Aims: Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is associated with the pathophysiology of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) via cyst progression. Elevated concentrations of ET-1 in ADPKD correlate with many phenotypic changes in the kidney such as renal…
Purified cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylases (C7 alpha H) from human and rat liver microsomes, and from transformed Escherichia coli expression systems, were incubated with 0.3 mmol/L [gamma-P-32] adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in the presence and absence…
The genetically obese Zucker rat is a widely used model of early-onset obesity. Like obese children, these obese rats are hyperinsulinemic and have low GH secretion. However, data on linear growth and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) levels in…
We investigated the importance of changes in intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+](i)) for amiloride-sensitive alveolar fluid clearance (AFC) in late-gestational guinea pigs. Fetal guinea pigs of 61, 68, and 69 days (term) gestation were…
The present study examines the feedback control governing human cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase mRNA expression in the human hepatoblastoma cell line, Hep G2. Glycochenodeoxycholate (GCDC) and glycodeoxycholate, hydrophobic bile salts, decreased…
A three-dimensional (3D) mineralizing culture system using hollow fiber bioreactors has been developed to study the early stages of endochondral ossification by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) microscopy. Chondrocytes harvested from the…
Fusimotor neurons, group Ia afferents and muscle spindles are absent in mutant mice lacking the gene for neurotrophin-3 (NT3). To partition the effect of Ia afferent or spindle absence from that of NT3 deprivation on fusimotor neuron development, we…
Sepsis stimulates an increase in the number and activity of mononuclear phagocytes in systemic host-defence organs. The present study was conducted to define the ultrastructural and cytochemical characteristics of the mononuclear phagocytes that…
The pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (CD), an idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease, is attributed, in part, to intestinal bacteria that may initiate and perpetuate mucosal inflammation in genetically susceptible individuals. Paneth cells (PC) are the…
The sterol 12alpha-hydroxylase (CYP8B1) is a key enzyme of the bile acid biosynthetic pathway. It regulates the composition of bile acids in bile, i.e. ratio between cholic acid (CA) and chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA). In similarity with cholesterol…
The presence of NADPH diaphorase staining was compared with the immunohistochemical localization of four NADPH-dependent enzymes - neuronal (type I), inducible (type LI), and endothelial (type III) nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and cytochrome P450…
This study was undertaken to establish the presence and characteristics of receptors for [D-Trp(6)]LH-RH on the membranes of human ovarian cancer. Specific binding of [I-125, D-Trp(6)]LH-RH was found in 29 of 37 (78.4%) ovarian cancers and in 6 of 11…
The cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase gene (CYP7A) is transcriptionally regulated by a number of factors, including hormones, bile acids, and diurnal rhythm. Previous studies have identified a region from nucleotides (nt) -74 to -55 of the rat CYP7A…
In order to investigate whether the impaired GH secretion associated with obesity is due to a pituitary disorder we studied GH mRNA levels by in situ hybridization in genetically obese and lean Zucker rats. The levels of GH mRNA were at least two…
Purpose: To report the clinical findings and outcomes in 3 patients with neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) and retinal vascular abnormalities that resulted in angle closure secondary to iris neovascularization and describe the histopathologic abnormalities…
The omega-hydroxylation of fatty acids by certain cytochrome P450 enzymes shows a degree of chain-length and regiospecificity which is remarkable in view of the conformational flexibility of these substrates, the strong similarity in properties among…
Large conductance, Ca2+/voltage-sensitive K+ channels (BK channels) are well characterized, but their physiological roles, often determined through pharmacological manipulation, are less clear. Iberiotoxin is considered the "gold standard"…
Objective-We determined whether increasing adherence of multipotent stromal cells (MSCs) would amplify their effects on coronary collateral growth (CCG). Methods and Results-Adhesion was established in cultured coronary endothelials cells (CECs) or…
This experiment explores the role of two forms of long-term potentiation (LTP) in behavioral memory. NMDA and/or voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCCs) were antagonized pharmacologically at levels that block nmdaLTP and vdccLTP, respectively, in…
Rats of the Sprague-Dawley strain were infused intravenously with a fat emulsion (Intralipid, trademark of Kabi Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden) containing 7-oxocholesterol. This resulted in an increased cholesterol 7alpha-hydroxylase activity in liver…
Objective-The purpose of this study was to determine whether G-CSF promotes coronary collateral growth (CCG) and decipher the mechanism for this stimulation. Methods and Results-In a rat model of repetitive episodic myocardial ischemia (RI, 40…
There are considerable data suggesting that vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) is involved in the regulation of PRL secretion; however, the role and cell of origin of anterior pituitary VIP remain to be determined. Immunocytochemical (ICC) studies…
Kallistatin is a serine proteinase inhibitor which binds to tissue kallikrein and inhibits its activity, The aim of this study is to evaluate if kallistatin has a direct effect on the vasculature and on blood pressure homeostasis. We found that an…
Hydrophobic bile acids strongly repressed transcription of the human cholesterol 7 alpha -hydroxylase gene (CYP7A1) in the bile acid biosynthetic pathway in the Ever. Farnesoid X receptor (FXR) repressed CYP7A1/Luc reporter activity in a transfection…
Vitamin D receptor (VDR) mediates vitamin D signaling involved in bone metabolism, cellular growth and differentiation, cardiovascular function, and bile acid regulation. Mice with an intestine-specific disruption of VDR (Vdr(Delta IEpC)) have…
The cholesterol 7 alpha -hydroxylase gene (CYP7A1) plays an important role in regulation of bile acid biosynthesis and cholesterol homeostasis. Oxysterol receptor, LXR, stimulates, whereas the bile acid receptor, FXR, inhibits CYP7A1 transcription.…
Cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase gene (CYP7A1) transcription is repressed by bile acids. The goal of this study is to elucidate the mechanism of CYP7A1 transcription by bile acid-activated farnesoid X receptor (FXR) in its native promoter and cellular…
Tissue-engineered models of human phalanges have previously been fabricated from a combination of bovine periosteum, cartilage, tendon, and biodegradable polyglycolic acid and poly-L-lactic acid scaffolds. Resulting constructs implanted in athymic…
The gene encoding cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase (CYP7A), the rate-limiting enzyme in bile acid synthesis, is transcriptionally regulated by bile acids and hormones. Previously, we have identified two bile acid response elements (BARE) in the…
