Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “model system”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 901 records · Page 50Linked to original sources
PubMed2006

Investigation of age-related cognitive decline using mice as a model system: neurophysiological correlates.

OBJECTIVE: Learning and memory impairments without overt pathology often accompany advancing age. To gain a better understanding of the underlying neuronal substrates associated with this age-related cognitive decline, the authors have begun to use mice as an animal model system. As described in the companion paper, mice exhibit age-related impairments in cognition. Here, the authors explore the possibility that age-related changes in neuronal function may be the result of deregulation of cytosolic free calcium homeostasis. METHODS: Calcium homeostasis in young and aged mice was examined by measuring the slow afterhyperpolarization (sAHP) in hippocampal neurons as well as assessing voltage-dependent calcium channel mediated long-term potentiation (vdccLTP). In addition, putative changes in phosphorylation of the L-type channel Ca(V)1.2 by cAMP-dependent protein kinase were examined. RESULTS: Both neurophysiological measures of calcium homeostasis indicated an increase in activity-dependent calcium influx. This increase was not the result of an age-related increase in phosphorylation of the L-type channel Ca(V)1.2 by cAMP-dependent protein kinase. CONCLUSIONS: Like in other areas of biomedical research, mice have become an invaluable research tool in the investigation of learning and memory. It is expected that similar benefits can be realized by developing mouse models for age-related cognitive decline.

2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate↗
PubMed2004

A geographic information systems model for mapping risk of fasciolosis in cattle and buffaloes in Cambodia.

A geographic information systems (GIS) model for mapping the risk of fasciolosis in cattle and buffaloes was developed for the Kingdom of Cambodia using determinants of inundation, proximity to rivers, land use, slope, elevation, and the density of cattle and buffaloes. Determinants were subjectively weighted according to their perceived relative importance before combining them to produce a risk-map of fasciolosis. The model estimates that 28% of Cambodia is potentially at risk of fasciolosis with areas of high and moderate risk concentrated in southern and central Cambodia. The estimates of risk reflect the actual prevalence of fasciolosis in most districts surveyed, suggesting that the epidemiological determinants and weightings used to produce the model were appropriate. These results will be progressively refined as more detailed field surveys are completed to fully validate the model.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

A systems model approach to increasing faculty productivity.

Faculty involvement in scholarly activities is essential for success and status of both the faculty member and the institution. This article describes the results of a 4-year project to increase scholarly productivity at Texas Woman's University College of Nursing, Dallas Center, Andreoli and Musser's (1984) systems model is the organizing framework. The process and outcomes for achieving greater productivity are described. An essential component of determining the changes in faculty productivity was the initiation of a database system. The database provides a comprehensive list of faculty achievements. The benefits of an achievement database are described. As a result of the 4-year effort, faculty members are goal directed. They are meeting their own--and the institution's--expectations for scholarly productivity. The increases in productivity are a motivating factor from one year to the next.

Achievement↗
PubMed2003

Ethanol effects on three strains of zebrafish: model system for genetic investigations.

The effects of acute and chronic ethanol administration on the wild-type (WT), long-fin striped (LFS), and blue long-fin (BLF) strains of zebrafish were investigated. In the LFS strain, acute exposure to 0.25% (v/v) ethanol inhibited the startle reaction and increased both the area occupied by a group of subjects and the average distance between each fish and its nearest neighbor. Similar effects were found in the WT fish although higher concentrations of ethanol were required. No effects on the behavior of the BLF fish were observed with up to 1.0% (v/v) ethanol. Brain alcohol levels were comparable among the three strains precluding a pharmacokinetic explanation for the behavioral results. In LFS zebrafish, behavioral tolerance was observed after 1 week of continual exposure to ethanol. Conversely, chronic ethanol exposure of the WT fish for up to 2 weeks did not result in the development of tolerance, but rather appeared to increase the disruptive action of the drug. The present results suggest the observed strain differences in the effects of ethanol reflect genotypic differences in both the response of the central nervous system (CNS) to ethanol as well as the ability of the CNS to adapt to ethanol exposure. Although preliminary, the present study indicates that the zebrafish is an excellent model system to investigate the genetic determinants involved in regulating the responses to ethanol.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

The influence of cold shock proteins on transcription and translation studied in cell-free model systems.

