, 1993) After ingestion of the crystal toxins by the susceptible

, 1993). After ingestion of the crystal toxins by the susceptible larvae, crystalline inclusions are dissolved due to

the alkaline pH of the larval midgut. Then the 51- and 42-kDa protoxins are activated by midgut proteases to form the active proteins, of approximately 43 and 39 kDa, respectively (Broadwell & Baumann, 1987; Nicolas et al., 1990). This is then followed by the binding of the activated binary toxin to a specific receptor presented on the surface of midgut epithelium cells of susceptible larvae (Davidson, 1988; Silva-Filha et al., 1997). The binary toxin receptor has been identified as a 60-kDa α-glucosidase (Cpm1), which is attached to the cell membrane by a glycosyl-phosphatidyl inositol anchor (Silva-Filha et al., 1999; Darboux et LGK-974 price al., 2001). Using N- and C-terminal deletion

constructs of both BinA and BinB in in vivo gut binding studies, it has been proposed that the C-terminus of BinA is important for larvicidal toxicity, whereas both N- and C-terminal fragments of BinA are required for interaction with BinB. In addition, it has been proposed that the N-terminus of BinB is crucial for binding to the receptor in gut epithelial cells (Oei et al., 1992). Even though BinB has been shown to play a role in receptor recognition, its binding mechanism is still unknown. Because of the lack of structural information for the binary toxin, selleck inhibitor functional studies have been based mainly on its primary amino acid sequence and Methane monooxygenase secondary structure prediction (Broadwell et al., 1990; Berry et al., 1993; Shanmugavelu et al., 1998; Elangovan et al., 2000; Yuan et al., 2001; Promdonkoy et al., 2008; Sanitt et al., 2008). Interestingly, the amino acid sequences of BinA or BinB are not similar to other bacterial toxins. They

are, however, homologous to each other, with a 25% amino acid identity and a 40% similarity, which suggests a similar 3D structure (Promdonkoy et al., 2008). Despite their homology, the two proteins have distinct functions: BinB is responsible for receptor binding, whereas BinA acts as a toxic component (Oei et al., 1992; Charles et al., 1997; Shanmugavelu et al., 1998; Elangovan et al., 2000). It is thus possible that the different functions of these two proteins are contributed by the nonhomologous segments. For example, an amino acid sequence alignment shows that two regions in BinB are absent in BinA (Fig. 1). These regions are located in the N-terminal part of BinB. It is possible that some amino acids in these regions confer distinct functionality to BinB. To identify these possible functional elements, we have performed amino acid substitutions at residues spanning positions 111–117 and 143–150. Our results demonstrate that the aromaticity of F149 and Y150 plays a crucial role in larvicidal activity, with these residues possibly being involved in interaction with the epithelial membrane and receptor. Escherichia coli K-12 JM109 was used as a host strain for mutagenesis.

C at position 98 and T at position 253 were common characters in

C at position 98 and T at position 253 were common characters in all the strains of P. coccineus (including MUCL 38420) and in

the Chinese strains of P. sanguineus (including CIRM-BRFM 542). C/G substitution at positions 152 and 206 was specific to the East Asian strains of Pycnoporus, and T/C substitution (at position 56) was specific to the Australian strains of Pycnoporus. The phylogenetic trees inferred from ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 and β-tubulin gene sequences (Figs 1 and 2) clearly differentiated the group of P. cinnabarinus strains from the group of P. puniceus strains (100% bootstrap support). The group of the P. coccineus strains from Australia (including strain MUCL 38420), the P. sanguineus strains from China (including CIRM-BRFM 542 of unknown origin) with the Japanese strain of P. coccineus, RNA Synthesis inhibitor and the strain of P. coccineus see more from the Solomon Islands (positioned alone), formed a well supported clade (84% bootstrap value with ITS). Due to the high similarity of their ITS sequences, the strains of P. sanguineus from Madagascar, Vietnam, New Caledonia, French Guiana and Venezuela could not be distinguished phylogenetically. β-Tubulin molecular data might be of slightly more help than ITS data to disclose genetic polymorphism within these P. sanguineus strains with two groups, although weakly supported (Fig. 2). In

this study, the functional lac3-1 gene, which protein products showed high variability in enzymatic activity between the species of Pycnoporus (Uzan et al., 2010), was targeted to infer the phylogenetic relationships within the genus Pycnoporus, Vasopressin Receptor and especially within the P. sanguineus and P. coccineus species. PCR amplification resulted in laccase F2-R8 products of about 1640 bp. Comparison

