14 research outputs found
Photoperiodic and diurnal regulation of WNT signalling in the arcuate nucleus of the 1 female Djungarian hamster, Phodopus sungorus
yesThe WNT pathway was shown to play an important role in the adult central nervous system. We previously identified the WNT pathway as a novel integration site of the adipokine leptin in mediating its neuroendocrine control of metabolism in obese mice. Here we investigated the implication of WNT signaling in seasonal body weight regulation exhibited by the Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungorus), a seasonal mammal that exhibits profound annual changes in leptin sensitivity. We furthermore investigated whether crucial components of the WNT pathway are regulated in a diurnal manner. Gene expression of key components of the WNT pathway in the hypothalamus of hamsters acclimated to either long day (LD) or short day (SD) photoperiod was analyzed by in situ hybridization. We detected elevated expression of the genes WNT-4, Axin-2, Cyclin-D1, and SFRP-2, in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus, a key energy balance integration site, during LD compared with SD as well as a diurnal regulation of Axin-2, Cyclin-D1, and DKK-3. Investigating the effect of photoperiod as well as leptin on the activation (phosphorylation) of the WNT coreceptor LRP-6-(Ser1490) by immunohistochemistry, we found elevated activity in the arcuate nucleus during LD relative to SD as well as after leptin treatment (2 mg/kg body weight). These findings indicate that differential WNT signaling may be associated with seasonal body weight regulation and is partially regulated in a diurnal manner in the adult brain. Furthermore, they suggest that this pathway plays a key role in the neuroendocrine regulation of body weight and integration of the leptin signal
Photoperiodic and diurnal regulation of WNT signalling in the arcuate nucleus of the 1 female Djungarian hamster, Phodopus sungorus
yesThe WNT pathway was shown to play an important role in the adult central nervous system. We previously identified the WNT pathway as a novel integration site of the adipokine leptin in mediating its neuroendocrine control of metabolism in obese mice. Here we investigated the implication of WNT signaling in seasonal body weight regulation exhibited by the Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungorus), a seasonal mammal that exhibits profound annual changes in leptin sensitivity. We furthermore investigated whether crucial components of the WNT pathway are regulated in a diurnal manner. Gene expression of key components of the WNT pathway in the hypothalamus of hamsters acclimated to either long day (LD) or short day (SD) photoperiod was analyzed by in situ hybridization. We detected elevated expression of the genes WNT-4, Axin-2, Cyclin-D1, and SFRP-2, in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus, a key energy balance integration site, during LD compared with SD as well as a diurnal regulation of Axin-2, Cyclin-D1, and DKK-3. Investigating the effect of photoperiod as well as leptin on the activation (phosphorylation) of the WNT coreceptor LRP-6-(Ser1490) by immunohistochemistry, we found elevated activity in the arcuate nucleus during LD relative to SD as well as after leptin treatment (2 mg/kg body weight). These findings indicate that differential WNT signaling may be associated with seasonal body weight regulation and is partially regulated in a diurnal manner in the adult brain. Furthermore, they suggest that this pathway plays a key role in the neuroendocrine regulation of body weight and integration of the leptin signal
How aware is the public of the existence, characteristics and causes of language impairment in childhood and where have they heard about it? A European survey
Public awareness of language impairment in childhood (Developmental Language Disorder (DLD)) has been identified as an important determiner of research and clinical service delivery, yet studies directly assessing public awareness are lacking. This study surveyed awareness across 18 countries of Europe.Method: A questionnaire developed by an international team asked whether respondents had
heard of language impairment affecting children, what they thought its manifestations and causes
were and where they had heard of it. Respondents were also asked whether they had heard of
autism, dyslexia, ADD/ADHD and speech disorder. The questionnaire was administered to
members of the public in 18 European countries. A total of 1519 responses were obtained,
spanning 6 age groups, 4 educational level groups and 3 income level groups.Results: Across all but one country, significantly fewer people had heard of language impairment
than any of the other disorders (or 60 % compared to over 90 % for autism). Awareness tended to
be lowest in Eastern Europe and greatest in North-Western Europe, and was influenced by education
level, age and income level. People in countries with overall low and overall high
awareness differed in their views on manifestations and causes. People had heard of language
impairment and autism the same way - most frequently through the media, including Internet,
and less frequently through their childâs school or a medical professional.Discussion: The study confirms that awareness of language impairment and knowledge of the
breadth of its manifestations are low. It also suggests opportunities for how to increase awareness,
including greater media coverage of language impairment and more efficient use of venues such
as schools and healthcare. Ways in which cultural and linguistic differences may influence public
awareness efforts are discussed, including the translatability of clinical labels and scientific terms.
These may impact the acceptance of a common term and definition across all countries. As
awareness campaigns are gaining momentum, the findings of this study can serve as a baseline
against which to compare future findings.peer-reviewe
A case study of a quadrilingual child : The influence of exposure and cognates when developing multiple languages
This paper reports on a case study of a quadrilingual child, Stefan, born and raised in Sweden and exposed to four languages before his first birthday: English, French, Russian and Swedish. We examine his vocabularies in these languages by the Cross-Linguistic Lexical Tasks (Haman, Ćuniewska, & Pomiechowska, 2015), designed to measure vocabulary in monolingual and multilingual children. Stefanâs scores on comprehension and production reveal proficiency in all his languages, to varying degrees, and with comprehension exceeding production. While highlighting direct and indirect exposure as explanation for the variation in proficiency, we also discuss cognate vocabulary as an important factor for multilingual language development. In the production tasks, Stefan demonstrates not only vocabulary knowledge but also language-specific use of morphosyntax
Impaired CXCR1-dependent oxidative defence in active tuberculosis patients.
Much of the pronounced host inflammatory response that occurs in tuberculosis (TB) is related to failed immunity against the invading pathogen. The G-protein coupled receptors CXCR1 and CXCR2 are implicated in important signal transduction pathways in lung inflammatory responses. We investigated the expression and function of these receptors in a simple whole blood model from 24 patients with pulmonary TB and in subjects with latent TB infection (LTBI). Healthy controls were recruited from close contacts to the pulmonary index patients. We found that pulmonary TB patients had significantly increased CXCR1 expression on blood cells compared to LTBI subjects and controls (p < 0.001). In contrast, LTBI subjects had a significant increase in CXCR2 expression compared to pulmonary TB patients (p < 0.001) and controls (p < 0.01). Leukocyte function, measured as oxidative capacity, was decreased in pulmonary TB patients compared to LTBI and controls (p < 0.001) and correlated with the increased CXCR1 expression. Leukocyte recruitment, measured as the expression of microRNA-223 was increased in pulmonary TB patients compared to LTBI (p < 0.05). We found that variations in receptor expression are linked to disease progression and affect the immune response against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb)