Using sub-limb observations to measure gravity waves excited by convection.

Convective gravity waves are a major driver of atmospheric circulation, including the stratospheric and mesospheric quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) and the Brewer-Dobson circulation. Previous work shows clear evidence that these waves can be excited by both single convective cells and by mesoscale convective complexes acting as a single unit. However, the partitioning of the generated waves and, crucially for atmospheric model development, the flux of momentum they transport between these two types of excitation process remains highly uncertain due to a fundamental lack of suitable observations at the global scale. Here, we use both theoretical calculations and sampled output from a high-resolution weather model to demonstrate that a satellite instrument using a sub-limb geometry would be well suited to characterising the short-vertical short-horizontal gravity waves these systems produce, and hence to provide the scientific knowledge needed to identify the relative wave-driving contribution of these two types of convective wave excitation.

Surface-to-space atmospheric waves from Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption.

The January 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption was one of the most explosive volcanic events of the modern era1,2, producing a vertical plume that peaked more than 50 km above the Earth3. The initial explosion and subsequent plume triggered atmospheric waves that propagated around the world multiple times4. A global-scale wave response of this magnitude from a single source has not previously been observed. Here we show the details of this response, using a comprehensive set of satellite and ground-based observations to quantify it from surface to ionosphere. A broad spectrum of waves was triggered by the initial explosion, including Lamb waves5,6 propagating at phase speeds of 318.2 ± 6 m s-1 at surface level and between 308 ± 5 to 319 ± 4 m s-1 in the stratosphere, and gravity waves7 propagating at 238 ± 3 to 269 ± 3 m s-1 in the stratosphere. Gravity waves at sub-ionospheric heights have not previously been observed propagating at this speed or over the whole Earth from a single source8,9. Latent heat release from the plume remained the most significant individual gravity wave source worldwide for more than 12 h, producing circular wavefronts visible across the Pacific basin in satellite observations. A single source dominating such a large region is also unique in the observational record. The Hunga Tonga eruption represents a key natural experiment in how the atmosphere responds to a sudden point-source-driven state change, which will be of use for improving weather and climate models.

Noradrenergic antagonists mitigate amphetamine-induced recovery.

Brain injury, including that due to stroke, leaves individuals with cognitive deficits that can disrupt daily aspect of living. As of now there are few treatments that shown limited amounts of success in improving functional outcome. The use of stimulants such as amphetamine have shown some success in improving outcome following brain injury. While the pharmacological mechanisms for amphetamine are known; the specific processes responsible for improving behavioral outcome following injury remain unknown. Understanding these mechanisms can help to refine the use of amphetamine as a potential treatment or lead to the use of other methods that share the same pharmacological properties. One proposed mechanism is amphetamine's impact upon noradrenaline (NA). In the current, study noradrenergic antagonists were administered prior to amphetamine to pharmacologically block α- and ß-adrenergic receptors. The results demonstrated that the blockade of these receptors disrupted amphetamines ability to induce recovery from hemispatial neglect using an established aspiration lesion model. This suggests that amphetamine's ability to ameliorate neglect deficits may be due in part to noradrenaline. These results further support the role of noradrenaline in functional recovery. Finally, the development of polytherapies and combined therapeutics, while promising, may need to consider the possibility that drug interactions can negate the effectiveness of treatment.

An Arabidopsis gene regulatory network for secondary cell wall synthesis.

The plant cell wall is an important factor for determining cell shape, function and response to the environment. Secondary cell walls, such as those found in xylem, are composed of cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin and account for the bulk of plant biomass. The coordination between transcriptional regulation of synthesis for each polymer is complex and vital to cell function. A regulatory hierarchy of developmental switches has been proposed, although the full complement of regulators remains unknown. Here we present a protein-DNA network between Arabidopsis thaliana transcription factors and secondary cell wall metabolic genes with gene expression regulated by a series of feed-forward loops. This model allowed us to develop and validate new hypotheses about secondary wall gene regulation under abiotic stress. Distinct stresses are able to perturb targeted genes to potentially promote functional adaptation. These interactions will serve as a foundation for understanding the regulation of a complex, integral plant component.

