450 research outputs found

    A organização logística da seção de educação do Colégio da Polícia Militar "Cel. PM Felippe de Sousa Miranda"

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    Orientador: Edelvino Razzolini FilhoMonografia (especialização) - Universidade Federal do ParanĂĄ, Especialização em GestĂŁo PĂșblicaInclui referĂȘnciasNĂŁo inclui resum

    Divergence of Threespine Stickleback That Differ in Nuptial Coloration

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    Recent research has led to a much better understanding of the evolutionary processes that mold and structure variation within and among populations. How populations diverge at the genome-wide level and how polymorphism is maintained within a species, however, remains unclear. We address these questions with two freshwater color morphs, red and black, of the threespine stickleback fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from the northwest United States, in which a shift from red to black nuptial coloration occurred in several locations following glacial retreat. We measured phenotypic variation in a suite of traits and used next generation sequencing to characterize within-species and among-morph genetic variation between the two morphs. We found substantial phenotypic and genetic divergence between color morphs, and patterns observed in a third, mixed morph that are likely due to hybridization between anadromous and freshwater stickleback. This work highlights the central role of natural and sexual selection in the evolution of divergence in nature

    Orexin Receptor Antagonism: A New Principle in Neuroscience

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    Orexins are hypothalamic neuropeptides interacting with G-protein coupled receptors in the brain. They play a role in the regulation of sleep–wake cycles in mammals, as suggested by the deficits in orexinergic function that are associated with rodent, canine and human narcolepsy. Selective or dual orexin1-receptor and/or orexin2-receptor antagonists or agonists that cross the blood-brain-barrier (BBB) may be of therapeutic interest for disorders of disturbed arousal and alertness. This article summarizes recent research to identify and characterize orexin receptor antagonists and their therapeutic potential for normalizing sleep in insomnia patients

    Synthesis, biological evaluation, and SAR studies of 14ÎČ-phenylacetyl substituted 17-cyclopropylmethyl-7, 8-dihydronoroxymorphinones derivatives : Ligands with mixed NOP and opioid receptor profile

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    © 2018 Kumar, Polgar, Cami-Kobeci, Thomas, Khroyan, Toll and Husbands.A series of 14ÎČ-acyl substituted 17-cyclopropylmethyl-7,8-dihydronoroxymorphinone compounds has been synthesized and evaluated for affinity and efficacy for mu (MOP), kappa (KOP), and delta (DOP) opioid receptors and nociceptin/orphanin FQ peptide (NOP) receptors. The majority of the new ligands displayed high binding affinities for the three opioid receptors, and moderate affinity for NOP receptors. The affinities for NOP receptors are of particular interest as most classical opioid ligands do not bind to NOP receptors. The predominant activity in the [35S]GTPÎłS assay was partial agonism at each receptor. The results are consistent with our prediction that an appropriate 14ÎČ side chain would access a binding site within the NOP receptor and result in substantially higher affinity than displayed by the parent compound naltrexone. Molecular modeling studies, utilizing the recently reported structure of the NOP receptor, are also consistent with this interpretation.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

    Geographic variation in phenotypic divergence between two hybridizing field cricket species

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    Patterns of morphological divergence across species' ranges can provide insight into local adaptation and speciation. In this study, we compared phenotypic divergence among 4,221 crickets from 337 populations of two closely related species of field cricket, Gryllus firmus and G. pennsylvanicus, and their hybrids. We found that these species differ across their geographic range in key morphological traits, such as body size and ovipositor length, and we directly compared phenotype with genotype for a subset of crickets to demonstrate nuclear genetic introgression, phenotypic intermediacy of hybrids, and essentially unidirectional mitochondrial introgression. We discuss how these morphological traits relate to life history differences between the two species. Our comparisons across geographic areas support prior research suggesting that cryptic variation within G. firmus may represent different species. Our study highlights how variable morphology can be across wide-ranging species and the importance of studying reproductive barriers in more than one or two transects of a hybrid zone

    Seismic internal stability assessment of geosynthetic reinforced earth retaining wall in cohesive soil using limit analysis

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    Assessment of internal seismic stability of geosynthetic reinforced cohesive soil retaining walls with likelihood for developing cracks in the failure mechanism is typically done with the limit equilibrium method. However, in this paper, the kinematic theorem of limit analysis combined with the discretization method are used to implement the crack formation in the collapse mechanism in the internal seismic assessment of geosynthetic reinforced soil retaining walls within the framework of the pseudo-static approach. The presence of the crack leads to an increase of the required reinforcement strength that prevent the failure of the structure

    The brain decade in debate: II. Panic or anxiety? From animal models to a neurobiological basis

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    This article is a transcription of an electronic symposium sponsored by the Brazilian Society of Neuroscience and Behavior (SBNeC). Invited researchers from the European Union, North America and Brazil discussed two issues on anxiety, namely whether panic is a very intense anxiety or something else, and what aspects of clinical anxiety are reproduced by animal models. Concerning the first issue, most participants agreed that generalized anxiety and panic disorder are different on the basis of clinical manifestations, drug response and animal models. Also, underlying brain structures, neurotransmitter modulation and hormonal changes seem to involve important differences. It is also common knowledge that existing animal models generate different types of fear/anxiety. A challenge for future research is to establish a good correlation between animal models and nosological classification.Universidade Federal do ParanĂĄ Departamento de Farmacologia LaboratĂłrio de Fisiologia e Farmacologia do Sistema Nervoso CentralUniversity of Hawaii Department of NeurobiologyUniversity of Hawaii Department of PsychologyUniversidade de SĂŁo Paulo Faculdade de Filosofia CiĂȘncias e Letras de RibeirĂŁo Preto Departamento de PsicobiologiaUniversidade de SĂŁo Paulo Faculdade de Medicina de RibeirĂŁo Preto Departamento de FisiologiaUniversidade de SĂŁo Paulo Faculdade de Medicina de RibeirĂŁo Preto Departamento de NeuropsiquiatriaUniversidade Federal de Santa Catarina Departamento de FarmacologiaCentral Nervous System Research Department Sanofi SynthelaboAston University Institute of Pharmaceutical SciencesHoffmann-La Roche Ltd.Universidade Federal de SĂŁo Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de PsicologiaUniversity of Leeds Department of Psychology Ethopharmacology LaboratoryUniversidade Federal do EspĂ­rito Santo Centro de Biomedicina Departamento de CiĂȘncias FisiolĂłgicasUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de PsicologiaSciEL

