Immunocytochemical data confirmed the expression of clusterin in these clones. Furthermore, the Bromodeoxyuridine incorporation

assay confirmed the proliferation activity of these clones through Fshr after treatment with FSH. These clones are considered to be valuable tools for the study of Sertoli cell-specific gene expression and function.”
“Our objective was to determine the role of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in uterine ischemia/reperfusion (I/R)-induced fetal growth restriction (FGR). Pregnant TLR4-deficient and wild-type mice were subjected to LY2109761 price I/R or a sham procedure. Fetal and placental weights were recorded and tissues were collected. Pep-1 (inhibits low-molecular-weight hyaluronan (LMW-HA) binding to TLR4) was used to determine whether LMW-HA-TLR4 interaction has a role in FGR. TLR4-deficient mice exhibited significantly lower baseline fetal weights compared

with wild-type mice (P<0.05), along with extensive placental calcification that was not present in wild-type mice. Following I/R, fetal and placental weights were significantly reduced in wild-type (P<0.05) but not in TLR4-deficient mice. However, I/R increased fetal loss (P<0.05) only in TLR4-deficient mice. Corresponding with the reduced fetal weights, uterine myeloperoxidase activity this website GSK2118436 cell line increased in wild-type mice (P<0.001), indicating an inflammatory response, which was absent in TLR4-deficient mice. TLR4 was shown to have a regulatory role for two anti-inflammatory cytokines: interferon-B1 decreased only in wild-type mice (P<0.01) and interleukin-10 increased

only in TLR4-deficient mice (P<0.001), in response to I/R. Pep-1 completely prevented I/R-induced FGR (P<0.001), indicating a potential role for the endogenous TLR4 ligand LMW-HA in I/R-induced FGR. In conclusion, uterine I/R in pregnancy produces FGR that is dependent on TLR4 and endogenous ligand(s), including breakdown products of HA. In addition, TLR4 may play a role in preventing pregnancy loss after uterine I/R.”
“Uterine inflammation occurs after calving in association with extensive endometrial remodelling and bacterial contamination. If the inflammation persists, it leads to reduced fertility. Chronic endometritis is highly prevalent in high-yielding cows that experience negative energy balance (NEB) in early lactation. This study investigated the effect of NEB on the antimicrobial peptides S100A8 and S100A9 in involuting uteri collected 2 weeks post partum. Holstein-Friesian cows (six per treatment) were randomly allocated to two interventions designed to produce mild or severe NEB (MNEB and SNEB) status.

ictaluri isolates in Japan suggests the single source of the organism, and the infection in ayu is in the early stage of epidemics.”
“The anaphase-promoting complex (APC) is a multisubunit E3

ubiquitin ligase that controls cell cycle transition in proliferating cells. Recent studies show that Cdh1-APC is active in postmitotic neurons, which regulates axonal growth and patterning, synaptic development and neuronal survival. However, the role of Cdh1-APC in neural stem cells differentiation remains unknown. Using quantitative reverse transcription-PCR, we observed that Cdh1 was expressed higher in neurons than in neural stem cells in vitro. Cdh1 was upregulated, AZD5363 solubility dmso whereas Id2 (one downstream substrate of Cdh1-APC) was downregulated when primary neural stem cells were induced to differentiate into neurons by all-trans retinoic acid. This observation suggests that Cdh1 is involved in the control of neural stem cells differentiated into neurons. NeuroReport 21:39-44 (C) 2010 Wolters Kluwer Health vertical bar Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.”
“Aims:

To isolate and characterize bioactive metabolites produced by a micro-organism isolated from Entrectinib a soil sample associated with the roots of a medicinal plant, Azadirachta indica.

Methods and Results:

Morphological,

cultural, physiological and 16S rRNA homology studies revealed that the organism showed 99% similarity with Streptomyces griseoruber NBRC 12873. One bioactive metabolite (Py2) isolated from the fermented broth was characterized as actinomycin-D (act-D). It showed high activity against various Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial cultures, Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv and human neoplastic cells in vitro using standard protocols.

Conclusions:

The isolated strain S. griseoruber produced act-D predominantly (210 mg l<SU-1</SU, c. 88% of the crude) under

nonoptimized growth conditions.

