introduction: dna damage, as an important initiator of neuronal cell death, has been implicated in numerous neurodegenerative conditions. previously we have delineated several pathways that control embryonic cortical neuronal cell death evoked by the dna-damaging agent, camptothecin. the camptothecin, topoisomerase ι inhibitor, has been shown to induce cortical neuronal cell death in a reproduc...

The formation of axon-dendrite polarity is crucial for neuron to make the proper information flow within the brain. Although the processes of neuronal polarity formation have been extensively studied using neurons in dissociated culture, the corresponding developmental processes in vivo are still unclear. Here, we illuminate the initial steps of morphological polarization of excitatory cortical...

Mammalian cells in culture (BHK-21, PtK2, Friend, human flia, and glioma cells) have been observed by reflection contrast microscopy. Images of cells photographed at two different wavelengths (546 and 436 nm) or at two different angles of incidence allowed discrimination between reflected light and light that was both reflected and modulated by interference. Interference is involved when a chan...

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of activin-A and follistatin on in vitro primordial and primary follicle development in goats. To study primordial follicle development (experiment 1), pieces of ovarian cortex were cultured in vitro for 5 days in minimal essential medium (MEM) supplemented with activin-A (0, 10 or 100 ng/ml), follistatin (0, 10 or 100 ng/ml) or combin...

Dictyostelium has long proven to be a valuable system for studying various aspects of the cytoskeleton and cell motility. In this review we describe the isolation of a novel gene, racE, and how we have used multiple approaches to learn how the product of this gene is involved in cytokinesis. The racEgene was isolated in a screen designed to identify genes specifically required for cytokinesis. ...

Planar spindle orientation in polarized epithelial cells depends on the precise localization of the dynein-dynactin motor protein complex at the lateral cortex. The contribution of cell adhesion molecules to the cortical localization of the dynein-dynactin complex is poorly understood. Here we find that junctional adhesion molecule-A (JAM-A) regulates the planar orientation of the mitotic spind...

Cortical cells of fetal rat adrenals in tissue culture were treated with 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) during their proliferative phase and during ACTH stimulation when nuclear DNA synthesis has almost ceased. Pretreatment with 0.5 mug/ml/day of BrdU inhibited the ACTH-induced differentiation of cortical cells as well as the secretion of corticosterone and 18-OH-deoxycorticosterone (18-OHDOC). Whe...

The microglia-mediated inflammatory reaction promotes neuronal damage under cerebral ischemia/hypoxia conditions. We therefore speculated that inhibition of hypoxia-induced microglial activation may alleviate neuronal damage. To test this hypothesis, we co-cultured ginsenoside Rb1, an active component of ginseng, and cortical neurons. Ginsenoside Rb1 protected neuronal morphology and structure ...

A three-dimensional culture of cortical tissues derived from pluripotent stem cells offers an opportunity to model human brain development and disorders. In a recent issue of Nature, Lancaster et al. describe a new method for generating cerebral organoids in a dish and use it to model microcephaly.