between gene and predicted cDNA fragment sequences showed that the corresponding partial coding regions were interrupted by eight introns. A positional homology among these introns could be observed. It is noteworthy that the eight intron lengths were strictly similar for the East Asian strains of Pycnoporus on the one hand, and for the Australian strains on the other (data not shown). The nine exons corresponded to sequences of 1182 nucleotides. The 36 deduced partial proteins (corresponding to about 75–80% of the full length protein) displayed sequence similarity ranging from 87.6% to 99.7%. The 36 laccase sequences from Pycnoporus strains were aligned in 1185 nucleotide positions after hand-refining (see File S3). These regions of the laccase gene had 33% variable positions among the strains of Pycnoporus studied. Informative nucleotide site variations were localized in the conserved copper-binding domains, especially domains II and III with T/C substitution specific to the East Asian strains of Pycnoporus. Phylogenetic construction of our worldwide sample of Pycnoporus lac3-1 sequences led to distinct groups that were correlated with the geographic origin of the strains (Fig. 3).

00 ± 005 (at 12–13 DIV, 241 puncta) and 099 ± 004 (at 19–23 DI

00 ± 0.05 (at 12–13 DIV, 241 puncta) and 0.99 ± 0.04 (at 19–23 DIV, 263 puncta)]. These results suggest that EGFP-VAMP2 can be used as a marker of presynaptic sites and also

that their fluorescence intensity can be used as an estimate of the presynaptic total SV pool size. After the establishment of reliable markers for both axonal mitochondria and presynaptic sites, we designed live imaging analyses with different sampling frequencies and total imaging duration. The final goal of this study was to provide a comprehensive description of mitochondrial behavior in the axon. Individual mitochondria in the axon changed their state with time (Fig. 1A). Moving mitochondria showed frequent pauses, but most pauses were transient

and paused mitochondria restarted within seconds to minutes. A small fraction of mitochondria remained stationary for a prolonged period (over hours and Doxorubicin clinical trial days) and this transition from mobile to stationary state was important in the generation of a large population of stationary mitochondria in the axon. Therefore, the imaging experiments should provide data sufficient to determine the transition rates among moving mitochondria ([M]) and mitochondria in short pause ([SP]) and stationary state ([SS]) (Fig. 1B). An ideal imaging experiment monitors the entire process of state transitions of individual mitochondria with high sampling frequencies and long imaging durations. However, this is not practical with currently available fluorescence probes and the sensitivity of image detection devices because Selleckchem PD 332991 of photobleaching and phototoxicity. Instead, we first determined the rate of transition from stationary to mobile states by intermediate and low-frequency imaging (experimental design in Fig. 1C, actual data presented in Figs 3 and 4). Next, we measured the rate of mitochondria pauses PJ34 HCl from time-lapse images at high frequency (experimental design in Fig. 1D, actual data presented in Figs 5-7). Finally, these quantitative measures were combined and the rate of transitions from short pause to stationary states was estimated (Fig. 8).

To analyse the stability [rate of transitions from stationary to mobile states ([SSM]); Fig. 1C] of axonal mitochondria on time scales of several hours, cultured hippocampal neurons expressing mCherry-OMP and EGFP-VAMP2 were imaged at intervals of 30 min for 3 h. Neurons at 12–13 DIV (2 weeks, 3482 mitochondria from n = 8 experiments) and 19–20 DIV (3 weeks, 4052 mitochondria from n = 7 experiments) were compared to examine the relationship between the maturity of neurons and stability of mitochondria (Fig. 3A and B). Fractions of synapses that contained mitochondria at t = 0 min were calculated (2 weeks, 43.2 ± 1.8%; 3 weeks, 56.9 ± 2.6%). Although the fraction was similar to previous studies (Shepherd & Harris, 1998; Chang et al.