Significance and Impact of the Study:

Streptomyces griseoruber may be exploited as a potential this website source for the commercial production of act-D, as this strain is not reported to produce act-D. Further investigations on the strain for commercial application will be of immense pharmaceutical importance.”
“It has been hypothesized that rapid eye movements (REMs) during sleep reflect the process of looking around in dreams. We questioned whether REMs differ from eye movements in wakefulness while imagining previously seen visual stimuli (dots, static images, videos). After looking at these stimuli individuals were asked to remember and imagine them. Subsequently, their REMs were recorded at the sleep laboratory. Kinematic parameters of REMs were similar to saccadic eye movements to remembered stimuli with closed eyes, irrespective of the stimulus type. In contrast, peak velocity of eye movements with open eyes was similar to REMs when semantic, but not nonsemantic, contents were imagined.

“
“Aims:

Statistical optimization of medium components for improved chitinase production by Paenibacillus sp. D1.

Methods and Results:

Urea, K(2)HPO(4), chitin and yeast extract were identified learn more as significant components influencing chitinase production by Paenibacillus sp. D1 using Plackett-Burman method. Response surface methodology (central composite design) was applied for further optimization. The concentrations of medium components for improved chitinase production were as follows (g l-1): urea, 0 center dot 33; K(2)HPO(4),

1 center dot 17; MgSO(4), 0 center dot 3; yeast extract, 0 center dot 65 and chitin, 3 center dot 75. This statistical optimization approach led to the production of LCZ696 93 center dot 2 +/- 0 center dot 58 U ml-1 of chitinase.

Conclusions:

The

important factors controlling the production of chitinase by Paenibacillus sp. D1 were identified as urea, K(2)HPO(4), chitin and yeast extract. Statistical approach was found to be very effective in optimizing the medium components in manageable number of experimental runs with overall 2 center dot 56-fold increase in chitinase production.

Significance and Impact of the Study:

The present investigation provides a report on statistical optimization of medium components for improved chitinase production by Paenibacillus sp. D1. Paenibacillus species are gram-positive, spore-forming bacteria with several PGPR and biocontrol potentials. However, only few reports concerning mycolytic enzyme production especially chitinases are available. Chitinase produced by Paenibacillus sp. D1 represents new source for biotechnological and agricultural use.”
“Aims:

Human bifidobacteria are more sensitive to external environmental factors than animal bifidobacteria, and it is difficult to ensure their stable survival https://www.selleck.cn/products/epz-6438.html in yogurt. The purpose of this investigation was to observe the survival of human bifidobacteria in yogurts produced under

various production conditions.

Methods:

Frozen or lyophilized bifidobacteria starters containing Bifidobacterium longum BB536 originally isolated from an infant, and commercial lyophilized yogurt starters were used for yogurt preparation. After producing yogurts under various conditions, the survival of bifidobacteria in these yogurts over various storage periods was observed.

Results:

Although there were some differences in bifidobacterial survival in yogurt between various production conditions, more than 1 center dot 0 x 107 CFU g-1 of Bif. longum survived in yogurt after 35 days’ storage at 5 degrees C. Lower fermentation temperature (37 degrees C) and inclusion of Lactococcus lactis in the starter significantly (P < 0 center dot 05) improved survival of Bif. longum in the yogurt.

Conclusion:

In this investigation, the human bifidobacterial strain Bif. longum survived adequately in yogurt, although the fermentation temperature and starter composition affect bifidobacterial survival.

In summary, M062 is a novel host range factor that controls productive MYXV replication in rabbit cells and in a wide variety of human cells. M062 also binds and antagonizes cellular SAMD9 in human cells, suggesting that SAMD9 is a novel innate antiviral factor against poxviruses.”
“Up to 50% of bipolar disorder STAT inhibitor (BD) patients present a lifetime diagnosis of alcohol use disorders (AUD). BD patients with comorbid AUD, even when in remission from the AUD, have a poorer