Overlap and interdigitation of cortical and thalamic afferents to dorsocentral striatum in the rat.

Dorsocentral striatum (DCS) is an associative region necessary for directed attention in rats. DCS is defined as the main region in which axons from ipsilateral medial agranular cortex (AGm) terminate within the striatum. In this double-labeling study, we placed a green axonal tracer in area AGm and a red one in an additional brain region. We examined the spatial relationship between terminals from area AGm and other portions of the cortical-basal ganglia-thalamic-cortical network involved in directed attention and its dysfunction, hemispatial neglect, in the rat. These include lateral agranular cortex (AGl), posterior parietal cortex (PPC), ventrolateral orbital cortex (VLO), and secondary visual cortex (Oc2M). One important finding is the presence of a dense focus of labeled axons within DCS after injections in cortical area PPC or Oc2M. In these foci, axons from PPC or Oc2M extensively overlap and interdigitate with axons from cortical area AGm. Additionally, retrograde labeling of striatal neurons, along with double anterograde labeling, suggests that axons from cortical area AGm and AGl cross and possibly make contact with the dendritic processes of single medium spiny neurons. Axons from thalamic nucleus LP were observed to form a dense band dorsal to DCS which is similar to that seen following PPC injections, and a significant number of LP axons were also observed within DCS. Projections from thalamic nucleus VL are present in the dense dorsolateral AGm band that abuts the external capsule, are densest in the dorsolateral striatum, and were not observed in DCS. These results extend previous findings that DCS receives input from diverse cortical areas and thalamic nuclei which are themselves interconnected.

A rodent model for investigating the neurobiology of contralateral neglect.

BACKGROUND: Contralateral neglect is a common and disabling sequela of right hemisphere strokes. Neglect involves attentional and cognitive deficits, including distortions of contralateral spatial and personal awareness. There are no established successful therapies for neglect, and treatment is often complicated by anosognosia. The disturbances associated with neglect are debilitating to patients and their families, and presence of neglect is a strong predictor of poor prognosis for recovery. OBJECTIVE: The present report reviews findings from 20 years of research using a rat model of neglect. In the rat, 2 cortical areas that are linked by corticocortical connections have been identified as having a major role in neglect, and these correspond to frontal and parietal fields in primates. These 2 cortical areas also have convergent projections to the dorsocentral striatum, which has been implicated as a crucial subcortical component of the cortical-striatal-thalamic circuitry involved in directed attention and neglect. We discuss the role of the dorsocentral striatum in neglect and recovery and present evidence that induced axonal sprouting may promote functional recovery following cortical lesions that produce neglect. CONCLUSIONS: The rodent model of neglect captures some of the essential behavioral and anatomic features of neglect in humans. This model has helped reveal the pathophysiology of neglect, has suggested a crucial role of the striatum in recovery from neglect, and is being used to investigate potential therapeutic approaches.

Infusion of apomorphine into the dorsocentral striatum produces acute drug-induced recovery from neglect produced by unilateral medial agranular cortex lesions in rats.

Previous studies have shown that systemic administration of apomorphine is effective in producing acute drug-induced recovery from neglect induced by unilateral medial agranular cortex (AGm) lesions. More recent studies have demonstrated that recovery from neglect may be due to plastic changes occurring in the dorsal central striatum (DCS). Further, lesions of the DCS produce neglect that does not respond to systemic administration of apomorphine, suggesting that this area may be crucial for the therapeutic effects of apomorphine. In the present study, the behavioral effects of apomorphine infused into the DCS of animals with AGm lesion-induced neglect were examined to determine whether the DCS is a site of drug action. An infusion of 0.375 micro g of apomorphine into the DCS, but not a lateral striatal control area, was effective in producing acute recovery from neglect. The results of this study support the crucial role of the DCS in recovery from neglect induced by unilateral AGm lesions and suggest that the DCS may be an important site of action for the therapeutic effects of apomorphine. Because dopamine agonist therapy has been shown to be effective in humans with neglect, the results of the current study may represent an important step in the development of future pharmacotherapies.

