Effects of the neem tree compounds azadirachtin, salannin, nimbin, and 6-desacetylnimbin on ecdysone 20-monooxygenase activity

The effects of azadirachtin, salannin, nimbin, and 6-desacetylnimbin on ecdysone 20-monooxygenase (E-20-M) activity were examined in three insect species. Homogenates of wandering stage third instar larvae of Drosophila melanogaster, or abdomens from adult female Aedes aegypti, or fat body or midgut from fifth instar larvae of Manduca sexta were incubated with radiolabeled ecdysone and increasing concentrations (from 1 x 10(-8) to 1 x 10(-3) M) of the four compounds isolated from seed kernels of the neem tree, Azadirachta indica. All four neem tree compounds were found to inhibit, in a dose-dependent fashion, the E-20-M activity in three insect species. The concentration of these compounds required to elicit a 50% inhibition of this steroid hydroxylase activity in the three insect species examined ranged from approximately 2 x 10(-5) to 1 x 10(-3).     

Design, manufacture and evaluation of a scalable high-performanceneural system

The authors describe a scalable neural system, HyperNet, based on a probabilistic RAM-based architecture and using a custom VLSI IC. A system using five HyperNet VLSI ICs and capable of realising up to 10240 neurons has been designed, manufactured and demonstrated to have the potential to learn more than three orders of magnitude faster than simulations on current workstations     

Expression of INK4 inhibitors of cyclin D-dependent kinases during mouse brain development

In situ hybridization of mouse embryo sections demonstrated expression of mRNAs encoding two polypeptide inhibitors (p18INK4c and p19INK4d) of cyclin D-dependent kinase (CDK) 4 and CDK6 in the central nervous system. No expression of two other INK4 members, p16INK4a and p15INK4b, was observed. The p19INK4d and p18INK4c proteins formed complexes with either CDK4 or CDK6 in a temporal pattern consistent with the results of in situ hybridization. Expression of INK4c was observed at embryonic day 13.5 in neuroepithelial zones of the developing brain, being restricted to dividing neuroblasts but absent from differentiating postmitotic neurons. In the neocortex, p18INK4c was expressed precisely at those developmental stages when neuroblasts switch from a symmetric to an asymmetric pattern of cell division with concomitant increases in their G1 interval. INK4d RNA was detected from embryonic day 11.5 onward, at higher levels than INK4c and with a distinctly different spatial and temporal pattern. Marked INK4d expression was seen in dorsal root ganglia, spinal cord, and focally throughout the brain, but primarily in postmitotic neurons. Neural expression of INK4d continued postnatally into adulthood in postmitotic cells of the dentate gyrus, the pyramidal layer of the hippocampus, and in discrete regions of the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, thalamus, and brainstem. Downregulation of p19INK4d in the dentate gyrus after kainic acid-induced seizures indicated that its expression could also be modified in nondividing cells by excitotoxic stress. Therefore, p19INK4d may contribute to maintaining the quiescent state, acting as a buffer to prevent reactivation of cyclin D-dependent kinases in terminally differentiated cells.     

Differential contribution of dorsal and ventral medial prefrontal cortex to the acquisition and extinction of conditioned fear in rats.

The emotional reactivity of rats with lesions of the dorsal portion of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was examined using a classical fear conditioning paradigm. Conditioned fear behavior (freezing responses) was measured during both the acquisition and extinction phases of the task. Lesions enhanced fear reactivity to both the conditioned stimulus (CS) and contextual stimuli during both phases, suggesting that dorsal mPFC lesions produce a general increase in fear reactivity in response to fear conditioning. M. A. Morgan, L. M. Romanski, and J. E. LeDoux (1993) found that lesions just ventral to the present lesions had no effect during acquisition of the same task and prolonged the fear response to the CS (but not the context) during extinction. Thus, both dorsal and ventral regions of mPFC are involved in the fear system, but each modulates different aspects of fear responsivity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Oxidation of low density lipoprotein by iron or copper at acidic pH

Oxidized low density lipoprotein (LDL) may play a significant role in atherosclerosis. We have investigated the effect of pH on the oxidation of LDL by iron or copper. When LDL was oxidized by iron in the presence of cysteine in either Hanks' balanced salt solution (HBSS) or Ham's F-10 medium, an acidic pH greatly decreased the lag period and increased the rate of formation of hydroperoxides and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS), and increased its uptake by macrophages. There was a dose-dependent increase of LDL oxidation at acidic pH in the presence of increasing concentrations of cysteine. When LDL was oxidized by copper in HBSS, an acidic pH increased the lag phase before the rapid formation of conjugated dienes, hydroperoxides, and TBARS, but increased its uptake by macrophages. Similar results were obtained using Ham's F-10 medium. Cysteine (100 microM) inhibited the modification of LDL by copper in HBSS at both pH 7.4 and 5.5 As atherosclerotic lesions may be acidic, these observations may help to explain why LDL oxidation occurs locally at these sites.     

Thermal stability of indium-tin-oxide/n-GaAs Schottky diodes

The thermal degradation of ITO Schottky contacts on GaAs has been studied. The rectifying contacts show rapid degradation with heating and could have serious implications for optoelectronic devices that operate at elevated temperatures.<>     

Radiological case of the month. Reflex sympathetic dystrophy

The authors report a case of pregnancy in a rudimentary horn diagnosed by laparotomy. The location could not be suspected by any clinical sign. This pregnancy stopped at 19 weeks of amenorrhoea. Any attempts of induction of labour failed. Laparotomy was necessary to assess the diagnosis and to allow the resection of the uterine horn. The authors present a review of literature.