Zooplankton of the Laurentian Great Lakes developed hernial protrusions whose gross appearance matches those on zooplankton described elsewhere in the world. We have carried out a histologic and cytologic analysis of the protrusions and found that they are composed of apparently degenerating or necrotic tissue(s) that has been expressed from the organism through the process of herniation. At th...

The small GTPase RhoD regulates actin cytoskeleton to collapse actin stress fibers and focal adhesions, resulting in suppression of cell migration and cytokinesis. It also induces alignment of early endosomes along actin filaments and reduces their motility. We show here that a constitutively activated RhoD generated two types of actin-containing thin peripheral cellular protrusions distinct fr...

Dysbindin is a schizophrenia susceptibility gene required for the development of dendritic spines. The expression of dysbindin proteins is decreased in the brains of schizophrenia patients, and neurons in mice carrying a deletion in the dysbindin gene have fewer dendritic spines. Hence, dysbindin might contribute to the spine pathology of schizophrenia, which manifests as a decrease in the numb...

murraya koenigii l. (rutaceae), commonly known as curry leaf tree, closely associated with south india where the word “curry” originates from the tamil “kari” for spiced sauces. curry leaves are a rich source of carbazole alkaloids which possess various biological activities such as antitumor, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. curry leaf has a potential role in the treatment of diabetes. reser...

The formation of protrusions at the leading edge of the cell is an essential step in fibroblast locomotion. Using fluorescent analogue cytochemistry, ratio imaging, multiple parameter analysis, and fluorescence photobleaching recovery, the distribution of actin and myosin was examined in the same protrusions at the leading edge of live, locomoting cells during wound-healing in vitro. We have pr...

The cell-adhesion glycoprotein PODXL is associated with an aggressive tumor phenotype in several forms of cancer. Here, we report that high PODXL expression was an independent predictor of worse overall survival of pancreatic cancer patients, and that PODXL promoted pancreatic cancer cell motility and invasion by physically binding to the cytoskeletal protein gelsolin. Suppression of PODXL or g...

Over the course of development, the vertebrate heart undergoes a series of complex morphogenetic processes that transforms it from a simple myocardial epithelium to the complex 3D structure required for its function. One of these processes leads to the formation of trabeculae to optimize the internal structure of the ventricle for efficient conduction and contraction. Despite the important role...