The associative striatum: cortical and thalamic projections to the dorsocentral striatum in rats.

Corticostriatal projections to the dorsocentral striatum (DCS) were investigated using retrograde fluorescent axonal tracing. The DCS is of interest because of its role in directed attention and recovery from multimodal hemispatial neglect following cortical lesions of medial agranular cortex (AGm), an association area that is its major source of cortical input. A key finding was that the multimodal posterior parietal cortex (PPC) also contributes substantial input to DCS. This is significant because PPC and AGm are linked by corticocortical connections and are both critical components of the circuitry involved in spatial processing and directed attention. Other cortical areas providing input to DCS include visual association areas, lateral agranular cortex and orbital cortex. These areas also have reciprocal connections with AGm and PPC. Less consistent labeling was seen in somatic sensorimotor areas FL, HL and Par 1. Thalamic afferents to DCS are prominent from the intralaminar, ventrolateral, mediodorsal, ventromedial, laterodorsal (LD) and lateral posterior (LP) nuclei. Collectively, these nuclei constitute the sources of thalamic input to cortical areas AGm and PPC. Nuclei LD and LP are only labeled with injections in dorsal DCS, the site of major input from PPC, and PPC receives its thalamic input from LD and LP. We conclude that DCS receives inputs from cortical and thalamic areas that are themselves linked by corticocortical and thalamocortical connections. These findings support the hypothesis that DCS is a key component of an associative network of cortical, striatal and thalamic regions involved in multimodal processing and directed attention.

Effects of light deprivation on recovery from neglect and extinction induced by unilateral lesions of the medial agranular cortex and dorsocentral striatum.

A number of previous studies have indicated that an environmental manipulation, 48 h of light deprivation (LD), produces virtually complete and permanent behavioral recovery of function from neglect induced by medial agranular cortex (AGm) lesions. LD-induced behavioral recovery from neglect is correlated with physiological changes in the dorsolateral striatum, an area that contains the projection zone of AGm efferents in the dorsocentral striatum (DCS). In this study, the behavioral effects of 48 h of LD on subjects with either unilateral DCS, AGm, or combined AGm/DCS lesions were investigated to examine whether the integrity of the DCS is crucial for behavioral recovery from neglect and whether LD will have a therapeutic effect on extinction deficits. Subjects were tested for extinction to bilateral simultaneous stimulation of the forepaws, and visual, auditory and tactile neglect. Forty-eight hours of LD failed to produce behavioral recovery from neglect in rats with DCS lesions, or a therapeutic affect on extinction deficits in any of the groups. The results of this study further support the crucial role of the DCS in recovery from neglect induced by AGm lesions and suggests that the DCS may be the crucial site for the mechanisms leading to LD-induced recovery. Further, the ineffectiveness of LD on extinction suggests that components of the neglect syndrome are dissociable and may require different therapeutic interventions.

Unilateral destruction of the dorsocentral striatum in rats produces neglect but not extinction to bilateral simultaneous stimulation.

A number of previous studies have indicated that lesions of the medial agranular cortex (AGm) in rats induce multimodal neglect and extinction to bilateral simultaneous stimulation (extinction), the two major symptoms of the neglect syndrome in humans. A recent study demonstrated that lesions of dorsocentral striatum (DCS), the site of AGm projections to the striatum, produce multimodal neglect qualitatively similar to that found with AGm lesions. In the present study, the behavioral effects of unilateral DCS lesions were examined in more detail for the major manifestations of neglect: hemineglect, extinction, and allesthesia/allokinesia. Subjects were tested for extinction to bilateral simultaneous stimulation of the forepaws three times a week for 3 weeks. Neglect testing occurred twice weekly and the subjects were tested for the presence of neglect by rating the magnitude of orientation to visual, tactile, and auditory stimulation. The results indicated that DCS operates, while demonstrating severe neglect, failed to demonstrate extinction or allesthesia/allokinesia. These findings suggest that the neural mechanisms that underlie neglect and extinction are dissociable in this system. A better understanding of the neural mechanisms that underlie extinction is particularly important because humans that have recovered from neglect often continue to demonstrate the debilitating symptoms of extinction.

