Lipasin is a recently identified lipokine expressed predominantly in liver and in adipose tissue. It was linked to insulin resistance in mice and to type 1 and type 2 diabetes (T1D, T2D) in humans. No metabolic studies concerning lipasin were performed yet in rats. Therefore, we used rat model of T2D and insulin resistance, Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats, to determine changes of lipasin expression in liver and in white adipose tissue (WAT) over 52 weeks in the relation to glucose tolerance, peripheral tissue insulin sensitivity and adiposity. GK rats were grossly glucose intolerant since the age of 6 weeks and developed peripheral insulin resistance at the age of 20 weeks. Expression of lipasin in the liver did not differ between GK and Wistar rats, declining with age, and it was not related to hepatic triacylglycerol content. In WAT, the lipasin expression was significantly higher in Wistar rats where it correlated positively with adiposity. No such correlation was found in GK rats. In conclusion, lipasin expression was associated neither with a mild age-related insulin resistance (Wistar), nor with severe genetically-based insulin resistance (GK)., M. Cahová, D. Habart, T. Olejár, Z. Berková, Z. Papáčková, H. Daňková, A. Lodererova, M. Heczková, F. Saudek., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a primary cause of dementia in the middle-aged and elderly worldwide. Animal models for AD are widely used to study the disease mechanisms as well as to test potential therapeutic agents for disease modification. Among the non-genetically manipulated neuroinflammation models for AD, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced animal model is commonly used. This review paper aims to discuss the possible factors that influence rats’ response following LPS injection. Factors such as dose of LPS, route of administration, nature and duration of exposure as well as age and gender of animal used should be taken into account when designing a study using LPS-induced memory impairment as model for AD., R. Zakaria, W. M. H. Wan Yaacob, Z. Othman, I. Long, A. H. Ahmad, B. Al-Rahbi., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Mandelinka bramborová je v našich podmínkách nejrozšířenějším a nejznámějším hmyzím škůdcem, který způsobuje velké ekonomické škody zejména na porostech brambor tím, že larvy spolu s dospělými brouky redukují listovou plochu a v některých případech mohou způsobit i holožír. Její původní oblastí výskytu je Severní Amerika. Na našem kontinentu se poprvé objevila v roce 1922 ve Francii a do konce dvacátého století se stala problémem v celé Evropě, Malé Asii, Iránu, Centrální Asii a západní Číně. Na české území dorazila v 50. letech a její invaze okamžitě nabrala podobu kalamity. V důsledku intenzivního používání insekticidů si mandelinka postupně vytvořila rezistenci k většině přípravků a její regulace je tak v současné době značně obtížná. Kromě využití stále diskutovaných geneticky modifikovaných plodin se jako perspektivní řešení problému rezistence škůdce jeví vývoj metod biologické ochrany rostlin za pomoci přirozených patogenních organismů, které napadají hmyz., Laboratory experiments were conducted to assess the efficacy of entomopathogenic fungus Isaria fumosorosea against the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, when applied alone or combined with the entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema feltiae. The results revealed that the simultaneous application of the fungus with the nematodes increased the mortality of L. decemlineata larvae up to 98% and shortened the median lethal time to two days., and Rostislav Zemek, Vladimír Půža a Oxana Skoková Habuštová.
Orientální ústav AV ČR uspořádal od 30. března do 1. dubna 2016 již 13. výroční konferenci Evropské asociace taiwanských studií (European Association of Taiwan studies - EATS). Téma konference „Mocní a bezmocní“ koresponduje s výzkumným záměrem „Moc a strategie politického a společenského řádu“, který ústav řeší od začátku roku 2015. Úvodní přednášku „The Powerful and the Powerless: Re-Examining and Reframing Taiwan’s History“ přednesl prof. Bruce Jacobs z Monash University., The 13th Annual Conference of the European Association of Taiwan Studies (EATS) took place in Prague between March 30 and April 1, 2016. The main theme of the conference was Powerful and Powerless. The conference was a collaboration between the EATS Board and the Oriental Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences., and Táňa Dluhošová.
Numerous countermeasures have been proposed to minimize microgravity-induced physical deconditioning, but their benefits are limited. The present study aimed to investigate whether personalized aerobic exercise based on artificial gravity (AG) mitigates multisystem physical deconditioning. Fourteen men were assigned to the control group (n=6) and the countermeasure group (CM, n=8). Subjects in the CM group were exposed to AG (2 Gz at foot level) for 30 min twice daily, during which time cycling exercise of 80-95 % anaerobic threshold (AT) intensity was undertaken. Orthostatic tolerance (OT), exercise tests, and blood assays were determined before and after 4 days head-down bed rest (HDBR). Cardiac systolic function was measured every day. After HDBR, OT decreased to 50.9 % and 77.5 % of pre-HDBR values in control and CM groups, respectively. Exercise endurance, maximal oxygen consumption, and AT decreased to 96.5 %, 91.5 % and 91.8 % of pre-HDBR values, respectively, in the control group. Nevertheless, there were slight changes in the CM group. HDBR increased heart rate, sympathetic activity, and the pre-ejection period, but decreased plasma volume, parasympathetic activity and left-ventricular ejection time in the control group, whereas these effects were eliminated in the CM group. Aldosterone had no change in the control group but increased significantly in the CM group. Our study shows that 80-95 % AT aerobic exercise based on 2 Gz of AG preserves OT and exercise endurance, and affects body fluid regulation during short-term HDBR. The underlying mechanisms might involve maintained cardiac systolic function, preserved plasma volume, and improved sympathetic responses to orthostatic stress., X.-T. Li, C.-B. Yang, Y.-S. Zhu, J. Sun, F. Shi, Y.-C. Wang, Y. Gao, J.-D. Zhao, X.-Q. Sun., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Transient receptor potential A1 (TRPA1) is an excitatory ion channel that functions as a cellular sensor, detecting a wide range of proalgesic agents such as environmental irritants an d endogenous products of inflammation and oxidative stress. Topical application of TRPA1 agonists produces an acute nociceptive response through peripheral release of neuropeptides, purines and other transmitters from activated sensory nerve endings. This, in turn, further regulates TRPA1 activity downstream of G-protein and phospholipase C -coupled signaling cascades. Despite the important physiological relevance of such regulation leading to nociceptor sensitization and consequent pain hypersensitivity, th e specific domains through which TRPA1 undergoes post -translational modifications that affect its activation properties are yet to be determined at a molecular level. This review aims at providing an account of our current knowledge on molecular basis of r egulation by neuronal inflammatory signaling pathways that converge on the TRPA1 channel protein and through modification of its specific residues influence the extent to which this channel may contribute to pain., A. Kádková, V. Synytsya, J. Krusek, L. Zímová, V. Vlachová., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Evropa je celosvětově největším producentem vědeckých poznatků. Přitom však data, která generuje výzkum a průmysl v zemích Evropské unie, často zpracovávají a dále využívají vědci a podnikatelé jinde ve světě. Evropští výzkumní pracovníci a inovátoři proto mají tendenci odcházet do míst, kde je kvalitní datová a výpočetní kapacita pohotověji k dispozici. Evropská komise (EK) tudíž nyní vypracovává rozsáhlou iniciativu v oblasti datových infrastruktur, širokopásmových sítí a vysoce výkonné výpočetní techniky, pomocí nichž budou data postupně k dispozici nejen akademické obci, ale také uživatelům z orgánů veřejné správy a podniků. and Soňa Jarošová.