Recent advances such as

the ability to produce designer glycans in bacteria, some containing unnatural sugars, and techniques for evolving glycosylation enzymes have spawned an entirely new discipline known as bacterial glycoengineering. In addition to their biotechnological and therapeutic potential, bacteria equipped with recombinant N-linked glycosylation pathways are improving our understanding of the N-glycosylation process. This review discusses the key role played by microorganisms in glycosciences, particularly in the context of N-linked glycosylation.”
“Spontaneously Angiogenesis inhibitor hypertensive rats (SHR) are widely used as a rat model of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD). Here, we conducted neurochemical and behavioral studies in SHR to clarify the topographical alterations in neurotransmissions linked to their behavioral abnormalities. In www.selleckchem.com/products/SB-431542.html the open-field test, juvenile SHR showed a significant hyperactivity in ambulation and rearing as compared with Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY). Brain mapping analysis of Fos-immunoreactivity (IR) revealed that SHR showed a marked increase in Fos expression in the core part

(AcC) of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Small to moderate increases were also observed in the shell part of the NAc and some regions of the cerebral cortex (e.g., parietal association cortex). These changes in Fos expression were region-specific and the Fos-IR levels in other brain regions (e.g., hippocampus, amygdala, striatum, thalamus and hypothalamus) were unaltered. In addition, treatment of SHR with the selective D-1 antagonist SCH-23390 significantly reversed both behavioral hyperactivity and elevated Fos expression in the AcC and cerebral cortex. The present study suggests that D-1 receptor-mediated neurotransmission

in the AcC is region-specifically elevated in SHR, which could be responsible for behavioral hyperactivity. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Long QT syndromes (LQTS) are a family of inherited monogenetic disorders caused by gain or loss-of-function mutations of cardiac ion channels and are characterized by a prolonged QT interval in the ECG. The this website disease-specific mutations lead to prolonged action potential durations and early after-depolarizations in cardiomyocytes potentially giving rise to triggered extrabeats and life-threatening arrhythmias in patients. The generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from somatic cells of patients and their differentiation into cardiomyocytes represents a powerful method enabling the investigation of disease-specific cardiomyocytes. In this review we highlight the latest progress in the generation of long QT syndrome-specific induced pluripotent stem cells and cardiomyocytes to investigate the disease in vitro. We also point out future challenges that need to be addressed to allow drug screening using patient-specific cardiomyocytes. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.