Lysosomes are involved in the cellular degradation of material either initially present in the cell or brought into the cell by phagocytosis or endocytosis. This degradative process, which occurs in an acidic environment, produces metabolites such as peptides and amino acids~ nucleos ides , and sugars which may subsequently accumulate within the lysosome. It is therefore important for osmotic r...

Background: Following the expansion of human infertility, different procedures have been utilized for separation of normal sperm during ICSI (Intra cytoplasmic sperm injection). Hypo-osmotic swelling test (HOST) is one of the tests which have been introduced for assessment of integrity of sperm membrane when confronted with hypo osmotic condition. This test may also reflect intracellular organe...

Background: Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) can be considered the solstice in vitro insemination technique because it has powerfully allowed the treatment of male factor infertility, but in this procedure, except visual morphological selection, there is no standardization for sperm selection. Recently, hypo osmotic swelling test (HOST) has been proposed to have the potential to select i...

Adding antioxidants to semen extenders could reduce post-thaw sperm damages. Glutathione is an important intracellular antioxidant that has free radicals scavenging properties and multiple effects on DNA and protein synthesis. In the present study, effects different levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) containing 0 (control), 1.0, 2.5, or 5.0 mM in a nanomicelle-based extender on post-thaw quali...

Alterations in lipid homeostasis are implicated in several neurodegenerative diseases, although the mechanisms responsible are poorly understood. We evaluated the impact of cholesterol accumulation, induced by U18666A, quinacrine or mutations in the cholesterol transporting Niemann-Pick disease type C1 (NPC1) protein, on lysosomal stability and sensitivity to lysosome-mediated cell death. We fo...

The best characterized role for ubiquitination of membrane receptors is to negatively regulate signaling by targeting receptors for lysosomal degradation. The high affinity receptor for IgE (FcepsilonRI) expressed on mast cells and basophils is rapidly ubiquitinated upon antigen stimulation. However, the nature and the role of this covalent modification are still largelly unknown. Here, we show...

Corkwing wrasse (Symphodus melops L.), a protogynous, non-migratory lipfish species, living close to rocky shores was chosen as an indicator species for the monitoring of biological effects of contaminants. Fish were caught by local fisherman at the Norwegian west coast in fjord sites within the framework of the EU BEEP project. The sites represented different point source impacts of (I) copper...

Purpose: Depression is a public disorder worldwide. Despite the widespread use of venlafaxine in the treatment of depression, it has been associated with the incidence of toxicities. Hence, the goal of the current investigation was to evaluate the mechanisms of venlafaxine-induced cell death in the model of the freshly isolated rat hepatocytes. Methods: Collagenase-perfused rat hepatocytes were...

Two hippocampal sectors show distinct responses to transient ischemia: the cornu Ammonis (CA)1 sector undergoes a delayed neuronal death followed by a lack of neuronal generation, while the dentate gyrus (DG) shows slight postischemic damage followed by an increased neurogenesis. Using the monkey experimental paradigm of transient whole brain global ischemia, the 'calpain-cathepsin hypothesis' ...

Rapsyn, a scaffold protein, is required for the clustering of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) at contacts between motor neurons and differentiating muscle cells. Rapsyn is also expressed in cells that do not express AChRs. However, its function in these cells remains unknown. Here, we show that rapsyn plays an AChR-independent role in organizing the distribution and mobility of lysosomes. In ce...