Neurosciences Commons^™

Expression Of Microbial Rhodopsins In Retinal Neurons With Subcellular Targeting Motifs: For The Study Of The Structure/Function Of Aii Amacrine Cells And For Vision Restoration, Chaowen Wu

Wayne State University Dissertations

Protein-targeting motifs serve as addresses for subcellular protein localization. This feature of targeting-motifs was used to study the retina. The first part of the dissertation reports in the axonless spiking AII amacrine cell of the mammalian retina a dendritic process sharing organizational and functional similarities with the axon initial segment, the typical site of action potential initiation. This process was revealed through viral-mediated expression of channelrhodopsin-2-GFP (ChR2-GFP) with the AIS-targeting motif of sodium channels (NavII-III) and was shown to be the site of spike initiation. The second part of the dissertation aimed to improve microbial rhodopsin-mediated gene therapy for vision …

Mechanisms Of Persistent Translation Arrest Following Global Brain Ischemia And Reperfusion, Jill Theresa Jamison

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

MECHANISMS OF PERSISTENT TRANSLATION ARREST FOLLOWING GLOBAL BRAIN ISCHEMIA and REPERFUSION

by

JILL T. JAMISON

December 2011

Advisor: Donald J. DeGracia, Ph.D.

Major: Physiology

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

The information presented here studies the mechanisms that underlie persistent translation arrest (TA) following global brain ischemia and reperfusion (I/R). To summarize the main findings I have discovered a new mechanism for prolonged post-ischemic TA that correlated exactly with in vivo translation rates and correlated precisely with cell outcome. Through the extensive colocalization studies, my results indicate that the mRNA granules are ribonomic structures involved with mRNA regulation. This finding is …

Processing Random Signals In Neuroscience, Electrical Engineering And Operations Research, Kalyan Raman

Wayne State University Dissertations

The topic of this dissertation is the study of noise in electrical engineering, neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and operations research through mathematical models that describe, explain, predict and control dynamic phenomena. Noise is modeled through Brownian Motion and the research problems are mathematically addressed by different versions of a generalized Langevin equation. Our mathematical models utilize stochastic differential equations (SDEs) and stochastic optimal control, both of which were born in the soil of electrical engineering. Central to this dissertation is a brain-physics based model of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics, whose structure is fundamentally determined by an electrical circuit analogy. Our general …

The Effect Of Spiritualism On The Neuropsychological Function Of Memory, Carla Farcello

McNair Poster Presentations

The amount of physiological-neurological research performed over the past few years has dramatically increased due to our ability to view the structure and function of the brain in living human beings. The use of imaging tools has resulted in huge strides forward in unlocking some of the mysteries of the 3 pound universe-the human brain. One of the more unique neural processes being recently addressed is the affect of belief and spiritualism-the sense of being connected to something larger than oneself-on the human brain. This study hypothesized that better memory will be documented among the experimental group who report being …

Getting To Know You: Key Clinical Concepts In Relationship-Based Interventions And Neurobehavioral Observations With Young Infants, Yvette Blanchard

All PTHMS Faculty Publications

The newborn infant is a social organism, pre-disposed to interact with his caregiver and able to elicit the kind of caregiving necessary for successful adaptation. The earliest developmental task of the newborn is to organize behavior to be able to play an active role in influencing the caregiving environment and eliciting the kind of support needed for development. This task is accomplished through the attainment of self-regulation or balanced neurobehavioral functioning of the infant's autonomic, motor, state, and responsivity behavioral dimensions as described by Als.

The Effect Of High Dose Total Body Irradiation On Acth, Corticosterone, And Catecholamines In The Rat, Eric P. Cohen, Eric D. Bruder, William E. Cullinan, Dana R. Ziegler, Hershel Raff

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Total body irradiation (TBI) or partial body irradiation is a distinct risk of accidental, wartime, or terrorist events. Total body irradiation is also used as conditioning therapy before hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. This therapy can result in injury to multiple tissues and might result in death as a result of multiorgan failure. The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis could play a causative role in those injuries, in addition to being activated under conditions of stress. In a rat model of TBI, we have established that radiation nephropathy is a significant lethal complication, which is caused by hypertension and uremia. The current study …

Differential Effects Of Isoflurane And Propofol Anesthesia On Neurogenesis In Young And Aged Rats, Diana Marcela Erasso

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Worldwide, millions of young and elderly patients receive procedures that could not be performed without the use of anesthetics. Unfortunately, emerging animal and human data suggest an association between exposure to general anesthesia and impairment of cognitive function in pediatric and geriatric patients. Recent laboratory data have shown that general anesthetics are potentially damaging to the developing and aging brain. However, the mechanism by which this happens is still unknown. General anesthetics affect learning and memory, a brain function involving neural plasticity. An important form of neural plasticity receiving attention is postnatal neurogenesis. This process is highly regulated and involved …

The Role Of Hiv-1 Proteins In Alzheimer's Disease Pathology, Brian Nelson Giunta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prevalence of HIV-associated cognitive impairment is rising, the worst form of which is HIV-associated dementia (HAD). The disease is fuiled by a chronic innate type pro-inflammatory response in the brain which is highly dependent upon the activation of microglia. We first created an in vitro model of HAD composed of cultured microglial cells synergistically activated by the addition of IFN-gamma and the HIV-1 coat glycoprotein, gp120. This activation, as measured by TNF-alpha and NO release, is synergistically attenuated through the alpha7nAChR and p44/42 MAPK system by pretreatment with nicotine, and the cholinesterase inhibitor, galantamine. As these medications have been FDA …

Repeated Binge Pattern Ethanol Administration During Adolescence Or Adulthood: Long-Term Changes In Voluntary Ethanol Intake And Mesolimbic Dopamine Functionality In Male Rats, Antoniette Michelle Maldonado-Devincci

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Binge alcohol consumption is a rising concern in the United States, especially among adolescents as during this developmental period alcohol use is usually initiated and has been shown to cause detrimental effects on brain structure and function. These findings have been established through the use of binge models in animals, where animals are repeatedly administered high doses of ethanol typically over a period of three or four days. While such work has examined the effects of a four-day and repeated three-day binge, there has been almost no work conducted aimed at investigating the long-term behavioral and neurochemical and/or functional consequences …

Secreted Factors From Human Umbilical Cord Blood Cells Protect Oligodendrocytes From Ischemic Insult, Derrick Rowe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Oligodendrocytes (OL)s are the dominant cell type in the white matter and are integral for synaptic transmission essential for proper neuronal communication between brain areas. Previous studies have shown that intravenous administration of the mononuclear fraction of human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) cells in rat models of stroke reduced white matter injury, gray matter injury and behavioral deficits. Yet the mechanisms used by HUCB cells remain unknown in ischemic injury. These studies will investigate both in vitro and in vivo approaches to elucidate this mechanism in OLs. When mature primary OLs were coincubated with HUCB cells, HUCB cells secreted soluble …

Multivariate Anti-Inflammatory Approaches To Rescue Neurogenesis And Cognitive Function In Aged Animals, Sandra Antonieta Acosta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between aging and neurodegenerative diseases. Aging is considered the number one risk factor to develop neuropathologies such as memory loss, senile dementia, Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Parkinson's disease. Neurodegenerative diseases tend to start during adulthood, and aggravate over time, making them difficult to prevent and to treat. In the Unites States, demographic studies by U.S. Bureau of the Census have determined that our aging population of >65 years is expected to increase from the present 35 million to 78 million in 2030. This would result, not only to an increase of …