outcome and functional impairment than patients with BD alone. The neurobiological abnormalities that potentially characterize this severe subgroup of BD patients are unknown. Our goal was to investigate gray matter (GM) volume abnormalities in BD I patients with comorbid AUD. Twenty-one BD-AUD patients, 21 BD-nonAUD BD patients, and 25 healthy controls (HC), matched by age, gender, and handedness were studied. The BD-AUD patients were in remission from AUD on average for 6.8 years. 3D SPGR MRIs (TR = 25 ms, TE = 5 ms, slice thickness = 1.5 mm) were acquired from all subjects using a 1.5 T GE Signa Imaging System. We used an optimized voxel-based morphometry protocol to compare GM volumes among the groups. BD-AUD patients presented smaller GM volumes in the left medial frontal and the right anterior cingulate gyri compared to BD-nonAUD patients. BDnon-AUD patients did not present GM volume differences

compared to HC. These findings provide evidence for an effect of comorbid

AUD on OTX015 cost regional brain structure of BD I patients and warrant AR-13324 in vivo further research on neurobiological aspects of this prevalent and severe comorbidity. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The switch between the latency and lytic cycles of Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is accompanied by specific alterations of histone codes. Recently, comprehensive analysis of histone modifications of KSHV showed the deposition of H3K27me3 across the KSHV genome with two specific regions occupied by the heterochromatin marker H3K9me3. Here, we show that knockdown of JMJD2A, an H3K9me3 demethylase, attenuates viral titers, whereas its overexpression increases KSHV reactivation. JMJD2A is localized in regions of latent viral chromosomes that are deficient in the H3K9me3 mark, indicating that JMJD2A may be responsible for the low level of this mark on viral chromatin. The presence of JMJD2A on the latent genome maintains H3K9 in unmethylated form and signals the readiness of specific sets of viral genes to be reactivated. The demethylase activity of JMJD2A is important for KSHV reactivation, because a demethylase-deficient mutant cannot restore the JMJD2A knockdown phenotype. Interestingly, we found that the KSHV encoded K-bZIP associated with JMJD2A, resulting in the inhibition of demethylase activity of JMJD2A both in vivo and in vitro.

Their purified B cells, however, responded normally to a polyclonal stimulation and did not have cytokine polarization. This phenotype was associated with the following AZD1080 specific characteristics which include an inhibitory signal (decreased Fc gamma RIIA/Fc gamma RIIB ratio); a preventive signal of hyperactive B-cell response (an increase in BANK1, which negatively modulates CD40-mediated AKT activation); an increased number of B cells expressing CD1d

and CD5; an increased BAFF-R/BAFF ratio that could explain why these patients have more peripheral B cells; and a specific autoantibody profile. Thus, our findings show that patients with DF have a particular blood B-cell phenotype that may contribute to the maintenance of long-term graft function. Kidney International (2010) 78, 503-513; doi:10.1038/ki.2010.162; published online 9 June 2010″
“Erythropoietin (EPO), a well known haematopoietic growth factor, possesses neuroprotective and

neurotrophic effects which have been recently reported to improve cognition and to modulate emotional processing. We investigated the effects of EPO and of its non-erythropoietic carbamylated derivative (CEPO) on memory- and emotion-related behaviour in the adult mouse. Locomotor activity, memory performances (place and object recognition tasks), anxiety- (light/dark transition test) and despair-like behaviours (tail suspension test) were assessed over 6 weeks of repeated Adriamycin EPO or CEPO administration (40 mu g/kg, twice a week). Given the potential involvement of hippocampal neurogenesis Electron transport chain in memory, we also assessed the effects of EPO and CEPO on neurogenesis

in the dentate gyrus. Both treatments improved spatial and non-spatial recognition memory and increased the number of NeuN/BrdU double-labeled cells in the dentate gyrus. These effects seem to be, at least partly, independent from an haematopoietic action since administration of CEPO leads to the similar results. Moreover, CEPO decreased, albeit modestly, despair-related behaviour and tended to decrease anxiety-like behaviour. These results suggest that CEPO is as an attractive molecule for the treatment of neuropsychiatric diseases associating memory and/or emotional disorders. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Recent studies indicate that the Notch signaling pathway plays an important role in the development of diabetic kidney disease and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). Here we analyzed the degree of expression and localization of Notch ligands (Jagged1 and Delta1) and activated (cleaved) receptors (Notch1 and Notch2) in healthy human kidneys and in renal biopsies from a wide variety of kidney diseases.

