OBJECTIVES We investigated the role of miR-205 in the osteogenic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). METHODS Osteogenic differentiation of human aortic smooth muscle cells (HASMCs) was induced by 10 mM β-glycerophosphate (β-GP). Alizarin Red S staining, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and osteocalcin secretion were used to determine osteogenic differentiation of HASMC...

Previous work has shown that injury of neoplastic cells by cytotoxic macrophages (CM) in cell culture is accompanied by inhibition of mitochondrial respiration. We have investigated the nature of this inhibition by studying mitochondrial respiration in CM-injured leukemia L1210 cells permeabilized with digitonin. CM-induced injury affects the mitochondrial respiratory chain proper. Complex I (N...

The effect of diet on the desaturation of linoleic acid to gamma-linolenic acid by liver microsomal preparations, on blood glucose and insulin levels, and on activities of glucokinase, hexokinase, pyruvate kinase, and alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase have been studied. The female rats used in these experiments were maintained on one of the following dietary regimes: (a) fasted, (b) fasted f...

Vascular calcification results from osteoblastic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and is a major risk factor for cardiovascular events. Ghrelin is a newly discovered bioactive peptide that acts as a natural endogenous ligand of the growth hormone secretagog receptor (GHSR). Several studies have identified the protective effects of ghrelin on the cardiovascular system, how...

"Null" mutations previously isolated at the alphaGpdh-1 locus of Drosophila melanogaster, because of disruption of the energy-producing alpha-glycerophosphate cycle, severely restrict the flight ability and relative viability of affected individuals. Two "null" alleles, alphaGpdh-1(BO-1-4), and alphaGpdh-1(BO-1-5,) when made hemizygous with a deficiency of the alphaGpdh-1 locus, Df(2L)GdhA, wer...