Abstract Introduction In mammals, placenta separation at term may involve degradation of the extracellular matrix by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). The activity of MMPs is modulated by TIMPs. We ...hypothesized that the placentas of mares that deliver fetal membranes physiologically and those that retain fetal membranes (FMR) differ in terms of histology; mRNA expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9; protein expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, and TIMP-2; and the potential activity of both MMPs. Methods Placenta biopsies were taken from mares (n = 9; 4 FMR, 5 controls) immediately after foal expulsion. Retention was defined as failure to expel all fetal membranes within 3 h of expulsion. All mares were monitored for time of expulsion. The degree of allantochorial/endometrial adhesion was determined in FMR mares, and biopsies from all mares were histologically examined. mRNA expression, protein immunolocalization, protein amount and potential enzyme activity were determined with RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry, Western Blotting and zymography, respectively. Results FMR mares had strong to extremely strong allantochorial/endometrial adhesion, and significantly more connective tissue in the allantochorial villi than controls. The range of MMP-2 mRNA expression levels was more than 13 times greater in FMR mares than in controls. Protein content of both MMPs and TIMP-2 differed significantly between groups. The range of potential MMP-2 and MMP-9 activity was larger in FMR mares, and MMP-2 potential activity was 1.4 times higher in controls (P = 0.02). Discussion These results indicate differences in extracellular matrix remodeling in FMR mares and controls, and suggest dysregulation of MMP expression and activation in FMR mares.
The autoimmune reaction is recently suspected to play a role in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD). As COPD is a systemic disease, the elements of an autoimmune response in ...circulatory system is of interest. It has been shown that regulatory T cells are important in the control of autoimmunity. There are some data on a role of adiponectin in the regulation of immune reactions. The objective of this study was to assess the elements of autoimmune reaction in the peripheral blood (PB) of patients with COPD. Twenty-eight patients with mild/moderate COPD and 20 healthy volunteers were investigated. Flow cytometry method with mixtures of monoclonal antibodies anti: CD14/CD45, CD3/CD19, CD4/CD25/CTLA4 and CD8/CD25 were used. Concentration of adiponectin was measured using ELISA method. We observed significantly lower proportion of CD4+/CD25+ as well as CD4+/CD25+ high cells in COPD patients than in healthy controls (15.3 versus 17.8% and 0.79 versus 1.54%, respectively, P < 0.05). The proportion of CTLA4+ cells in CD25+ cells and the mean fluorescence of CTLA4 on CD4+ cells were higher in patients than in healthy controls (10.4 versus 4.7%, P < 0.05, 189% versus 149%, non significant, respectively). We found significantly elevated concentration of adiponectin in patients when compared to healthy subjects (15.4 versus 8.5 μl/ml, P < 0.05). We found that the adiponectin/BMI ratio correlated with the decrease of FEV₁%. The results of this study support the possible role of CD4/CD25/CTLA4 cells and adiponectin in the systemic inflammation in COPD.
Endometrial and cervical carcinoma are common neoplasms in gynecological oncology. The prognosis and treatment depend on the stage of the cancer according to the FIGO staging system. Stage IAl may be ...treated by hysterectomy or even local surgical procedures. For Stage IA2, radical hysterectomy and lymphadenectomy must be performed. Lymph node metastasis is an important prognostic factor in both cancers, however lymphadenectomy is associated with long-term complications. Thanks to the sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB), we can more accurately discover the staging of the primary tumor, and in case of sentinel lymph node (SLN) negative patients, can resign regional lymphadenectomy. Some researchers claim that new techniques such as indocyanine green (ICG) and endoscopic near-infrared fluorescence imaging for sentinel node mapping can be used instead of the traditional techniques.
To establish the role of sentinel node mapping technique in endometrial and cervical cancer.
A retrospective study of medical records of five patients with cervical cancer (first group) Stage I and nine patients (second group) who underwent laparoscopic radical hysterectomy and SLNB or group of lymph nodes. These procedures were performed at Gynecology Department of the District Hospital in Garwolin.
All lymph nodes were clear of metastases. All patients after histopathological diagnosis were finally referred to the Cancer Centre and Institute of Oncology due to consultation or for further treatment.
