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PubMedDate not supplied

[New discoveries regarding the physiopathology of the cerebellum].

OBJECTIVES: To report recent advances regarding the physiopathology of the cerebellum in childhood. DEVELOPMENT: Many advances have been made in understanding the physiopathology of the cerebellum so we have limited ourselves to evaluation of the data available on the possible part played by the cerebellum in cognitive function. We then give details of the congenital disorders of metabolism in which the cerebellum is directly involved, especially neuro imaging aspects. It is impossible to give details of each and every cerebellar syndrome with neurological clinical features so we describe only four disorders: Joubert s syndrome, the Dandy Walker syndrome, carbohydrate deficient glycoprotein syndrome and finally pontocerebellar hypoplasia in its two forms of presentation. We analyze recent advances in relation to clinical and neuro imaging aspects of various cerebellar disorders. CONCLUSIONS: Great advances have been made in understanding the cerebellum in childhood. It is important to know about them because of their implications, especially in cognitive function.

Brain Diseases↗
PubMed2005

[Proteomic comparison between human cerebellums and frontal lobes].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the results of proteomics between the cerebellum and frontal lobe of the aged. METHOD: Proteins were isolated from human cerebellums and frontal lobes and separated by two-dimensional (2D) gel electrophoresis. The proteins were then stained with silver or colloidal coomassie blue to produce a high-resolution map of the proteome. Selected proteins from this map were in-gel digested with trypsin and the resulting tryptic peptides were analyzed by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry and MALDI TOF/TOF tandem mass spectrometry. The mass spectrometric data were used to identify the proteins through searches of the SWISSPROT protein sequence database. RESULTS: Three up-regulated protein spots in 2D gels of cerebellums were found as compared with those of frontal lobes. These protein spots were identified as antioxidant protein 2, creatine kinase precursor, fructose-bisphosphate aldolase C. Two down-regulated proteins in cerebellums were identified as pyruvate kinase M1 isozyme and glial fibrillary acidic protein. 30 common proteins, the expressions of which were not altered between cerebellums and frontal lobes, were also identified. CONCLUSIONS: These data will be used for future studies of differential protein expression in neurological disorders. Some proteins are useful for discovering the molecular mechanisms of degenerative dementia and brain aging.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

[Rearrangements of efferent activity parameters in generators of cyclic motor reactions during electric stimulation of cerebellum inputs and outputs in the cat].

Rearrangements of the activity parameters of scratching and locomotor generators conditioned by electric stimulation of the inferior olive, nucleus reticularis lateralis as well as of the fastigial nucleus and nucleus interpositus of the cerebellum were investigated on decerebrate immobilized animals. Scratching and locomotor generators were characterized by the ability to effectively rearrange the time structure of their activity in response to certain changes in phase and amplitude characteristics of signals arriving both by the mossy and climbing inputs of the cerebellum. The flexor half-centre of the locomotor generator and aiming half-centre of the scratching generator increased both the period and intensity of their activity under influence of signals arriving to the cerebellum from the inferior olive and nucleus reticularis lateralis at the first half of the working phase of these half-centres. Stimulation of the inferior olive and nucleus reticularis lateralis during the second half of the flexor and aiming phases evoked somewhat different changes in correlation of activity for half-centres of the locomotor and scratching generators. A slight shortening of the activity period of the aiming half-centre during scratching and a decrease of the activity period of the extensor half-centre during locomotion were observed. Stimulation of the structures mentioned above during the working phase of half-centres controlling limb extensor movements evoked shortening of the extensor half-centres activity period during locomotion and exerted no effect on the scratching jerk half-centre activity period during scratching. The scratching generator, unlike the locomotor generator is characterized by a significant degree of resemblance of the rearrangement of generator efferent activity parameters evoked by electric stimulation of the cerebellum nuclei and its afferent inputs. Possible mechanisms of forming the correcting influences on scratching and locomotor generators from the cerebellum during changes in phase and amplitude characteristics of its input signals are discussed.

