gamma 2b transgenic mice have a severe B cell defect, apparently caused by strong feedback inhibition of endogenous H-gene rearrangement coupled with an inability of gamma 2b to provide the survival/maturation functions of mu. A unique gamma 2b transgenic line, named the C line, was found to permit B cell development. When the C line is crossed with a mu-membrane knockout line, gamma 2b+ B cell...

Von Willebrand disease (VWD) type 2B is characterized by mutations causing enhanced binding of von Willebrand factor (VWF) to platelets. Bleeding tendency is associated with heterogeneous clinical manifestations, including moderate to severe thrombocytopenia. The underlying mechanism of the thrombocytopenia has remained unclear. Here, a mouse model of VWD type 2B was used to investigate pathway...

pterygium is characterized by an elastic degeneration of the conjunctiva that extends across the limbos and invades the cornea. the recurrence rate is varied from 25-80% after primary closure to 6% with free conjunctival and iimbal grafts. several adjunctive therapies have been investigated for recurrent pte¬rygium. this article presents a 52-year-old athletic man who was seen for evaluation of...

Background—The cAMP-elevating A 2b adenosine receptor (A 2b AR) controls inflammation via its expression in bone marrow cells. Methods and Results—Atherosclerosis induced by a high-fat diet in apolipoprotein E– deficient mice was more pronounced in the absence of the A 2b AR. Bone marrow transplantation experiments indicated that A 2b AR bone marrow cell signals alone were not sufficient to eli...

Spined soldier bugs, Podisus maculiventris, are heteropteran insects that feed voraciously on other insects, particular the soft bodied larval forms of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera. The response of P. maculiventris Malpighian tubules (MTs) to serotonin and known diuretic and antidiuretic peptides has been investigated, and is compared with that of MT from the hematophagous and phytophagous hetero...

The Abelson-virus-transformed mouse pre-B-cell line 18-81 switches almost exclusively from mu to gamma 2b. From nuclear extracts of this cell line, we have isolated a factor that specifically binds to S gamma 2b. After an eight-step purification scheme, in which different types of DNA-affinity chromatography were used as key elements, we obtained a preparation with two narrowly spaced bands at ...

BACKGROUND The cAMP-elevating A(2b) adenosine receptor (A(2b)AR) controls inflammation via its expression in bone marrow cells. METHODS AND RESULTS Atherosclerosis induced by a high-fat diet in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice was more pronounced in the absence of the A(2b)AR. Bone marrow transplantation experiments indicated that A(2b)AR bone marrow cell signals alone were not sufficient to e...

Identifying the molecular basis for genotype-phenotype correlations in human diseases has direct implications for understanding the disease process and hence for the identification of potential therapeutic targets. To this end, we performed microarray expression analysis on benign (pheochromocytomas) and malignant (medullary thyroid carcinomas, MTCs) tumors from patients with multiple endocrine...

Montreal platelet syndrome (MPS), hitherto described in only one kindred, is a hereditary thrombocytopenia associated with mucocutaneous bleeding, giant platelets, and spontaneous platelet aggregation in vitro. These are features shared with some forms of type 2B von Willebrand disease (VWD); however, the MPS kindred had not been investigated for VWD. We found that all affected MPS family membe...

Identifying the molecular basis for genotype-phenotype correlations in human diseases has direct implications for understanding the disease process and hence for the identification of potential therapeutic targets. To this end, we performed microarray expression analysis on benign (pheochromocytomas) and malignant (medullary thyroid carcinomas, MTCs) tumors from patients with multiple endocrine...