The pineal gland of rats 12-28 months old was studied with light and electron microscopes. All pineal components exhibited regressive changes of different intensity with age. In type I pinealocytes, there was a marked increase in dense bodies as well as the occasional appearance of wide cell profiles full of vesicles. Type II pinealocytes showed nuclear infoldings and cytoplasmic deposits of li...

The role of the pineal as an oncostatic gland has been studied in animal models of tumorigenesis, especially on those concerning the mammary gland. The general conclusion is that experimental manipulations activating pineal gland, or the administration of melatonin, reduce the incidence and growth rate of chemically-induced murine mammary tumors, while pinealectomy or situations which implicate...

While several computed tomographic (CT) studies of posterior third ventricular neoplasms have included descriptions of pineal tumors, few reports have concentrated on these uncommon lesions. Some authors have asserted that the CT appearance of many pineal tumors is virtually pathognomonic. A series of nine biopsy-proved pineal gland and eight other presumed tumors is presented that illustrates ...

The circadian clock is phase-delayed or -advanced by light when given at early or late subjective night, respectively. Despite the importance of the time-of-day-dependent phase responses to light, the underlying molecular mechanism is poorly understood. Here, we performed a comprehensive analysis of light-inducible genes in the chicken pineal gland, which consists of light-sensitive clock cells...

The neuroendocrine functions of the pineal affect a wide variety of glandular and nervous system processes. Beside melatonin (MEL), the pineal gland secretes and expresses certain proteins essential for various physiological functions. It has been suggested that the pineal gland may also have an antioxidant role due to secretory product other than MEL. Therefore, the present study was designed ...

The cervical sympathetic trunks (CSTs) contain axons of preganglionic neurons that innervate the superior cervical ganglia (SCGs). Because regeneration of CST fibers can be extensive and can reestablish certain specific patterns of SCG connections, restoration of end organ function would be expected. This expectation was examined with respect to the pineal gland, an organ innervated by the two ...

OBJECTIVE The problem of the substantial union of the soul and the body and therefore the mechanisms of interaction between them represents the core of the Cartesian dualistic philosophy. This philosophy is based upon a neuroanatomical obvious misconception, consisting mainly on a wrong intraventricular position of the pineal gland and its capacity of movement to act as a valve regulating the f...

Recombinant rabbit tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified from inclusion bodies by preparative sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). A mouse monoclonal antibody and rabbit and sheep polyclonal antibodies were generated. In immunohistochemical studies of formaldehyde-fixed primate brain, the monoclonal strongly labeled not only...

The pineal hormone melatonin is involved in physiological transduction of temporal information from the light dark cycle to circadian and seasonal behavioural rhythms, as well as possessing neuroprotective properties. Melatonin and its receptors MT1 and MT2, which belong to the family of G protein-coupled receptors, are impaired in Alzheimer's disease (AD) with severe consequences to neuropatho...

A quantitative histological study of pinealocytes in the 13-lined ground squirrel, Spermophilus tridecemlineatus, was conducted over a period of one year. Consistent and statistically significant seasonal differences were found in nuclear and nucleolar dimensions suggesting a circannual rhythm in the metabolism of these cells. Annual peaks occurred during hibernation, whereas the nadirs occurre...