF protein levels remain altered. We removed extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and Soleus (SOL), 24 hr, 72 hr and 1 week following the last bout of involuntary exercise. Muscles were processed …

Exposure Of Nervous System Cells To Polychlorinated Biphenyls (Pcbs) Results In Significant Alterations In Levels Of Expression Of Neurotrophic Factors, Charles F. Ide, Jay C. Means, Trisha M. Basford, John Spitsbergen

Biological Sciences Faculty and Graduate Student Research

Toxic insult by PCBs results in learning and memory deficits in humans. Alterations in expression of neurotrophic factors and/or their receptors have been linked to changes in cognition. How PCBs affect cognition is not known. We propose that PCBs affect cognition by altering neurotrophic factor expression or effects. We exposed cultured C6 glial cells in medium containing PCB (Aroclor 1254 (10ppm)). Control cells were treated with DMSO or regular medium. Cells were incubated at 37o C for up to 72 hours. Medium samples were taken at 6hr, 24hr, 48hr, and 72hr intervals. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) were used to determine …

Do Cellular Phones Cause Headaches?, Jasmine Gay

McCabe Thesis Collection

Many people have recently complained about experiencing headaches in association with the use of their cellular telephones. There is much controversy over this subject because it has not yet been proven that the microwaves emitted by cellular telephones cause headaches. The research questions include the following: What are the effects, if any, of the use of cellular telephones on human health? Do they cause headaches? Are they responsible for the increase in size of some brain tumors?

There have been many experiments performed by various scientists in the field of bioelectromagnetics and by the World Health Organization (WHO); however, these …

The Nmda Receptor M3 Segment Is A Conserved Transduction Element Coupling Ligand Binding To Channel Opening, Kevin Jones, Hendrika Vandongen, Antonius Vandongen

Department of Biology Faculty Publications

Ion channels alternate stochastically between two functional states, open and closed. This gating behavior is controlled by membrane potential or by the binding of neurotransmitters in voltage- and ligand-gated channels, respectively. Although much progress has been made in defining the structure and function of the ligand-binding cores and the voltage sensors, how these domains couple to channel opening remains poorly understood. Here we show that the M3 transmembrane segments of the NMDA receptor allosterically interact with both the ligand-binding cores and the channel gate. It is proposed that M3 functions as a transduction element whose conformational change couples ligand binding …

Behavioral Evidence For Chemosensory And Thermosensory Pathway Convergence In The Caenorhabditis Elegans Nervous System, Bowman O. Davis Jr., Lewis Vanbrackle, Darren Pittard

Faculty Articles

The nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans, is an established model system to explore the ways simple nervous systems detect and direct organismal responses to environmental changes. C. elegans possesses specialized receptor cells for the detection of a variety of environmental stimuli. Separate cell types respond to volatile chemical and thermal stimuli and the neural pathways for these show anatomical evidence of convergence. This work reports findings from behavioral assays during simultaneous exposure of nematodes to both thermal differences and attractant volatile chemicals. Combined exposure to benzaldehyde and cold neutralized the behavioral responses to both stimuli in 24°C acclimated worms. Diacetyl and mild …

Synaptic Heterogeneity And Stimulus-Induced Modulation Of Depression In Central Synapses, John D. Hunter, John Milton

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Short-term plasticity is a pervasive feature of synapses. Synapses exhibit many forms of plasticity operating over a range of time scales. We develop an optimization method that allows rapid characterization of synapses with multiple time scales of facilitation and depression. Investigation of paired neurons that are postsynaptic to the same identified interneuron in the buccal ganglion of Aplysia reveals that the responses of the two neurons differ in the magnitude of synaptic depression. Also, for single neurons, prolonged stimulation of the presynaptic neuron causes stimulus-induced increases in the early phase of synaptic depression. These observations can be described by a …

Neuromotor And Cognitive Development In Children With Cerebral Palsy In Relation To Neural Plasticity, Vaniecea Pollard

McCabe Thesis Collection

Infants with neurological disabilities, such as cerebral palsy (CP) and Down syndrome (DS), show severe delays in motor and cognitive development relative to chronological age. Involvement of neural plasticity as a treatment of such neurological disorders is increasingly being seen. Previous studies have found that interventions involving sensory linked motor performance have been critical in facilitating motor improvement. The purpose of this study was to compare self-initiated mobility in children with CP and DS. Three infants, ages 8, 9, and 22 months, with diagnoses of no CP, DS, and CP respectively, participated in the study. The infants were videotaped in …

Schizophrenia: An Integrative Study Of Biological Liabilities And Neurological Causes, Daniel J. Knoblach

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

Society has become increasingly aware of the frustrating and confusing disorders that can result when the brain loses control of its intricate mechanisms. One such disorder that continues to baffle experts is schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a serious thought disorder characterized by a broad spectrum of cognitive and emotional dysfunctions that disrupts a person's perception of the world into one of tormenting psychotic experience. Schizophrenia results from a variety of complex causes with each possibly contributing something to the disorder. A multifactorial threshold model explains causation by demonstrating that a sum of biological liabilities (genetics and prenatal developmental problems) may take …

Law And Biology: Toward An Integrated Model Of Human Behavior, Owen D. Jones

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

As first year law students unhappily discover, the meaning of "law" is frustratingly protean, shifting by usage and user. Depending on whom you ask, law is a system of rules, a body of precedents, a legislative enactment, a collection of norms, a process by which social goals are pursued, or some dynamic mixture of these. Law's principal purpose is to define and protect individual rights, to ensure public order, to resolve disputes, to redistribute wealth, to dispense justice, to prevent or compensate for injury, to optimize economic efficiency, or perhaps to do something else. And yet one thing is irreducibly …

