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Somatostatin (SS) and allatostatin-C (ASTC) are structurally and evolutionarily related neuropeptides that act as inhibitory regulators of physiological processes in mammals and insects, respectively. Here, we report the first molecular and functional characterization of SS/ASTC-type signalling in a deuterostome invertebrate-the starfish (phylum Echinodermata). Two SS/ASTC-type precursors were identified in (ArSSP1 and ArSSP2) and the structures of neuropeptides derived from these proteins (ArSS1 and ArSS2) were analysed using mass spectrometry. Pharmacological characterization of three cloned SS/ASTC-type receptors (ArSSR1-3) revealed that ArSS2, but not ArSS1, acts as a ligand for all three receptors. Analysis of ArSS2 expression in using mRNA hybridization and immunohistochemistry revealed stained cells/fibres in the central nervous system, the digestive system (e.g. cardiac stomach) and the body wall and its appendages (e.g. tube feet). Furthermore, pharmacological tests revealed that ArSS2 causes dose-dependent relaxation of tube foot and cardiac stomach preparations, while injection of ArSS2 causes partial eversion of the cardiac stomach. Our findings provide new insights into the molecular evolution of SS/ASTC-type signalling in the animal kingdom and reveal an ancient role of SS-type neuropeptides as inhibitory regulators of muscle contractility.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsob.200172 | DOI Listing |
JAMA Netw Open
September 2025
Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
Importance: Patients with advanced cancer frequently receive broad-spectrum antibiotics, but changing use patterns across the end-of-life trajectory remain poorly understood.
Objective: To describe the patterns of broad-spectrum antibiotic use across defined end-of-life intervals in patients with advanced cancer.
Design, Setting, And Participants: This nationwide, population-based, retrospective cohort study used data from the South Korean National Health Insurance Service database to examine broad-spectrum antibiotic use among patients with advanced cancer who died between July 1, 2002, and December 31, 2021.
Infect Disord Drug Targets
September 2025
Department of Chemistry, NFC Institute of Technology, Multan, Pakistan.
Introduction: Targeted infection imaging is crucial for accurate diagnosis in postpartum women. This project uses 99mTc-labeled cefixime to develop a radiopharmaceutical for detecting, distinguishing, and treating infections and abscesses in women.
Method: Technetium (TcO4-) chelated with cefixime, reduced by stannous chloride, confirmed via thin-layer chromatography.
Birth Defects Res
September 2025
School of Human Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
Background: In mouse embryos, the body axis typically follows a right-handed helical pattern; however, a definitive orientation in human embryos has not been established. This study aimed to characterize the body axis orientation in human embryos (CS13-CS17) from the Kyoto Collection.
Methods: Embryos were classified as right-helical (RH), left-helical (LH), and middle (M) using MRI-based morphological assessment.
Top Companion Anim Med
September 2025
Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, 300 West Drake Road, Fort Collins CO 80523. Electronic address:
A 4-year-old, 0.81 kg, female intact, American guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) was presented for a one-day history of perianal swelling. Physical examination revealed a body condition score of 2 out of 9, a distended abdomen that was painful on palpation, an abnormal vulvar conformation that was enlarged, edematous, ulcerated, and erythematous with adhered foreign material, and a 1 × 1 cm firm mass of the right mammary gland.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTherap Adv Gastroenterol
August 2025
Unité d'Endoscopie Interventionnelle, Hôpital Privé des Peupliers, Paris, France.
Endoscopic ultrasound-directed transgastric endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (EDGE) and endoscopic ultrasound-directed transenteric endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (EDEE) are innovative endoscopic techniques developed to overcome the challenges of biliary access in patients with surgically altered gastrointestinal anatomy. EDGE facilitates the creation of a gastro-gastric anastomosis, enabling endoscopic access to the excluded stomach and subsequent duodenum for endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) procedures. Similarly, EDEE involves creating a gastro-jejunal anastomosis, allowing endoscopic access to the jejunum and hepaticojejunostomy for ERCP.
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