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                                       Details for article 72 of 105 found articles
 
 
  Melanopsin in chicken melanocytes and retina
 
 
Title: Melanopsin in chicken melanocytes and retina
Author: Lima, Leonardo H. R. G.
Scarparo, Ana C.
Isoldi, Mauro C.
Visconti, Maria A.
Castrucci, Ana M. L.
Appeared in: Biological rhythm research
Paging: Volume 37 (2006) nr. 5 pages 393-404
Year: 2006-10-01
Contents: The vertebrate pigment cell, with the exception of mammals and birds, is able to provide the animal with rapid colour changes, which involve dispersion and aggregation of pigment granules in response to hormonal and neuronal agents, and in some cases as a direct response to light. The search for the mechanisms through which Xenopus leavis melanophores respond to light led to the discovery of a new photopigment, melanopsin, with a different spectral sensitivity to that of rhodopsin. This photopigment was also found in mammalian retinal ganglion cells that project to the suprachiasmatic nucleus and other non-visual retinorecipient areas. Herein we demonstrate (by RT-PCR, cloning and sequencing) for the first time that chick melanocytes express melanopsin, and confirmed the presence of the protein by immunocytochemistry. In the chicken retina, we revealed by immunocytochemistry that ganglion cells express melanopsin, but the highest density of immunopositive cells was found in the inner nuclear layer. Quantitative PCR showed that the retina of animals kept in 6 h light: 18 h dark possessed three-fold higher melanopsin mRNA content than animals kept in longer photoperiod, thus demonstrating that light modulates melanopsin expression in chickens.
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Source file: Elektronische Wetenschappelijke Tijdschriften
 
 

                             Details for article 72 of 105 found articles
 
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