Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-2α is considered to play a major role in the progression of osteoarthritis. Recently, it was reported that pressure amplitude influences HIF-2α expression in murine endothelial cells. We examined whether hydrostatic pressure is involved in expression of HIF-2α in articular chondrocytes. Chondrocytes were cultured and stimulated by inflammation or hydrostatic press...

We investigate the miscibility phase behavior of lipid monolayers containing a wide variety of sterols. Six of the sterols satisfy a definition from an earlier study of "membrane-active sterols" in bilayers (cholesterol, epicholesterol, lathosterol, dihydrocholesterol, ergosterol, and desmosterol), and six do not (25-hydroxycholesterol, lanosterol, androstenolone, coprostanol, cholestane, and c...

Changes in ventricular extracellular matrix (ECM) composition of pressure overload hypertrophy determine clinical outcomes. The effects of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation upon determinants of ECM composition in pressure overload hypertrophy have not been studied. Sprague-Dawley rats underwent aortic banding and were followed by echocardiography. After an absolute decrease in fractio...

Isothermal phase diagrams for the semicrystalline poly-L-lactide (PLLA) and the amorphous poly-DL-lactide (PDLLA) in combination with several solvent-nonsolvent combinations (dioxane/water, dioxane/methanol, chloroform/methanol, and NMP/water) have been determined. The locations of the liquid-liquid miscibility gap, the solid-liquid miscibility gap and the vitrification boundary in the isotherm...

Two-component interactions between (perfluorooctyl) heptanol (F8H7OH) and dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), which is a major component of pulmonary surfactants in mammals, were systematically elucidated using Langmuir monolayers and Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films of the compounds. The interactions such as the miscibility of the compounds and their phase behavior were examined from thermodyna...

OBJECTIVE Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by chronic inflammation in the airway and lung. A protease-antiprotease imbalance has been suggested as a possible pathogenic mechanism for COPD. We evaluated the relationship between matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) levels and COPD severity. METHODS Plasma levels of MMP-1, MMP-8, MMP-9, and MMP-12 were measured in 57 COPD ...

A two-component Langmuir monolayer consisting of (perfluorobutyl)undecanol (F4H11OH) and dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), a major component of pulmonary surfactants in mammals, has been investigated at the air-water interface. The binary monolayer has been systematically examined from both thermodynamic and morphological perspectives. The excess Gibbs free energy of mixing has been calcul...