University of Kentucky College of Medicine

4 ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JoVE

¹Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine

Using a Bunsen Burner

Neuroscience

Preparation of Acute Hippocampal Slices from Rats and Transgenic Mice for the Study of Synaptic Alterations during Aging and Amyloid Pathology

Diana M. Mathis¹, Jennifer L. Furman², Christopher M. Norris^2,3

¹Graduate Center for Gerontology, University of Kentucky College of Public Health, ²Department of Molecular and Biomedical Pharmacology, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, ³Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky College of Medicine

This article outlines procedures for preparing hippocampal slices from rats and transgenic mice for the study of synaptic alterations associated with brain aging and age-related neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Medicine

Pharmacologic Induction of Epidermal Melanin and Protection Against Sunburn in a Humanized Mouse Model

Alexandra Amaro-Ortiz^1,2, Jillian C. Vanover^1,3, Timothy L. Scott^1,2, John A. D'Orazio^1,2,3,4

¹The Markey Cancer Center, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, ²Graduate Center for Toxicology, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, ³Department of Molecular and Biomedical Pharmacology, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, ⁴Department of Pediatrics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine

Epidermal melanin is induced by topical application of forskolin in a murine model of the fair-skinned UV-sensitive human. Pharmacologic manipulation of cAMP levels in the skin and epidermal darkening strongly protect against UV-mediated inflammation (sunburn) as measured by the minimum erythematous dose (MED) assay.

Bioengineering

Sensitive Detection of Proteopathic Seeding Activity with FRET Flow Cytometry

Jennifer L. Furman^*1, Brandon B. Holmes^*1, Marc I. Diamond¹

¹Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Cell-to-cell transfer of protein aggregates, or proteopathic seeds, may underlie the progression of pathology in neurodegenerative diseases. Here, a novel FRET flow cytometry assay is described that enables specific and sensitive detection of seeding activity from recombinant or biological samples.