Extracellular matrix (ECM) provides both structural support and contextual information to cells within tissues and organs. The combination of biochemical and biomechanical signals from the ECM modulates responses to extracellular signals toward differentiation, proliferation, or apoptosis; alterations in the ECM are necessary for development and remodeling processes, but aberrations in the comp...

glycoconjugates and their programmed changes during the course of development in the cell-surface as well as in the extracellular matrix, are known to affect cell differentiation, cellular interaction and other developmental phenomena during embryogenesis. the purpose of this study was to localize n-acetylgalactosamin as well as fucose-containing glycoconjugates in situ during thymus developmen...

Homeostasis of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of tissues is regulated by controlling deposition and degradation of ECM proteins. The breakdown of ECM is essential in blastocyst implantation and embryonic development, tissue morphogenesis, menstrual shedding, bone formation, tissue resorption after delivery, and tumor growth and invasion. TGF-beta family members are one of the classes of protein...

We previously reported that when the stress relaxation response of urinary bladder wall (UBW) tissue was analyzed using a single continuous reduced relaxation function (RRF), we observed non-uniformly distributed, time-dependent residuals (Ann Biomed Eng 32(10):1409-1419, 2004). We concluded that the single relaxation spectrum was inadequate and that a new viscoelastic model for bladder wall wa...

Adhesion of Neisseria meningitidis strains to extracellular matrix (ECM) and purified matrix components was examined. Most strains bound to subendothelial ECM as well as to immobilized fibronectin and types I, III, and V collagen. Strains from healthy carriers adhered significantly better than isolates from patients. The binding site was localized to the central 75-kDa cell-binding domain of th...

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are central elements of a number physiological processes such as differentiation and intracellular signaling, well pathological processes, e.g., inflammation or apoptosis. ROS involved in the growth proliferation stem cells, cell communication, aging, all types inflammation, cancer development proliferation, type 2 diabetes. Elastin-derived peptides (EDPs) detected...

Congenital vaginal anomalies and pelvic organ prolapse affect different age groups of women both have significant negative impacts on patients’ psychological well-being quality life. While surgical non-surgical treatments are available for defects, their efficacy is limited, they often result in long-term complications. Therefore, alternative treatment options urgently needed. Fortunately, tiss...

Via integrins, cells can sense dimensionality and other physical and biochemical properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Cells respond differently to two-dimensional substrates and three-dimensional environments, activating distinct signaling pathways for each. Direct integrin signaling and indirect integrin modulation of growth factor and other intracellular signaling pathways regulate E...

During terminal differentiation, epithelia become columnar and develop specialized apical membrane structures (microvilli) and functions (regulated endocytosis and exocytosis). Using a clonal intercalated epithelial cell line, we found that high seeding density induced these characteristics, whereas low density seeding maintained a protoepithelial state. When cells were plated at low density, b...

The pulmonary extracellular matrix (ECM) plays an important role in the structure and function of lung. In many respiratory diseases profile ECM reflects pathological changes. capacity to visualize its alterations is considerable importance facilitate a better understanding eventually augment therapeutic solutions. This short review summarizes current novel possibilities for imaging by use comp...