Effect of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra, brain inflammatory response and behavior in mice with Parkinson’s disease

Purpose: To examine the effect of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra, intracerebral inflammatory response and ethology in mice with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: Four groups of male C57BL/6 mice (n = 48) were used: normal control, negative control, n3PUFA, and Madopa groups. Except for normal control group, all groups were given 6- hydroxydopamine hydrochloride (6-OHDA) to establish Parkinson’s mice model. The expressions of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and calcium-binding protein (CB) in substantia nigra dopaminergic neurons were determined with immunohistochemistry and Western blot. The contents of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) and interferon γ (IFN-γ) (indices of intracerebral inflammatory response) were measured. Tremor paralysis, moving grid number, standing times, swimming ability, and the number of rollers in each group were observed as indices of ethology. Results: The number of TH and CB-positive neurons in the substantia nigra of n-3PUFA-treated mice was significantly increased, relative to those in Madopa-treated mice (p < 0.05). The expressions of TH and CB proteins in substantia nigra in n-3PUFA group were markedly higher than the corresponding expressions in Madopa-treated mice (p < 0.05). Decreased levels of NO, TNF-α and IFN-γ levels were seen in 3PUFA group, when compared to mice in Madopa group, but higher behavioral scores were obtained in n-3PUFA-treated mice, relative to Madopa-treated mice (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The n-3PUFAs protect substantia nigra compact dopaminergic neurons against Parkinson’s disease, alleviate immune inflammation, and improve the coordination of limb movement. Thus, n-3PUFAs have potential therapeutic application in the management of Parkinson’s disease

Practical Stability of Impulsive Discrete Systems with Time Delays

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the practical stability problem for impulsive discrete systems with time delays. By using Lyapunov functions and the Razumikhin-type technique, some criteria which guarantee the practical stability and uniformly asymptotically practical stability of the addressed systems are provided. Finally, two examples are presented to illustrate the criteria

The Central Domain of MCPH1 Controls Development of the Cerebral Cortex and Gonads in Mice

MCPH1 is the first gene identified to be responsible for the human autosomal recessive disorder primary microcephaly (MCPH). Mutations in the N-terminal and central domains of MCPH1 are strongly associated with microcephaly in human patients. A recent study showed that the central domain of MCPH1, which is mainly encoded by exon 8, interacts with E3 ligase βTrCP2 and regulates the G2/M transition of the cell cycle. In order to investigate the biological functions of MCPH1’s central domain, we constructed a mouse model that lacked the central domain of MCPH1 by deleting its exon 8 (designated as Mcph1 -Δe8). Mcph1 -Δe8 mice exhibited a reduced brain size and thinner cortex, likely caused by a compromised self-renewal capacity and premature differentiation of Mcph1 -Δe8 neuroprogenitors during corticogenesis. Furthermore, Mcph1 -Δe8 mice were sterile because of a loss of germ cells in the testis and ovary. The embryonic fibroblasts of Mcph1 -Δe8 mice exhibited premature chromosome condensation (PCC). All of these findings indicate that Mcph1 -Δe8 mice are reminiscent of MCPH1 complete knockout mice and Mcph1 -ΔBR1 mice. Our study demonstrates that the central domain of MCPH1 represses microcephaly, and is essential for gonad development in mammals

United States Consumers’ Landscaping Expenditures: A Case of Garden and Lawn Care Services and Equipment

The economic downturns of 2007–09 and the COVID-19 pandemic affected most industries in the United States, including landscape services and equipment sales, and provoked both short-term disruptions and long-term changes. To understand how the landscaping industry has responded, we investigated patterns of consumer expenditures on landscape services and equipment from 2009 through 2021 using a representative sample of 76,895 US households. We categorized US households as detached single-family residents and townhouse residents to more fully articulate the factors that turned potential consumers into purchasers and the factors that affected purchasers’ expenditures. We used a double-hurdle model to identify key factors that drive consumer demand for landscape services and equipment over time, including social-demographics, geographic characteristics, housing conditions, year and seasonal trends, and the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that during the studied period, the demand for landscape services declined in terms of both the percentage of consumers purchasing the services and the purchasers’ average expenditures, while the demand for do-it-yourself (DIY) equipment remained relatively unchanged. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the percentage of consumers who purchased landscape services increased, while the expenditures on landscape services decreased in 2020 and then began to rebound in 2021, but not enough to reverse the overall downward trend. In contrast, purchases of DIY equipment were relatively stable in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and mainly relied on current consumers

Prognostic Value of Nicotinamide N-Methyltransferase Expression in Patients With Solid Tumors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) is an enzyme that catalyzes N-methylation of pyridine-containing compounds. NNMT is upregulated in many types of solid tumors, suggesting the potential for its use as a tumor biomarker. However, the prognostic value of NNMT in solid tumors is still unclear. We therefore conducted a meta-analysis to investigate the association between NNMT expression and survival in patients with solid tumors.Methods: We focused on patients with solid tumors, using high NNMT expression levels as the intervention and low NNMT expression levels as the comparison, according to Patient, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome (PICO) guidelines. Electronic databases (up to June 7, 2018) were comprehensively searched to collect relevant cohort studies regarding the associations between NNMT expression levels and survival outcomes (overall survival [OS], disease-specific survival [DSS] including cancer-specific survival [CSS], and time to tumor progression [TTP] including disease-free survival [DFS], progression-free survival [PFS], and metastasis-free survival [MeFS]). Publication biases were also examined. All analyses were performed using STATA 12.0 software.Results: A total of 3340 patients with solid tumors from nine published studies were included. The combined hazard ratio (HR) identified high NNMT expression levels as a poor prognostic predictor of OS (HR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.23–2.26). However, NNMT levels had no significant association with DSS (HR = 1.47, 95% CI = 0.95–2.28) and TTP (HR = 1.13, 95%CI = 0.39–3.25).Conclusion: High NNMT expression levels may be a poor prognostic biomarker for patients with solid tumors