Sorghum is a principal cereal food in a number of parts of the world and is critical in folk medicine in Asia and Africa. However, its effects on bone are unknown. Growth hormone (GH) is a regulator of bone growth and bone metabolism. GH activates several signaling pathways, including the Janus kinase (Jak)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathways, thereby regulating exp...

Background: Transcription factor 4 (TCF4) is found to be associated with schizophrenia. TCF4 mutations also cause Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with severe mental retardation. However, the function of TCF4 during brain development remains unclear. Results: Here, we report that Tcf4 is expressed in the developing cerebral cortex. In utero suppression of Tcf4 arr...

Abstract Diffuse midline gliomas H3K27-altered are pediatric tumors associated with dismal survival after diagnosis that characterized by their ability to infiltrate the entire central nervous system. We show extent of tumor invasion and metastatic progression represent critical adverse prognostic factors affecting DMG patients. Yet, no genetic alterations associate patterns. therefore used gli...

Vascular calcification (VC) is an important complication of chronic renal failure (CRF), and a risk factor for reduced survival. Osteoblast-like cells in the vessel wall derived from resident vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) are considered central to the pathogenesis of VC, which is exacerbated by mineral ion abnormalities inherent in renal osteodystrophy (ROD). Nevertheless, its aetiology i...

To address the patterning function of the Bmp2, Bmp4 and Bmp7 growth factors, we designed antisense morpholino oligomers (MO) that block their activity in Xenopus laevis. Bmp4 knockdown was sufficient to rescue the ventralizing effects caused by loss of Chordin activity. Double Bmp4 and Bmp7 knockdown inhibited tail development. Triple Bmp2/Bmp4/Bmp7 depletion further compromised trunk developm...

The bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) Smad4 and Id2 exert their effect on colorectal carcinoma via several uncharacterized mechanisms. In this study, we investigated whether the transcription factor Id2, which has been implicated in colorectal carcinoma proliferation and metastasis, is involved in BMP-7/Smad4 signaling, or whether it is regulated by BMP-7 via another mechanism in this cell typ...

SMAD6 is a crucial feedback inhibitory regulator of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)/SMAD signalling. Although little is known regarding the post-transcriptional modification of inhibitory SMADs and the mechanism by which their function is regulated. In this study, using a whole proteomic interaction screen for SMAD6, we identified a large putative E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme UBE2O (E2-230K...

The auditory systems of animals that perceive sounds in air are organized to separate sound stimuli into their component frequencies. Individual tones then stimulate mechanosensory hair cells located at different positions on an elongated frequency (tonotopic) axis. During development, immature hair cells located along the axis must determine their tonotopic position in order to generate freque...

The basic-Helix-Loop-Helix family (bHLH) of transcriptional factors plays a major role in regulating cellular proliferation, differentiation and phenotype maintenance. The downregulation of one of the members of bHLH family protein, inhibitor of DNA binding 2 (Id2) has been shown to induce de-differentiation of epithelial cells. Opposing regulators of epithelial/mesenchymal phenotype in renal p...