Based on the present first results and literature review, intracervical ICG injection with fluorescence imaging seems to be the best SLN mapping technique, because of its simplicity, safety, and overall lower cost. More data is required to determine if the nodes identified with this technique are able to predict metastatic disease.
The structural investigations of thick undoped GaInNAs/GaAs heterostructures grown by atmospheric pressure vapor phase epitaxy (AP-MOVPE) have been performed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) ...and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The cross-sectional view TEM images revealed plainly heterogeneous layer structure, consisting of a few sublayers with different indium and nitrogen contents. On the other hand, planar-view TEM images revealed 2D network of misfit dislocations oriented in two orthogonal 〈110〉 crystallographic directions at the (001) sublayer interface. Moreover, the XRD measurements provide information about gradient profiles of indium and nitrogen contents, as well as distinct anisotropy of strain relaxation in GaInNAs epitaxial layer, evoked by the asymmetry in formation of interfacial misfit dislocation. The obtained results were exploited to calculate the band structure diagram of the investigated GaInNAs/GaAs heterostructure and mean values of the lattice parameters of the distorted epitaxial layer unit cell, respectively.
•TEM and XRD were used for characterizing undoped GaInNAs layers grown by MOVPE.•Heterogeneous layer structure and gradient compositions were revealed.•Asymmetric formation of misfit dislocations evoked anisotropy of strain relaxation.•Modified band structure and epitaxial layer unit cell parameters were calculated.•Optimized growth conditions are needed to avoid structural inhomogeneities.
The essence of autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) is loss of tolerance of own tissues caused by malfunction of T lymphocytes, which affects the production of antibodies reacting with particular cell ...structures and tissues. Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) take part in the regulation of immune response and play a leading role in developing immune tolerance through active suppression. The aim of the study was to estimate the expression of CD4+CD25(high), CD4+CD25+CD127(low)FoxP3(+) and CD4+ FoxP3 T cells in patients with Graves' disease (GD) (n = 24, median age 15.5 years), in patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) (n = 30, median age 15 years) in comparison with sex- and age-matched healthy control subjects (n = 30, median age 15 years). Polychromatic flow cytometry using a FACSCalibur (BD Biosciences) cytometer was applied to delineate T regulatory cell populations. In untreated patients with Graves' disease and HT we observed a significant decrease in CD4+FoxP3 (p < 0.001, p < 0.01) and CD4+CD25(high) (p < 0.016, p < 0.048) T lymphocytes as compared to the healthy control subjects. After 6-12 months of L-thyroxine therapy in HT cases these phenotypes of Tregs were normalized, yet no such changes were observed during GD therapy. The analysis of CD4+CD25+CD127(low)FoxP3+ T cells in the peripheral blood revealed comparable percentages of these cells in patients with thyroid autoimmune diseases to the controls. We conclude that the reduction number of Tregs with CD4+CD25(high) and CD4+FoxP3 phenotype suggests their role in initiation and development of autoimmune process in thyroid disorders.
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Dostopno za:
DOBA, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
In liver, the most intensively studied transmembrane and intracellular signal transduction pathways are the Janus kinase signal transduction pathway, the mitogen-activated protein kinases signal ...transduction pathway, the transforming growth factor beta signal transduction pathway, the tumor necrosis factor alpha signal transduction pathway and the recently discovered sphingolipid signal transduction pathway. All of them are activated by many different cytokines and growth factors. They regulate specific cell mechanisms such as hepatocytes proliferation, growth, differentiation, adhesion, apoptosis, and synthesis and degradation of the extracellular matrix. The replication cycle of hepatitis C virus (HCV) is intracellular and requires signal transduction to the nucleus to regulate transcription of its genes. Moreover, HCV itself, by its structural and non-structural proteins, could influence the activity of the second signal messengers. Thus, the inhibition of the transmembrane and intracellular signal transduction pathways could be a new therapeutic target in chronic hepatitis C treatment.