Cold shock proteins (CSPs) form a family of highly conserved bacterial proteins capable of single-stranded nucleic acid binding. They are suggested to act as RNA chaperones during cold shock inhibiting the formation of RNA secondary structures, which are unfavourable for transcription and translation. To test this commonly accepted theory, isolated CSPs from a mesophilic, thermophilic and a hyperthermophilic bacterium (Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus caldolyticus and Thermotoga maritima) were studied in an Escherichia coli based cell free expression system on their capability of enhancing protein expression by reduction of mRNA secondary structures. The E. coli based expression of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase and of H-Ras served as model systems. We observed a concentration-dependent suppression of transcription and translation by the different CSPs which makes the considered addition of CSPs for enhancing the protein expression in in vitro translation systems obsolete. Protein expression was completely inhibited at CSP concentrations present under cold shock conditions. The CSP concentrations necessary for 50% inhibition were lowest (140 microm) for the protein of the hyperthermophilic and increased when the thermophilic (215 microm) or even the mesophilic protein (451 microm) was used. Isolated in vitro transcription under the influence of CSPs showed that the transcriptory effect is independent from the rest of the cell. It could be shown in a control experiment that the inhibition of protein expression can be removed by addition of hepta-2'-desoxy-thymidylate (dT7); a heptanucleotide that competitively binds to CSP. The data are in line with a hypothesis that CSPs act on bulk protein expression not as RNA chaperones but inhibit their transcription and translation by rather unspecific nucleic acid binding.

Bacillus↗
PubMed2004

Signal transduction during light-quality acclimation in cyanobacteria: a model system for understanding phytochrome-response pathways in prokaryotes.

The colorful process of complementary chromatic adaptation (CCA), in which cyanobacteria dramatically alter their pigmentation in response to ambient light color changes, has intrigued scientists for more than a century. Over the past four decades, intensive research on the model organism Fremyella diplosiphon has revealed many details of the photobiology and molecular biology of this process, which includes restructuring of these organism's photosynthetic light-harvesting antennae, called phycobilisomes. This restructuring involves changes in transcription of genes encoding phycobilisome components. These genes have been cloned and their patterns of light-responsive expression characterized. In the past ten years, attention has focused on the signal transduction mechanism(s) through which cyanobacteria sense and respond to changes in ambient light color. Genetic approaches led to the isolation of signal transduction components that control light-color responses in F. diplosiphon. Several of these appear to be within a complex phosphorelay that is in part controlled by a photoreceptor called RcaE, the founding member of a large, novel class of prokaryotic photoreceptors with similarity to both plant phytochrome photoreceptors and sensor histidine kinases. The strong foundation of knowledge provided by years of research on CCA makes this a powerful model system for studying signal transduction systems controlled by prokaryotic phytochromes. In this regard, recent results demonstrate that multiple light sensing systems control this organism's responses to changes in light quality and that large numbers of genes are differentially regulated during this process.

Cyanobacteria↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Peroxylated and hydroxylated uroporphyrins: a study of their production in vitro in enzymic and chemical model systems.

In previous work certain hydroxylated and peroxylated derivatives of uroporphyrin (URO) have been isolated from the urine of patients suffering from porphyria. We have now investigated the mechanism of production of these oxygenated derivatives of URO, using both enzymic and chemical model systems and also the effect of exposure to light during reoxidation of uroporphyrinogen (URO'gen). When URO'gen was incubated with haemolysates, peaks with the same retention times as peroxyacetic acid URO, meso-hydroxy URO and beta-hydroxypropionic acid URO were all detected. The first of these was formed in sufficient amounts to allow its characterization by mass spectrometry. Under these conditions, peroxyacetic acid derivatives of heptacarboxylate and pentacarboxylate porphyrins could also be produced from the corresponding porphyrinogens, but no peroxylated product could be obtained from coproporphyrinogen (COPRO'gen, where no acetic acid side chains are present) or from the fully oxidized URO. Similar results were obtained on re-oxidation of URO'gen in the xanthine oxidase-xanthine system and in the presence of hydrogen peroxide/Fe-EDTA (ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid) and here again no peroxylated product could be detected from either COPRO'gen or URO. Finally, formation of peroxyacetic acid URO could be demonstrated during photo-oxidation of URO'gen and this was followed by light-induced loss of both URO and its peroxylated derivative. It is concluded that the oxygenated derivatives arise from the action of reactive oxygen species on the porphyrinogens (rather than the porphyrins), with one of the acetic acid side chain serving as the preferential (or exclusive target) for peroxylation.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗
PubMed2000

Measurement of markers for breast cancer in a model system using laser scanning cytometry.

