The role of transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha)-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) interactions in regulating benign and malignant trophoblast proliferation were examined. Benign cytotrophoblast (CT) demonstrated mitogenic stimulation in response to TGF-alpha; BeWo and JAr choriocarcinoma cell lines failed to respond. EGFR levels in BeWo and JAr were determined by enzyme linked im...

There is an urgent need to develop optimized experimental models to examine human implantation. These studies aimed to (i) establish a human endometrium-like three-dimensional (3D) culture system, and (ii) examine the attachment of trophoblast-like Jar spheroids to the culture. In the present work, 3D endometrial cultures were constructed with fibrin-agarose as matrix scaffold, and using epithe...

Human trophoblast invasion of decidualized endometrium is essential for placentation and is tightly regulated and involves trophoblast-decidual cell interaction. High temperature requirement A4 (HtrA4) is a secreted serine protease highly expressed in the invasive extravillous trophoblasts that invade decidua. In contrast, both HtrA1 and HtrA3 have been shown to inhibit trophoblast invasion. He...

This study provides forensic search teams with systematic geophysical monitoring data over simulated clandestine graves for comparison to active cases. Simulated ‘wrapped’ and ‘naked’ burials were created. Multi-geophysical surveys were collected over a three-year monitoring period. Bulk ground resistivity, Electrical Resistivity Imaging, multi-frequency Ground Penetrating Radar and grave ‘soil...

Poly(hexano-6-lactone) (PCL2) ®bers were degraded under environmental conditions, including soil burial, seawater exposure, and activated sludge exposure. The extent of degradation was examined by weight loss, loss of mechanical properties, such a tensile strength and ultimate elongation decreases, and visual observations by scanning electron microscopy. The rate of degradation was found to dep...

Successful embryo implantation and placentation depend on appropriate trophoblast invasion into the maternal endometrial stroma. Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is one of the earliest embryo-derived secreted signals in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) that abundantly expresses hCG receptors. The aims of this study were to estimate the effect of human embryo-secreted hCG on PBMC ...

The main objective of this effort has been the direct observation and monitoring of the burial process of finite-length cylinders (model mines) induced by the combined action of waves, currents and pure oscillatory flows. The experimental conditions have made it possible to observe the burial process due to both local scour around the mines as well as the passage of large sandwaves. These rathe...