Immunohistochemical detection of GluA1 subunit of AMPA receptor in the rat nucleus accumbens following cocaine exposure

Wen Ting Cai,Joonyeup Han,Wha Young Kim,Jeong-Hoon Kim 대한약리학회 2021 The Korean Journal of Physiology & Pharmacology Vol.25 No.1

α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) receptors are differentially regulated in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) of the brain after cocaine exposure. However, these results are supported only by biochemical and electrophysiological methods, but have not been validated with immunohistochemistry. To overcome the restriction of antigen loss on the postsynaptic target molecules that occurs during perfusion-fixation, we adopted an immersion-fixation method that enabled us to immunohistochemically quantify the expression levels of the AMPA receptor GluA1 subunit in the NAcc. Interestingly, compared to saline exposure, cocaine significantly increased the immunofluorescence intensity of GluA1 in two sub-regions, the core and the shell, of the NAcc on withdrawal day 21 following cocaine exposure, which led to locomotor sensitization. Increases in GluA1 intensity were observed in both the extra-post synaptic density (PSD) and PSD areas in the two sub-regions of the NAcc. These results clearly indicate that AMPA receptor plasticity, as exemplified by GluA1, in the NAcc can be visually detected by immunohistochemistry and confocal imaging. These results expand our understanding of the molecular changes occurring in neuronal synapses by adding a new form of analysis to conventional biochemical and electrophysiological methods.

A Ringed Dwarf LINER 1 Galaxy Hosting an Intermediate-mass Black Hole with Large-scale Rotation-like ${\rm{H}}\alpha $ Emission

Liu, Wen-Juan,Qian, Lei,Dong, Xiao-Bo,Jiang, Ning,Lira, Paulina,Cai, Zheng,Wang, Feige,Yang, Jinyi,Xiao, Ting,Kim, Minjin American Astronomical Society 2017 The Astrophysical journal Vol.837 No.2

<P>We report the discovery of a 20 kpc sized H alpha emission in SDSS J083803.68+540642.0, a ringed dwarf galaxy (M-V = -17.89 mag) hosting an accreting intermediate-mass black hole at z = 0.02957. Analysis of the Hubble Space Telescope images indicates that it is an early-type galaxy with a featureless low-surface brightness disk (mu(0) = 20.39 mag arcsec(-2) in the V band) and a prominent, relatively red bulge (V - I = 2.03, R-e = 0.28 kpc or 0 48) that accounts for approximate to 81% of the total light in the I band. A circumgalactic ring of a diameter 16 kpc is also detected, with a disperse shape on its south side. The optical emission lines reveal the nucleus to be a broad-line LINER. Our MMT longslit observation indicates that the kinematics of the extended H alpha emission is consistent with a rotational gaseous disk, with a mean blueshifted velocity of 162 km s(-1) and mean redshifted velocity of 86 km s(-1). According to our photoionization calculations, the large-scale H alpha emission is unlikely to be powered by the central nucleus or by hot evolved (post-AGB) stars interspersed in the old stellar populations, but by in situ star formation; this is vindicated by the line-ratio diagnostic of the extended emission. We propose that both the ring and large-scale H alpha-emitting gas are created by the tidal accretion in a collision-and then merger-with a gas-rich galaxy of a comparable mass.</P>

Modeling net energy requirements of 2 to 3-week-old Cherry Valley ducks

Yang Ting,Yu Lexiao,Wen Min,Zhao Hua,Chen Xiaoling,Liu Guangmang,Tian Gang,Cai Jingyi,Jia Gang 아세아·태평양축산학회 2020 Animal Bioscience Vol.33 No.10

Objective: A total of three hundred unsexed ducks were utilized to estimate net energy requirements of maintenance (NEm) and weight gain (NEg) for 2 to 3-week-old Cherry Valley ducks and to establish a model equation to predict NE requirements using the factorial method. Methods: To determine the apparent metabolizable energy (AME) of the diet, fifty 7-day-old ducks at approximately equal body weights (BWs) were randomly assigned into five groups that were fed at different levels (ad libitum, 85%, 75%, 65%, and 55% of ad libitum intake), and the endogenous acid-insoluble ash as indigestible marker. The two hundred and fifty 7-day-old ducks were used for a comparative slaughter experiment. At the beginning of the experiment, ten ducks were sacrificed to determine the initial body composition and energy content. The remaining ducks were randomly assigned into five groups (same as metabolic experiment). Ducks of the ad libitum group were slaughtered at 14 and 21-day-old. At the end of the experiment, two ducks were selected from each replicate and slaughtered to determine the body composition and energy content. Results: The results of the metabolizable experiment showed AME values of 13.43 to 13.77 MJ/kg for ducks at different feed intakes. The results of the comparative slaughter experiment showed the NEm value for 2 to 3-week-old Cherry Valley ducks was 549.54 kJ/kg of BW0.75/d, and the NEg value was 10.41 kJ/g. The deposition efficiency values of fat (Kf) and crude protein (Kp) were 0.96 and 0.60, respectively, and the values of efficiency of energy utilization (Kg) and maintenance efficiency (Km) were 0.75 and 0.88, respectively. Conclusion: The equation for the prediction of NE requirements for 2 to 3-week-old Cherry Valley ducks was the following: NE = 549.54 BW0.75+10.41 ΔW, where ΔW is the weight gain (g).