BACKGROUND: A variety of markers, including Ki67, estrogen receptors (ER), and progesterone receptors (PgR), are frequently measured in fine needle aspirates (FNA) from human breast carcinomas. We used a human breast carcinoma cell line, MCF7, as a model system to investigate the use of laser scanning cytometry (LSC) for the measurement of these markers. Additionally, we measured the number of apoptotic cells. METHODS: Cells were treated with drugs to vary the expression of markers and the number of apoptotic cells. They were then fixed on microscope slides. For LSC, the cells were stained for the different markers with fluorescein using immunofluorescence and for apoptotic cells using the TUNEL assay. The nuclei were counterstained with propidium iodide. A parallel set of slides was stained using horseradish peroxidase and diaminobenzidine and scored manually by conventional light microscopy. RESULTS: The results from the LSC closely paralleled those obtained by manual scoring of immunohistochemical stains. CONCLUSIONS: It should be possible to use LSC for the routine measurement of nuclear markers in FNAs from human breast carcinomas.

Apoptosis↗
PubMed2003

Mycobacterium tuberculosis: a model system for structural genomics.

Over the past five years, genomics has had a major impact on Mycobacterium tuberculosis research. With the publication of the sequences of two virulent strains (H37Rv and CDC1551) and three closely related sequences, M. tuberculosis is becoming a model system for proteomics and structural genomics initiatives. Together with the promise of structures of proteins with novel folds, high-resolution structures of drug targets are providing the basis for rational inhibitor design, with the goal of the development of novel anti-tuberculars. In addition, this work is aiding scientists in the quest for an effective vaccine against this persistent pathogen.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Assessment of rat liver slices as a suitable model system for studying the simultaneous sulphation and glucuronidation of phenolic xenobiotics.

1. In most mammals, the xenobiotic 1-naphthol undergoes conjugation to produce predominantly the sulphate and glucuronide metabolites. 2. Using 1-naphthol, we established and validated rat liver slices as a model system to assess simultaneously the relative contributions of sulphation and glucuronidation to the metabolism of simple phenolic xenobiotics. 3. Determination of kinetic parameters for 1-naphthol sulphation showed identical affinity (Km approximately 5 microM) in rat liver slices and in rat liver cytosol. 4. In liver slices, at low substrate concentrations (10 microM 1-naphthol), sulphation was the predominant pathway but was readily saturated, whereas at high concentrations of 1-naphthol (100 microM) glucuronidation predominated. 5. In subcellular fractions, the Km for sulphation of 1-naphthol (5 microM) by liver cytosol was substantially lower than the Km for glucuronidation of 1-naphthol (48 microM) in liver microsomes, indicating saturation of sulphation by acceptor substrate was principally responsible for the shift towards glucuronidation at higher concentrations of 1-naphthol.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Incorporation of carbon atoms from glucose into the food mutagens MeIQx and 4,8-DiMeIQx using 14C-labelled glucose in a model system.

Mixtures of creatinine, glucose and threonine with the addition of a small amount, 250 microCi, of [U-14C]glucose, [1-14C]glucose or [6-14C]glucose were heated at 180 degrees C for 30 min in an aqueous model system. The mixtures were purified and analysed using HPLC, scintillation and Ames tests. 2-Amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (MeIQx) and 2-amino-3,4,8-trimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (4,8-DiMeIQx) were detected as the main radioactive mutagens. The amount of MeIQx and 4,8-DiMeIQx produced from threonine was estimated at 18 and 60 nmol/mmol glucose respectively. Radioactive carbon atoms originating from glucose were also shown to be incorporated into 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (IQx). The specific activity was calculated to be 0.6, 0.3 and 0.1-0.3 mCi/mmol for MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx and IQx respectively for all three labelled forms of glucose. By the incorporation of carbon atoms originating from glucose into the imidazoquinoxaline mutagens it was clearly demonstrated that glucose is a precursor in the formation of these food mutagens.

Carbon↗
PubMed2005

Galleria mellonella as a model system to study Cryptococcus neoformans pathogenesis.

