Presence of uterine pinopodes at the embryo-endometrial interface during human implantation in vitro.
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In order to study changes occurring on the surfaces of human endometrial epithelial cells in the presence of an implanted blastocyst, we used scanning electron microscopy for investigation of five endometrial biopsies and three human implantation sites obtained in vitro. All specimens showed areas with endometrial pinopodes, separated by cells displaying microvilli or cilia at the apical surface. Pinopode formation was more pronounced in endometrial biopsies than in cell cultures. All blastocysts adhered to pinopode presenting cells. Endometrial surface changes were not seen around the blastocysts. The results of this study demonstrate that cultured endometrial epithelial cells are capable of pinopode formation. Furthermore, endometrial epithelial pinopodes, generally considered as a marker of endometrial receptivity, seem to be directly involved in the adhesion of the blastocyst to the endometrial surface. (+info)
A novel ontogenetic pathway in hybrid embryos between species with different modes of development.
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To investigate the bases for evolutionary changes in developmental mode, we fertilized eggs of a direct-developing sea urchin, Heliocidaris erythrogramma, with sperm from a closely related species, H. tuberculata, that undergoes indirect development via a feeding larva. The resulting hybrids completed development to form juvenile adult sea urchins. Hybrids exhibited restoration of feeding larval structures and paternal gene expression that have been lost in the evolution of the direct-developing maternal species. However, the developmental outcome of the hybrids was not a simple reversion to the paternal pluteus larval form. An unexpected result was that the ontogeny of the hybrids was distinct from either parental species. Early hybrid larvae exhibited a novel morphology similar to that of the dipleurula-type larva typical of other classes of echinoderms and considered to represent the ancestral echinoderm larval form. In the hybrid developmental program, therefore, both recent and ancient ancestral features were restored. That is, the hybrids exhibited features of the pluteus larval form that is present in both the paternal species and in the immediate common ancestor of the two species, but they also exhibited general developmental features of very distantly related echinoderms. Thus in the hybrids, the interaction of two genomes that normally encode two disparate developmental modes produces a novel but harmonious ontongeny. (+info)
Allele-specific interactions between ttg and gl1 during trichome development in Arabidopsis thaliana.
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Trichome development in Arabidopsis thaliana is a well-characterized model for the study of plant cell differentiation. Two genes that play an essential role in the initiation of trichome development are GL1 and TTG. Mutations in either gene prevent the initiation of most trichomes. The GL1 gene encodes a myb-related transcription factor. Mutations in TTG are pleiotropic, affecting anthocyanins, root hairs, and seed coat mucilage in addition to trichomes. Six ttg alleles were examined and shown to form a hypomorphic series. The severity of all aspects of the ttg phenotype varied in parallel in this allelic series. The weakest allele, ttg-10, causes frequent clusters of adjacent trichomes, suggesting a role for TTG in inhibiting neighboring cells from choosing the trichome fate. This allele results from a mutation in the 5'-untranslated region of ttg and creates an out-of-frame upstream AUG codon. The ttg-10 allele shows several unusual genetic interactions with the weak hypomorphic gl1-2 allele, including intergenic noncomplementation and a synthetic glabrous phenotype. These interactions are specific for the gl1-2 allele. The implication of these results for current models of trichome development is discussed. (+info)
Inhibition of expression of P-selectin by antioxidant in cholesterol-fed rats.
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Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) can inhibit experimental atherosclerosis in animals. Although the agent is an antioxidant, the exact mechanism of the reaction in atherosclerosis is still unknown. To investigate the effects of BHT on expression of P-selectin (PADGEM, GMP-140), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and class II MHC (Ia) antigen, we proposed an experiment on rats. Male rats (n=18 per group) were fed either a normal cholesterol control diet, a normal cholesterol diet containing 0.5% BHT (BD), a high cholesterol diet containing 1.5% cholesterol and 0.1% sodium cholate (CD), or the CD diet containing 0.5% BHT (BCD). Rats were sacrificed after 3 days, and after 1, 2, 4, 10, and 17 weeks of dietary treatment. Although there was no gross or light microscopic atherosclerotic lesions, scanning electron microscopy revealed monocytic adhesion to aortic endothelium and mild endothelial injuries in CD and BCD groups. Immunohistochemically, the addition of BHT to a high cholesterol diet inhibited P-selectin expression but not in ICAM-1 and Ia antigen. These findings suggest that in rats, high cholesterol diets induce expression of ICAM-1, P-selectin and Ia antigen. In addition, the antiatherogenic effect of BHT may play a role in the inhibition of P-selectin. (+info)
Scanning electron microscopy of the lateral cell surfaces of rat incisor ameloblasts.
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Dry dissected rat incisor ameloblasts studied in the scanning electron microscope show remarkable specializations of their lateral surfaces. Four or five cycles of a change from a surface with longitudinal gutterlike folds associated with large intercellular spaces, to one with microvilli and reduced intercellular spaces, are found along the length of the lower incisor maturation zone. It is argued that these changes indicate cyclical activity in maturation ameloblasts. (+info)
Scanning electron microscopy of lithium-induced exogastrulae of Xenopus laevis.
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Lithium-induced exogastrulae are abnormal embryos which fail to complete gastrulation and do not form normal neural structures. Scanning electron microscopy has been used to compare the surface structure of the ectoderm cells of exogastrulae with that of the ectoderm cells of normal embryos and has shown that the appearance of ciliated cells is delayed in exogastrulae. In addition, the structure of endoderm cells, which remain exposed in these embryos, has been studied. (+info)
Three-dimensional anatomy of the 8-day mouse concepts: a study by scanning electron microscopy.
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The three-dimensional anatomy of the 8-day mouse concepts was studied by scanning electron microscopy aided by microdissection within the microscope specimen chamber. Attention was given to the relationship of the extra-embryonic membranes and their subtended compartments and particular emphasis was placed on the 'inverted' condition of the embryo at this stage of development. The main points brought forth in this study are: (1) the five basic brain segments are discernible on the basis of surface contour; (2) the cervical fold, extending from the ventrum of the metencephalon to the somatopleure, forms a partition which separates the branchial region from the rest of the amniotic space; (3) the procephalic membrane bifurcates in a vertical plane to form the splanchnopeure and somatopleure lateral to the forebrain, and it bifurcates horizontally to form the dorsal and ventral coverings of the pericardial coelom; (4) the anttrum of the pericardial-peritoneal canal opens into the lateral coelom posterior to the cervical fold; (5) the midgut of the embryo is delineated laterally by longitudinal grooves connecting the foregut and hindgut antra; (6) embryonic ectoderm in the neural-fold region is formed by a single layer of pseudostratified columnar cells; (7) the allantois is hollow near its base and the inner surface is formed by a discontinuous layer of squamous cells; (8) blood islands in the extra-embryonic mesoderm form a ring of bulges around the middle of the exocoel. Other structures such as the ectoplacental cavity, the ectoplacental cone and the parietal capsule are also described. (+info)
Surface ultrastructure of silicone rubber aortic valve poppetts after long-term implantation. A scanning electron microscope study of four poppets.
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The surface ultrastructure, demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy, is described in four implanted Silastic aortic valve poppets. Ball variance was discovered at necropsy in two patients and clinically in one in whom the poppet was replaced. The fourth patient underwent reoperation, but ball variance was neither suspected nor found. All four poppets were densely coated with biological debris and microthrombi. The 'coat' was soluble in a weak solution of sodium hydroxide. The true Silastic surface beneath the coat was little altered compared with unimplanted poppets, even after 10 years' implantation. (+info)