This study aimed to investigate the characteristic features of craniocerebral gunshot wounds by conventional ultrasound (CUS) and evaluate the efficacy of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in differentiation of tissue condition in wounds. Twenty crossbreed dogs (treatment: N = 15; control: N = 5) were used in the study. Pipe-shaped hyperechoes of varying size were found by CUS in most of the treated animals. The echoic areas were distinct from the neighboring brain tissue and did not change with time.
We examined a possible relationship between genes responsible for energy metabolism of the brain and addictive behavior in an animal model. We used non-inbred, Swiss mice exposed to a three-bottle free-choice model [water, 5% (v/v) ethanol, and 10% (v/v) ethanol] over a 16-week period, consisting of four phases: acquisition, withdrawal, reexposure, and quinine-adulteration.
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are involved in a large variety of physiological functions. The number of known members that belong to this large family of receptors has been rapidly increasing. Now, with the availability of the human genome sequence databases, further family members are being identified. We describe the identification of a novel GPCR that shows no significant amino acid identity to any one of the known members of the GPCR superfamily.
