The endogenous circadian clock is an intracellular transcriptional feedback loop timing daily patterns of multiple biological rhythms within a 24-hour period. Disturbance in various rhythms leads to alteration of normal biological processes including cellular proliferation and tumor suppression. Endogenous circadian clock rhythms have been found to be disrupted in breast...
Blastocystis spp. is a common intestinal parasite in humans and animals that has been associated with acute or chronic digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome. Serotonin mediates intestinal motility, sensation, and secretory function in the normal intestinal tract. Serotonin (5-HT) signaling is decreased in animal models of colitis, as...
Ovulation requires preovulatory surges of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) from preoptic hypothalamic neurons, initiated by elevated ovarian estradiol (E₂). Rising estradiol activates a subset of sexually dimorphic kisspeptin (Kiss-1) neurons in the female, located in the anteroventral periventricular nuclei (AVPV). Conversely, estradiol negative feedback on GnRH secretion is mediated by a...
Acute phase protein (APP) measurement can be used to characterize and rapidly detect inflammation. Serum amyloid A (SAA) and haptoglobin (HP) may be useful for diagnostic and prognostic purposes in horses presenting for colic and other inflammatory diseases. The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the use of SAA...
The serotonergic system plays a significant regulatory role in osteoblast differentiation and proliferation. Serotonin (five-hydroxytryptamine or 5HT) may promote or inhibit osteoblast proliferation depending upon the serotonin receptor isoforms expressed by the cell. Classically, 5HT receptor 1B (5HTR1B) reduces osteoblast proliferation by inhibiting phosphorylation of the cAMP response element binding...
Feeding conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) improves reproductive performance in dairy cows; however, the molecular mechanisms by which CLA improves reproduction are not well understood. Therefore, we evaluated whether the CLA isomers, trans-10, cis-12 CLA and cis-9, trans-11 CLA altered synthesis of steroidogenic hormones in bovine luteal cells by measuring concentrations...