Sezen Kislal

This study was conducted to evaluate the reproductive characteristics of 4 elite cocoa clones (MCBC1, PBC230, KKM22 and KKM4) propagated via somatic embryogenesis culture. From the findings, all clones have similar reproductive characteristics with clones from conventional grafted. However, only KKM4 clone from immature zygotic embryo culture produced the shortest staminode to style distance of 1.83 mm. This consequently influenced flower stability by reducing the efficiency of pollination by insects. It was found that this clone also has the highest number of flowers drop after anthesis (5 flowers) and lowest production of cherelle (5 cherelles). Further observation revealed that floral development from first bud visible (BBCH51) to flower anthesis (BBCH68) of all clones took around 31 days. These cocoa flowers which remained receptive soon after anthesis at 10 am (day-31) until the next day (day-32) suggesting 2 days’ period of receptivity. HIGHLIGHTS It is crucial to assess the p...

Ischemic stroke is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Potential therapeutics aimed at neural repair and functional recovery are limited in their blood-brain barrier permeability and may exert systemic or off-target effects. We examined the effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), delivered via an extended release HyStem®-C hydrogel implant or vehicle, on sensorimotor function, infarct volume, and neuroinflammation, following permanent distal middle cerebral artery occlusion (dMCAo) in rats. Eight days following dMCAo or sham surgery, treatments were implanted directly into the infarction site. Rats received either vehicle, BDNF-only (0.167 µg/µL), hydrogel-only, hydrogel impregnated with 0.057 µg/µL of BDNF (hydrogel + BDNFLOW), or hydrogel impregnated with 0.167 µg/µL of BDNF (hydrogel + BDNFHIGH). The adhesive removal test (ART) and 28-point Neuroscore (28-PN) were used to evaluate sensorimotor function up to two months post-ischemia. The hydrogel + BDN...

Maternal immune activation is associated with adverse offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes, many of which are mediated by in utero microglial programming. Microglia remain inaccessible at birth and throughout development, thus identification of noninvasive biomarkers that can reflect fetal brain microglial programming may permit screening and intervention during critical developmental windows. Here we used lineage tracing to demonstrate the shared ontogeny between fetal brain macrophages (microglia) and fetal placental macrophages (Hofbauer cells). Single-cell RNA sequencing of murine fetal brain and placental macrophages demonstrated shared transcriptional programs. Comparison with human datasets demonstrated that placental resident macrophage signatures are highly conserved between mice and humans. Single-cell RNA-seq identified sex differences in fetal microglial and Hofbauer cell programs, and robust differences between placenta-associated maternal macrophage/monocyte (PAMM) po...

Mismatch between a depleted intrauterine environment and a substrate‐rich postnatal environment confers an increased risk of offspring obesity and metabolic syndrome. Maternal diet‐induced obesity (MATOB) is associated with the same outcomes. These experiments tested the hypothesis that a mismatch between a nutrient‐rich intrauterine environment and a low‐fat postnatal environment would ameliorate offspring metabolic morbidity.