CD2(+) T lymphocytes obtained from either the donor of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) or a third party were cultured in mixed lymphocyte reactions (MLRs) with either allogeneic dendritic cells (DCs) or peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs). When autologous or allogeneic BMSCs were added back to T cells stimulated by DCs or PBLs, a significant and dose-dependent reduction of T-cell proliferatio...

INTRODUCTION Hypoxia is associated with increased capillary permeability. This study tested whether acute hypobaric hypoxia involves degradation of the endothelial glycocalyx. METHODS We exposed 12 subjects to acute hypobaric hypoxia (equivalent to 4500 m for 2-4 h) and measured venous blood concentrations of biomarkers reflecting endothelial and glycocalyx degradation (catecholamines, syndec...

Plant activators are chemicals that induce plant defense responses to a broad spectrum of pathogens. Here, we identified a new potential plant activator, 5-(cyclopropylmethyl)-6-methyl-2-(2-pyridyl)pyrimidin-4-ol, named PPA (pyrimidin-type plant activator). Compared with benzothiadiazole S-methyl ester (BTH), a functional analog of salicylic acid (SA), PPA was fully soluble in water and increas...

The cytokine BAFF binds to the receptors TACI, BCMA, and BAFF-R on B cells, whereas APRIL binds to TACI and BCMA only. The signaling properties of soluble trimeric BAFF (BAFF 3-mer) were compared with those of higher-order BAFF oligomers. All forms of BAFF bound BAFF-R and TACI, and elicited BAFF-R-dependent signals in primary B cells. In contrast, signaling through TACI in mature B cells or pl...

Airway smooth muscle (ASM) hypertrophy and hyperplasia are important determinants of bronchial responsiveness in asthma, and agents that interfere with these processes may prevent airway remodeling. We tested the hypothesis that activators of soluble and particulate guanylyl cyclases would inhibit human ASM cell (HASMC) proliferation. We report that the nitric oxide (NO) donors S-nitroso- N-ace...

We have investigated the mechanism which prevents reinitiation of DNA replication within a single cell cycle by exploiting the observation that intact G2 HeLa nuclei do not replicate in Xenopus egg extract, unless their nuclear membranes are first permeabilized (Leno et al., 1992). We have asked if nuclear membrane permeabilization allows escape of a negative inhibitor from the replicated nucle...

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) is a serine/threonine kinase that is activated by the neuron specific activators p35/p39 and plays many important roles in neuronal development. However, aberrant activation of Cdk5 is believed to be associated with the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Here in the present study, ...

The study of the role cytokines play in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has provided a whole new range of targets for drug development. Many of them (e.g. TNF, IL-1, IL-6, IL-15 and IL-18) are already being targeted in the clinic with success using neutralizing monoclonal antibodies or soluble cytokine receptors. Targeting TNF, in particular, has shown great efficacy in controllin...

Cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein phosphorylation in albino rabbit ciliary processes was studied in particulate and soluble fractions of the tissue by the technique of SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and autoradiography. In the presence of gamma-32P-ATP, the soluble fraction showed increased phosphorylation of proteins of 200, 32 and 16 kDa molecular weight when 10 microM cAMP was adde...

The cytokine BAFF binds to the receptors TACI, BCMA, and BAFF-R on B cells, whereas APRIL binds to TACI and BCMA only. The signaling properties of soluble trimeric BAFF (BAFF 3-mer) were compared with those of higher-order BAFF oligomers. All forms of BAFF bound BAFF-R and TACI, and elicited BAFF-R– dependent signals in primary B cells. In contrast, signaling through TACI in mature B cells or p...