A NUMBER OF LITURGISTS will be gathering in Rome, Nov. 13-19, for a meeting whose unusual character is camouflaged by the soberly academic title of the sponsoring organization. The North American ...Conference on Cultural Awareness in Liturgy. There has never been a meeting quite like this before. Diocesan and parochial directors of liturgy, choirs and music have been invited, along with religious educators, to come to Rome for a discussion of the theme of liturgical inculturation.
Microglia are the brain's resident innate immune cells and also have a role in synaptic plasticity. Microglial processes continuously survey the brain parenchyma, interact with synaptic elements and ...maintain tissue homeostasis. However, the mechanisms that control surveillance and its role in synaptic plasticity are poorly understood. Microglial dynamics in vivo have been primarily studied in anesthetized animals. Here we report that microglial surveillance and injury response are reduced in awake mice as compared to anesthetized mice, suggesting that arousal state modulates microglial function. Pharmacologic stimulation of β
-adrenergic receptors recapitulated these observations and disrupted experience-dependent plasticity, and these effects required the presence of β
-adrenergic receptors in microglia. These results indicate that microglial roles in surveillance and synaptic plasticity in the mouse brain are modulated by noradrenergic tone fluctuations between arousal states and emphasize the need to understand the effect of disruptions of adrenergic signaling in neurodevelopment and neuropathology.
This review explores scaffold-free methods as an additional paradigm for tissue engineering. Musculoskeletal cartilages—for example articular cartilage, meniscus, temporomandibular joint disc, and ...intervertebral disc—are characterized by low vascularity and cellularity, and are amenable to scaffold-free tissue engineering approaches. Scaffold-free approaches, particularly the self-assembling process, mimic elements of developmental processes underlying these tissues. Discussed are various scaffold-free approaches for musculoskeletal cartilage tissue engineering, such as cell sheet engineering, aggregation, and the self-assembling process, as well as the availability and variety of cells used. Immunological considerations are of particular importance as engineered tissues are frequently of allogeneic, if not xenogeneic, origin. Factors that enhance the matrix production and mechanical properties of these engineered cartilages are also reviewed, as the fabrication of biomimetically suitable tissues is necessary to replicate function and ensure graft survival
in vivo
. The concept of combining scaffold-free and scaffold-based tissue engineering methods to address clinical needs is also discussed. Inasmuch as scaffold-based musculoskeletal tissue engineering approaches have been employed as a paradigm to generate engineered cartilages with appropriate functional properties, scaffold-free approaches are emerging as promising elements of a translational pathway not only for musculoskeletal cartilages but for other tissues as well.
Simple population models are linked to a widely used economic injury level model to produce equations for economic thresholds that include the effect of natural enemies. Two classes of models are ...recognized; those in which natural enemy dynamics are not coupled to that of the pest, such as generalist predators, and those where coupling is integral to natural enemy dynamics such as pathogens, parasitoids, and specialist predators. Both of these models are extended to multiple species or complexes of natural enemies. Implications of these models are then discussed. The concept of biocontrol gain threshold is introduced as a method to balance the relative impact of a given natural enemy against the additional monitoring costs incurred as a result of adding the species to an integrated pest management program. The use of these models to reduce the risk of incorrect management decisions is also discussed.
The absence of social support, or social isolation, can be stressful, leading to a suite of physical and psychological health issues. Growing evidence suggests that disruption of the gut-immune-brain ...axis plays a crucial role in the negative outcomes seen from social isolation stress. However, the mechanisms remain largely unknown. The socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) has been validated as a useful model for studying negative effects of social isolation on the brain and behaviors, yet how the gut microbiome and central immune system are altered in isolated prairie voles are still unknown. Here, we utilized this social rodent to examine how social isolation stress alters the gut-immune-brain axis and relevant behaviors. Adult male and female prairie voles (n = 48 per sex) experienced social isolation or were cohoused with a same-sex cagemate (control) for six weeks. Thereafter, their social and anxiety-like behaviors, neuronal circuit activation, neurochemical expression, and microgliosis in key brain regions, as well as gut microbiome alterations from the isolation treatment were examined. Social isolation increased anxiety-like behaviors and impaired social affiliation. Isolation also resulted in sex- and brain region-specific alterations in neuronal activation, neurochemical expression, and microgliosis. Further, social isolation resulted in alterations to the gut microbiome that were correlated with key brain and behavioral measures. Our data suggest that social isolation alters the gut-immune-brain axis in a sex-dependent manner and that gut microbes, central glial cells, and neurochemical systems may play a critical, integrative role in mediating negative outcomes from social isolation.
•Social isolation increased anxiety-like behaviors and impaired social affiliation.•Isolation altered neuronal activation and neurochemical expression in the brain.•Isolation stress increased microgliosis in a brain region-specific manner.•Isolation stress also resulted in alterations to the gut microbiome.•Social isolation altered the gut-immune-brain axis in a sex-dependent manner.
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