(C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The cellular mechanisms that couple activity of glutamatergic synapses with changes in blood flow, measured by a variety of techniques including the BOLD signal, have not previously been

modelled. Here we provide such a model, that successfully accounts for the main observed changes in blood flow in both visual cortex and somatosensory cortex following their stimulation by high-contrast drifting grating or by single whisker stimulation, respectively. Coupling front glutamatergic synapses to smooth muscle cells of arterioles is effected by astrocytes releasing epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) onto them, following glutamate stimulation of the astrocyte. Coupling of EETs to the smooth muscle of arterioles is by means of potassium Sotrastaurin mouse channels in their membranes, leading to hyperpolarization, relaxation and hence an increase in blood flow. This model predicts a linear increase in blood flow with increasing numbers of activated astrocytes, but a non-linear increase with increasing glutamate release. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“OBJECTIVE:

The past decade has witnessed the increasing application of robotics in surgery, yet there is no existing system that combines stereotaxy and microsurgery in an imaging environment. To fulfill this niche, we have designed and manufactured an DAPT image-guided robotic system that is compatible with magnetic resonance imaging.

METHODS: The system conveys the sight, touch, and sound of surgery to an operator seated at a remote workstation. Motion scaling, tremor filtering, and precision robotics allow surgeons to rapidly attain technical proficiency while working at a spatial resolution of 50 to 100 mu m instead of a few millimeters. This system has the potential to shift surgery from the organ toward the cellular level.

RESULTS: By integrating the robot with images obtained during the procedure, the effects of surgery on both the lesion and brain

are immediately IWP-2 solubility dmso revealed.

CONCLUSION: We are providing technology to advance and transform surgery with the potential to improve patient outcome.”
“Compared with the conventional amino acid (AA) composition, the pseudo-amino acid (PseAA) composition as originally introduced for protein subcellular location prediction can incorporate much more information of a protein sequence, so as to remarkably enhance the power of using a discrete model to predict various attributes of a protein. In this study, based on the concept of PseAA composition, the approximate entropy and hydrophobicity pattern of a protein sequence are used to characterize the PseAA components. Also, the immune genetic algorithm (IGA) is applied to search the optimal weight factors in generating the PseAA composition. Thus, for a given protein sequence sample, a 27-D (dimensional), PseAA composition is generated as its descriptor.

The study indicates that the enhanced production of spinal mitochondrial superoxide alone

without nerve injury can produce mechanical hyperalgesia. (c) 2008 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.”
“High-throughput data from various omics and sequencing techniques have rendered the automated metabolic network reconstruction a highly relevant problem. Our approach reflects the inherent probabilistic nature of the steps involved in metabolic network reconstruction. Here, the goal is to arrive at networks which combine probabilistic information with the possibility to obtain a small number of disconnected network constituents by reduction of a given preliminary probabilistic metabolic network. We define automated metabolic network reconstruction find more as an optimization problem on four-partite graph (nodes representing genes, enzymes, reactions, and metabolites) which integrates: (1) probabilistic information obtained from the existing process for metabolic reconstruction from a given genome, (2) connectedness of the raw metabolic network, and (3) clustering of components in the reconstructed metabolic network. The practical implications of our theoretical analysis refer

to the quality of reconstructed metabolic networks and shed light on the problem of finding more efficient and Dinaciclib in vitro effective methods for automated reconstruction. Our main contributions include: a completeness result for the defined problem, polynomial-time approximation algorithm, and an optimal polynomial-time

algorithm for trees. Florfenicol Moreover, we exemplify our approach by the reconstruction of the sucrose biosynthesis pathway in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The p11 protein (also called S100A10), which plays a pivotal role in the dynamic modulation of serotonergic I B receptor function, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of major depressive disorder (MDD) and the therapeutic mechanisms of antidepressant action. Humans and mice with depression have lower central p11 levels, and treatment with antidepressant agents raises p11 levels in animals. Furthermore, brain p11 mRNA expression is lower in post mortem brains from patients who were suffering from depression and had committed suicide compared with control subjects who had died from other causes. From the above findings, the p11 gene may be considered a candidate gene for the investigation of MDD susceptibility, response to antidepressants or the likelihood of attempting suicide. Three p11 polymorphisms were genotyped in 470 patients with MDD and 447 normal controls. No significant association with MDD was discovered in single locus or haplotype analyses. The analysis for genotypic effects showed no significant association between any of the three p11 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and MDD therapeutic response.