Evaluation of Cryptococcus neoformans virulence in a number of nonmammalian hosts suggests that C. neoformans is a nonspecific pathogen. We used the killing of Galleria mellonella (the greater wax moth) caterpillar by C. neoformans to develop an invertebrate host model system that can be used to study cryptococcal virulence, host immune responses to infection, and the effects of antifungal compounds. All varieties of C. neoformans killed G. mellonella. After injection into the insect hemocoel, C. neoformans proliferated and, despite successful phagocytosis by host hemocytes, killed caterpillars both at 37 degrees C and 30 degrees C. The rate and extent of killing depended on the cryptococcal strain and the number of fungal cells injected. The sequenced C. neoformans clinical strain H99 was the most virulent of the strains tested and killed caterpillars with inocula as low as 20 CFU/caterpillar. Several C. neoformans genes previously shown to be involved in mammalian virulence (CAP59, GPA1, RAS1, and PKA1) also played a role in G. mellonella killing. Combination antifungal therapy (amphotericin B plus flucytosine) administered before or after inoculation was more effective than monotherapy in prolonging survival and in decreasing the tissue burden of cryptococci in the hemocoel. The G. mellonella-C. neoformans pathogenicity model may be a substitute for mammalian models of infection with C. neoformans and may facilitate the in vivo study of fungal virulence and efficacy of antifungal therapies.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

H(2)O(2)-mediated pigment decay in strawberry as a model system for studying color alterations in processed plant foods.

Phenolic and pigment (anthocyanin) stability in processing-ripe strawberries in response to aging under mildly oxidizing conditions, provoked by exogenous application of H(2)O(2), has been studied to design a simplified model system to study color alterations (pigment decay) that occur in strawberry-derived foods during processing and storage. The results showed that phenolic metabolism in strawberry slices during aging under mildly oxidizing conditions may be either oxidative (independent of exogenous H(2)O(2)) or peroxidative (dependent on exogenous H(2)O(2)), and that feeding strawberry slices with H(2)O(2) stimulates the oxidative phenomena which take place in their absence, such as the processes of anthocyanin and catechin degradation. The results also showed that because both (+)-catechin and anthocyanin levels in strawberry slices fall as H(2)O(2) increases, both p-hydroxybenzoic acid and brown polymeric compounds are formed. Comparison of these results with controls in the absence of H(2)O(2) suggests that peroxidase may play an important role in catechin consumption and in anthocyanin degradation and brown polymer formation during the aging of strawberry slices under mildly oxidizing conditions.

Color↗
PubMed2003

Role of cholesterol in lipid raft formation: lessons from lipid model systems.

Biochemical and cell-biological experiments have identified cholesterol as an important component of lipid 'rafts' and related structures (e.g., caveolae) in mammalian cell membranes, and membrane cholesterol levels as a key factor in determining raft stability and organization. Studies using cholesterol-containing bilayers as model systems have provided important insights into the roles that cholesterol plays in determining lipid raft behavior. This review will discuss recent progress in understanding two aspects of lipid-cholesterol interactions that are particularly relevant to understanding the formation and properties of lipid rafts. First, we will consider evidence that cholesterol interacts differentially with different membrane lipids, associating particularly strongly with saturated, high-melting phospho- and sphingolipids and particularly weakly with highly unsaturated lipid species. Second, we will review recent progress in reconstituting and directly observing segregated raft-like (liquid-ordered) domains in model membranes that mimic the lipid compositions of natural membranes incorporating raft domains.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Effects of F- on apatite-octacalcium phosphate intergrowth and crystal morphology in a model system of tooth enamel formation.

In order to study the effect of F- on tooth enamel-like apatite formation, crystal growth experiments were carried out in the presence of 0.1 approximately 2 ppm F- at 37 degrees C and at pH 6.5 in a model system of enamel formation where octacalcium phosphate (OCP) was stable. Morphology changed from long and thin ribbons to small needle-like plates, and the product changed from OCP to apatite with an increase in F- concentration. In the presence of 0.1-1 ppm F-, apatite-OCP intergrowth took place, and crystals composed of apatite and OCP lamellas were formed. These crystals showed long and thin plate-like morphology and embeded an OCP lamella in the center of the crystal. The OCP lamella and its (100) planes were parallel to the (100) planes of apatite. The thickness of OCP decreased and that of apatite increased with an increase in F- concentration. Some apatite crystals obtained at 1 ppm F- embedded a central plane instead of the distinct OCP lamella. The result indicates that initially formed, thin, plate-like OCP acted as a template for the subsequent epitaxial overgrowth of apatite and, moreover, F- played an important role in regulating the apatite-OCP intergrowth.

