The generation of Abs that recognize the native conformation of G protein-coupled receptors can be a challenging task because, like most multimembrane-spanning proteins, they are extremely difficult to purify as native protein. By combining genetic immunization, phage display, and biopanning, we identified two functional monovalent Abs (nanobodies) targeting ChemR23. The two nanobodies (CA4910 ...

BACKGROUND To evaluate serum chemerin levels in patients with osteoporosis and healthy controls and to investigate the relationship between serum chemerin levels and bone mineral density (BMD). METHODS An age- and gender-matched case-control study was conducted. Pearson's correlation test was performed to investigate the relationship between serum chemerin levels and BMD. RESULTS There were...

The novel adipokine chemerin has been related to insulin-resistant states such as obesity and non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, its association with insulin resistance and beta cell function remains controversial. The main objective was to examine whether serum chemerin levels associate with insulin sensitivity and beta cell function independently of body mass index (BMI), by ...

OBJECTIVE Obesity and hypertension are comorbid in epidemic proportion, yet their biological connection is largely a mystery. The peptide chemerin is a candidate for connecting fat deposits around the blood vessel (perivascular adipose tissue) to arterial contraction. We presently tested the hypothesis that chemerin is expressed in perivascular adipose tissue and is vasoactive, supporting the e...

Chemerin is a novel adipokine associated with obesity and metabolic syndrome and previous studies indicate that chemerin may also function as a stimulator of angiogenesis. However, the underlying mechanism of its regulatory role in angiogenesis remains unclear. In this study, we determined the role of autophagy in chemerininduced angiogenesis of RF/6A cells. Proliferation, migration and angioge...

Chemerin is a potent macrophage chemoattractant protein. We used murine peritoneal exudate cells (PECs) in adhesion, flow cytometry, and confocal microscopy assays to test the hypothesis that chemerin can also contribute to inflammation by promoting macrophage adhesion. Chemerin stimulated the adhesion of PECs to the extracellular matrix protein fibronectin and to the adhesion molecule VCAM-1 w...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to examine the association between serum level of chemerin with AIS and carotid artery atherosclerosis, and to investigate the level of chemerin as a potential novel cerebrovascular risk factor. MATERIAL AND METHODS We compared the serum chemerin levels and cerebrovascular parameters between 70 AIS patients and 70 non-AIS subjects in a Chinese population. ...

Chemerin is a chemotactic protein that induces migration of several immune cells including macrophages, immature dendritic cells, and NK cells. Chemerin binds to three G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), including CCRL2. The exact function of CCRL2 remains unclear. CCRL2 expression is rapidly upregulated during inflammation, but it lacks the intracellular DRYLAIV motif required for classical G...

INTRODUCTION Chemerin is a chemotactic agonist identified as a ligand for ChemR23 that is expressed on macrophages and dendritic cells (DCs). In this study, we analyzed the expression of chemerin and ChemR23 in the synovium of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and the stimulatory effects of chemerin on fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) from RA patients. METHODS Chemerin and ChemR23 express...

Adipokines, adipocyte-derived protein, have important roles in various kinds of physiology including energy homeostasis. Chemerin, one of adipocyte-derived adipokines, is highly expressed in differentiated adipocytes and is known to induce macrophage chemotaxis and glucose intolerance. The objective of the present study was to investigate the changes of chemerin and the chemokine-like-receptor ...