While ideally all travelers should be encouraged to receive a pre

While ideally all travelers should be encouraged to receive a pre-travel buy ABT-199 medical evaluation, tour operators should particularly encourage this for their older travelers, and should encourage this to occur in a timely manner. In our study, the spectrum of illness differed significantly based on the age of ill travelers after eliminating confounding factors including travel destination. As expected, the proportionate morbidity of age-associated conditions was significantly higher in the older group. This observation confirms that travel health advisors or general practitioners

who counsel older individuals at pre-travel consultations have to consider their pre-travel health status and anticipate potential exacerbations, in particular by minimizing venous thromboembolism during travel through recommendation of the use of anti-thrombosis compression stockings, sufficient hydration and exercises during long-distance flights, and by optimizing control of cardiovascular diseases and referring at-risk patients to a cardiologist for medical evaluation before departure. Acute diarrhea was shown to be a comparatively less frequent reason for presentation in older travelers regardless check details of the responsible pathogen, and a lower proportionate morbidity of diarrhea in older travelers was found even after controlling for gender and travel conditions

(region, reason for travel, and pre-travel advice). While this does not infer that the absolute risk of acute diarrhea is lower in the elderly, other studies support this finding.15,16 This may suggest that the protection conferred by age is related to an increased likelihood of past exposure to pathogens,17 or alternatively that there may be better adherence by older individuals to reducing risky dietary exposures.18 No significant age-related difference in the proportion of patients suffering from chronic diarrhea was observed in

our study. While presenting comparatively less frequently with URTI, older travelers had a greater proportionate morbidity from LRTI, including pneumonia and bronchitis. This finding has been previously reported among GeoSentinel patients.19 The GeoSentinel database do not contain data on smokers or chronic obstructive Ribonucleotide reductase pulmonary disease (COPD); however, these factors may have played a role as epidemiologically they are more frequent in patients over the age of 60. Our results suggest that older travelers should be targeted for preventive measures against respiratory infections, including hand hygiene, use of disposable handkerchiefs, and consideration of face-masks in crowded conditions. Optimization of COPD management should also be considered for older patients prior to travel. Influenza was the most frequent vaccine-preventable disease observed in our study.

Cryptosporidium saurophilum) in reptiles; Cryptosporidium molnari

Cryptosporidium saurophilum) in reptiles; Cryptosporidium molnari and Cryptosporidium scophthalmi in fish; Cryptosporidium fragile in frogs; Cryptosporidium baileyi and Cryptosporidium galli in birds; Cryptosporidium meleagridis in birds and humans; Cryptosporidium fayeri and Cryptosporidium macropodum in marsupials; Cryptosporidium suis in pigs; Cryptosporidium muris and Cryptosporidium wrairi in rodents; Cryptosporidium bovis, Cryptosporidium ryanae and Cryptosporidium andersoni in cattle; Cryptosporidium xiaoi in sheep; Cryptosporidium felis in

cats; Cryptosporidium canis in dogs; Cryptosporidium hominis in humans; and Cryptosporidium parvum in humans and ruminants (Fayer et al., 2000, 2001, 2005; Alvarez-Pellitero & Sitja-Bobadilla, 2002; Ryan et al., 2003a–c, 2008; Jirku et al., 2008; O’Brien GPCR Compound Library solubility dmso et al., 2008; Power & Ryan, 2008; Fayer & Santin, 2009). Molecular methods have shown that the genus is more diverse than previously thought, with >40 cryptic species identified using molecular markers. The identification of Cryptosporidium species using morphological characters is problematic. The small SCH772984 solubility dmso size of Cryptosporidium oocysts makes examination of the internal structures difficult (Fayer et al., 2000), and the similarities in

oocyst size of many Cryptosporidium species prevent ready identification (Fall et al., 2003). To overcome these limitations, Cryptosporidium identification and differentiation is commonly achieved using molecular approaches. Cryptosporidium species have been differentiated using sequence analysis of a variety of loci. The more commonly used loci include 18S ribosomal DNA (18S rRNA gene) (Morgan et al., 1997, 1998; Xiao et al., 1999b), heat shock protein 70 (Sulaiman et al., 1999) and actin (Sulaiman et al., 2000). However, the high

costs of DNA sequencing have led to the development of more rapid and inexpensive gel-based electrophoretic methods for species differentiation. Both restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) (Spano et al., 1997; Morgan et al., 1999; Patel et al., 1999) and single-stranded conformation SPTBN5 polymorphism (SSCP) have been used to identify the genetic variation in 20 Cryptosporidium species (Jex et al., 2007a) and for investigating the intraspecies variation in C. parvum and C. hominis (Gasser et al., 2004; Jex et al., 2007b). Capillary electrophoresis coupled to RFLP (terminal RFLP) and SSCP (CE-SSCP) have proven to be more reliable and sensitive than analysis by conventional gel electrophoresis. In this study, we investigated the ability of CE-SSCP on the 18S rRNA gene to discriminate between species and genotypes of Cryptosporidium both within host groups and between host groups. Genomic DNA from 28 Cryptosporidium isolates representing 15 species and genotypes were used in this study (Table 1).

