Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) has been implicated in many processes during normal and pathological pregnancies. In the human fetal membranes, PTHrP exhibits cytokine-like actions. We have recently shown that inhibitors of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB) and activators of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-gamma signalling pathways down-regulate cytokine r...

There is accumulating evidence that omega-3 fatty acids may modulate immune responses. When monocytes were differentiated to dendritic cells (DCs) in the presence of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the expression of costimulatory and antigen presentation markers was altered in a concentration-dependent way, positively or negatively, depending on the markers tested and the maturation stage of the DC...

We previously reported a syndrome of severe hyperinsulinemia and early-onset hypertension in three patients with dominant-negative mutations in the nuclear hormone receptor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-gamma. We now report the results of further detailed pathophysiological evaluation of these subjects, the identification of affected prepubertal children within one of the or...

OBJECTIVES PPAR-gamma agonists are able to inhibit pituitary tumour development and tumoral hormonal secretion in rodents both in vitro and in vivo. Their use for treatment of Cushing Disease (CD) has been suggested but the clinical experience with the two PPAR-gamma agonists commercially available (rosiglitazone and pioglitazone) was not impressive. Short-time treatment has been proposed to be...

Reactive oxygen species-scavenging enzyme Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD) regulated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) plays an important role in vascular responsiveness. However, it remains unknown whether statin restores vascular dysfunction through the activation of reactive oxygen species-scavenging enzymes in vivo. We hypothesized that pitavastatin restores vascular fu...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a multiorgan systemic disease. The systemic features are skeletal muscle weakness and cachexia, the latter being associated with systemic inflammation. The exact mechanisms underlying skeletal muscle dysfunction in COPD remain obscure. Recent evidence suggests involvement of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) and PPAR-gamma co...

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a naturally occurring peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR gamma) ligand, exhibits proapoptotic, immunomodulatory, and anticancer properties. In this study, we examined the biological effects of CLA administration in the MRL/MpJ-Fas(lpr) mouse, an animal model of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We found that CLA exerted apparently opposed ac...

More than 10 million people worldwide are living with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The ages of people who have Parkinson are variable, usually between 50 and 80 years, the average of them is 55 years old. The symptoms of PD are progressive, and within 10 to 20. It happens when dopaminergic neurons were being degenerate. Peripheral and central inflammatory and oxidative stress pathways play a...