6 vs 72.7 years), aneurysm size (6.51 vs 6.52 cm), and non-elective operation (30.4% vs 26.0%). The hybrid group had a higher mean Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) risk score (9.1 vs 6.0; P <= .001), incidence of oxygen-dependent chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (34.8% vs 2.6%; P <= .001), and prior thoracic (n = 4) or thoracoabdominal Bromosporine (n = 2) repair (26.1% vs 1.3%; P <= .001). Composite mortality

and/or PP was doubled in the hybrid group (21.7% vs 11.7%; P = .33). The rate of any type of reoperation was higher in hybrid TAAA repair (39.1% vs 20.8%; P = .03). One year actuarial survival for both groups was comparable (hybrid, 68 +/- 12%; open, 73 +/- 6%). A total of 5/23 (22%) hybrid TAAA patients developed an endoleak (type I: 3/23 and type II : 2/23) with 3 requiring endovascular

re-intervention. A total of 7/70 (10%) visceral/renal bypass grafts were noted to be occluded during follow-up (I superior inesenteric artery, 1 celiac, and 5 renal). Examination of patients with an SVS risk score :58 (mean SVS risk score in hybrid 6.2 [n = 10] vs 5.5 [n = 68] in open; P = .27) revealed the hybrid group had a higher incidence of composite mortality and/or PP (40% vs 10.3%; P = .03).

Conclusion: RepSox Hybrid TAAA repair in high-risk patients has significant morbidity and mortality suggesting a non-interventional approach may be appropriate in many such patients. The morbidity and mortality of the hybrid TAAA repair was substantial even in lower risk patients (SVS risk score <= 8), albeit patient numbers were small. Prospective study in comparable patient risk cohorts is required to define the role of hybrid TAAA repair. (J Vasc Surg 2009;50: 15-22.)”
“The ascending nociceptive control (ANC), a novel spinostriatal pain modulation pathway. mediates a form of pain-induced analgesia referred to as noxious stimulus-induced antinociception (NSIA). ANC includes specific spinal cord mechanisms as well as circuitry

in nucleus accumbens, a major component of the ventral striatum. Here, using PF477736 the trigeminal jaw-opening reflex (JOR) in the rat as a nociceptive assay, we show that microinjection of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) antagonist mecamylamine into the rostral ventral medulla (RVM) blocks NSIA, implicating RVM as a potentially important link between ANC and the PAG-RVM-spinal descending pain modulation system. A circuit connecting nucleus accumbens to the RVM is proposed as a novel striato-RVM pathway. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of azithromycin on the expansion rate of small abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs), and to determine whether or not a correlation exists between serological markers for Chlamydophilia pneumonia (Cpn) infection and AAA expansion.

Methods. Nine vascular centers were included and 259 patients were invited to participate.

The modified intention-to-treat population included 986 infants in the single-dose group and 901 in the extended-dose group. At 6 months, 87 children in the single-dose group and 62 in the extended-dose group were infected with HIV (relative risk 0.80, 95% CI 0 . 58.1. 10; p=0. 16). At 6 weeks of age, 54 children in the single-dose group and 25 in the extended-dose group were HIV positive (0.54, 0 . 34-0.85; p=0.009). 393 infants in the single-dose group and 346 in the extended-dose group experienced grade 3 or 4 serious

adverse events during the study (p=0. 54).

Interpretation Although a 6-week regimen of daily nevirapine might be associated with a reduction in the risk of HIV transmission at 6 weeks of age, the lack of a significant reduction in the primary endpoint-risk of HIV transmission at 6 months-suggests that a longer course of daily infant nevirapine to prevent HIV transmission via breast AZD5363 ic50 milk might be more effective where access to affordable and safe replacement feeding is not yet available and where the risks of replacement feeding are high.