001), abdominal pain (P = 002), stomach pain (P = 0049) and diz

001), abdominal pain (P = 0.02), stomach pain (P = 0.049) and dizziness (P = 0.01) than those in the no-treatment group. These differences had disappeared by week 24. Temporary cART during PHI had a significant positive impact on patients’ HRQL as compared with no treatment, despite the initial, short-term occurrence of more physical symptoms, probably related to drug toxicity. The impact of temporary combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) during primary HIV-1 infection (PHI) on the viral set-point and HIV

disease progression has recently been studied in three randomized clinical trials (RCTs), and showed that early cART provided a clinical benefit [1-3]. In the Primo-SHM trial, an open-label RCT comparing no treatment with 24 or 60 weeks of cART R428 during PHI, we demonstrated that temporary early cART lowered the viral set-point and deferred the need for reinitiation of cART during chronic HIV-1 infection [1]. Both the Short Pulse Anti-Retroviral Therapy at HIV Seroconversion (SPARTAC) trial, which compared no therapy with 12 or 48 weeks

of cART in PHI, and the SETPOINT study, which compared no therapy with 36 weeks of cART, reported that a period of 48 and 36 weeks of cART, respectively, modestly selleck screening library delayed disease progression [2, 3]. However, during the acute stage of HIV-1 disease, patients are often physically and emotionally distressed, and the initiation of cART may have a negative impact on their health-related quality of life (HRQL) as a result of pill burden, the need for strict adherence to cART and potential drug-related adverse events and toxicity [4, 5]. Conversely, early cART may also have a positive effect on patients’ HRQL, by delaying disease progression and lowering the plasma viral load, and because patients may feel they are actively ‘doing something’

about the PHI [6]. In chronic HIV infection the potential negative effects of cART on patients’ HRQL are generally offset by positive effects [7-10]. The aim of the current Primo-SHM substudy was to compare the impact on HRQL of 24 or 60 weeks of cART during PHI versus no treatment, over a study period of 96 weeks. Patients were selected between May 2003 and April 2010 from the Primo-SHM cohort; Primo-SHM is a multicentre prospective Dapagliflozin cohort study in the Netherlands, with an embedded completed RCT, that investigates the natural course of HIV-1 infection, and the effects of 24 and 60 weeks of early cART in PHI patients [1, 11]. For the present substudy, we included patients from both the cohort and the RCT. Main inclusion criteria were age ≥18 years and laboratory evidence of PHI, defined as having a negative or indeterminate western blot in combination with detectable plasma HIV-1 RNA, or, in the case of a positive western blot, a proven negative HIV-screening test result within the previous 180 days.

These findings provide a conceptual framework that interneurons s

These findings provide a conceptual framework that interneurons serve as a key regulator of initiating sequential spike activity. “
“Dendritic spines form the postsynaptic half of the synapse but how they form during CNS development remains uncertain, as are the factors that promote their morphological and physiological maturation. One hypothesis posits that filopodia, long motile dendritic processes that are present prior to spine formation, are the precursors to spines. Another hypothesis posits that they form directly from the dendritic shaft. We used microphotolysis of caged glutamate to

stimulate individual dendritic processes SAHA HDAC in young hippocampal slice cultures while recording their morphological and physiological responses. We observed that brief trains of stimuli delivered to immature selleck kinase inhibitor processes triggered morphological changes within minutes that resulted, in about half of experiments, in a more mature, spine-like appearance such as decreased spine

neck length and increased spine head width. We also observed that glutamate-induced inward currents elicited from immature processes were mostly or entirely mediated by NMDARs, whereas responses in those processes with a more mature morphology, regardless of actual developmental age, were mediated by both AMPARs and NMDARs. Consistent with this observation, glutamate-induced morphological changes were largely, but not entirely, prevented by blocking NMDARs. Our observations thus favor a model in which filopodia in the developing nervous system sense and respond to release of glutamate from developing axons, resulting in physiological and morphological maturation. “
“Multivariate pattern classification analysis

