[Morphological alterations in gray matter related to primary dysmenorrhea].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the structural changes of gray matter in women with primary dysmenorrhea (PDM) and discuss the potential relationships between the changes and etiology of the disease. METHODS: We used an optimized voxel-based morphometry (VBM) approach to compare total and regional volumetric changes of gray matter in 20 primary dysmenorrhea patients with 20 healthy age and menstrual cycle matched controls.All subjects were patients from the outpatient department of Tongji Hospital in 2015. RESULTS: Abnormal volumetric decreases of gray matter were found in the left and right parahippocampus, the left and right middle temporal gyrus, the left and right superior parietal lobule, the left postcentral cortex, the left and right inferior parietal lobule, which involved in pain transmission, pain modulation and somatic sensation. CONCLUSION: Abnormal gray matter volume changes are present in some encephalic regions of PDM patients.The functions of these regions are associated with pain modulation and somatic sensation, which suggests the changes are related with PDM.

Tailed forisomes of Canavalia gladiata: a new model to study Ca2+-driven protein contractility.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Forisomes are Ca(2+)-dependent contractile protein bodies that form reversible plugs in sieve tubes of faboid legumes. Previous work employed Vicia faba forisomes, a not entirely unproblematic experimental system. The aim of this study was to seek to establish a superior model to study these intriguing actuators. METHODS: Existing isolation procedures were modified to study the exceptionally large, tailed forisomes of Canavalia gladiata by differential interference contrast microscopy in vitro. To analyse contraction/expansion kinetics quantitatively, a geometric model was devised which enabled the computation of time-courses of derived parameters such as forisome volume from simple parameters readily determined on micrographs. KEY RESULTS: Advantages of C. gladiata over previously utilized species include the enormous size of its forisomes (up to 55 microm long), the presence of tails which facilitate micromanipulation of individual forisomes, and the possibility of collecting material repeatedly from these fast-growing vines without sacrificing the plants. The main bodies of isolated Canavalia forisomes were box-shaped with square cross-sections and basically retained this shape in all stages of contraction. Ca(2+)-induced a 6-fold volume increase within about 10-15 s; the reverse reaction following Ca(2+)-depletion proceeded in a fraction of that time. CONCLUSIONS: The sword bean C. gladiata provides a superior experimental system which will prove indispensable in physiological, biophysical, ultrastructural and molecular studies on the unique ATP-independent contractility of forisomes.