Biology subjects

Nishioka, M.

Publications and source records attributed to Nishioka, M..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Minimally invasive measurement of maternal transcripts enables predicting the developmental potential of mammalian zygotes

Maternal transcripts are stored in the oocyte cytoplasm during oogenesis and play a pivotal role in early embryonic development after fertilization. However, specific maternal transcripts that reflect the developmental potential of embryos have not been systematically identified, and the use of maternal transcript levels as an indicator of successful development has not been explored. Here, we link the maternal transcriptome to the zygotes developmental potential by examining transcripts in a single polar body. The transcriptome of a zygote or an oocyte was highly similar to that of its accompanying polar body in mouse, cow, and human. We have identified a set of maternal transcripts whose expression levels fluctuate between poor- and good-quality zygotes. Specifically, Sipa1and Zmym6 were identified as marker transcripts that accurately reflect the developmental potential of zygotes. Using these marker genes, combined with machine learning, the development of zygotes to the blastocyst stage was successfully predicted with more than 80% specificity as early as 12 hours after fertilization. Furthermore, our prediction platform significantly improved implantation rates and live births to term. Thus, we have demonstrated a minimally invasive method for identifying maternal transcripts associated with zygote developmental potential. Our developed prediction system provides a generalizable conceptual framework for human infertility treatment to reduce the risk of implantation failure by excluding embryos with low developmental potential, especially when early embryos are transferred, and for livestock propagation to assess selected expressed maternal trait-associated variants before embryo transfer.

developmental biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Cholinergic interneurons in the dorsal striatum play an important role in the acquisition of duration memory

Although the formation of duration memory is important to optimize the timing of behavior based on previous experiences, the neural mechanism of formation remains unclear. A previous study suggested that muscarinic acetylcholine 1 receptors (M1Rs) in the dorsal striatum of rats are involved in the consolidation of duration memory in interval timing. Therefore, cholinergic interneurons (ChIs) may also be involved in the formation of duration memory in interval timing because ChIs activate M1Rs in the dorsal striatum. In the Exp. 1A, rats underwent a peak interval (PI)-20 s training. During the training, two different trials were randomly presented. One was a food trial in which the initial lever press was reinforced 20 s after the start of the trial (i.e., fixed interval (FI), 20 s). The other was an empty trial in which the reinforcement did not occur for 80 s. After sufficient training, the rats responded at approximately 20 s in the empty trials. They were then subjected to a PI-40 s training (i.e., FI, 40 s) after ChI lesions were present in the dorsal striatum. In this training, the sham-lesioned group responded frequently at approximately 40 s, whereas the ChI-lesioned group responded at approximately 20 s. As the PI-40 s additional learning progressed in the Exp. 1B, the ChI-lesioned group frequently responded at approximately 40 s, similar to that of the sham-lesioned group. In the following PI-20 s re-shift training, the ChI-lesioned group responded similar to the sham-lesioned group. In Exp. 2 of another cohort, the results of a PI-20 s training after the occurrence of ChI lesions were similar to that before the presence of the lesion. Together, these results suggest that ChI lesions delayed only the acquisition of new duration memory, but had no effect on the adjustment of behavior associated with changing the reinforcement schedule of the PI-training and interval timing itself.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2021

Intra-dorsal striatal acetylcholine M1 but not dopaminergic D1 or glutamatergic NMDA receptor antagonists inhibit the consolidation of duration memory in interval timing

The striatal beat frequency (SBF) model assumes that striatal medium spiny neurons encode duration via synaptic plasticity. Muscarinic 1 (M1) cholinergic receptors, as well as dopamine and glutamate receptors, are important for neural plasticity in the dorsal striatum. Therefore, we investigated the effect of inhibiting these receptors on the formation of duration memory. After sufficient training in a Peak interval (PI)-20 s procedure, rats were given a single or mixed infusion of a selective antagonist for the dopamine D1 receptor (SCH23390, 0.5 g per side), the NMDA-type glutamate receptor (D-AP5, 3 g), or the M1 receptor (pirenzepine, 10 g) bilaterally in the dorsal striatum, immediately before starting a PI 40 s session (shift session). On the next day, the rats were tested for new duration memory (40 s) in a session in which no lever presses were reinforced (probe session). In the shift session, performance was tie, irrespective of the drug injected. However, in the probe session, the mean peak time (an index of duration memory) of the M1 + NMDA co-blockade group, but not of the D1 + NMDA co-blockade group, was lower than that of the control group (Exp. 1 and 2). In Exp. 3, the effect of the co-blockade of M1 and NMDA receptors was replicated. Moreover, sole blockade of M1 receptors induced the same effect as M1 and NMDA blockade. These results suggest that in the dorsal striatum, the M1 receptor, but not the D1 or NMDA receptors, are involved in the consolidation of duration memory.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2019

Clinical evaluation of presepsin considering renal function.

Presepsin, a glycoprotein produced during bacterial phagocytosis, has attracted attention as a sepsis marker for bacterial infections. However, since presepsin is affected by renal function, there is a need to separate the evaluation criteria for diagnosis of healthy subjects from that of patients with renal disorder. In this study, we analyzed the influence of kidney function on presepsin concentrations and recalculated the reference range based on the findings. For this purpose, EDTA-whole blood from 47 healthy subjects and 85 patients with chronic kidney disease was collected and used for presepsin measurement by PATHFAST. Presepsin was found to be significantly correlated with creatinine (r = 0.834), eGFRcreat (r = 0.837), cystatin-C (r = 0.845) and eGFRcys (r = 0.879).\n\nFurthermore, in patients with chronic kidney disease at different glomerular filtration rate stages, the presepsin levels showed a significant increasing trend with advancing glomerular filtration rate stage. The reference range, calculated by nonparametric method using a total of 67 cases of healthy volunteers and patients with chronic kidney disease G1, was found to be 59-153 pg/mL, which was notably lower than the standard reference range currently used. Presepsin concentrations were positively correlated with some biomarkers of renal function, indicating that it is necessary to consider the influence of renal function in patients with renal impairment. Further, the recalculated reference range might be more useful for diagnosis and treatment of sepsis than the standard reference currently in use, which likely includes false high values.

biochemistry↗