Modulation of neuronal activity of cerebellar fastigial nucleus by locus coeruleus stimulation in the rat

The effects of stimulating locus coeruleus (LC) on neuronal activity of cerebellar fastigial nucleus (FN) was investigated. Stimulation of LC elicited inhibitory, excitatory and biphasic (inhibition-excitation) responses from FN cells. The majority of responsive cells showed an inhibitory response with a latency of less than 10 ms. Injection of α adrenoreceptor antagonists phentolamine (ⅳ) could block the inhibitory response of FN cells to the LC stimulation, but propranolol (ⅳ), a β adrenoreceptor antagonist, could not. These results suggest that LC-cerebellar noradrenergic afferent fibers may be involved in the cerebellar sensorimotor integration process by exerting their modulatory action on the cerebellar nuclear cells' activities.     

Differentiation of a bipotential glial progenitor cell in a single cell microculture

Although it is known that most cells of the vertebrate central nervous system (CNS) are derived from the neuroepithelial cells of the neural tube, the factors determining whether an individual neuroepithelial cell develops into a particular type of neurone or glial cell remain unknown. A promising model for studying this problem is the bipotential glial progenitor cell in the developing rat optic nerve; this cell differentiates into a particular type of astrocyte (a type-2 astrocyte) if cultured in 10% fetal calf serum (FCS) and into an oligodendrocyte if cultured in serum-free medium. As the oligodendrocyte-type-2 astrocyte (0-2A) progenitor cell can differentiate along either glial pathway in neurone-free cultures, living axons clearly are not required for its differentiation, at least in vitro. However, the studies on 0-2A progenitor cells were carried out in bulk cultures of optic nerve, and so it was possible that other cell-cell interactions were required for differentiation in culture. We show here that 0-2A progenitor cells can differentiate into type-2 astrocytes or oligodendrocytes when grown as isolated cells in microculture, indicating that differentiation along either glial pathway in vitro does not require signals from other CNS cells, apart from the signals provided by components of the culture medium. We also show that single 0-2A progenitor cells can differentiate along either pathway without dividing, supporting our previous studies using 3H-thymidine and suggesting that DNA replication is not required for these cells to choose between the two differentiation programmes.     

Multiple tumour-specific antigens expressed on a single tumour cell

Tumours induced by physical or chemical carcinogens often express tumour-specific antigens that can induce strong protective immune defence in the host. The diversity of these unique antigens among different tumours is seemingly endless, and has been compared to that of immune receptors. At present, the nature and complexity of this antigenicity is not known for any single tumour. Here we describe the unique antigenicity expressed by a murine ultraviolet light (UV)-induced fibrosarcoma. This tumour is clearly subject to immune surveillance by the normal host, and does not grow progressively unless it undergoes antigenic changes. Using defined monoclonal T-cell probes and tumour variants selected in vitro with these probes, we found that the total antigenicity consisted of multiple independent components, all of which were tumour-specific and expressed simultaneously on the same tumour cell. The demonstration of this antigenic complexity will enable us to identify and compare the molecular composition of the components of this antigen, as well as to determine their individual roles in tumour rejection and escape.     

Effects of modulators of myosin light-chain kinase activity in single smooth muscle cells

Phosphorylation of myosin light chains by a calmodulin-myosin light-chain kinase (MLCK) pathway is considered to be responsible for coupling increased calcium concentration with contraction in smooth muscle. This simple view has, however, recently been questioned. To test this hypothesis directly, we microinjected individual smooth muscle cells with modulators of the MLCK pathway while measuring contraction and calcium-ion concentration. Injection of a constitutively active proteolyzed form of MLCK causes contraction but no change in calcium concentration. By contrast, injection of peptide inhibitors of MLCK blocks contraction in response to K+ depolarization, despite the fact that the change in calcium concentration in response to stimulation was enhanced over controls. These results provide a direct demonstration at the level of a single cell that activation of the calmodulin-MLCK pathway is both necessary and sufficient to trigger contraction of smooth muscle.     