Regeneration in avian hair cell epithelia: identification of intracellular signals required for S-phase entry.

Balance epithelia in birds closely resemble their mammalian counterparts, but their cells turnover rapidly and they quickly regenerate hair cells, leading to functional recovery from damage that would be permanent for a mammal. We isolated and cultured sheets of the chicken's utricular epithelium in bromo-deoxyuridine and specific inhibitors of different intracellular signalling pathways to identify signals that influence turnover and regeneration. Synthesis (S-phase) entry was effectively blocked by inhibition of PI3-K, TOR or MAPK, and significantly decreased by inhibitors of PKC. Comparisons indicate that activated PI3-K and TOR are required for S-phase entry in both avian and mammalian balance epithelia, but activation of the MAPK pathway appears to have a more significant role in avian utricles than in mammals. The dissimilarities in the requirements for these signalling pathways do not appear sufficient to explain the marked difference in regenerative capacity between the ears of birds and mammals.

Intracellular signals that control cell proliferation in mammalian balance epithelia: key roles for phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin, and S6 kinases in preference to calcium, protein kinase C, and mitogen-activated protein kinase.

In fish, amphibians, and birds, the loss of hair cells can evoke S-phase entry in supporting cells and the production of new cells that differentiate as replacement hair cells and supporting cells. Recent investigations have shown that supporting cells from mammalian vestibular epithelia will proliferate in limited numbers after hair cells have been killed. Exogenous growth factors such as glial growth factor 2 enhance this proliferation most potently when tested on vestibular epithelia from neonates. In this study, the intracellular signaling pathways that underlie the S-phase entry were surveyed by culturing epithelia in the presence of pharmacological inhibitors and activators. The results demonstrate that phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase is a key element in the signaling cascades that lead to the proliferation of cells in mammalian balance epithelia in vitro. Protein kinase C, mammalian target of rapamycin, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and calcium were also identified as elements in the signaling pathways that trigger supporting cell proliferation.

Brief treatments with forskolin enhance s-phase entry in balance epithelia from the ears of rats.

In the ears of mammals, hair cell loss results in permanent hearing and balance deficits, whereas in fish, amphibians, and birds, the production of replacement hair cells can restore those modalities. In avian ears, continuous exposures to forskolin trigger cell proliferation and the regeneration of hair cells, so we investigated the effect of forskolin on sensory epithelia cultured from the ears of mammals. Continuous 72 hr exposures to forskolin failed to induce proliferation in neonatal rat utricles, but brief (

Three new cytochalasins produced by an endophytic fungus in the genus Rhinocladiella.

Three new cytotoxic cytochalasins (1-3) and the previously reported cytochalasin E (4) were isolated from a culture of the endophytic fungus Rhinocladiella sp. using bioassay-guided fractionation. Extensive NMR and HRCIMS experiments identified these new compounds as 22-oxa-[12]-cytochalasins.

Solitary hair cells are distributed throughout the extramacular epithelium in the bullfrog's saccule.

The frog inner ear contains eight sensory organs that provide sensitivities to auditory, vestibular, and ground-borne vibrational stimuli. The saccule in bullfrogs is responsible for detecting ground- and airborne vibrations and is used for studies of hair cell physiology, development, and regeneration. Based on hair bundle morphology, a number of hair cell types have been defined in this organ. Using immunocytochemistry, vital labeling, and electron microscopy, we have characterized a new hair cell type in the bullfrog saccule. A monoclonal antibody that is specific to hair cells revealed that a population of solitary hair cells exists outside the sensory macula in what was previously thought to be nonsensory epithelium. We call these extramacular hair cells. There are 80-100 extramacular hair cells in both tadpole and adult saccules, which extend up to 1 mm from the edge of the sensory macula. The extramacular hair cells have spherical cell bodies and small apical surfaces. Even in adults, the hair bundles of the extramacular cells appear immature, with a long kinocilium (6-9 microm) and short stereocilia (0.5-2 microm). At least 90% of extramacular hair cells are likely to be innervated as demonstrated by labeling of nerve fibers with an antineurofilament antibody. The extramacular hair cells may differentiate in regionsjust beyond the edge of the macula at an early stage in development and then be pushed out via the interstitial growth of the epithelium that surrounds the macula. It is also possible that they may be produced from cell divisions in the extramacular epithelium that has not been considered capable of giving rise to hair cells.

