The dependence of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) on its NF-kappaB binding sites (kappaB sites) for replication in transformed and primary T-cell targets was examined by infecting cells with HIV-1 reporter viruses containing kappaB site enhancer mutations. Viral transcription was measured either with luciferase-expressing HIV-1 that infects for a single round or by flow cytometric a...

Thrombopoietin receptor c-mpl is expressed on hematopoietic progenitors and cells of the megakaryocytic lineage. The c-mpl promoter may, therefore, be useful for directing the expression of transgenes. We tested whether a 2-kb genomic DNA fragment comprising the putative c-mpl regulatory elements and most of the 5'-untranslated region of mouse c-mpl is able to direct the expression of a reporte...

Stable reconstitution of vascular endothelial beds upon transplantation of progenitor cells represents an important challenge due to the paucity and generally limited integration/expansion potential of most identified vascular related cell subsets. We previously showed that mouse fetal liver (FL) hemato/vascular cells from day 12 of gestation (E12), expressing the Stem Cell Leukaemia (SCL) gene...

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) is the enzyme responsible for the hydrolysis of plasma triglycerides from apolipoprotein C-II-containing lipoproteins at the capillary endothelium and it is synthesized in parenchymal cells of several tissues. Intracellular LPL processing is a major aspect of LPL regulation. The present study aims to determine the intracellular accumulation site of the LPL that is not g...

As part of the development of enzyme-mediated cancer imaging and therapy, a novel technology to entrap water-insoluble radioactive molecules within solid tumors, we show that a water-soluble, radioactive quinazolinone prodrug, ammonium 2-(2'-phosphoryloxyphenyl)-6-[125I]iodo-4-(3H)-quinazolinone (125IQ(2-P)), is hydrolyzed by alkaline phosphatase to a water-insoluble, radiolabeled drug, 2-(2'-h...

The evolution of the alkaline phosphatase (AP) gene family has lead to the existence in humans of one tissue-nonspecific (TNAP) and three tissue-specific isozymes, i.e. intestinal (IAP), germ cell (GCAP), and placental AP (PLAP). To define the structural differences between these isozymes, we have built models of the TNAP, IAP, and GCAP molecules based on the 1.8-structure of PLAP(1) and have p...

Background: Testicular Carcinoma in situ (CIS), also known as intratubular germ cell neoplasia (ITGCN), is a pre-invasive precursor of testicular germ cell tumours (TCGTs), i.e seminomas and non-seminomas -the commonest cancer type of male adolescents and young adults- which can be diagnosed using a surgical biopsy. Infertility is one of the condition known to predispose to TGCT, but based on s...

Despite the apparent link between the presence of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and various cancers, it has so far been difficult to determine distinct differences between seminoma-derived ALP and placental ALP (PLAP). In order to determine specificity, we purified ALP from a seminoma type of human testicular cancer tissue and compared its biochemical and immunological properties with those of PLA...