苯并(a)芘对体外培养人淋巴细胞免疫活性和HSP70的影响

不同浓度苯并(a)芘[B(a)P](0.125、0.250、0.500、1.000、2.000、4.000、8.000、16.000 μmol/L)处理体外培养的人淋巴细胞系721.221,研究B(a)P对体外培养的人淋巴细胞免疫活性和热休克蛋白70的影响.染毒16 h,分别应用MTT比色法、Elisa法和Western blot法研究B(a)P对体外培养的淋巴细胞细胞活力、细胞因子IFN-α、interleukin-1α和interleukin-6分泌和热休克蛋白70表达情况的影响.与对照组比较,0.125～1.000μmol/L低剂量B(a)P染毒组促进细胞的生长(P＜0.05),1.000 μmol/L B(a)P染毒组细胞的增殖活性达到峰值,与溶剂对照组相比,增加了55％.2.000～ 16.000 μmol/L B(a)P染毒细胞,16 h后对细胞活力存在显著抑制作用(P＜0.05).IFN-α随着B(a)P染毒浓度的升高,IFN α分泌呈先上升后下降的趋势,1 μmol/L B(a)P染毒组分泌达到峰值,随后降低.IL-1α和IL-6分泌随着染毒浓度的增加而降低,与对照组相比有统计学意义(P＜0.05),呈现剂量-效应关系.HSP70随着染毒浓度的增加,呈现先增加后降低的趋势.本研究证实B(a)P对721.221细胞活力、免疫活性和应急因子的影响存在显著的剂量依赖性,为今后评估人群接触B(a)P对免疫系统和自身应急系统的毒性提供实验依据.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging of a single cell

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging is now an established tool in clinical imaging and competes favourably with conventional X-ray computerized tomography (CT) scanning. The drive behind NMR imaging has primarily been in the area of whole-body imaging, which has been limited clinically to fields of up to 1.5 T (60 MHz). It is recognized that there may be substantial advantages in obtaining images with sub-millimetre spatial resolution. Also, there may be benefits to imaging at higher fields, since the signal increases as the square of the magnetic field. Using a modified 9.5 T 89-mm-bore high-resolution NMR spectrometer, we have now obtained the first NMR images of a single cell, demonstrating the advent of the NMR imaging microscope. The NMR microscope is expected to have considerable impact in the areas of biology, medicine and materials science, and may serve as a precursor to obtaining such resolutions on human subjects.     

Generation of a prostate from a single adult stem cell

The existence of prostate stem cells (PSCs) was first postulated from the observation that normal prostate regeneration can occur after repeated cycles of androgen deprivation and replacement in rodents. Given the critical role of PSCs in maintaining prostate tissue integrity and their potential involvement in prostate tumorigenesis, it is important to define specific markers for normal PSCs. Several cell-surface markers have been reported to identify candidate PSCs, including stem cell antigen-1 (Sca-1, also known as Ly6a), CD133 (Prom1) and CD44 (refs 3-10). However, many non-PSCs in the mouse prostate also express these markers and thus identification of a more defined PSC population remains elusive. Here we identify CD117 (c-kit, stem cell factor receptor) as a new marker of a rare adult mouse PSC population, and demonstrate that a single stem cell defined by the phenotype Lin(-)Sca-1(+)CD133(+)CD44(+)CD117(+) can generate a prostate after transplantation in vivo. CD117 expression is predominantly localized to the region of the mouse prostate proximal to the urethra and is upregulated after castration-induced prostate involution-two characteristics consistent with that of a PSC marker. CD117(+) PSCs can generate functional, secretion-producing prostates when transplanted in vivo. Moreover, CD117(+) PSCs have long-term self-renewal capacity, as evidenced by serial isolation and transplantation in vivo. Our data establish that single cells in the adult mouse prostate with multipotent, self-renewal capacity are defined by a Lin(-)Sca-1(+)CD133(+)CD44(+)CD117(+) phenotype.