(MVPA) has been applied to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data to decode brain states from spatially distributed activation patterns. Decoding upper limb movements from non-invasively recorded human brain activation is crucial for implementing a brain–machine interface that directly harnesses an individual’s thoughts to control external devices or computers. The aim of this study was to decode the individual finger movements from fMRI single-trial oxyclozanide data. Thirteen healthy human subjects participated in a visually cued delayed finger movement task, and only one slight button press was performed in each trial. Using MVPA, the decoding accuracy (DA) was computed separately for the different motor-related regions of interest. For the construction of feature vectors, the feature vectors from two successive volumes in the image series for a trial were concatenated. With these spatial–temporal feature vectors, we obtained a 63.1% average DA (84.7% for the best subject) for the contralateral primary somatosensory cortex and a 46.0% average DA (71.0% for the best subject) for the contralateral primary motor cortex; both of these values were significantly above the chance level (20%).

In 2008, a modified version of the test known as the enhanced sen

In 2008, a modified version of the test known as the enhanced sensitivity Trofile assay

(ESTA) superseded the original Trofile as a screening tool [24]. ESTA has a nominal lower limit of sensitivity of 0.3% for detecting CXCR4-using virus within clonal mixtures, but sensitivity with clinical samples appears to vary [25]. ESTA was found to more accurately identify patients likely to show a virological response to maraviroc in a post hoc re-analysis of the MERIT trial of maraviroc versus efavirenz (in combination with zidovudine/lamivudine) in treatment-naïve patients, which used the original Trofile assay to screen patients for inclusion [17, 23, 26]. ESTA also showed a marginal benefit over Trofile in a post hoc re-analysis of the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) 5211 trial of vicriviroc in treatment-experienced patients this website [23, 27]. There are a number of factors limiting the use of ESTA in routine patient care: testing is only performed in a central laboratory in California, and is expensive and labour-intensive, with a turn-around time of about 4 weeks and a relatively high failure rate (reflecting the assay complexity

and stringent sample collection, storage and transport requirements) [28]. A minimal volume of 3 mL HCS assay of plasma is recommended, which often poses a problem for testing of stored samples and in children. In addition, there is a minimum viral load requirement of 1000 copies/mL for reliable amplification [1], thus excluding this approach in patients with low or undetectable viral load. To circumvent this limitation, use of proviral DNA recovered from peripheral blood mononuclear

cells (PBMC) is being explored but the data remain preliminary [29]. Other phenotypic assays have been developed in some laboratories that show generally good but not complete concordance 3-mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase with Trofile [30]. Genotypic systems use bioinformatic tools to predict tropism from gp120 V3 sequences and offer the advantage of platform portability, low cost and rapid turn-around. Examples of the interpretative systems include position-specific scoring matrices (PSSMs) and Geno2Phenocoreceptor. The latter can also incorporate clinical parameters (most importantly the nadir CD4 T-cell count, but also the CD8 T-cell count and viral load), to improve predictive power for CXCR4-using virus. Genotypic tropism testing (GTT) is easy to implement in laboratories routinely performing genotypic drug-resistance testing, although commercial assays are not yet widely available. GTT is performed by bulk sequencing and typically shows a lower limit of sensitivity for detection of CXCR4-using virus of approximately 10–20%.

Multimodal information is represented in a topographic map, which

Multimodal information is represented in a topographic map, which plays a role in spatial attention and orientation movements. The TeO is organised in 15 layers with clear input and output regions, and further interconnected with the isthmic nuclei (NI), which modulate the response in a winner-takes-all fashion. While many studies have analysed tectal cell types

and their modulation from the isthmic system physiologically, little is known about local network activity and its modulation in the tectum. We have recently shown with voltage-sensitive dye imaging that electrical stimulation of the retinorecipient layers results in a stereotypic response, which is under inhibitory control [S. Weigel & H. Luksch (2012) J. Neurophysiol., learn more 107, 640–648]. Here, we analysed the contribution of acetylcholine (ACh) Staurosporine datasheet and the NI to evoked tectal responses using a pharmacological approach in a midbrain