Afferent Pathways↗
PubMed2006

[Effects of perinatal exposure to methylmercury on the structure of hippocampus and cerebellum in young rats].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of perinatal exposure to methylmercury on the structure of hippocampus and cerebellum in young pups. METHODS: Divided the 9 pregnant SD rats into three groups randomly: group I, II and III After exposing the rats of the three groups from day 7 in pregnancy through lactation with methylmercury (the dose were 0, 0.1 and 1mg/(kg x d) respectively), examined the early physiology development and the structure of hippocampus and cerebellum of day-21-offspring rats. RESULTS: Except for changes in body weight on 21 day, the offspring showed no apparent changes in appearance and physiology. Pyknosis in several neurons and disturbance arrangement of pyramidal cells in CA3 and CA4 region of the hippocampus were observed in hippocampus and cerebellum of the rats in group III under the microscope, while no pathological changes were observed in group II. Testing the positive expression of immunohistochemistry, we found out that the NF expression of hippocampus in II and III groups were lower than group I (F = 7.94, P < 0.01), while that of GFAP were increased significantly (F = 10.10, P < 0.01). NF expression of cerebellum in group III was lower than group II and group I (F = 6.85, P < 0.05). while that of GFAP was higher than the other two groups (F = 6.85, P < 0.05). The ultrastructure changes happened in both II and III groups examined through electron microscope, including irregular form in nucleus of neurons, pyknosis of soma, degeneration of mitochondria, lysis of dendrite and axon, et al. CONCLUSION: Perinatal low-level methylmercury exposure affected the ultrastructure and expressions of the neural cells in cerebellum and hippocampus of the young rats.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

An integrated study of the morphological and gross-elemental consequences of methyl mercury intoxication in rats, with particular attention on the cerebellum.

Methylmercury accumulates in the kidney and liver of rats, but fairly selectively damages the cerebellum, resulting in the clinical symptoms of neurological ataxia after prolonged exposures. Within the cerebellum, morphological examination indicated that the small granule cells beneath the Purkinje layer are especially susceptible to the toxin, showing signs of pyknosis during the phase of locomotory disability, whilst the large Purkinje cells are relatively resistant to cytotoxic injury. Flame photometric and electron probe X-ray microanalysis (EPXMA) of digested samples of the major organs failed to detect any significant changes in the Na, K, Ca, Mg, S and P concentrations of the organs, including the cerebellum, at intervals after methylmercury administration by either gastric gavage or via the drinking water. It was suggested that if the lesion within the cerebellum is restricted, as the morphological evidence suggests, to a small cohort of functionally important granule cells, then it may be difficult to detect elemental changes within this subpopulation against the compositionally unaltered majority of cerebellar cells and their extracellular spaces. To identify and compositionally characterize the injured cells requires electron probe X-ray microanalysis of frozen sections, or fractured bulk samples. The deep-seated nature of the 'target cells' within the cerebellum presents formidable cryopreparative problems.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Characterization of intermediate filament proteins in astroglia of hamster cerebellum.

This investigation was initiated to determine whether the organization of intermediate filament (IF) proteins is affected in the central nervous system of polymyopathic hamsters, as the Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene is normally expressed in the nervous system, in addition to cardiac and skeletal muscle, and changes in cell shape and cytoplasmic organization can serve as the regulators of growth, gene expression and cellular differentiation. The cerebellum of dystrophic hamster (CHF 146) was selected as the model system with the CHF 148 hamster providing the control for normal cerebellum. Using immunofluorescence microscopy for IF proteins, no difference could be detected in the cerebellum of dystrophic and normal hamsters. However, the glial fibrillary acidic protein and an IF-associated protein (J1-31 antigen), are lacking in Bergmann glia of the molecular layer. Moreover, vimentin persists in the cerebellum, its presence being most pronounced in a subset of Purkinje neurons in the adult hamster. These results are in contrast to those obtained in the rat cerebellum which has been extensively studied in respect to the organization of IFs.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Neuronal degeneration in the brain of the brindled mouse. Histochemical demonstration of decreased cytochrome oxidase activity in the cerebellum and brain stem.

In order to investigate the levels of cytochrome oxidase activity in neuronal mitochondria in the brain of the brindled mouse hemizygote (BM), the cerebella and brain stems from 12 pairs of brindled and normal littermates aged 13-16 days were examined. The diaminobenzidine method for light- and electronmicroscopic histochemistry was adopted. Light microscopy revealed that mitochondria in the normal cerebellum showed an intensely positive reaction to diaminobenzidine, whereas those in the BM cerebellum showed a very weak reaction indicating an evident reduction of cytochrome oxidase activity. Electron microscopy disclosed a diaminobenzidine-OsO4 product densely appearing on the inner membranes of most mitochondria in Purkinje cells in the normal cerebellum. However, it was very faint or absent in those in the BM cerebellum. The same was true in Golgi II cells, granule cells, glomeruli and brain stem nuclei, but the degree of reduction was not uniform among these structures. In conclusion, there is not only a generalized reduction of cytochrome oxidase activity but also a topographical predilection of areas showing a reduction of the enzyme in the BM cerebellum and brain stem. These facts may explain the pathogenesis of neuronal degeneration in the brain of the BM.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

The neonatal development of benzodiazepine receptor subtypes in the rat cerebral cortex and cerebellum.

