Subject(s)
Brain Diseases/diagnosis , Cysts/diagnosis , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Adolescent , Humans , MaleABSTRACT
The type I interferons, interferon-beta and alpha (IFN-beta, IFN-alpha), are widely used for the treatment of autoimmune demyelination in the central nervous system (CNS). Their effects on de- and remyelination through the broadly expressed type I IFN receptor (IFNAR), however, are highly speculative. In order to elucidate the role of endogenous type I interferons for myelin damage and recovery we induced toxic demyelination in the absence of IFNAR1. We demonstrate that IFNAR signalling was induced during acute demyelination since the cytokine IFN-beta as well as the IFN-dependent genes IRF7, ISG15 and UBP43 were strongly upregulated. Myelin damage, astrocytic and microglia response, however, were not significantly reduced in the absence of IFNAR1. Furthermore, motor skills of IFNAR1-deficient animals during non-immune demyelination were unaltered. Finally, myelin recovery was found to be independent from endogenous IFNAR signalling, indicating a redundant role of this receptor for non-inflammatory myelin damage and repair.
Subject(s)
Demyelinating Diseases/metabolism , Demyelinating Diseases/physiopathology , Myelin Sheath/metabolism , Receptor, Interferon alpha-beta/metabolism , Signal Transduction/physiology , Animals , Central Nervous System/metabolism , Central Nervous System/pathology , Central Nervous System/ultrastructure , Cuprizone/toxicity , Demyelinating Diseases/chemically induced , Demyelinating Diseases/pathology , Disease Models, Animal , Female , Gene Expression Regulation/drug effects , Gene Expression Regulation/genetics , Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein/metabolism , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Mice, Knockout , Motor Activity/drug effects , Motor Activity/genetics , Motor Skills/physiology , Myelin Sheath/pathology , Receptor, Interferon alpha-beta/deficiency , Receptor, Interferon alpha-beta/genetics , Signal Transduction/drug effects , Specific Pathogen-Free OrganismsABSTRACT
Irrigation with saline water affects tomato fruit quality. While total fruit yield decreases with salinity, inner quality characterized by taste and health-promoting compounds can be improved. For a detailed description of this relationship, the influence of three different salt levels [electrical conductivity (EC) 3, 6.5, and 10] in hydroponically grown tomatoes was investigated. Rising salinity levels in the nutrient solution significantly increased vitamin C, lycopene, and beta-carotene in fresh fruits up to 35%. The phenol concentration was tendentiously enhanced, and the antioxidative capacity of phenols and carotenoids increased on a fresh weight basis. Additionally, the higher EC values caused an increase of total soluble solids and organic acids, parameters determining the taste of tomatoes. Total fruit yield, single fruit weight, and firmness significantly decreased with rising EC levels. Regression analyses revealed significant correlations between the EC level and the dependent variables single fruit weight, total soluble solids, titrable acids, lycopene, and antioxidative capacities of carotenoids and phenols, whereas vitamin C and phenols correlated best with truss number, and beta-carotene correlated best with temperature. Only pressure firmness showed no correlation with any of the measured parameters. As all desirable characteristics in the freshly produced tomato increased when exposed to salinity, salinity itself constitutes an alternative method of quality improvement. Moreover, it can compensate for the loss of yield by the higher inner quality due to changing demands by the market and the consumer. This investigation is to our knowledge the first comprehensive overview regarding parameters of outer quality (yield and firmness), taste (total soluble solids and acids), nutritional value (vitamin C, carotenoids, and phenolics), as well as antioxidative capacity in tomatoes grown under saline conditions.