slice preparation. Application of the nicotinic ACh receptor (AChR) antagonist curarine increased the tectal response in amplitude, duration and lateral extent. This effect was similar but less pronounced when γ-aminobutyric acidA receptors were blocked, indicating interaction of inhibitory and cholinergic neurons. The muscarinic AChR antagonist atropine did not change the response pattern. Removal of the NI, which are thought to be the major source of cholinergic input to the TeO, reduced the response only slightly and did not result in a disinhibition. Based on the data presented here and the neuroanatomical literature of the avian TeO, we propose a model of the underlying local circuitry. “
“Department of Biology, Rollins Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA Most birds are socially monogamous, yet little is known about the neural pathways underlying avian monogamy. Recent studies not have implicated dopamine as playing a role in courtship and affiliation in a socially monogamous songbird, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata). In the present study, we sought to understand the specific contribution to pair formation in zebra finches of the

mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway that projects from the midbrain ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens. We observed that paired birds had higher levels of dopamine and its metabolite 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the ventral medial striatum, where the nucleus accumbens is situated, than unpaired birds. Additionally, we found that the percentage of dopaminergic neurons expressing immediate early gene Fos, a marker of neuronal activity, was higher in the ventral tegmental area of paired birds than in that of unpaired birds. These data are consistent with a role for the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway in pair formation in zebra finches, suggesting the possibility of a conserved neural mechanism of monogamy in birds and mammals.

In contrast, the Fos response to VS in other mesocorticolimbic cl

49, P < 0.01 and t26 = 5.06, P < 0.01, respectively; Fig. 5C) and PN (t28 = 2.16, P < 0.05 and t28 = 2.490, P < 0.05, respectively; Fig. 5D). In contrast, the Fos response to VS in other mesocorticolimbic cluster subregions between adult and juvenile responses diverged. Adult, but not juvenile, hamsters showed greater Fos-ir cell density when exposed to VS compared with blank swabs in the IL (t26 = 2.26, P = 0.03 and t26 = 1.35, n.s., respectively, Fig. 5A), AcbC (t26 = 2.33, P = 0.03 and t26 = 0.78, n.s., respectively, Figs 4 and 5B), IF (t28 = 4.61, P < 0.01 click here and t28 = 1.746, n.s., respectively, Figs 4 and 5D) and PBP (t28 = 3.56, P < 0.01 and t28 = 1.53, n.s., respectively, Fig. 5D). VS did not elicit a Fos

response in either juvenile or adult hamsters in the remaining mesocorticolimbic Selleck XL184 cluster subregions, which included Cg1, PrL, AcbSh and VTA tail (Fig. 5). VS did not evoke an Fos response in any hypothalamic cluster subregions in either age group, as indicated

by similar Fos-ir cell densities in the blank and VS-exposed groups in both ages (data not shown). The densities of TH-ir and TH/Fos-ir cells were calculated for VTA and analysed by a two-way anova, n = 8 for all groups. In IF, a main effect of age was observed on the density of TH/Fos-ir cells (F1,28 = 88.246, P < 0.01, Fig. 6A). Specifically, adults showed a greater density of double-labeled cells independent of swab exposure. No effect of age was observed on the density of TH-ir cells, and no significant effects of swab or age × swab interaction was observed on TH-related measures in IF. In PN and PBP, a main effect of swab was observed on the density of TH/Fos-ir cells (F1,28 = 12.51, P < 0.01,

Fig. 6B and F1,28 = 23.63, P < 0.01, Fig. 6C, respectively), such that hamsters exposed to VS expressed a greater density of double-labeled cells compared with those exposed to a blank swab, regardless of age. No effect of swab was observed on the density of TH-ir cells, and no effect of age or age × swab interaction was observed on any TH-related measure in PN or PBP. In Tail, a main effect of age was observed on TH-ir cell density (F1,28 = 4.524, P < 0.05), such that juvenile hamsters expressed a greater TH-ir cell density than adults, regardless of swab condition (Fig. 6D). No effect of Exoribonuclease age was observed on the density of TH/Fos-ir cells, and no effect of swab or age × swab interaction was observed on any TH-related measure in Tail. The number of orexin-ir cells and orexin/Fos-ir cells was determined in the LH and analysed by two-way anova, n = 7–8 for all groups (Table 2). A main effect of age was observed on the number of orexin-ir cells in both LHM (F1,25 = 35.80, P < 0.01) and LHL (F1,25 = 17.79, P < 0.01), such that juvenile hamsters expressed a greater number of orexin-ir cells than adults, independent of swab condition.