The fundamental question of the exact nature of the role played by TNF in the failing myocardium remains one of contention. Many preclinical studies have demonstrated beneficial effects with TNF antagonism and recently the dichotomous role played...
Previous studies on the mechanistic induction of anti-tumor responses by IL-12 cytokine therapy have focused on the adaptive immune response, specifically the activation NK cells and T cells as the primary targets of IL-12 treatment. In contrast,...
Nuclear Factor of Activated T-cells (NFAT) is a calcium-responsive transcription factor that orchestrates immune response and cardiovascular development. NFAT is also present in neurons and glia from the Central Nervous System (CNS) where it...
Protein C (PC) is an important anticoagulant, antithrombotic, and antiinflammatory in blood plasma. PC deficiency can lead to severe venous thrombotic events, including lung embolism, stroke, and heart attack. In the body, PC is activated only when...
Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is a C-19 adrenal steroid and the most abundant circulating hormone in humans. Since circulating levels decline in late adulthood, treatment of humans with DHEA has been suggested to have beneficial health effects....
Ribosomal biogenesis failure may contribute to neurodegenerative diseases, while its excessive activation has been shown to drive tumor growth. As ribosomal production is initiated and regulated by the Pol1-mediated transcription of rRNA genes in...
This project investigated the effect of hypothermia on the monocyte response with the goal of understanding, which intracellular processes are affected by hypothermia leading to differences in cytokine secretion. A better understanding of the...
Exocytosis of intracellular granules is critical for conversion of inactive, circulating neutrophils to fully activated cells. The p38 MAPK pathway plays a central role in neutrophil exocytosis, although its mechanism of action is unknown. We used...
Skeletal muscle is the most abundant tissue in our body that provides a structural framework and regulates important biological processes. It is also a primary reservoir of protein. Skeletal muscle maintains its structural and functional integrity...
In blood coagulation, the serine protease thrombin is a multifaceted enzyme that interacts with multiple proteins. Thrombin utilizes two anion binding exosites (ABE-I and II) to supplement binding to fibrinogen and to the platelet receptor GpIbα,...
The ability of L. pneumophila to cause disease depends on its replication in alveolar macrophages. Infectivity and the expression of various virulence traits is triggered at post exponential growth phase. We show that unlike quiescent macrophages,...
Interactions between chemokines and their receptors are involved in organ- specific homing and propagation of metastatic breast cancer (BrCa) cells. BrCa cells express higher levels of CXCR4 and CXCR7 mRNA and cell surface protein, than normal...
T lymphopoiesis has been an intense focus of immunological research since the discovery of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and T cell mediated transplant rejection. Additionally, researchers have long appreciated the role of T cells, and...
Nanostructured materials; Nanotubes; Nanoparticles; Drug delivery systems; Diagnostic Imaging
Nanomaterials have many intriguing applications in biology and medicine. Unique properties such as enhanced electrical properties, increased chemical reactivity and resistance to degradation, novel optical properties and comparable size to that of...
Hepatitis C virus--Research; Interferon--Therapeutic use; Adenosylmethionine
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of chronic liver disease in the United States and is a huge burden on the US healthcare system. The FDA-approved traditional standard of care for HCV is pegylated interferon-alpha (lFNα) combined...
Cancer accounts for nearly one-quarter of deaths in the United States, exceeded only by heart diseases. Despite the development of various strategies to treat cancer, it remains one of the most deadly diseases worldwide due to the limited effects...
Recent studies indicate post-translational deacetylation by members of the superfamily of histone deacetylase complexes (HDACs) is necessary for oligodendrocyte precursor cell (OPC) differentiation into mature oligodendrocytes (OLs). However, it...
Cortical and tectal inputs to the caudal LPN in the rat were examined using anatomical and physiological techniques. Pyramidal cells in layer 6 of the visual cortex and wide-field vertical cells in the stratum opticum of the superior colliculus...
Sleep disorders in children; Children--Sleep; Blind children
Research has confirmed that individuals with blindness have an increased risk of
developing sleep problems; this is especially problematic for families with young
children who are blind. Not only does the lack of sleep impact the growth...
Pituitary tumor transforming gene ( PTTG ), also known as securing, is a novel oncogene that is expressed at high levels in most of the tumors analyzed to date. Overexpression of PTTG in mouse fibroblast(NIH 3T3) cells increases cell proliferation,...