The development of benzodiazepine receptor subtypes in the rat cerebral cortex and cerebellum was studied. The proportions of Type I (CL218872 sensitive binding sites) and Type II (CL218872 insensitive binding sites) in both regions of the neonatal brain were quite different from those of adult. In one day old rat cortex and cerebellum, about 95% of the benzodiazepine receptor were Type II receptor, while these receptors comprised about 50% and 15% of the total in the adult cortex and cerebellum, respectively. From 21 days onward, these ratios in both brain regions did not significantly change through adult age (over 55 days old). The proportion of receptor subtypes in the 21 day cortex (50% type I, 50% type II) was approximately equivalent to that seen in the cerebellum at the 9th day of age. The 3H-flunitrazepam specific binding sites in both brain regions increased markedly after birth, although Type II receptor binding sites did not show any notable gain. Type II receptor specific binding sites in the cortex were not significantly different between neonatal and adult, while these sites in the cerebellum to decrease after birth. These results suggest that Type I and Type II receptors seemed to develop independently during their embryogenesis.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Immunoreactive corticotropin releasing factor in adult and developing rat cerebellum: its presence in climbing and mossy fibres.

Corticotropin Releasing Factor (CRF) immunoreactivity was localized within the rat central nervous system with immunocytochemical methods, using a highly specific anti-serum to rat-CRF. In adult rats abundant CRF immunoreactivity (CRF-ir) was found in perikarya of the inferior olivary nucleus, in climbing fibres in the molecular layer, and mossy fibres in the granular layer of the cerebellum and in the cerebellar nuclei. CRF-ir climbing fibres were found in a longitudinal zonal pattern throughout the molecular layer. In developing cerebellum only a few CRF-positive fibres were seen on postnatal day 8. From day 8 onwards a gradual increase in CRF-ir was found in both the molecular and granular layer with formation of CRF-positive nests around Purkinje cellbodies starting at day 12. Subsequent outgrowth into the molecular layer could be followed, leading to an adult level of CRF-ir in the cerebellum at approximately day 22 postnatally. CRF-ir in mossy fibres has as adult appearance from approximately day 18. The temporal and morphological changes of CRF-ir in fibres in the cerebellum of immature rats followed closely the morphological development of climbing and mossy fibres. The present findings indicate that CRF (or related substances) are already present in both climbing and mossy fibres during their outgrowth into the cerebellum.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Cell type-specific expression of protein kinase C isozymes in the rabbit cerebellum.

Monoclonal antibodies raised against rabbit brain protein kinase C were classified into at least three types, MC-1a, MC-2a, and MC-3a, which selectively interact with hydroxyapatite column chromatographically resolved isozymes type I, II, and III of protein kinase C, respectively, determined on the basis of immunoblotting experiments. Immunoprecipitating analysis revealed that MC-1a, -2a, and -3a interacted with protein kinase C expressed in the brain and MC-2a and -3a, but MC-1a immunoprecipitated the protein kinase from rabbit spleen. Immunocytochemical localization of the protein kinase isozymes in the rabbit cerebellum and spleen was studied using these monoclonal antibodies. Staining with MC-1a was restricted to Purkinje cells of the rabbit cerebellum, and there was no reaction product in the Purkinje cells with either MC-2a or MC-3a. Cells in the granular layer of the cerebellum were labeled with MC-2a, and oligodendroglia in the white matter of the cerebellum was stained with MC-3a. The rabbit spleen contained no product reacting with MC-1a, but MC-2a and MC-3a reacted with lymphocytes in the mantle zone and the periarterial lymphatic sheath of the white pulp, respectively. These results suggest that expression of the protein kinase C isozyme in the rabbit cerebellum may depend on the cell type.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

Reciprocal transplantations between the optic tectum and the cerebellum in adult goldfish.