Electrical properties of commercial silicon carbide (SiC) Schottky rectifiers are investigated through the measurement and analysis of the forward current-voltage (I-V) and reverse ...capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics in a large temperature range. Some of devices show distinct discrepancies in specific ranges of their electrical characteristics, especially the excess current dominates at voltage <1 V and temperature <300 K. Standard deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) revealed the presence of a single deep-level defect with activation energy of about 0.3 eV, exhibiting the features characteristic for extended defects (e.g. dislocations), such as logarithmic capture kinetics. Furthermore, high-resolution Laplace DLTS showed that this deep level consists actually of three closely spaced levels with activation energies ranging from about 0.26 eV to 0.29 eV. A strong correlation between these two techniques implies that the revealed trap level is due to extended defects surrounded by point traps or clusters of defects. On the basis of obtained specific features of the deep-level defect, it was proposed that this defect is arguably responsible for the observed Schottky barrier inhomogeneities.
Carbazole skeleton plays a significant role as a structural scaffold of many pharmacologically active compounds. Pyrazine-functionalized carbazole derivative was constructed by coupling ...2-amino-5-bromo-3-methylaminepyrazine (ABMAP) into 3 and 6 positions of the carbazole ring. Multi-experimental methods were used, e.g., potentiometric, spectroscopic (ATR, UV, XRD powder,
H and
C NMR), electrochemical (cyclic voltammetry), and optical techniques, to receive the complete structural analysis, physicochemical (pKa, logP) and biological profile of a new carbazole derivative with acronym 3,6-PIRAMICAR. The interaction ability of the compound studied with potential cellular targets like Calf Thymus DNA (CT-DNA), or Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) were also taken into account. Experiments showed the existence of strong binding, but no DNA or BSA cleavage was observed. The comparative analyzes of compounds anti-Candida action clearly show pH-dependent antifungal activity of 3,6-PIRAMICAR, which was strongly stimulated in the acidic media. Surprisingly, the titled compound turn out to be much more effective (14 times by MIC50; 8 times by MIC; c.a. 4 times by MFC) against Candida krusei than fluconazole at pH 4.
When documenting historical structures and objects, especially delicate artefacts such as pieces of sacred art, only techniques that allow remote, non-contact methods that enable the most precise ...measurements should be used to obtain data. TLS can be considered as such a technique however in order to obtain complete information for the entire structure, there is usually a need to acquire data from more than one measuring station. In this case, the most important and essential step of processing TLS data is the registration of scans. The paper contains a description of research and analyses concerning the registration of point clouds using three methods: manual, automatic and a combination of the two. The research was carried on measurement data from a historical synagogue. The structure was divided into three parts – three scans. The accuracy with which these scans were registered was assessed and a 3D model of the interior was created.
Peripheral blood monocyte (PBM) subsets play different roles in inflammatory response and tissue remodelling. The aim of this study was to investigate how allergen challenge affects the number of ...circulating PBMs in Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dp) allergic patients (Dp‐APs). Among 34 Dp‐APs challenged, in 22 patients significant bronchoconstriction was demonstrated responders (Rs), while in 12, only upper respiratory symptoms were seen non‐responders (NRs). Twelve healthy, non‐atopic subjects were used as controls (HCs). Expression of CD14, CD16 and CCR4 was evaluated by flow cytometry on the whole‐blood samples before (T0), 6 h (T6) and 24 h (T24) after the challenge. Plasma concentrations of CCL2, CX3CL1 and CCL17 were evaluated using ELISA. At T0, the mean percentage of CD14++ CD16+ PBMs in Rs (35.4%; 95%CI 26.9–43.9%) was significantly greater than in HCs (14.6%; 95%CI 7.3–21.8%; P = 0.006) and in NRs (17.5%; 95%CI 9.6–25.4%; P = 0.001). The baseline number of CD14++ CD16+ PBMs correlated with airway hyper responsiveness (AHR) (r = −0.507; 95%CI −0.834 to −0.432, P < 0.001). At T24, the number of CD14++ CD16+ PBMs significantly decreased in Rs but not in NRs and the numbers inversely correlated with plasma CCL17 concentration. Changes in the number of circulating CD14++ CD16+ cells after Dp challenge correlated with AHR (r = 0.706, 95%CI 0.43–0.861; P < 0.001). In all subjects, the greatest expression of CCR4 was found on CD14++ CD16+ PBMs. Expansion of CD14++ CD16+ monocytes in the peripheral blood with subsequent mobilization of those cells after allergen challenge may facilitate the development of AHR in Dp‐APs.
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