INTRODUCTION The role for inflammation and fibrosis as predictive histopathological markers for renal function has been discussed in several studies. Aim of our investigation was to evaluate the clinico-pathological correlation of myofibroblasts expression as markers for initial development of fibrotic processes and macrophagic infiltration in a population with impaired renal function, in order...

AIM To investigate the effects of transforming growth factor β2 (TGF-β2) and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) on transdifferentiation of human lens epithelial cells (HLECs) cultured in vitro and synthesis of extracellular matrix (ECM). METHODS HLECs were treated with TGF-β2 (0, 0.5, 1.0, 5, 10µg/L) and CTGF (0, 15, 30, 60, 100µg/L) for different times (0, 24, 48, 72h) in vitro and the e...

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is an aggressive cancer with a poor prognosis. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) affect tumorigenesis by creating an environment primed for growth and invasion through the secretion of factors, including hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1). In the present study, the levels of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), TGFβ1 a...

The present study aimed to determine the underlying molecular mechanism of the antifibrotic effect of artesunate in pulmonary fibrosis (PF). Primary lung fibroblasts were isolated from the lung tissues of rats, and treated with artesunate (8 µg/ml) and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 (5 ng/ml). For in vivo experiments, the rats were administered bleomycin intratracheally, followed by daily ...

Low-grade myofibroblastic sarcoma (LGMS) is a distinct mesenchymal myofibroblastic malignancy. The tumor may occur at a variety of sites, but is particularly associated with the head and neck. Of the two maxillary sarcomas that were analyzed in the present study, one was misdiagnosed as an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor during pre-operative excision biopsy, and later presented with a differ...

Response gene to complement 32 (RGC-32) is a downstream target of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β). TGF-β is known to play a pathogenic role in renal fibrosis. In this study, we investigated RGC-32 function in renal fibrosis following unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) in mice, a model of progressive tubulointerstitial fibrosis. RGC-32 is normally expressed only in blood vessels of mouse...

BACKGROUND Cancer-associated stromal cells interact with carcinoma cells and thus participate in tumor growth. Our aim was to characterize the ultrastructure and contractile properties of stromal cells in collagen gel cultured from lung cancer of various histological types and from tumor-free lung. METHODS Cells cultured from lung cancer (13 adenocarcinomas, six squamous cell carcinomas, one ...

Aims: Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is a phenolic acid that has a wide range of pharmacological effects. However, the protective effects and mechanisms of CGA on liver fibrosis are not clear. This study explored the effects of CGA on miR-21-regulated TGF-β1/Smad7 liver fibrosis in the hepatic stellate LX2 cell line and in CCl4-induced liver fibrosis in Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: The mRNA expression...

OBJECTIVE Extracellular matrix proteinases are implicated in the pathogenesis of calcific aortic valve disease. The ADAMTS5 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 5) enzyme is secreted, matrix-associated metalloendopeptidase, capable of degrading extracellular matrix proteins, particularly matrilin 2. We sought to determine the role of the ADAMTS5/matrilin 2 axis in med...

RATIONALE Myofibroblasts typically appear in the myocardium after insults to the heart like mechanical overload and infarction. Apart from contributing to fibrotic remodeling, myofibroblasts induce arrhythmogenic slow conduction and ectopic activity in cardiomyocytes after establishment of heterocellular electrotonic coupling in vitro. So far, it is not known whether α-smooth muscle actin (α-SM...