神经生物学

The phenomenon of antagonist-induced receptor upregulation is common to many G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) such as adrenergic, muscarinic, opioid, cannabinoid, histamine, GABA(B), serotonin, and dopamine receptors. This chapter reviews data that support antagonist- ...

The technique of flow cytometry was initially developed to count and size particles. However, it has progressively evolved into a sophisticated analytic tool for rapidly quantifying multiple properties of individual cells or cellular constituents in suspended nonhomogeneous ...

A knowledge of how drugs are metabolized in the body is often of clinical relevance because often an administered drug is not soley responsible for observed pharmacological and toxicological effects. Regrettably, the formation of drug metabolites is often not considered in pharmacol ...

Genetic analysis of viruses capable of producing tumors in mice led to the discovery of cancer-causing genes termed oncogenes. The v-fos oncogene is responsible for the ability of the FBJ-MSV virus to produce bone tumors (Finkel et al., 1966; Curran and Teich, 1982). Shortly after identification ...

Neuroscientists are often faced with the choice of obtaining quantitative data at the expense of morphological information or vice versa. The identification of a pathway in the brain offers a potential anatomical basis for a given physiological function, for example, but does not direct ...

Over the last 30 yr, in vitro assessment of interactions between drugs and drug-metabolizing enzymes has developed from a scientific curiosity to a topic of major clinical and commercial importance. For clinicians, knowledge of this area assists in the ability to predict the likelihood of a dr ...

It is inevitable that most graduate students and researchers in the neurosciences will, from time to time, be faced with a problem related to enzymes. Tasks such as screening novel compounds for enzyme-inhibitor potency, examining the effects of drug administration on enzyme activities, e ...

During development of the nervous system, cell migration, axonal outgrowth, axonal guidance, and selective cell adhesion and recognition are some of the crucial processes required for neural pattern formation. Numerous studies reveal that cells bind selectively to one another and t ...

The ribonuclease protection assay (RPA) is one of the widely used techniques for detection and quantification of mRNA. This assay offers at least 5–10 times the sensitivity of Northern blots and also enables the investigator to use multiple probes in a single assay. Ribonuclease protection i ...

Receptors for peptide YY (PYY) were discovered in the rat small intestine epithelium (1) and were defined as PYY-preferring because they display a slightly higher affinity for PYY than for neuropeptide Y (NPY). In contrast, they have a very low affinity for pancreatic polypeptide (PP). They are ex ...

Radioligand binding is an extremely powerful technique that can provide detailed information about receptor-ligand interactions both in vitro and in vivo. Several types of binding assay can be performed, including studies of the kinetics of association or dissociation of the radio ...

Neuropeptide receptors can be used as molecular targets to deliver chemotherapeutic drugs into cancer cells. The gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) receptor was used to deliver a camptothecin (CPT)–bombesin (BB) conjugate into the lung cancer cell line NCI-H1299. The CPT–BB conjugate ...

The blood–brain barrier (BBB) plays a crucial regulatory role in central nervous system (CNS) function and in communication between the CNS and the periphery. In addition to lipophilic molecules, many small proteins are now known to cross the BBB. Such recognition was expedited by techniques ...

Retinal inflammatory disease of a putative autoimmune origin, known as autoimmune uveitis, affects 150,000 persons per year in the developed world and is a potentially blinding disease. The eye can be the only affected organ or uveitis can be part of a systemic syndrome. Animal models of uveitis i ...

Ischemic disorders of the retina constitute a common cause of blindness and visual impairment worldwide. Retinal ischemia is a disorder initially caused by an imbalance between the supply of metabolic substrates to the retina and its demand for nutrients. If treatment cannot be implemen ...

Because repairing visual dysfunction is the primary goal of therapy for retinal disease, a quantification of visual function is imperative for the evaluation of potential treatments for these diseases. The Visual Water Task and the Virtual Optokinetic System have been developed to con ...

The conversion of wavelengths of light into information useful to the brain requires a tremendous degree of anatomic and functional specialization. The mammalian retina is a remarkably refined and adapted tissue that is capable of light detection, processing, and transmission of inf ...

Here we review both established and emerging approaches for studying retinal diseases. We primarily focus on the use of the mouse as a genetic model, as it is a mammalian model with many resources and is amenable to a variety of genetic manipulations. Additionally, we highlight two other organisms, ...

Glaucoma is a relatively common disease in which the pathological death of retinal ganglion cells causes progressive losses of sight, often leading to blindness. The diagnosis of glaucoma and the assessment of progression are based on a clinical quantification of the ocular characteri ...

The generation and advancement of animal models have contributed significantly to the advancement of glaucoma research. This chapter describes and summarizes major nonprimate animal models useful for the study of this disease. Rodent models, both rats and mice, have been popular for gl ...