A membrane-bound sialidase was isolated from blood stream (BS) Trypanosoma evansi partially purified and characterized. The enzyme is a glycosyl phosphatidyl inositol (GPI) membrane anchored protein. It was solubilized from T. evansi cells recovered from infected camel blood by detergent treatment with Triton CF 54 and partially purified by a series of chromatography steps. The enzyme was optim...

BACKGROUND Redox-active iron, a catalyst in the production of hydroxyl radicals via the Fenton reaction, is one of the key participants in ROS-induced tissue injury and general inflammation. According to our recent findings, an excess of tissue iron is involved in several airway-related pathologies such as nasal polyposis and asthma. OBJECTIVE To examine the anti-inflammatory properties of a ...

OBJECTIVE We sought to identify novel atherosclerosis-modifying loci and their potential functional links in a genome-wide approach using cosegregation analysis of atherosclerosis and related intermediate phenotypes in mice. METHODS AND RESULTS We carried out an F2 intercross between atherosclerosis-susceptible C57BL/6 mice and atherosclerosis-resistant BALB/cByJ mice on the low-density lipop...

BACKGROUND Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is potent hepatotoxic and hepatocarcinogenic agent. In aflatoxicosis, oxidative stress is a common mechanism contributing to initiation and progression of hepatic damage. The aim of this work was to evaluate the hepatoprotective effect of cactus cladode extract (CCE) on aflatoxin B1-induced liver damage in mice by measuring malondialdehyde (MDA) level, the protein...

Introduction: Asthma is characterized by inflammation and constriction of the upper airways (airway hyper-responsiveness), when exposed to ambient irritants. There is currently substantial interest in understanding asthma pathophysiology through the use of animal models [1]. In these studies, animals are typically treated with the bronchoconstrictor Methacholine (MCh), and airway hyperresponsiv...

Bone metastases are a common occurrence in several malignancies, including breast, prostate, and lung. Once established in bone, tumors are responsible for significant morbidity and mortality. Thus, there is a significant need to understand the molecular mechanisms controlling the establishment, growth and activity of tumors in bone. Several in vivo models have been established to study these e...

Lofgren, Jennifer L. S., Melissa R. Mazan, Edward P. Ingenito, Kara Lascola, Molly Seavey, Ashley Walsh, and Andrew M. Hoffman. Restrained whole body plethysmography for measure of strain-specific and allergen-induced airway responsiveness in conscious mice. J Appl Physiol 101: 1495–1505, 2006. First published July 20, 2006; doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00464.2006.—The mouse is the most extensively...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the capacity of BR55, an ultrasound contrast agent specifically targeting vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2), to distinguish the specific anti-VEGFR2 therapy effect of sunitinib from other anti-angiogenic effects of a therapy (imatinib) that does not directly inhibit VEGFR2. Sunitinib, imatinib and placebo were administered daily for 11 ...