1. The topographic pattern of re-established visual projections after a reciprocal transplantation between tectal and cerebellar tissues was studied in adult goldfish. 2. A rectangular tissue was dissected from the left tectum, and a similar piece from the cerebellum in the same fish. The cerebellar piece was rotated by either 180 or 0 degrees around the dorsoventral axis, and transplanted into the tectum in place of the tectal piece. This tectal tissue was likewise grafted into the cerebellum after either 180 or 0 degrees rotation in the same fish. 3. The tectal graft disappeared from the cerebellum within 2 months after surgery. The operated cerebellum showed a remarkable capability for healing its excised part. No visual responses were recorded from the cerebellum. 4. The cerebellar grafts remained in place within the operated tectum in twenty fish. In fifteen of these fish, tested 3 or 4 months after surgery, the cerebellar grafts did not give any visual responses, unlike the surrounding responsive area of the tectum. These fish showed a partial scotoma in the central area of the visual field, which corresponded to the unresponsive transplanted area of the tectum. Autoradiographic examination after intraocular injection of L-[3H]proline showed that these cerebellar grafts did not contain any noticeable label, in contrast to the extensively labelled surrounding tectal tissues. 5. Sporadic visual responses were recorded from deep layers in the transplanted area of the tectum in five of the twenty fish at early post-operative periods. The receptive fields of these responses were distributed in a correct retinotopic order, regardless of whether the cerebellar tissue had been rotated by either 180 or 0 degrees. Autoradiographic examination, however, revealed that these cerebellar grafts were not invaded by regenerating optic fibres. Instead, they bypassed the interposed cerebellar tissue by making detours beneath the graft on the way towards their appropriate target zones within the tectal tissue. 6. This selective avoidance of a foreign (cerebellar) tissue and the orderly reinnervation of the proper tectal tissue by regenerating optic fibres provide us with further evidence for neuronal specificity.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Intracisternal dose-response analysis of 6-hydroxydopamine-induced noradrenergic sprouting in the neonatal rat cerebellum.

The dose-response relationship between neonatal 6-hydroxydopamine and noradrenergic regenerative sprouting in the cerebellum was characterized by using intracisternal doses of 10 to 80 micrograms of the drug. Noradrenergic regeneration was assessed in seven subregions of the cerebellum by measurement of norepinephrine (NE) levels once the rats were one-month-old. Regenerative sprouting occurred to a significant extent at drug doses between 10 to 40 micrograms, with peak NE elevations occurring after a 20-microgram dose. Recovery of NE was not uniform throughout the cerebellum but was maximal in the anterior vermis and minimal in the posterior vermis. An 80-microgram dose produced near total loss of cerebellar NE. This is contrasted to the cerebral cortical noradrenergic innervation which responded with significant long-term degeneration to a dose as low as 10 micrograms. In both areas, the initial effect of the drug treatment was to reduce NE levels by 95% or more. A couple of conclusions can be made. The magnitude of the difference between the cerebellar and cerebral cortical dose-response relationships is consistent with a regenerative mechanism subserving the recovery of NE in the cerebellum. Secondly, the increase of NE in the cerebellum is reciprocally related to destruction of the forebrain noradrenergic projection.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Ethanol reduces expression of the nerve growth factor receptor, but not nerve growth factor protein levels in the neonatal rat cerebellum.

The cerebellum is especially vulnerable to ethanol's neurotoxic effects during development, and ethanol exposure during the brain growth spurt will deplete cerebellar neurons. The mechanisms undertying this neuronal cell loss remain elusive. Nerve growth factor (NGF) is a neurotrophin that promotes cell survival in various brain areas, and there is evidence that NGF may play a role in the developing cerebellum. This study examined whether ethanol exposure of the neonatal rat cerebellum altered the levels of either NGF or the expression of p75 and trkA, which are two components of the NGF receptor. Ethanol exposure had no effect on NGF levels in the neonatal cerebellum, as determined by an NGF-specific ELISA. Immunohistochemical labeling techniques indicated that both the p75 and trkA NGF receptors were expressed on Purkinje cell dendrites in the developing cerebellum, with posterior lobules expressing higher levels of p75 and trkA NGF receptor, compared with anterior lobules. Ethanol exposure of neonatal rats reduced the expression of both p75 and trkA NGF receptors on the Purkinje cell dendrites. These results suggest that ethanol could interfere with neurotrophic support of Purkinje cells by reducing the levels of available NGF receptor.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Expression of differential immune factors in temporal cortex and cerebellum: the role of alpha-1-antichymotrypsin, apolipoprotein E, and reactive glia in the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

