Alterations in function and expression of ABC transporters at blood-brain barrier under diabetes and the clinical significances

Diabetes is a systematic metabolic disease, which often develops a number of well-recognized vascular complications including brain complications which may partly result from the dysfunction of blood-brain barrier (BBB). BBB is generally considered as a mechanism for protecting the brain from unwanted actions resulting from substances in the blood and maintaining brain homeostasis via monitoring the entry or efflux of compounds. ATP-binding cassette (ABC) family of transporters including P-glycoprotein (P-GP) and breast cancer-related protein (BCRP), widely expressed in the luminal membrane of the microvessel endothelium and in the apical membrane of the choroids plexus epithelium, play important roles in the function of BBB. However, these transporters are easily altered by some diseases. The present article was focused on the alteration in expression and function of both P-GP and BCRP at BBB by diabetes and the clinical significances

The role of affect in attentional functioning for younger and older adults

Although previous research has shown that positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) modulate attentional functioning in distinct ways, few studies have considered whether the links between affect and attentional functioning may vary as a function of age. Using the Attention Network Test (Fan, McCandliss, Sommer, Raz, & Posner, 2002), we tested whether participants’ current state of PA and NA influenced distinct attentional functions (i.e., alerting, orienting, and executive attention) and how the relationships between affective states and attentional functioning differ in younger (18-25 yrs) and older (60-85 yrs) age groups. The results revealed that higher PA was associated with lower alerting efficiency; however, this pattern did not vary by age group. While there were age differences in alerting efficiency, these age differences were mediated by PA, indicating that the higher state PA found in older adults may contribute to age differences in alerting. Furthermore, age group moderated the relationship between PA and orienting as well as NA and orienting. That is, higher levels of PA and lower levels of NA were associated with enhanced orienting efficiency in older adults. Neither PA nor NA had any influence on executive attention. The current results suggest that positive and negative affect may influence attentional functioning in distinct ways, but that these patterns may depend on age groups

A simple method suitable to study de novo root organogenesis

De novo root organogenesis is the process in which adventitious roots regenerate from detached or wounded plant tissues or organs. In tissue culture, appropriate types and concentrations of plant hormones in the medium are critical for inducing adventitious roots. However, in natural conditions, regeneration from detached organs is likely to rely on endogenous hormones. To investigate the actions of endogenous hormones and the molecular mechanisms guiding de novo root organogenesis, we developed a simple method to imitate natural conditions for adventitious root formation by culturing Arabidopsis thaliana leaf explants on B5 medium without additive hormones. Here we show that the ability of the leaf explants to regenerate roots depends on the age of the leaf and on certain nutrients in the medium. Based on these observations, we provide examples of how this method can be used in different situations, and how it can be optimized. This simple method could be used to investigate the effects of various physiological and molecular changes on the regeneration of adventitious roots. It is also useful for tracing cell lineage during the regeneration process by differential interference contrast observation of -glucuronidase staining, and by live imaging of proteins labeled with fluorescent tags