It is well established that high cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression contributes to the aggressive behavior of breast and other malignancies. Due to concerns regarding the safety of long-term use of COX-2 inhibitors as well as a desire to seek more effective alternatives to prevent and treat metastatic disease, we tested the hypothesis that inhibition of downstream signaling by the COX-2 produc...

Although the role of PGE2 in maintaining ductus arteriosus (DA) patency is well established, the specific PGE2 receptor subtype(s) (EP) involved have not been clearly identified. We used late gestation fetal and neonatal lambs to study developmental regulation of EP receptors. In the fetal DA, radioligand binding and RT-PCR assays virtually failed to detect EP1 but detected EP2, EP3D, and EP4 r...

context blastocystis hominis is a unicellular protozoan found commonly in the intestinal tract of humans and many other animals with multiple subtypes, which tend to be specific to the host. we aimed to apply a meta-analysis for studies of protozoan pathogens in order to obtain a general overview of the prevalence and genotype analysis of blastocystis spp. in iran. results we included 40 eligib...

genomic signal processing is a relatively new field in bioinformatics, in which signal processing algorithms and methods are used to study functional structures in the dna. an appropriate mapping of the dna sequence into one or more numerical sequences enables the use of many digital signal processing tools in the analysis of different genomic sequences. also, a novel influenza a (h1n1) virus o...

BACKGROUND Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and the receptor for PGE2 (EP receptor) are key factors contributing to the generation of hyperalgesia caused by inflammation. The current study was designed to investigate the roles of PGE2 and EP1 receptors in the spinal cord in the development and maintenance of inflammatory pain, using behavioral, microdialysis, and intracellular calcium ion concentration ...

Increased formation of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is a key part of hyperprostaglandin E syndrome/antenatal Bartter syndrome (HPS/aBS), a renal disease characterized by NaCl wasting, water loss, and hyperreninism. Inhibition of PGE2 formation by cyclo-oxygenase inhibitors significantly lowers patient mortality and morbidity. However, the pathogenic role of PGE2 in HPS/aBS awaits clarification. Chro...

Ontogeny often provides the most compelling evidence for primary homology in evolutionary developmental studies and is critical to interpreting complex structures in a phylogenetic context. As an example of this, we document the ontogenetic development of the caudal skeleton of Caranx crysos by examining a series of cleared and stained larval and postlarval specimens. By studying ontogeny, we a...

Promoter Methylation and Tissue-Specific Transcription of the a7 Nicotinic Receptor Gene, CHRNA7 The α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor is known to regulate a wide variety of developmental and secretory functions in neural and non-neural tissues. The mechanisms that regulate its transcription in these varied tissues are not well understood. Epigenetic processes may play a role in the tissue-sp...

Institut für Photonik, Technische Universität Wien, A-1040 Wien, Austria Physikalisches Institut EP1, Universität Würzburg, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany Department für Physik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, D-85748 Garching, Germany Atominstitut der Österreichischen Universtitäten, Technische Universität Wien, A-1020 Wien, Austria Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik, D-85748 Garching, Ge...

We used the patch-clamp technique and Western blot analysis to explore the effect of PGE(2) on ROMK-like small-conductance K (SK) channels and Ca(2+)-activated big-conductance K channels (BK) in the cortical collecting duct (CCD). Application of 10 microM PGE(2) inhibited SK and BK channels in the CCD. Moreover, either inhibition of PKC or blocking mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), P38 a...