RALY RNA Binding Protein-like Reduced Expression is Associated with Poor Prognosis in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

Cui, Zhi-Wen,Xia, Ye,Ye, Yi-Wang,Jiang, Zhi-Mao,Wang, Ya-Dong,Wu, Jian-Ting,Sun, Liang,Zhao, Jun,Fa, Ping-Ping,Sun, Xiao-Juan,Gui, Yao-Ting,Cai, Zhi-Ming Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.7

The molecular mechanisms involved in the progression of clear cell renal cell carcinomas (ccRCCs) are still unclear. The aim of this study was to analyse the relationships between expression of RALYL and clinical characteristics. In 41 paired samples of ccRCCs and adjacent normal tissues, we used real-time qPCR to evaluate the expression of RALYL mRNA. RALYL protein levels were determined in 146 samples of ccRCC and 37 adjacent normal tissues by immunohistochemistry. Statistical analysis was used to explore the relationships between expression of RALYL and the clinical characteristics (gender, age, tumor size, T stage, N stage, M stage, survival times and survival outcome) in ccRCC. In addition, these patients were follow-up period 64 months (range: 4~116months) to investigate the influence on prognosis. We found significantly differences between ccRCC tissues and normal tissues (p<0.001, paired-sample t test) in mRNA levels of RALYL. Immunohistochemistry analyses in 146 ccRCC samples and 37 adjacent normal tissues showed significantly lower RALYL protein levels in ccRCC samples (${\chi}^2$-test, p<0.001), inversely correlating with tumour size (p=0.024), T stage (0.005), N stage (p<0.001) as well as M stage (p=0.019), but not age (p=0.357) and gender (p=0.348). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated that people with lower level of RALYL expression had a poorer survival rate than those with a higher level of RALYL expression, significantly different by the log-rank test (p=0.011). Cox regression analysis indicated that RALYL expression (p=0.039), N stage (p=0.008) and distant metastasis (p<0.001) were independent prognosis factors for the overall survival of ccRCC patients. We demonstrated that the expression of RALYL was significantly low in ccRCC and correlated with a poor prognosis in a large number of clinical samples. Our findings showed that RALYL may be a potential therapeutic target as well as a poor prognostic factor.

Ezrin-radixin-moesin proteins are regulated by Akt-GSK3β signaling in the rat nucleus accumbens core

Wha Young Kim,Wen Ting Cai,Ju Kyong Jang,Jeong-Hoon Kim 대한생리학회-대한약리학회 2020 The Korean Journal of Physiology & Pharmacology Vol.24 No.1

The ezrin-radixin-moesin (ERM) proteins are a family of membrane-associated proteins known to play roles in cell-shape determination as well as in signaling pathways. We have previously shown that amphetamine decreases phosphorylation levels of these proteins in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc), an important neuronal substrate mediating rewarding effects of drugs of abuse. In the present study, we further examined what molecular pathways may be involved in this process. By direct microinjection of LY294002, a PI3 kinase inhibitor, or of S9 peptide, a proposed GSK3β activator, into the NAcc core, we found that phosphorylation levels of ERM as well as of GSK3β in this site are simultaneously decreased. These results indicate that ERM proteins are under the regulation of Akt-GSK3β signaling pathway in the NAcc core. The present findings have a significant implication to a novel signal pathway possibly leading to structural plasticity in relation with drug addiction.

Inferring Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in MicroRNA Binding Sites of Lung Cancer-related Inflammatory Genes

He, Fei,Zheng, Ling-Ling,Luo, Wen-Ting,Yang, Rong,Xu, Xiao-Qin,Cai, Lin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.8

Single nucleotide polymorphisms located at microRNA (miRNA)-binding sites are likely to affect the expression of miRNA targets and may contribute to the susceptibility of humans to common diseases. Here 335 candidate lung cancer-related inflammatory genes were selected according to the existing literature and database. We identified putative miRNA-binding sites of 149 genes by specialised algorithms and screened SNPs in the 3'UTRs of these genes. By calculating binding free energy, we sorted 269 SNPs on the basis of the possibility of prediction. The proposed approach could help to easy the identification of functionally relevant SNPs and minimize the workflow and the costs.