Project description:The purpose of the present study is to determine the effect of Percutaneous Collagen Induction (PCI) on the epidermis and dermis, including the systemic inflammatory response on gene expression level using microarray analysis. PCI Therapy is an alternative for safely treating wrinkles and scars and smoothening the skin. Therefore animal experiments were performed using 31 male Sprague-Dawley rats (350–375 g), age 4 month, randomly assigned into three groups: group (A) (n=24: needling plus skin care), group (B) (n=6: skincare only, controls after 24 h) and group (C) (n=1: negative control). Rats were anesthetized, shaved, and received a 30% total body surface area (TBSA) scald needling (10min) to induce percutaneous collagen, using a medical needling instrument (Environ® Medical Roll-CITTM, Vivida SA cc, Cape Town, South Africa). After needling surgery, the rats were immediately prepared with high levels of vitamin A cream and vitamin C cream, applied topically after cleaning once per day. The control group (C) rats received no injury, no skin care, no treatment, no anesthesia, and no analgesia. Gene expression analyses were performed 1 h, 24 h, 2, 4, and 8 weeks after PCI surgery. To confirm RNA expression in rat skin, self developed microarrays including genes like cytokines, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF 2), keratinocyte growth factor (KGF), epidermal growth factor (EGF), and transforming growth factors (TGF ß1, ß2, ß3) were used.
Project description:In order to establish a rat embryonic stem cell transcriptome, mRNA from rESC cell line DAc8, the first male germline competent rat ESC line to be described and the first to be used to generate a knockout rat model was characterized using RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis.
Project description:Analysis of LBNF1 rat testes from controls, containing both somatic and all germ cell types and from irradiated rats in which all cells germ cells except type A spermatgogonia are eliminated. Results provide insight into distinguishing germ and somatic cell genes and identification of somatic cell genes that are upregulated after irradiation.
Project description:Few studies have assessed the patterns of parasite populations of rodents over a longitudinal gradient in Chile. In this work, the gastrointestinal helminthic fauna of invasive rodents in Chile was examined to assess the association between their presence/absence and abundance with latitude, host sex, and host body condition, and to assess the coexistence and correlation of the abundance between parasite species. Rodents were obtained from 20 localities between 33 and 43°S. Helminths were extracted from the gastrointestinal tract and identified morphologically. Overall, 13 helminth taxa were obtained. The most frequently identified parasite species was Heterakis spumosa, and the most abundant was Syphacia muris, while Physaloptera sp. was the most widely distributed. No locality presented with a coexistence that was different from that expected by chance, while the abundance of five helminthic species correlated with the abundance of another in at least one locality, most likely due to co-infection rather than interaction. Host sex was associated with parasite presence or abundance, and female sex-biased parasitism was notably observed in all cases. Body condition and latitude presented either a positive or negative association with the presence or abundance of parasites depending on the species. It is notable that the likely native Physaloptera sp. is widely distributed among invasive rodents. Further, gravid females were found, suggesting spillback of this species to the native fauna. The low frequency and abundance of highly zoonotic hymenolepid species suggest that rodents are of low concern regarding gastrointestinal zoonotic helminths.
Project description:Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) is a serious complication of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Emerging evidence suggests that messengerRNAs (mRNAs) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) could serve as biomarkers for various diseases.