Multicopper ferroxidases (MCFs) play an important role in cellular iron homeostasis. However, the role of MCFs in renal metabolism remains unclear. We used Hephaestin (Heph) and Ceruloplasmin (Cp) single or double (Heph/Cp) knockout (KO) mice to study the roles of MCFs in the kidney. Renal iron levels and the expression of iron metabolism genes were examined. The non-heme iron content both in t...

Blood-spinal cord barrier (BSCB) alterations, including capillary rupture, have been demonstrated in animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and ALS patients. To date, treatment to restore BSCB in ALS is underexplored. Here, we evaluated whether intravenous transplantation of human bone marrow CD34+ (hBM34+) cells into symptomatic ALS mice leads to restoration of capillary integrit...

On routine blood screens, persistent conjugated hyperbilirubinemia was discovered in two groups of closely related adult female golden lion tamarins (Leontopithecus rosalia rosalia, n = 8). Bromosulfophthalein (BSP) retention tests were performed on four hyperbilirubinemic and three control tamarins. BSP excretion was delayed in hyperbilirubinemic tamarins as compared with controls. Grossly, li...

Development of multifunctional nanoparticles that selectively target to human tumors for in vivo tumor imaging as well as inhibition of tumor growth holds a great promise for improving survival rate of cancer patients. In this study, we have engineered peptide conjugated superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles targeting to urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) or a single ch...

A Perls’ or Prussian blue stain (Figs 2.1 and 2.2) demonstrates haemosiderin in bone marrow macrophages and within erythroblasts. Consequently, it allows assessment of both the amount of iron in reticulo-endothelial stores and the availability of iron to developing erythroblasts. Assessment of storage iron requires that an adequate number of fragments are obtained. A bone marrow film or squash ...

OBJECTIVE To explore the migration of transplanted neural stem cells co-labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) and bromodeoxyuridine (Brdu) using the 4.7T MR system and to study the cell differentiation with immuno-histochemical method in ischemic rats. METHODS Rat neural stem cells (NSCs) co-labelled with SPIO mediated by poly-L-lysine and bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) were transplanted...

PURPOSE This study was performed to examine the treatment of erectile dysfunction by use of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles-labeled human mesenchymal stem cells (SPION-MSCs) transplanted into the cavernous nerve injured cavernosa of rats as monitored by molecular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MATERIALS AND METHODS Eight-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three ...

BACKGROUND Successful treatment of cancer with dendritic cell tumor vaccine is highly dependent on how effectively the vaccine migrates into lymph nodes and activates T cells. In this study, a simple method was developed to trace migration of dendritic cells to lymph nodes. METHODS Superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) of γ-Fe(2)O(3) nanoparticles were prepared to label dendritic cells generate...

BACKGROUND The use of ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIO) nanoparticles to visualize cells has been applied clinically, showing the potential for monitoring cells in vivo with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). USPIO conjugated with anti-CD133 antibodies (USPIO-CD133 Ab) that recognize the CD133 molecule, a cancer stem cell marker in a variety of cancers, was studied as a novel and p...