Topographic organization of the striatal and thalamic connections of rat medial agranular cortex.

The rostral and caudal portions of rat medial agranular cortex (AGm) play different functional roles. To refine the anatomical framework for understanding these differences, axonal tracers were used to map the topography of the connections of AGm with the striatum and thalamus. The striatal projections follow mediolateral and rostrocaudal gradients that correspond to the locations of the neurons of origin within AGm. Projections from rostral AGm are widespread and dense rostrally, then coalesce into a circumscribed dorsocentral region at the level of the pre-commissural septal nuclei. Projections from mid and caudal AGm are less widespread and less dense, and are focused more caudally. Striatal projections from the adjacent anterior cingulate and lateral agranular areas overlap those of AGm but are concentrated more medially and laterally, respectively. Thalamic connections of AGm are organized so that more caudal portions of AGm have connections with progressively more lateral and caudal regions of the thalamus, and the full extent of AGm is connected with the ventrolateral (VL) nucleus. Rostral AGm is interconnected with the lateral portion of the mediodorsal nucleus (MD1), VL, and the central lateral (CL), paracentral (PC), central medial, rhomboid and ventromedial nuclei. Caudal AGm has robust connections with VL, the posterior, lateral posterior and lateral dorsal nuclei, but little or none with MD1, CL/PC and VM. These differences in the subcortical connections of rostral and caudal AGm parallel their known differences in corticocortical connections, and represent another basis for experimental explorations of the functional roles of these cortical territories.

Acute effects of the selective cholinergic channel activator (nicotinic agonist) ABT-418 in Alzheimer's disease.

To explore further the potential for cognitive enhancement utilizing nicotinic stimulation in Alzheimer's disease (AD), six otherwise healthy subjects with moderate AD received placebo and three doses (6, 12, and 23 mg) of the novel selective cholinergic channel activator (ChCA) (nicotinic agonist) ABT-418 over 6 h in a double-blind, within-subjects, repeated-measures design. Subjects showed significant improvements in total recall and a decline in recall failure on a verbal learning task. Qualitatively similar improvements were seen in non-verbal learning tasks such as spatial learning and memory, and repeated acquisition. No significant behavioral, vital sign, or physical side effects were seen. These results confirm that stimulating central nicotinic receptors has acute cognitive benefit in AD patients. These findings suggest that selective ChCAs have a potential therapeutic role in dementing disorders, and that further studies with this or similar agents in AD and/or Parkinson's disease are warranted.

Differential lateralization of memory discrimination and response bias in temporal lobe epilepsy patients.

Recognition memory for words and designs was assessed in epilepsy patients who underwent unilateral anterior temporal lobectomy. Memory was assessed during the intracarotid amobarbital test (IAT) performed prior to surgery and also following surgery. Memory discrimination and response bias lateralized differently. Memory discrimination, or memory accuracy, lateralized as a function of the type of material used in memory testing. Left temporal lobe lesions resulted in more impaired discrimination of verbal materials; right temporal lobe lesions resulted in more impaired discrimination of visuospatial materials. Response bias, the decision rule adopted in situations of uncertainty, was more liberal following left temporal lobe lesions for both verbal and visuospatial materials. Findings suggest that the two cerebral hemispheres are differentially specialized for encoding different types of information in long term memory, and that this impacts on decision strategies in situations of memory uncertainty.