Immunolesions Using Site Specific Injections Of 192-Lgg Saporin Into The Basal Forebrain Fail To Affect Radial Arm Maze Performance In The Male Rat, Lesley J. Hickman '96

Honors Projects

In this study I investigated the effects of 192-lgG saporin injections into the medial septal area.(MSA) and nucleus basalis magnocel/ularis (NBM) on radial arm maze performance in the male rat. The results of the present study reveal that combined injections of 192-lgG saporin into the basal forebrain failed to disrupt RAM performance when compared to vehicle-injected controls. In addition, intraperitoneal injections using a muscarinic receptor blocker, scopolamine, failed to reveal a compensatory response of the cholinergic basal forebrain that may have explained the lack of behavioral effects of 192IgG saporin. Consequently, the results of this study suggest that a selective …

Interview: Brenda Laurel, Jason Challas

SWITCH

This interview with Brenda Laurel, Virtual Reality (VR) author and thinker, discusses the applications and challenges of VR. Creating an emphatic experience using VR technology is possible, but the challenge lies in designing an environment that models the senses to stimulate emotions. VR enables experiences of different genders, but physiological differences between the sexes exist and are important to understand. However, technology used to create the environment and simulation of physical objects in VR is only in the developmental stage. Laurel believes in the importance of keeping the mind grounded in the physical body, in order to strengthen the appreciation …

Dynamic Diseases In Neurology And Psychiatry, John Milton, Deborah Black

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Thirty-two (32) periodic diseases of the nervous system are identified in which symptoms and/or signs recur. In 10/32, the recurrence of a symptom complex is one of the defining features of the illness, whereas in 22/32 oscillatory signs occur in the setting of an ongoing nervous system disorder. We discuss the possibility that these disorders may be dynamic diseases.

Comparison Of The Effects Of Saporin-Igg Injections Into The Nucleus Basalis Magnocellularis And Medial Septal Area Of Male Rat As Assessed By The Morris Water Maze Task, Alexander R. V. Mccampbell '95

Honors Projects

Alzheimer's disease currently afflicts approximately 4 million people in the United States, with 100,000 new cases being reported each year. As post mortem examination of AD patientsI brains has revealed a significant decrease in the number of cholinergic neurons, one approach we have taken is to look at the correlation between the depletion of certain cholinergic markers in animals and the resulting behavioral deficits. Two regions of specific interest are the medial septal area (MSA) and the nucleus basalis magnocellularis (NBM). These regions are important because they are the major source of cholinergic neurons in the brain, they are selectively …

The Effect Of Family Participation On The Outcome Of Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury In Rehabilitation, Grant Middleton, Brett Ransom

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between physical therapists' perceptions and institutional policies relating to family participation in rehabilitation and rehabilitation outcome of patients with traumatic brain injury. Utilizing surveys, we collected information about institutional policy from institutions that were members of the Commission for Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) in the Midwestern United States. Thirteen institutional surveys provided usable Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scores for patients rehabilitated in 1993, which were used as the outcome measure. The therapists' perceptions survey (n = 104) gathered data about the belief of physical therapists relating to family involvement …

The Effects Of Partial Unweighting On Hemiplegic Gait, Natasha A. Creaser, Michael W. Jones

Masters Theses

This study investigated the effects of 30% body weight support on gait in two individuals with hemiplegia secondary to stroke. Two subjects with right hemiplegia were tested. Each completed four trials, two full weight bearing and two unweighted 30%, in random order. Each trial consisted of walking six meters on a treadmill at the subjects' self-selected speed. Temporal distance data were collected via Stride Analyzer footswitches. Subjects were also videotaped from the side during all trials. We expected velocity, cadence, stride length, uninvolved limb swing time, and involved limb stance time to increase with unweighting. Subjects 1's results agreed only …

Functional Consequences Of Compartmentalization Of Synaptic Input, Melissa J. Coleman, Michael P. Nusbaum

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Intra-axonal recordings of stomatogastric nerve axon 1 (SNAX1) indicate that there are synaptic inputs onto the SNAX1 terminals in the stomatogastric ganglion (STG) of the crab Cancer borealis (Nusbaum et al., 1992b). To determine whether this synaptic input only influenced SNAX1 activity within the STG, we identified the SNAX1 soma in the commissural ganglion (CoG). We found that this neuron has a neuropilar arborization in the CoG and also receives synaptic inputs in this ganglion. Based on its soma location, we have renamed this neuron modulatory commissural neuron 1 (MCN1). While intracellular stimulation of MCN1soma and MCN1SNAX has the same …

Toward An Understanding Of Alzheimer's Disease: The Effects Of B-Amyloid(1-42) And Ibotenic Acid On The Retention Of A Spatial Learning Task In Rats F:Ollowing Multiple Injections Into The Hippocampus, Jason Pequette '94

Honors Projects

Neuropathologically, Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. Evidence has suggested that a protein called B-amyloid (BA) is a major component of the neuritic plaques and may playa role in the neurodegeneration seen in AD. The cellular mechanisms by which BA induces neurotoxicity, however, are still unclear. Recent evidence suggests that the aggregational state of BA may be relevant to its neurotoxicity. Whether portions of the BA protein or the entire sequence produces neurotoxicity in neurons, however, remains a controversy. Still another controversy is whether BA is directly neurotoxic to neurons or whether it increases the …

Per-Like Immunoreactive Neurons Within The Brain Of Xenopus Innervate Both The Retina And Pineal Organ, J. M. Garcia-Fernandez, Kathleen King Siwicki, R. G. Foster

Biology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

The Drosophila Period Gene And Dye Coupling In Larval Salivary Glands: A Re-Evaluation, Kathleen King Siwicki, K. K. Flint, J. C. Hall, M. Rosbash, D. C. Spray

Biology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.