Apatites↗
PubMed2000

Agonistic and synergistic activity of tamoxifen in a yeast model system.

The background of agonist/antagonist behaviour of the non-steroidal antiestrogen tamoxifen is still not fully understood. Depending on cell type, its activities range from full agonistic to antagonistic in different tissues. We investigated the transactivational properties of tamoxifen in a basic yeast model system which reconstitutes ligand-dependent human estrogen receptor-alpha (hER alpha) gene activation. Tamoxifen exerted low agonist activity in this system compared to 17 beta-estradiol (E2). Efficiencies and potencies of several isomers were calculated by fitting experimental data with a logistic dose-response function. Cis-, trans- and cis-transtamoxifen and trans-4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-OHT) showed comparable efficiencies and potencies in yeast. When subeffective doses of trans-, cis-/trans-, or trans-4-OH tamoxifen were combined with increasing 17 beta-estradiol concentrations, even a synergistic increase in efficiencies could be observed. Interestingly, the cis-isomer did not show this synergistic effect. Mutation of the N-terminus of the estrogen receptor changed the transactivational behaviour of tamoxifen and abolished the synergistic action with 17 beta-estradiol. Except for 4-OHT, the potencies of the investigated isomers, defined as ligand concentrations with half-maximal response, highly correlated with the binding affinities to hER alpha. Therefore, cis-, trans-, and cis-/trans-tamoxifen could be regarded as full agonists in yeast, while 4-OHT was regarded as a partial antagonist in yeast. Furthermore, these results indicate that the functional difference between trans-tamoxifen and trans-4-OHT is not due to their different affinities for the receptor protein.

Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal↗
PubMed2002

Self-contained microelectrochemical immunoassay for small volumes using mouse IgG as a model system.

A self-contained, microelectrochemical immunoassay on the smallest volumes reported to date (1 microL for the antigen, 1 microL for the secondary antibody-enzyme conjugate, and 200 nL for the electrochemically detected species) has been developed using mouse IgG as a model system in a sandwich-type enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay, which takes less than 30 min to both complete the assembly of immunoassay components onto the antibody-modified surface and detect enzymatically generated species (excluding time for electrochemical cleaning of electrodes). These studies demonstrate the advantage of the close proximity of electrodes to modified surfaces and their application in the analysis of small volumes. Using a 50 microm diameter x 8 microm deep cavity with individually addressable electrodes on a microfabricated chip, the primary antibody was selectively and covalently attached at a gold, recessed microdisk (RMD) at the bottom of the microcavity to the free end of SAMs of either 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid or 11-mercapto-1-undecanol using 1-ethyl-3-[3-(dimethylamino)propyl]carbodiimide hydrochloride. Nonspecific adsorption to the surrounding material, polyimide, of the microcavity device was eliminated. Electrochemical desorption was used to confine the immunoassay activity at the RMD. Enzymatic conversion of the substrate p-aminophenyl phosphate top-aminophenol is detectable in less than 30 s using cyclic voltammetry at a gold, tubular nanoband electrode, which is on the wall of the microcavity and immediately adjacent to the modified RMD. A third electrode, also within the region of the microcavity, served as the pseudoreference/auxiliary electrode. Calibration curves obtained for 1-microL solutions of 5-100 ng/mL of IgG and for 200 nL-solutions of 5 microM to 4 mM of PAPR gave detection limits of 4.4 nM (6.4 ng/mL) or 880 fmol (129 pg) for PAPR and 56 fM (9 pg/mL) or 56 zmol (9 fg) for IgG. It is expected that the device may be suitable for analysis with volumes down to tens of picoliters.

Absorption↗
PubMed1984

The birth of a curriculum: utilization of the Betty Neuman Health Care Systems Model in an integrated baccalaureate program.

The authors have described the birth of an integrated baccalaureate curriculum at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. The curriculum design reflects our philosophy and our conceptual framework and includes components of the Betty Neuman Health Care Systems Model. The major theoretical formulations, the vertical and horizontal strands and the constructs for categorization of stressors are also described.

Curriculum↗