Fluoxetine is widely used to treat depression, including depression in pregnant and postpartum women. Studies suggest that fluoxetine may have adverse effects on offspring, presumably through its action on various serotonin receptors (HTRs). However, definitive evidence and the underlying mechanisms are largely unavailable. As initial steps towards establishing a human cellular and animal model...

Specification of the germ cell lineage is required for sexual reproduction in all animals. However, the timing and mechanisms of germ cell specification is remarkably diverse in animal development. Echinoderms, such as sea urchins and sea stars, are excellent model systems to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms that contribute to germ cell specification. In several echinoderm embryos te...

BACKGROUND Pseudomonas aeruginosa adhesion to animal/human cells for infection establishment involves adhesive proteins, including its galactose- and fucose-binding lectins PA-IL (LecA) and PA-IIL (LecB). The lectin binding to the target-cell receptors may be blocked by compatible glycans that compete with those of the receptors, functioning as anti-adhesion glycodecoys. The anti-adhesion treat...

Sea urchin embryos initiate cell specifications at the 16-cell stage by forming the mesomeres, macromeres and micromeres according to the relative position of the cells in the animal-vegetal axis. The most vegetal cells, micromeres, autonomously differentiate into skeletons and induce the neighbouring macromere cells to become mesoendoderm in the β-catenin-dependent Wnt8 signalling pathway. Alt...

BACKGROUND Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a mycotoxin produced by certain Aspergillus and Penicillium species. It has been observed to be teratogenic in a number of animal models including rat, mouse, hamster, and chick, with reduced birth weight and craniofacial abnormalities being the most commonly observed malformations. Neither the potential of OTA to cause malformations in humans nor its teratogeni...

This paper reviews the status of embryo transfer and the major technologies applied to preimplantation of embryos in sheep. Embryo production from superovulated ewes is hindered by an unpredictable response to hormonal treatment. Progress in this area should be expected by an appropriated control of follicular development with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist or antagonist prior to...

Citrinin (CTN) is a fungal secondary metabolite that contaminates various foodstuffs and animal feeds; it also exhibits organotoxicity in several animal models. In this study, the zebrafish was used to elucidate the mechanism of CTN cardiotoxicity in developing embryos. Following CTN administration, the gross morphology of the embryonic heart was apparently altered, including heart malformation...

Among soluble radioactive products of uranium nuclear fission entering a body iodine radioisotopes are the main radiation hazards. The impact selectively accumulated by thyroid on depends absorbed dose to gland, they can cause hypothyroidism or athyreosis. Athyreosis non-radiation origin is characterized metabolism decline, fatigue, bradycardia, cessation hair growth, roughness skin, alopecia, ...

The xCR1 protein is a maternal determinant and cofactor for nodal signaling in vertebrate embryos. The xCR1 protein accumulates specifically in the animal cells of Xenopus embryos, but maternal xCR1 mRNA is distributed equally throughout all embryonic cells. Here, we show that vegetal cell-specific translational repression of xCR1 mRNA contributes to this spatially restricted accumulation of th...