Aggregation of the pre-synaptic protein, α-synuclein (α-syn), is the key etiological factor in Parkinson's disease (PD) and other alpha-synucleinopathies, such as multiple system atrophy (MSA) and Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Various triggers for pathological α-syn aggregation have been elucidated, including post-translational modifications, oxidative stress, and binding of metal ions, such...

We investigated the distributions of AMPA glutamate receptor subtypes GluR1 and GluR4 in the hamster superior colliculus (SC) with antibody immunocytochemistry and the effect of enucleation on these distributions. We compared these labelings to those of GluR2/3 in our previous report (Park et al., 2004, Neurosci Res., 49:139-155) and calcium-binding proteins calbindin D28K, calretinin, parvalbu...

Staurosporine (0.03-0.5 microM) induced a dose-dependent, apoptotic degeneration in cultured rat hippocampal neurons that was sensitive to 24-h pretreatments with the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide (1 microM) or the cell cycle inhibitor mimosine (100 microM). To investigate the role of Ca2+ and reactive oxygen species in staurosporine-induced neuronal apoptosis, we overexpressed calb...

The chorioallantoic membrane resides adjacent to either the inner surface of the egg shell or uterine epithelium in oviparous and viviparous reptiles, respectively. Chorionic cells face the shell or uterine epithelium and transport calcium to underlying embryonic capillaries. Calcium transport activity of the chorioallantois increases in the final stages of development coincident with rapid emb...

PURPOSE Chronic stress is a risk factor for behavioral deficits, including impaired memory processing and depression. Exercise is well known to have beneficial impacts on brain health. METHODS Mice were forced to treadmill running (4-week) during chronic restraint stress (6h/21d), and then behavioral tests were conducted by Novel object recognition, forced swimming test: FST, sociality test: ...

Previous studies have demonstrated formation of recurrent excitatory circuits between sprouted mossy fibers and granule cell dendrites in the inner molecular layer of the dentate gyrus (9, 28, 30). In addition, there is evidence that inhibitory nonprincipal cells also receive an input from sprouted mossy fibers (39). This study was undertaken to further characterize possible target cells for sp...