Assessing seizure liability in vitro with voltage-sensitive dye imaging in mouse hippocampal slices

Non-clinical toxicology is a major cause of drug candidate attrition during development. In particular, drug-induced seizures are the most common finding in central nervous system (CNS) toxicity. Current safety pharmacology tests for assessing CNS functions are often inadequate in detecting seizure-inducing compounds early in drug development, leading to significant delays. This paper presents an in vitro seizure liability assay using voltage-sensitive dye (VSD) imaging techniques in hippocampal brain slices, offering a powerful alternative to traditional electrophysiological methods. Hippocampal slices were isolated from mice, and VSD optical responses evoked by stimulating the Schaffer collateral pathway were recorded and analyzed in the stratum radiatum (SR) and stratum pyramidale (SP). VSDs allow for the comprehensive visualization of neuronal action potentials and postsynaptic potentials on a millisecond timescale. By employing this approach, we investigated the in vitro drug-induced seizure liability of representative pro-convulsant compounds. Picrotoxin (PiTX; 1–100 μM), gabazine (GZ; 0.1–10 μM), and 4-aminopyridine (4AP; 10–100 μM) exhibited seizure-like responses in the hippocampus, but pilocarpine hydrochloride (Pilo; 10–100 μM) did not. Our findings demonstrate the potential of VSD-based assays in identifying seizurogenic compounds during early drug discovery, thereby reducing delays in drug development and providing insights into the mechanisms underlying seizure induction and the associated risks of pro-convulsant compounds

The Measurement of Grief and Coping after Loss of a Child

We administered Grief Response Scale (GRS), Japanese translation of "Core Bereavement Items," and a set of newly developed coping　behavior items (Scale for Coping with　Bereavement; SCB) to 48 fathers and 127　mothers who experienced the loss of a child within several years. Although a confirmatory factor analysis of GRS did not support the original seven-factor model byBurnett et al., an exploratory factor analysis yielded four factors: lmage and sorrow, Sense of presence， Non-resolution and conflict, and Resolution of grief. Grief reaction was significantly greater in mothers than in fathers. An exploratory factor analysis of SCB produced five factors: Distraction, Ruminative response, A cceptance and overcome, Support-seeking behavior, and Religious activity and existential meaning. As compared to fathers, mothers ruminated, sought support from others, and had religious activity more frequently. These results suggest that different aspects of grief were related with coping with bereavement after controlling for age, sex, income, and level of manifest anxiety

パネル トーク タブンカ シャカイ ニ モトメ ラレル ジンザイ トワ パネル トーク タブンカ シャカイ ニ モトメ ラレル ジンザイ トワ タブンカ シャカイ コーディネーター ヨウセイ プログラム ソノ センモンセイ ト リキリョウ ケイセイ ノ トリクミ

Membrane-based liquid desiccant dehumidification has attracted increasing interests with elimination of solution droplets carryover problem. In this study, a membrane-based hybrid liquid desiccant dehumidification cooling system is developed, which is mainly composed of a dehumidifier, a regenerator and an evaporative cooler. The system is capable to remove latent load by the liquid desiccant dehumidification unit and simultaneously to handle sensible load with an evaporative cooling unit. This paper presents a performance evaluation study of the hybrid system with calcium chloride as liquid desiccant based on experimental data. Series of tests are conducted to identify influences of operating variables and conditions (i.e. desiccant solution concentration ratio, regeneration temperature, inlet air condition, etc.) on the system performance. The experimental results indicate that the system is viable for dehumidification cooling purpose. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that mass balance between the dehumidifier and regenerator should be achieved for system steady operation. Thermal COPth of 0.70 and 24 electrical COPel of 2.62 are achieved respectively under steady operating condition at CaCl2 concentration ratio of 36%

Beam and SKS spectrometers at the K1.8 beam line

High-resolution spectrometers for both incident beams and scattered particles have been constructed at the K1.8 beam line of the Hadron Experimental Facility at J-PARC. A point-to-point optics is realized between the entrance and exit of QQDQQ magnets for the beam spectrometer. Fine-pitch wire chamber trackers and hodoscope counters are installed in the beam spectrometer to accept a high rate beam up to 107 Hz. The superconducting kaon spectrometer for scattered particles was transferred from KEK with modifications to the cryogenic system and detectors. A missing-mass resolution of 1.9 ± 0.1 MeV/c2 (FWHM) was achieved for the ∑ peaks of (π±, K+) reactions on a proton target in the first physics run of E19 in 2010

Physiological and Psychological Effects of Viewing a Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa ‘Hayward’) Orchard Landscape in Summer in Japan

The physiological and psychological relaxation effects of viewing a kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa ‘Hayward’) orchard landscape were investigated. Seventeen Japanese adult females (46.1 ± 8.2 years) viewed a kiwifruit orchard landscape or a building site (control) for 10 min. The heart rate variability and heart rate were determined. The modified semantic differential method and the short-form Profile of Mood States were used to assess the psychological effects. Compared with viewing the building site, viewing the kiwifruit orchard landscape resulted in a significant increase in the parasympathetic activity, a marginally significant decrease in the heart rate, a significant increase in “comfortable”, “relaxed” and “natural” feelings and a significant improvement in mood states