A variety of factors and processes have been implicated in the development and progression of the pathology of Alzheimer's Disease (AD), including amyloid fragment deposition, reactive gliosis, alpha-1-antichymotrypsin (ACT), and apolipoprotein E (APOE). Carriers of the APOE 4 allele have been shown to have an enhanced risk of developing AD, and the ACT signal peptide A/A genotype may modify the APOEepsilon4 risk. The protein products of these genes have been shown to enhance conversion of diffuse beta amyloid (Abeta) fibrils, which are found in diffuse plaques, to the fibrillar form found in neuritic plaques. In affected regions of AD brain, ACT and APOE colocalize with Abeta deposits and reactive microglia and astrocytes. We examined the regional distribution of ACT, APOE, and reactive glia in temporal cortex, where neuritic plaques are abundant, and cerebellum (in areas where diffuse plaques but not neuritic plaques accumulate) to examine the relationship of these markers to the deposition of Abeta. In temporal cortex, ACT and APOE staining was localized to plaque-like profiles, reactive astrocytes, and blood vessels; human leukocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) staining revealed focal clusters of reactive microglia and astrocytes. In cerebellum, ACT and APOE immunoreactivity was never localized to plaque-like profiles but was weakly localized to unreactive astrocytes; weak HLA-DR and GFAP immunoreactivity was present on quiescent microglia throughout the cerebellum. The lack of fibrillar amyloid deposits in cerebellum, despite the presence of well-characterized markers thought to mediate the production of Abeta, suggests that this brain region may be lacking certain factors necessary for fibril formation or that the cerebellum responds differently to stimuli that successfully mediate inflammation in affected cortex.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMed2001

Granule cells migrate within raphes in the developing cerebellum: an evolutionarily conserved morphogenic event.

The early phase of granule cell migration in the developing chick cerebellum occurs within ribbons of cells moving through parasagittally arrayed gaps between Purkinje cell clusters. These parasagittal arrays of migrating granule cells, termed "granule cell raphes," also have been reported in rabbit and cat, but recent publications variously report that granule cell raphes are absent or present in rodents. By using Nissl counterstaining and Pax6 immunohistochemistry, we confirm that granule cells do migrate in raphes in the developing mouse cerebellum, and also in the primate cerebellum during a period of development that coincides with Purkinje cell compartmentation. In mouse and primate cerebellum, as in chick cerebellum, granule cell migratory streams occur at the borders of Purkinje cell clusters. GFAP immunostaining of Bergmann glial fibers shows no parasagittally localized pattern of distribution, indicating that the formation of granule cell ribbons is not prepatterned by heterogeneous distribution of radial glia. The conservation of the ribboned pattern of granule cell migration from bird to primate and the timing of this event suggest a possible role for granule cell raphes in parasagittal compartmentation of Purkinje cells. A potential mechanism for such an interaction is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

In utero exposure to nicotine and chlorpyrifos alone, and in combination produces persistent sensorimotor deficits and Purkinje neuron loss in the cerebellum of adult offspring rats.

