All rights reserved.”
“Antigen recognition through the interaction
between the T cell receptor www.selleckchem.com/products/shp099-dihydrochloride.html (TCR) and peptide presented by major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) is the first step in T cell-mediated immune responses. How this interaction triggers TCR signalling that leads to T cell activation is still unclear. Taking into account the mechanical stress exerted on the pMHC-TCR interaction at the dynamic interface between T cells and antigen presenting cells (APCs), we propose the so-called receptor deformation model of TCR triggering. In this model, TCR conformational change induced by mechanical forces initiates TCR signalling. The receptor deformation model, for the first time, explains all three aspects of the TCR triggering puzzle: mechanism, specificity, and sensitivity.”
“Prior research revealed sex differences in the processing of unattended changes in speaker prosody. The present study aimed at investigating the role of estrogen in mediating these effects. To this end, the electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded while participants watched a silent movie with subtitles and passively listened to a syllable sequence that contained occasional changes in speaker prosody. In one block, these changes were neutral, whereas in another block they were emotional. Estrogen values were obtained for each participant
and correlated with the mismatch negativity (MMN) amplitude elicited in the EEG. As predicted, female listeners had higher estrogen values than male listeners and showed reduced CX-6258 molecular weight MMN amplitudes to neutral as compared to emotional change in speaker prosody. Moreover, in both, male and female listeners, MMN amplitudes were negatively correlated with estrogen when the change in speaker prosody was neutral, but not when it was Fluocinolone acetonide emotional. This suggests that estrogen is associated with reduced distractibility by neutral, but not emotional, events. Emotional events are spared from this reduction in distractibility and more likely to penetrate voluntary attention directed elsewhere. Taken together, the present findings provide evidence for a role of estrogen in human cognition
and emotion. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Glutamic acid (Glu) participates in pain modulation of the central nervous system. The CA3 region of the hippocampal formation has been suggested to be involved in nociceptive perception. However, it is unknown whether Glu could modulate the electrical activities of pain-related neurons in the hippocampal CA3 region. The present study aimed to determine the effects of Glu and its receptor antagonist MK-801 in the pain-evoked response of both pain-excited neurons (PENS) and pain-inhibited neurons (PINs) in the hippocampal CA3 region of normal rats. We used a train of electric impulses applied to the sciatic nerve as noxious stimulation. The electrical activities of either PENs or PINs in the hippocampal CA3 region were recorded by a glass microelectrode.