ARE THERE NICOTINIC ACETYLCHOLINE RECEPTORS ON PHRENIC MOTOR NEURONS?

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are expressed throughout the central nervous system, including on neuron populations that control breathing. The specific locations of nAChRs on respiratory related neurons are relatively unknown and their presence on phrenic motor neurons (PMNs) could indicate a point at which developmental nicotine exposure may impact breathing. We hypothesize that application of nicotine to the PMNs will elicit changes in amplitude and area of respiratory motor bursting recorded from cervical 3-5 ventral roots due to the presence of nAChRs on PMNs. A brainstem spinal cord split-bath preparation was used to separately perfuse brainstem and spinal cord chambers with artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF), and nicotinic aCSF was added to the spinal cord chamber. Burst amplitude and area under the curve were measured at baseline and during application of three different nicotine concentrations (400nM, 4M, 40M). Our results show that while 400nM nicotinic aCSF did not significantly affect the amplitude or area of bursts, both 4M and 40 nicotinic aCSF caused an initial increase in amplitude and area of the bursts, indicating nAChR activation, followed by a decrease in these parameters, indicating nAChR desensitization. These findings indicate the presence of nAChR on PMNs or neurons that synapse with PMNs

Master of Science

thesisResearch indicates that energy availability below 30 kcal•kg FFM-1•day-1 suppresses reproductive hormones and markers of bone formation while energy balance is hypothesized to occur at an energy availability of 45 kcal•kg FFM-1•day-1. Nonetheless, available evidence suggests that few female athletes achieve energy availabilities of 45 kcal•kg FFM-1•day-1 and little is known about the effects of energy availabilities between 30 and 45 kcal•kg FFM-1•day-1. This study examined the range of energy availabilities and the prevalence of low energy availability (currently defined as ? 30 kcal•kg-1 FFM•day-1) among female endurance athletes. Subjects were 40 female endurance athletes from the Salt Lake City area. Dietary patterns and eating behaviors were assessed by a health, weight, dieting, and eating patterns questionnaire. Energy availability was assessed via 3-day diet and activity records designed to capture three distinct training days (heavy, moderate and easy). Exercise energy expenditure was calculated using the Ainsworth Compendium For Physical Activity. Energy availability for the sample ranged from 7.6 to 54.1 kcal•kg-1 FFM•day-1 with a mean of 27.8 kcal•kg- 1 FFM•day-1. The majority of subjects (62.5%) (n=26) of subjects had an energy availability ? 30 kcal•kg-1 FFM•day-1, while only 5.0% (n=2) of subjects had an energy availability ? 45 kcal•kg-1 FFM•day-1. Those athletes with energy availabilities ? 30 kcal•kg-1 FFM•day-1 did not demonstrate a greater incidence of stress fractures or menstrual dysfunction. These preliminary data indicate that endurance athletes routinely demonstrate energy availabilities below the "optimal range", and that low energy availability is not predictive of menstrual function or bone health

Exit Polling in Canada: An Experiment

Although exit polling has not been used to study Canadian elections before, such polls have methodological features that make them a potentially useful complement to data collected through more conventional designs. This paper reports on an experiment with exit polling in one constituency in the 2003 Ontario provincial election. Using student volunteers, a research team at Wilfrid Laurier University conducted an exit poll in the bellwether constituency of Kitchener Centre to assess the feasibility of mounting this kind of study on a broader scale. The experiment was successful in a number of respects. It produced a sample of 653 voters that broadly reflected the partisan character of the constituency, and which can hence be used to shed light on patterns of vote-switching and voter motivations in that constituency. It also yielded insights about best practices in mounting an exit poll in the Ontario context, as well as about the potential for using wireless communication devices to transmit respondent data from the field. The researchers conclude that exit polling on a limited basis (selected constituencies) is feasible, but the costs and logistics associated with this methodology make a province-wide or country-wide study unsupportable at present

Physiological measures

Journal ArticleHistorically, psychophysiological measures have made an invaluable contribution to personality psychology. Questions regarding interindividual differences and intraindividual changes in emotion, cognition, motivation, arousal, and attention are core topics within personality psychology, and these questions are particularly amenable to a psychophysiological approach

Spontaneous countermeasures during polygraph examinations: an apparent exercise in futility

The frequency and effects of spontaneous countermeasures against a polygraph examination were examined in a mock employment screening study. Eighty subjects were debriefed concerning their use of spontaneous countermeasure following the completion of their Relevant-irrelevant employment screening polygraph examination. Overall, 53.8% of the participants reported the use of at least one spontaneous countermeasure. In a departure from other studies in this area, 30% of the truthful subjects reported trying some intervention in an effort to make themselves look more truthful. An ANOVA revealed neither main effects nor interactions involving the use of a spontaneous countermeasure

Resolving Instructor Challenges in the Online Classroom

The rapid growth of online education has led to expanded opportunities for students while introducing instructors to new teaching challenges inherent to virtual learning environments. The practical responsibilities, once confined to the traditional classroom, such as handling student records, class size, teaching assistants, and instructional material now require a new mind set as well as sufficient technical knowledge. The online instructor faces additional opportunities and challenges once the class is online and students have enrolled. How to merge the best of the traditional classroom including teaching and practical responsibilities with the best of an online teaching opportunity become paramount to the online instructor. These issues and corresponding suggestions for the online instructor will be discussed in this paper

Receptor Activated Ca2+ Release Is Inhibited by Boric Acid in Prostate Cancer Cells

BACKGROUND:The global disparity in cancer incidence remains a major public health problem. We focused on prostate cancer since microscopic disease in men is common, but the incidence of clinical disease varies more than 100 fold worldwide. Ca(2+) signaling is a central regulator of cell proliferation, but has received little attention in cancer prevention. We and others have reported a strong dose-dependent reduction in the incidence of prostate and lung cancer within populations exposed to boron (B) in drinking water and food; and in tumor and cell proliferation in animal and cell culture models. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We examined the impact of B on Ca(2+) stores using cancer and non-cancer human prostate cell lines, Ca(2+) indicators Rhod-2 AM and Indo-1 AM and confocal microscopy. In DU-145 cells, inhibition of Ca(2+) release was apparent following treatment with Ringers containing RyR agonists cADPR, 4CmC or caffeine and respective levels of BA (50 microM), (1, 10 microM) or (10, 20, 50,150 microM). Less aggressive LNCaP cancer cells required 20 microM BA and the non-tumor cell line PWR1E required 150 microM BA to significantly inhibit caffeine stimulated Ca(2+) release. BA (10 microM) and the RyR antagonist dantroline (10 microM) were equivalent in their ability to inhibit ER Ca(2+) loss. Flow cytometry and confocal microscopy analysis showed exposure of DU-145 cells to 50 microM BA for 1 hr decreased stored [Ca(2+)] by 32%. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE:We show B causes a dose dependent decrease of Ca(2+) release from ryanodine receptor sensitive stores. This occurred at BA concentrations present in blood of geographically disparate populations. Our results suggest higher BA blood levels lower the risk of prostate cancer by reducing intracellular Ca(2+) signals and storage

Anatomy and Physiology I & II (GHC)

This Grants Collection for Anatomy and Physiology I & II was created under a Round Nine ALG Textbook Transformation Grant. Affordable Learning Georgia Grants Collections are intended to provide faculty with the frameworks to quickly implement or revise the same materials as a Textbook Transformation Grants team, along with the aims and lessons learned from project teams during the implementation process. Documents are in .pdf format, with a separate .docx (Word) version available for download. Each collection contains the following materials: Linked Syllabus Initial Proposal Final Reporthttps://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections/1022/thumbnail.jp