High Ethanol and Acetaldehyde Inhibit Glutamatergic Transmission in the Hippocampus of Aldh2-Knockout and C57BL/6N Mice: an In Vivo and Ex Vivo Analysis.

We aimed to investigate whether ethanol (EtOH) and acetaldehyde (AcH) can affect glutamate and its receptors GluN1 and GluA1 in the hippocampus of Aldh2-knockout (Aldh2-KO) and C57BL/6N (wild-type (WT)) mice. To do this, we first examined the effect of local administration of EtOH (100 mM, 200 mM, and 500 mM) and AcH (100 µM, 200 µM, and 500 µM) on extracellular glutamate levels in freely moving mice. Retrodialysis of 200 mM and 500 mM EtOH into the hippocampus of WT and Aldh2-KO mice produced significant decreases in extracellular glutamate levels (p < 0.05). A dose of 500 mM EtOH induced a greater decrease in Aldh2-KO mice (p < 0.05) than in WT mice, indicating the action of AcH. Similarly, perfusion of 200 µM and 500 µM AcH decreased glutamate in Aldh2-KO mice (p < 0.05), but this decrease was not seen in WT mice at any AcH dose. Second, we tested whether the EtOH- and AcH-induced decrease in glutamate was associated with decreases in GluN1 and GluA1 expression, as measured by real-time PCR and Western blot. We found a significant decrease in GluN1 (p < 0.05) and GluA1 (p < 0.05) subunits after a high dose of EtOH (4.0 g/kg) and AcH (200 mg/kg) in WT mice. However, a 2.0 g/kg dose of EtOH did not produce a consistent decrease in GluN1 or GluA1 between messenger RNA and protein. In Aldh2-KO mice, all three doses of EtOH (1.0 g/kg, 2.0 g/kg, and 4.0 g/kg) and AcH (50 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg, and 200 mg/kg) decreased GluN1 expression (p < 0.05), while moderate-to-high doses of EtOH (2.0 g/kg and 4.0 g/kg) and AcH (100 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg) decreased GluA1 expression (p < 0.05). Together, these in vivo and ex vivo data suggest that EtOH and AcH decrease extracellular glutamate in the hippocampus of mice with a concomitant decrease in GluN1 and GluA1 subunits, but these effects require relatively high concentrations and may, therefore, explain the consequences of EtOH intoxication.

Cryptic antifungal compounds active by synergism with polyene antibiotics.

The majority of antifungal compounds reported so far target the cell wall or cell membrane of fungi, suggesting that other types of antibiotics cannot exert their activity because they cannot penetrate into the cells. Therefore, if the permeability of the cell membrane could be enhanced, many antibiotics might be found to have antifungal activity. We here used the polyene antibiotic nystatin, which binds to ergosterol and forms pores at the cell membrane, to enhance the cellular permeability. In the presence of nystatin, many culture extracts from entomopathogenic fungi displayed antifungal activity. Among all the active extracts, two active components were purified and identified as helvolic acid and terramide A. Because the minimum inhibitory concentration of either compound was reduced four-fold in the presence of nystatin, it can be concluded that this screening method is useful for detecting novel antifungal activity.

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 deficiency increases resting-state glutamate and expression of the GluN1 subunit of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor in the frontal cortex of mice.

Our previous study showed that Aldh2-knockout (Aldh2-KO) mice, an animal model of inactive aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), have better spatial memory when compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Given that the neurotransmitter glutamate has been associated with learning and memory, the goal of the present study was to investigate whether the strain-dependent difference in spatial memory was associated with changes in glutamate transmitter levels or receptor function in the frontal cortex of Aldh2-KO and WT mice. Thus, we first measured extracellular glutamate levels in free-moving mice using microdialysis. Second, we studied protein expression of the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor (GluN1) subunit and the α-amino-3-hydroxy-5 methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) receptor (GluA1) subunit in lipid raft fractions using Western blot (WB). The samples were collected for WB, and lipid rafts were prepared from the insoluble fraction of homogenate tissue. Protein concentration was measured in the whole cell lysate (WCL) and in five separate lipid raft fractions. Cholesterol was also measured in all fractions 1-5. The microdialysis study revealed that basal glutamate concentration in the dialysates was approximately three-fold (0.27 ± 0.12 µM) higher in Aldh2-KO mice than in WT (0.10 ± 0.03 µM) mice. We also found an increase in the expression of GluN1 in Aldh2-KO mice compared with WT mice, both in the WCL and fraction 5, but GluA1 levels were unchanged as measured by WB. Our novel findings provide the first evidence for the role of ALDH2 in glutamate release and GluN1 protein expression in the frontal cortex. The observed strain differences in glutamate levels and GluN1 expression may suggest that enhanced glutamatergic function facilitates improved spatial memory in Aldh2-KO mice and such observation deserves further investigation.