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of in utero exposure to the cholinotoxicants, nicotine and chlorpyrifos, alone or in combination on neurobehavioral alterations and neuronal morphology latter in adult age. In the present study, 90 days old (corresponding to a human adult age) male and female offspring rats were evaluated for neurobehavioral, and neuropathological alterations following maternal, gestational exposure to nicotine and chlorpyrifos (O,O-diethyl-O-3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinyl phosphorothioate), alone and in combination. Female Sprague-Dawley rats (300-350 g) with timed-pregnancy were treated with nicotine (3.3 mg/kg/day, in bacteriostatic water via s.c. implantation of mini osmotic pump), chlorpyrifos (1.0 mg/kg, daily, dermal, in 75% ethanol, 1.0 ml/kg) or a combination of both chemicals, on gestational days (GD) 4-20. Control animals received bacteriostatic water via s.c. implantation of mini osmotic pump and dermal application of 70% ethanol. The offspring at postnatal day (PND) 90 were evaluated for neurobehavioral performance, changes in the activity of plasma butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE), and neuropathological alterations in the brain. Neurobehavioral evaluations included beam-walk score, beam-walk time, incline plane performance and forepaw grip time. Male and female offspring from mothers treated with nicotine and CPF, alone or in combination showed impairments in the performance of neurobehavioral tests, indicating sensorimotor deficits. Female offspring from mothers treated with a combination of nicotine and chlorpyrifos showed significant increase in plasma BChE activity. Brain regional AChE activity showed differential increases in male and female offspring. Brainstem and cerebellum of female offspring from mothers treated with nicotine or chlorpyrifos, alone or in combination showed increased AChE activity, whereas brainstem of male offspring from mothers treated with nicotine alone or a combination of nicotine and chlorpyrifos showed increase in AChE activity. Also, male offspring exposed in utero to nicotine exhibited increased AChE activity. Histopathological evaluations using cresyl violet staining showed a decrease in surviving Purkinje neurons in the cerebellum in offspring of all treatments groups. An increase in glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immuno-staining was observed in cerebellum white matter as well as granular cell layer (GCL) of cerebellum following all exposures. These results indicate that in utero exposure to nicotine and chlorpyrifos, alone and in combination produced significant sensorimotor deficits in male and female offspring, differential increase in brain AChE activity, a decrease in the surviving neurons and an increased expression of GFAP in cerebellum in adult offspring rats at a corresponding human adult age. Collectively, this study demonstrates that maternal exposure to environmental neurotoxic chemicals, i.e., nicotine and chlorpyrifos leads to developmental abnormalities in the offspring that persist latter into adulthood.

Administration, Topical↗
PubMed2002

The reciprocal change of neurotrophin-4 and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor protein in the muscles, spinal cord and cerebellum of the dy mouse.

Laminin alpha2 (merosin)-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD) patients show progressive muscle fiber necrosis and ineffective muscle regeneration, probably due to a lower formation of multinucleated myotubes due to an adhesion defect of myoblasts to each other. Some recent studies found that CMD patients have a white matter disorder and cerebellum atrophy. In the spinal cord of dy mice, a model of CMD, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) was markedly expressed. Using Western blotting and immunohistochemical analyses, we investigated the levels of neurotrophin-4 (NT-4), brain-derived neurotrophic factor, glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) in the central nervous system and skeletal muscles of dy mice. In the dy mice, the microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP-2) protein level was markedly decreased in the Purkinje and granule cells of the cerebellum, and in lumbar motoneurons of the spinal cord. The motoneurons and axons of dy mice possessed lower expressions of phosphorylated tau. The amount of NT-4 was markedly lower in the cerebellum, spinal cord and hindlimb muscles of dy mice. In dy mice, GDNF was markedly enhanced in the Purkinje and granule cells of the cerebellum, in many lumbar motoneurons, and in the regenerating atrophied fibers. The CNTF protein level did not differ in the hindlimb muscles between the normal and dy mice. Therefore, GDNF could act to inhibit the death of Purkinje and granular neurons, and motoneurons, and to promote the remodeling of the neuromuscular junction of atrophied muscle fibers of dy mice. Furthermore, dy mice include neurogenic abnormalities in the cerebellum and spinal cord along with myogenic disorder of muscle fibers.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Angiogenesis and endothelium phenotype expression in embryonic adrenal gland and cerebellum grafted onto chorioallantoic membrane.

Vascularization and endothelial phenotype were investigated in embryonic tissues grafted onto chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) by means of immunocytochemistry and electron microscopy. Single grafts of adrenal gland or cerebellum and double grafts of adrenal gland plus cerebellum were performed, using tissues from chick or quail embryos as donors and CAMs of chick embryos as recipients. Vessels of quail origin were discriminated from those of chick origin by the anti-MB1 monoclonal antibody, specific for antigenic determinants of the quail endothelial cells. The cerebellum endothelia were distinguished from the adrenal and CAM endothelia by a polyclonal antibody against the isoform 1 of the glucose transporter (GLUT1), which is a marker of barrier-provided brain vessels. The observations, carried out, 6 days after implantation, revealed the new-growth of microvessels from the CAM into the grafted tissues, and vice versa, in both single and double transplants. In addition, in the double grafts, adrenal-derived vessels were seen to grow into the cerebellum and cerebellum-native vessels into the adrenal tissue. The combined immunocytochemical and electronmicroscopical study demonstrated that the adrenal, fenestrated sinusoids and the cerebellar, barrier-provided capillaries maintain their original phenotype when they grow within the non-native tissues. The conventional theory on the endothelial responsiveness to environmental signals has been discussed and some concluding remarks have been made.

Journal Article↗