Article
Cell Biology
Diogo A. Guimaraes, Nayara S. S. Aquino, Cibele Rocha-Resende, Itamar C. G. Jesus, Mario Morais Silva, Sergio A. Scalzo, Roberta Cristelli Fonseca, Marina T. Durand, Vanessa Pereira, Geisa C. S. Tezini, Andre Oliveira, Vania F. Prado, Ivanita Stefanon, Helio C. Salgado, Marco Antonio Maximo Prado, Raphael E. Szawka, Silvia Guatimosim
Summary: It is well known that cholinergic hypofunction contributes to cardiac pathology. This study found that mice with cholinergic deficit showed an increase in cardiac norepinephrine (NE) levels, enhanced sympathetic activity, and changes in cellular signaling pathways. These results reveal a previously unrecognized role of cholinergic signaling in modulating cardiac NE.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-CELL PHYSIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Laura Tarnawski, Vladimir S. Shavva, Eric J. Kort, Zhengbing Zhuge, Ingrid Nilsson, Alessandro L. Gallina, David Martinez-Enguita, Benjamin Heller Sahlgren, Matthew Weiland, April S. Caravaca, Staffan Schmidt, Ping Chen, Katarina Abbas, Fu-Hua Wang, Osman Ahmed, Michael Eberhardson, Anna Farnert, Eddie Weitzberg, Mika Gustafsson, Jan Kehr, Stephen G. Malin, Henrik Hult, Mattias Carlstrom, Stefan Jovinge, Peder S. Olofsson
Summary: Endothelial dysfunction and impaired vasodilation are associated with adverse cardiovascular events. T lymphocytes expressing ChAT regulate vasodilation and play a role in the cholinergic antiinflammatory pathway. ChAT mRNA expression in human T cells is induced through the PI3K signaling cascade and regulated by REST-mediated methylation and up-regulation by GATA3. Functional experiments demonstrate that T cell-derived ACh promotes endothelial nitric oxide-synthase activity, vasorelaxation, and barrier integrity. Additionally, the frequency of ChAT(+)CD4(+) T cells in blood correlates with survival in patients with severe circulatory failure. These findings provide a mechanism for cholinergic immune regulation of vascular endothelial function in human inflammation.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Adela Della Marina, Annabelle Arlt, Ulrike Schara-Schmidt, Christel Depienne, Andrea Gangfuss, Heike Koelbel, Albert Sickmann, Erik Freier, Nicolai Kohlschmidt, Andreas Hentschel, Joachim Weis, Artur Czech, Anika Grueneboom, Andreas Roos
Summary: A study identified compound heterozygous missense and nonsense variants in the SLC18A3 gene associated with congenital myasthenic syndrome, with the nonsense variant potentially causing impaired motor and cognitive development and limited treatment efficacy. Muscle biopsy showed reduced fibre size and lipid droplet accumulation, suggesting the impact of SLC18A3 variants on muscle integrity and lipid homeostasis. The importance of proper VAChT-mediated synthesis and recycling of ACh for muscle cells' lipid balance is highlighted by these findings.
Article
Neurosciences
Masarra Joda, Karen A. Waters, Rita Machaalani
Summary: The cholinergic system, composed of various molecules, plays an important role in sudden infant death syndrome. This study investigated the percentage of positive choline-acetyltransferase (ChAT) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) neurons in the infant brainstem nucleus, finding alterations in cholinergic regulation and a potential role of cigarette smoke exposure.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF DISEASE
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Amir Dudai, Nadav Yayon, Hermona Soreq, Michael London
Summary: The urgent task of neuroscience is to understand how neuronal circuits operate, what causes them to fail, and how they can be repaired. This review focuses on a specific type of cortical neurons marked by the expression of VIP and ChAT, which can release both GABA and ACh. Despite their sparse population, these neurons may have a significant impact on cortical circuit function.
JOURNAL OF NEUROCHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Cyril Lhopitallier, Charlotte Perrault, Frederic Chauveau, Francoise Saurini, Sylvie Berrard, Sylvie Granon, Alexis Faure
Summary: This study demonstrates the importance of the cholinergic system in social behavior using ChAT-IRES-Cre mice. The research found that the expression of choline acetyltransferase, choline transporter, and vesicular acetylcholine transporter genes decreased in the striatum of the mice, accompanied by mild social disturbances and a tendency towards anxiety. Aging also decreased social dominance, but it was not amplified by the cholinergic alterations.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Bryony Braschi, Ruth L. Seal, Susan Tweedie, Tamsin E. M. Jones, Elspeth A. Bruford
Summary: Using approved nomenclature is crucial for effective scientific communication, especially in discussing clinically relevant genes. Failure to use HGNC-approved symbols in publications can lead to confusion between unrelated human genes in the literature. Authors can take steps to ensure they use approved nomenclature and referencing HGNC IDs can help remove ambiguity when referring to genes previously published with confusing alias symbols.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN GENETICS
(2021)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Julie Durand, Jean-Michel Dogne, Catherine Cohet, Kate Browne, Maria Gordillo-Maranon, Loris Piccolo, Cosimo Zaccaria, Georgy Genov
Summary: Prior to the deployment of COVID-19 vaccines in the European Union, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) implemented activities to enhance vaccine safety monitoring and commissioned observational studies. The EMA successfully identified and minimized the risks of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) and myocarditis/pericarditis associated with the vaccines, thanks to close surveillance and the use of available evidence. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the development of tools and methods for handling the large volume of safety data generated by the vaccines.
CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS
(2023)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Jacob Horsager, Niels Okkels, Nathalie Van Den Berge, Jan Jacobsen, Anna Schact, Ole Lajord Munk, Kim Vang, Dirk Bender, David J. Brooks, Per Borghammer
Summary: This study used [F-18]FEOBV PET to investigate the distribution of the cholinergic nervous system in human peripheral organs. The results showed that structures with high cholinergic activity exhibited high PET signals. The study concluded that [F-18]FEOBV PET is a valid tool for estimating the density of vesicular acetylcholine transporters (VAChT) in human peripheral organs. Static images may replace kinetic modeling in some cases, leading to a shorter scan duration.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Narong Simakajornboon, Emmanuel Mignot, Kiran Maski, Judith Owens, Carol Rosen, Sally Ibrahim, Fauziya Hassan, Ronald D. Chervin, Gayln Perry, Lee Brooks, Leila Kheirandish-Gozal, David Gozal, Thornton Mason, Althea Robinson, Beth Malow, Kamal Naqvi, Maida L. Chen, Supriya Jambhekar, Ann Halbower, Katharina Graw-Panzer, Ehab Dayyat, Jenny Lew, Cecilia Melendres, Suresh Kotagal, Sejal Jain, Elizabeth Super, Thomas Dye, Md Monir Hossain, Dawit Tadesse
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the incidence of pediatric narcolepsy before and after the H1N1 pandemic, and found a significant increase in narcolepsy incidence in the United States after the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. The study also demonstrated a temporal correlation between H1N1 infection and narcolepsy incidence.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Kosuke Tanioka, Toshiyuki Hirasawa, Mariko Yanagihara, Noboru Takeuchi, Hideaki Nakayama, Akira Usui, Yuichi Inoue
Summary: The study aimed to validate the Japanese versions of the Ullanlinna Narcolepsy Scale (J-UNS) and Swiss Narcolepsy Scale (J-SNS) for screening narcolepsy in the Japanese population. The results showed that both scales had high reliability and validity in diagnosing narcolepsy in patients with excessive daytime sleepiness. It was suggested to use a cut-off score of 18 for J-UNS in the population with excessive daytime sleepiness.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Simon Coghlan, Kobi Leins, Susie Sheldrick, Marc Cheong, Piers Gooding, Simon D'Alfonso
Summary: This paper critically reviews the ethical issues raised by the emergence of mental health chatbots. Chatbots, which use varying degrees of artificial intelligence, are increasingly being used in various domains, including mental health. While the technology can be beneficial in terms of access to mental health information and services, it also raises ethical concerns, especially for individuals with mental ill-health. The paper identifies and examines four important ethical issues using a recognized ethical framework and provides recommendations for the ethical creation and deployment of chatbots for mental health, targeting designers, purveyors, researchers, and practitioners.
Review
Agricultural Engineering
Catarina M. Paquete, Miriam A. Rosenbaum, Lluis Baneras, Amelia-Elena Rotaru, Sebastia Puig
Summary: Electroactive microorganisms have the ability to exchange electrons and promote communication among cells in biofilms. Understanding and addressing knowledge gaps will contribute to the development of novel technologies.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Letter
Medicine, General & Internal
Sigal Kaplan, Debra L. Braverman, Ilana Frishman, Netta Bartov
Summary: This cohort study uses data from the US Provigil/Nuvigil Pregnancy Registry to evaluate the prevalence of fetal major congenital malformations after exposure to modafinil and armodafinil during pregnancy.
JAMA INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Paola Cristofari, Mazarine Desplanque, Odile Poirel, Alison Hebert, Sylvie Dumas, Etienne Herzog, Lydia Danglot, David Geny, Jean-Francois Gilles, Audrey Geeverding, Susanne Bolte, Alexis Canette, Michael Trichet, Veronique Fabre, Stephanie Daumas, Nicolas Pietrancosta, Salah El Mestikawy, Veronique Bernard
Summary: This study used super-resolution microscopy to investigate the release mechanism of acetylcholine and glutamate in striatal cholinergic interneurons. The results showed that some neurons contain both acetylcholine and glutamate in their vesicles, while others only contain one of the two. These findings indicate that striatal cholinergic interneurons have a diverse and complex signaling mechanism.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)