Issues

Summary: Studies from C. elegans have illustrated many roles of gap junctions in neural connectivity and circuit regulation, during normal conditions and under stress.

Summary: Phenotypic screening of serotonin pathway modulators has been performed in DMD zebrafish in order to identify small-molecules that limit the dystrophic muscle phenotype and lengthen the lifespan as potential therapeutics.

Summary: Mouse Tbx6 fails to compensate for heterozygous loss of T; instead ectopic Tbx6 in the T expression-domain in knockin embryos generates T null-like phenotypes suggestive of competition.

Summary: The retrograde vesicle tethering factor, Vps54, regulates development of the Drosophila larval NMJ. Moreover, presynaptic Vps54 interacts genetically with the small GTPase, Rab7, to control NMJ growth and postsynaptic density composition.

Summary: Our findings support the view that vardenafil, a phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor, partially rescues F508del protein through cGMP/PKG-independent mechanisms in cystic fibrosis cell line.

Summary: A fluorescent biosensor reveals cell type specific hypoxia levels in the Drosophila brain in unprecedented detail. It paves the way for further functional studies addressing the role of oxygen in neural stem cell maintenance and differentiation.

Summary: Renal urea transporters can transport both urea and water, which could have direct effects on renal function, especially the production of concentrated urine.

Summary: Human mild contains bioactive peptides – β-casomorphins (BCM) – that influence β-cell biology. Specifically human BCM increased the insulin domain of expression in zebrafish embryos and did not interfere with β-cell regeneration. This may have relevance for breastfeeding practices.

Summary: Comparative interactomics analysis reveals close proximity of HDs, FAs and CMSCs, and a role of CD151 in linking α3β1 and α6β4 together in an alternative type II HD-like adhesion complex.