Issue 5, 2008

Switched to six issues per year in 2008.

This issue was wasted on me due to me not knowing even the basics about the immune system.

By the abstracts:

"Aluminum Modulates Effects of βAmyloid1–42 on Neuronal Calcium Homeostasis and Mitochondria Functioning and Is Altered in a Triple Transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease" by Denise Drago, Alessandra Cavaliere, Nicola Mascetra, Domenico Ciavardelli, Carmine Di Ilio, Paolo Zatta, and Stefano L. Sensi. What the title says. By altered, they mean increased in their cortex.

"Aging and Neutrophils: There Is Still Much To Do" by Carl F. Fortin, Patrick P. McDonald, Olivier Lesur, and Tàmàs Fülöp, Jr. Hypothesises about how aging affects the release of immune mediators by neutrophils, and how that links with Alzheimer's, atherosclerosis, cancer and autoimmune diseases.

"Differential Expression of Lysyl Oxidases LOXL1 and LOX During Growth and Aging Suggests Specific Roles in Elastin and Collagen Fiber Remodeling in Rat Aorta" by Jacques Behmoaras, Séverin Slove, Sophie Seve, Roger Vranckx, Pascal Sommer, and Marie-Paule Jacob. LOX goes down in adult rats while LOXL1 was maintained in LOU rats, but reduced in Brown Norway rats.

"Blueberry Opposes β-Amyloid Peptide-Induced Microglial Activation Via Inhibition of p44/42 Mitogen-Activation Protein Kinase" by Yuyan Zhu, Paula C. Bickford, Paul Sanberg, Brian Giunta, and Jun Tan. What the title says, in mice.

"Age-Dependent Spatial Memory Loss Can Be Partially Restored by Immune Activation" by N. Ron-Harel, Y. Segev, G.M. Lewitus, M. Cardon, Y. Ziv, D. Netanely, J. Jacob-Hirsch, N. Amariglio, G. Rechavi, E. Domany, and M. Schwartz. Hammering immune system fucks up spatial memory in young mice and homeostatic-driven proliferation (dunno what that phrase means. They removed some of their T-cells to let it expand its other types of T-cells?) of lymphocytes in old mice restores their spatial memory. Igf1, Syt10 and Cplx2 genes involed.

"Extensive Amplification of Human Regulatory T Cells Alters Their Functional Capacities and Targets Them to the Periphery" by Gunter Rappl, Annette Schmidt, Cornelia Mauch, Andreas A. Hombach, and Hinrich Abken. Details of Treg-cell life cycle for which I have nothing to grab onto.

"Melatonin Prevents Age-Related Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Rat Brain Via Cardiolipin Protection" by Giuseppe Petrosillo, Patrizia Fattoretti, Mariagiuseppa Matera, Francesca M. Ruggiero, Carlo Bertoni-Freddari, and Giuseppe Paradies. Melatonin prevented the age-related changes in complex 1 activity, rates of state 3 respiration (ADP-stimulated respiration google says), mitochondrion H2O2 production, membrane potential, and normal and oxidised cardiolipin content of mitochondria in rat brains.

"Improvement of Aging-Associated Cardiovascular Dysfunction by the Orally Administered Copper(II)-Aspirinate Complex" by Tamás Radovits, Domokos Gerö, Li-ni Lin, Sivakkanan Loganathan, Torsten Hoppe-Tichy, Csaba Szabó, Matthias Karck, Hiromu Sakurai, and Gábor Szabó. Some measurements of heart function across age in rats and their partial prevention by copper(II)-aspirinate.

"Effect of Lactobacillus paracasei NCC2461 on Antigen-Specific T-Cell Mediated Immune Responses in Aged Mice" by Karine Vidal, Jalil Benyacoub, Mireille Moser, J. Sanchez-Garcia, Patrick Serrant, Iris Segura-Roggero, Gloria Reuteler, and Stephanie Blum. No measurements of immune system components changed, but response increased. FOS/inulin made no difference.

The thesis-review section looks (at least) at a study of the growth and use of cardiac progenitor cells extracted from adult humans, grown into cardiosphere-derived cells, then inserted into mice with induced myocardial infarctions and seeing how they went. They supposedly did better than other types of cells  in maintaining left ventricular function and reducing left ventricular remodelling.