Results of several lines of experimentation suggest that sperm-induced egg activation has several features in common with G protein-coupled receptor signal transduction mechanisms. We report that microinjection of GDP beta S into metaphase II-arrested mouse eggs blocks sperm-induced egg activation. Since GDP beta S inactivates both heterotrimeric and monomeric classes of G proteins, the involve...

material into cells and for extracting and transferring cellular components between cells. Any microinjection system will typically comprise three basic functions: the imaging of the target cell and the micropipette, the positioning of the micropipette, and control of the pressure inside the micropipette. The XenoWorksTM Microinjection system has been devised to fulfill the requirements for the...

background: the areas of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (bst) with a high density of estrogen receptors are involved in cardiovascular regulation and send axonal projections to the rostroventrolateral medulla (rvlm). we aimed to find the contribution of the rvlm to cardiovascular responses elicited by glutamate microinjection into the bst. methods: experiments were done in α-chloralose...

it has been shown that nitric oxide is synthesized in the central nervous system as well as in vascular endothelial cells. recently, it was reported that nitric oxide was involved in central cardiovascular regulation, baroreflex modulation, and involved in a reciprocal release with excitatory amino acids in the nucleus tractus solitarii of rats. the purpose of the present study was to investiga...

BACKGROUND Only recently have data been published attempting to validate a technology and technique suitable for targeted delivery of biological payloads to the human spinal cord. OBJECTIVE To characterize the development and evolution of a spine-stabilized microinjection platform as a vehicle for biologics delivery to the cervical and thoracolumbar spine on the basis of preclinical experienc...

Background: The areas of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST) with a high density of estrogen receptors are involved in cardiovascular regulation and send axonal projections to the rostroventrolateral medulla (RVLM). We aimed to find the contribution of the RVLM to cardiovascular responses elicited by glutamate microinjection into the BST. Methods: Experiments were done in α-ch...

The raphe magnus (RM) participates in opioid analgesia and contains pain-modulatory neurons with respiration-related discharge. Here, we asked whether RM contributes to respiratory depression, the most prevalent lethal effect of opioids. To investigate whether opioidergic transmission in RM produces respiratory depression, we microinjected a mu-opioid receptor agonist, DAMGO, or morphine into t...

Background: The nucleus raphe magnus (NRM) is involved in thermoregulatory processing. There is a correlation between changes in the firing rates of the cells in the NRM and the application of the peripheral thermal stimulus. Introduction: we examined the effect of reversible inactivation and excitation of NRM on mechanisms involved in tail blood flow (TBF) regulation in hypothermia. Methods: H...

BACKGROUND Microinjection approaches in the cardiac cell context have allowed delivery of various calcium dyes and monitoring of short-term physiological responses. However, unlike other cell types, it has proved difficult to microinject myocardial cells without the concomitant loss of long-term cell viability. METHODS AND RESULTS An analysis of experimental variables was conducted to adapt m...