    Structural Requirements of N-Substituted Spiropiperidine Analogues as Agonists of Nociceptin/Orphanin FQ Receptor

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    The nociceptin/orphanin FQ (NOP) receptor is involved in a wide range of biological functions, including pain, anxiety, depression and drug abuse. Especially, its agonists have great potential to be developed into anxiolytics. In this work, both the ligand- and receptor-based three-dimensional quantitative structure–activity relationship (3D-QSAR) studies were carried out using comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA) and comparative molecular similarity indices analysis (CoMSIA) techniques on 103 N-substituted spiropiperidine analogues as NOP agonists. The resultant optimal ligand-based CoMSIA model exhibited Q2 of 0.501, R2ncv of 0.912 and its predictive ability was validated by using an independent test set of 26 compounds which gave R2pred value of 0.818. In addition, docking analysis and molecular dynamics simulation (MD) were also applied to elucidate the probable binding modes of these agonists. Interpretation of the 3D contour maps, in the context of the topology of the active site of NOP, provided insight into the NOP-agonist interactions. The information obtained from this work can be used to accurately predict the binding affinity of related agonists and also facilitate the future rational design of novel agonists with improved activity

    Endogenous Nociceptin / Orphanin FQ System Involvement in Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Responses: Relevance to Models of Inflammation

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    Nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ) peptide and its receptor (NOP) function in the neuromodulation of anxiety, stress and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity. We investigated the endogenous NOP system using the selective NOP antagonist, UFP-101, during the HPA axis response to bacterial endotoxin, lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Although i.c.v. N/OFQ (1 ÎŒg/rat) had no significant effect on LPS-induced (250 ÎŒg/rat i.p) plasma corticosterone release at 30 or 60 min post-i.c.v. injection, i.c.v. UFP-101 (1 ÎŒg/rat)/LPS significantly attenuated plasma adrenocorticotrophic hormone and corticosterone at the 30-min time-point compared to i.c.v saline (0.9%)/LPS. Parvocellular paraventricular nucleus (PVN) corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) and corticotrophic pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), but not parvocellular PVN arginine vasopressin (AVP), mRNA expression was significantly increased by LPS compared to non-LPS control. Intracerebroventricular UFP-101/LPS treatment was associated with increased POMC mRNA expression 4 h after injection and a clear trend towards increased parvocellular CRF mRNA. Furthermore, i.c.v. UFP-101 was selectively associated with an LPS-induced increase in parvocellular AVP mRNA, an effect that was absent in the i.c.v saline/LPS group. To determine whether LPS challenge was associated with compensatory changes in N/OFQ precursor or NOP receptor mRNAs, in a separate study, we undertook reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis of preproN/OFQ and NOP transcripts. In support of an endogenous role for central N/OFQ in inflammatory stress, we found that LPS significantly increased preproN/OFQ transcript expression in the hypothalamus 4 h after injection compared to the saline control. No changes in preproN/OFQ mRNA level in the hippocampus or basal forebrain (including bed nucleus of stria terminalis) were seen, albeit at 4 h. LPS was associated with a significant attenuation of NOP mRNA in the basal forebrain at 4 h, possibly as a compensatory response to increased N/OFQ release. Although the exact mechanisms require elucidation, the findings obtained in the present study provide evidence indicating that the endogenous NOP system is involved in the acute HPA axis response to immune challenge

    Overexpression of 5-HT2C receptors in forebrain leads to elevated anxiety and hypoactivity

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    The 5-HT2C receptor has been implicated in mood and eating disorders. In general, it is accepted that 5-HT2C receptor agonists increase anxiety behaviours and induce hypophagia. However, pharmacological analysis of the roles of these receptors is hampered by the lack of selective ligands and the complex regulation of receptor isoforms and expression levels. Therefore, the exact role of 5-HT2C receptors in mood disorders remain controversial, some suggesting agonists and others suggesting antagonists may be efficacious antidepressants, while there is general agreement that antagonists are beneficial anxiolytics. In order to test the hypothesis that increased 5-HT2C receptor expression, and thus increased 5-HT2C receptor signalling, is causative in mood disorders, we have undertaken a transgenic approach, directly altering the 5-HT2C receptor number in the forebrain and evaluating the consequences on behaviour. Transgenic mice overexpressing 5-HT2C receptors under the control of the CaMKIIα promoter (C2CR mice) have elevated 5-HT2C receptor mRNA levels in cerebral cortex and limbic areas (including the hippocampus and amygdala), but normal levels in the hypothalamus, resulting in > 100% increase in the number of 5-HT2C ligand binding sites in the forebrain. The C2CR mice show increased anxiety-like behaviour in the elevated plus-maze, decreased wheel-running behaviour and reduced activity in a novel environment. These behaviours were observed in the C2CR mice without stimulation by exogenous ligands. Our findings support a role for 5-HT2C receptor signalling in anxiety disorders. The C2CR mouse model offers a novel and effective approach for studying disorders associated with 5-HT2C receptors
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