Biology subjects

Mattes, B.

Publications and source records attributed to Mattes, B..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Glucose and fructose differently mediate alcohol cocktail drinking in female and male rats: interaction of glucose and alcohol on post-ingestive behavior

Sweetened alcoholic beverages are thought to contribute to developing Alcohol Use Disorder by increasing palatability. One monosaccharide, glucose, readily enters the brain more than fructose and directly impacts the activity of central neurons. The objective of this study is to determine the impact of glucose versus fructose on alcohol drinking patterns in female and male rats. Rats drank alcohol cocktails (1.25%-10%) containing either glucose or fructose (10%) in 4-hour sessions. We sought to parse orosensory effects from post-ingestive central effects by analyzing drinking microstructure. We compared measures of palatability and post-ingestive feedback between early and later in the session when brain levels of alcohol and glucose are different. We found that rats of both sexes drank more low alcohol glucose cocktails than cocktails containing fructose by volume and by overall calories. When considering the dose of alcohol, glucose potentiated alcohol intake by shifting the dose-response curve leftward compared to similar fructose cocktails. We found that drinking patterns associated with palatability remained stable for both types of cocktails over the entire drinking session. In contrast, post-ingestive behavior related to brain mediated satiety or positive feedback showed a greater influence of the session time, as well as a greater interaction with sex. Overall, our results suggest that glucose and alcohol interact to impact central regulation of cocktail drinking. This highlights that the type of sugar within cocktails interacts and ultimately have different effects on brain regulated alcohol drinking.

pharmacology and toxicology↗

bioRxiv2025

Persistence of florpyrauxifen-benzyl in sediments following application to a large oligotrophic lake to control Eurasian watermilfoil

Florpyrauxifen-benzyl (FPB) is a recently registered arylpicolinate herbicide used to control dicots including Eurasian watermilfoil (EWM). Laboratory studies indicate rapid degradation of FPB in water, but sediment persistence in aquatic systems remains poorly understood, creating uncertainty in ecological risk assessments. We evaluated the environmental fate and transport of FPB and its degradants in water, plants, and sediment following application of the herbicide to two bays of Lake George, NY. FPB was rapidly lost from the water column within 72 hours, consistent with prior studies, but persisted in sediments for at least one year. Sediment cores revealed vertical migration of FPB, which may contribute to frequent non-detects in surface sediments and potentially explain why US EPA was unable to establish sediment half-lives in aquatic systems. Measured concentrations exceeded the 28-day no observable adverse effect concentration (NOAEC) for chironomids for at least a year, highlighting the potential for long-term chronic exposure to benthic organisms. Modeled sorption and dilution scenarios aligned with field observations and indicated that circulation dynamics expanded the affected area beyond the direct treatment zones. These results demonstrate that FPB and its degradants persist longer in sediments than suggested by laboratory studies, raising important questions about long-term ecological risks, effects of repeated applications, and underestimation of sediment persistence. Long-term studies such as this are essential for understanding the fate of these compounds and for guiding informed decisions about future herbicide applications.

pharmacology and toxicology↗

bioRxiv2018

Pcdh18a-positive tip cells instruct notochord formation in zebrafish

The notochord defines the axial structure of all vertebrates during development. Notogenesis is a result of major cell reorganization in the mesoderm, the convergence and the extension of the axial cells. However, it is currently not known how these processes act together in a coordinated way during notochord formation. Analysing the tissue flow, we determined the displacement of the axial mesoderm and identified, relative to the ectoderm, an actively-migrating notochord tip cell population and a group of trailing notochordal plate cells. Molecularly, these tip cells express Protocadherin18a, a member of the cadherin superfamily. We show that Pcdh18a-mediated recycling of E-cadherin adhesion complexes transforms these tip cells into a cohesive and fast migrating cell group. In turn, these tip cells subsequently instruct the trailing mesoderm. We simulated cell migration during early mesoderm formation using a lattice-based mathematical framework, and predicted that the requirement for an anterior, local motile cell cluster could guide the intercalation of the posterior, axial cells. Indeed, grafting experiments validated the predictions and induced ectopic notochord-like rods. Our findings indicate that the tip cells influence the trailing mesodermal cell sheet by inducing the formation of the notochord.

developmental biology↗