Bipolamides A and B, triene amides isolated from the endophytic fungus Bipolaris sp. MU34.

As a result of the continued screening for new metabolites produced by endophytic fungi from Thai medicinal plants, two new triene fatty acid amides, bipolamides A (1) and B (2), were discovered from the endophytic fungus Bipolaris sp. MU34. The structures of all of the isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of the spectroscopic data of NMR and MS. An antimicrobial assay revealed that bipolamide B (2) had moderate antifungal activity against Cladosporium cladosporioides FERMS-9, Cladosporium cucumerinum NBRC 6370, Saccharomyces cerevisiae ATCC 9804, Aspergillus niger ATCC 6275 and Rhisopus oryzae ATCC 10404, with Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of 16, 32, 32, 64 and 64 µg ml(-1), respectively.

Performing music can induce greater modulation of emotion-related psychophysiological responses than listening to music.

The present study investigated the differential effects of music-induced emotion on heart rate (HR) and its variability (HRV) while playing music on the piano and listening to a recording of the same piece of music. Sixteen pianists were monitored during tasks involving emotional piano performance, non-emotional piano performance, emotional perception, and non-emotional perception. It was found that emotional induction during both perception and performance modulated HR and HRV, and that such modulations were significantly greater during musical performance than during perception. The results confirmed that musical performance was far more effective in modulating emotion-related autonomic nerve activity than musical perception in musicians. The findings suggest the presence of a neural network of reward-emotion-associated autonomic nerve activity for musical performance that is independent of a neural network for musical perception.

Effects of systemic nicotine, alcohol or their combination on cholinergic markers in the frontal cortex and hippocampus of rat.

Acute alcohol (Alc) intoxication has been shown to decrease choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) in the rat brain. The present study extends that finding by examining the effects of nicotine (Nic), Alc, and their combination on ChAT and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the frontal cortex and hippocampus of rat. The samples were collected at 30 and 120 min after intraperitoneal administration of saline (0.9%, control), Nic (1 mg/kg), Alc (1 g/kg), and Nic + Alc and analyzed by RT-PCR, Western blot and colorimetry. Alc alone considerably reduced ChAT mRNA expression, whereas Nic alone decreased AChE mRNA expression. In contrast, Nic + Alc exposure had resulted in no significant change in the parameters. These findings are consistent with the results of the Western blot and AChE activity analysis. The results, therefore, indicate that Nic and Alc alone may interact with the central cholinergic system. This interactive effect may contribute to a frequent association of tobacco and Alc consumption.

Cholinergic alterations following alcohol exposure in the frontal cortex of Aldh2-deficient mice models.

We investigated the effects of alcohol (EtOH) and acetaldehyde (ACe) on choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the frontal cortex of Aldh2-/- (KO) mice. KO mice were used as models of Aldh2-deficient humans to examine ACe effects. Brain samples were analyzed at 40 and 120 min after 2- and 4-g/kg intraperitoneal EtOH administration by RT-PCR and Western blot. Wild-type (WT) mice exhibited a remarkable decrease in ChAT and AChE mRNA expression at both time points only after 4-g/kg EtOH treatment compared with the naive control, whereas KO mice showed a considerable reduction in cholinergic markers after 2- and 4-g/kg EtOH treatment. The 4-g/kg EtOH-induced decrease in ChAT and AChE RNA expression at both time points was significantly greater than that in obtained with the administration of 2-g/kg at 40 min in WT mice. KO mice showed a significant difference in ChAT mRNA at 40 min between the EtOH groups. The findings regarding the ChAT mRNA levels are consistent with the results of Western blot in both types of mice, with some exceptions. EtOH-induced ChAT and AChE expression in KO mice was significantly lower than that in WT mice. This genotype effect occurred mostly at 40 min after EtOH dosing. Only ACe was quantified in the brains of KO mice, whereas EtOH was detected in both types of mice in vivo. These results suggest that EtOH and ACe combined or high EtOH alone alters cholinergic markers expression via changes in presynaptic and postsynaptic processes in the mice frontal cortex, thus indicating that central cholinergic neurons may be sensitive to EtOH and ACe.

Analysis of the tracheal contents using headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to screen for accelerant use.

We describe here the usefulness of analysis of tracheal contents in a case of death by fire, which revealed that the deceased had used the accelerants. The analysis of tracheal contents provides useful information for the determination of the circumstances of the scene.