Funding US National Institutes of Health; US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Anlotinib supplier Diseases; Fogarty International

Center.”
“Background A consensus statement released on behalf of the Swiss Federal Commission for HIV/AIDS suggests that people receiving effective antiretroviral therapy-ie, those with undetectable plasma HIV RNA (<40 copies per mL)-are sexually non-infectious. We analysed the implications of this statement at a population level.

Methods We used a simple mathematical model to estimate the cumulative risk of HIV transmission from effectively treated HIV-infected patients (HIV RNA <10 copies per mL) over a prolonged period. We investigated the risk of unprotected sexual transmission per act and cumulatively over many exposures, within couples initially discordant for HIV status.

Findings Assuming that each couple had 100 sexual encounters per year, the cumulative probability of transmission to the

serodiscordant partner each year is 0.0022 (uncertainty bounds 0.0008-0.0058) for female-to-male transmission, JAK inhibitor 0.0043 (0.0016-0.0115) for male-to-female transmission, and 0.043 (0.0159-0.1097) for male-to-male transmission. In a population of 10000 serodiscordant partnerships, over 10 years the expected number of seroconversions would be 215 (80-564) for female-to-male transmission, 425 (159-1096) for male-to-female transmission, and 3524 (1477-6871) for male-to-male transmission, corresponding to an increase in incidence of four times compared with incidence under current rates of condom use.

Interpretation Our analyses suggest that the risk of HIV transmission in heterosexual partnerships in the presence of effective treatment is low but non-zero and that the transmission risk in male homosexual partnerships is high over repeated exposures.

“
“Background. Age-related deterioration in homeostatic regulatory mechanisms leads to decreased complexity in their output. For example, the degradation of cardiac autonomic control results in loss of complexity

in the heart rate signal. Frailty is a state of critically impaired homeostasis that results in heightened vulnerability to stressors. We propose a new measure of heart rate variability (HRV) to capture the impairment in cardiac autonomic control associated with frailty.

Methods. Traditional time and frequency domain indices of HRV were obtained from 2-hour ambulatory electrocardiograms (ECGs) of 276 women (65-101 years old) in the Women’s Health and Aging Study-I. Principal components analysis was conducted on the correlation matrix of HRV indices. Frailty was defined using a

validated instrument. Regression models were used to evaluate associations of HRV measures with age, frailty, and 5-year mortality.

Results. The first two principal see more components (PCs), PC1 and PC2, explained 90% of the variance in HRV indices. PC I is the mean of log-transformed HRV indices. PC2 is a linear combination of log-transformed indices, with positive buy AZD9291 weights for very low frequency (VLF), low frequency (LF), and standard deviation of N-N intervals (SDNN), and negative weights for high frequency (HF), root-mean-squared differences of successive N-N intervals (RMSSD), and proportion of all N-N intervals that GW786034 are larger than 50 ms (pNN50). Decreases in SDNN, VLF, LF, and LF/HF were associated with an increased risk of frailty. PC2

was more strongly associated with age (beta = -.23, p <.001) and frailty (0 = -73. p < 10(-5)) than were the individual HRV indices and LF/HF. PC2 was also the best predictor of 5-year mortality (beta = -.60, p < 10(-6)).

Conclusions. Cardiac autonomic control, as reflected by HRV, is impaired in frailty. A new measure derived from PC aggregation of traditional HRV indices provides a compact summary of this impairment.”
“Various subtypes of nicotinic cholinergic receptors are expressed in autonomic ganglia. The distinct functional roles of these receptors in autonomic ganglionic transmission to different target organs remain to be elucidated. In this study, we tested the sympathetic and parasympathetic cardiovascular responses to nicotinic agonist and antagonists in urethane-anesthetized mice. Intravenous injection with a nicotinic agonist, 1,1-dimethyl-4-phenylpiperazinium iodide, induced a brief but pronounced decrease in heart rate, followed by significant increases in heart rate and arterial blood pressure. The bradycardic response was blocked by atropine whereas the pressor response was blocked by prazosine, confirming those responses were parasympathetic and sympathetic activities, respectively. The sympathetic response was blocked by methyllycaconitine citrate, a selective alpha 7 nicotinic cholinergic receptor (nAchR) antagonist.