Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and degenerative disease that impacts central nervous system (CNS) function. One of the major characteristics of the disease is the presence of regions lacking ...myelin and an oxidative and inflammatory environment. TGF-β1 and Nrf2 proteins play a fundamental role in different oxidative/inflammatory processes linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as MS. The evidence from different experimental settings has demonstrated a TGF-β1-Nrf2 signaling crosstalk under pathological conditions. However, this possibility has not been explored in experimental models of MS. Here, by using the cuprizone-induced demyelination model of MS, we report that the in vivo pharmacological blockage of the TGF-β1 receptor reduced Nrf2, catalase, and TGFβ-1 protein levels in the demyelination phase of cuprizone administration. In addition, ATP production, locomotor function and cognitive performance were diminished by the treatment. Altogether, our results provide evidence for a crosstalk between TGF-β1 and Nrf2 signaling pathways under CNS demyelination, highlighting the importance of the antioxidant cellular response of neurodegenerative diseases such as MS.
Abstract
Objective Studies in pulmonary arteries (PA) of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) suggest that bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells (CD133+) may ...infiltrate the intima and differentiate into smooth muscle cells (SMC). This study aimed to evaluate the plasticity of CD133+ cells to differentiate into SMC and endothelial cells (EC) in both cell culture and human isolated PA.
Methods Plasticity of granulocyte-colony stimulator factor (G-CSF)-mobilized peripheral blood CD133+ cells was assessed in co-cultures with primary lines of human PA endothelial cells (PAEC) or SMC (PASMC) and in isolated human PA. We also evaluated if the phenotype of differentiated progenitor cells was acquired by fusion or differentiation.
Results The in vitro studies demonstrated CD133+ cells may acquire the morphology and phenotype of the cells they were co-cultured with. CD133+ cells co-incubated with human isolated PA were able to migrate into the intima and differentiate into SMC. Progenitor cell differentiation was produced without fusion with mature cells.
Conclusions We provide evidence of plasticity of CD133+ cells to differentiate into both endothelial cells and SMC, reinforcing the idea of their potential role in the remodeling process of PA in COPD. This process was conducted by transdifferentiation and not by cell fusion.
Abstract
Introduction
The prevalence of high levels of stress as well as its multilevel consequences is well documented amongst students in the health sciences, and particularly in dentistry. ...However, investigations of perceived stress amongst
S
panish‐speaking student groups are sparse. This study aimed to (i) describe the translation, adaptation and psychometric properties of a Spanish version of the Dental Environment Stressors questionnaire and (ii) to examine the perceived sources of stress and their associations with the students' study year and gender in two dental schools in
L
atin
A
merica.
Materials and methods
All students officially registered in the dental schools of the
U
niversity of
S
an
S
ebastian (
USS
) in
C
hile and the
C
atholic
U
niversity of
C
ordoba (
CUC
) in Argentina were invited to participate in the study. The
DES
30 questionnaire was adapted in
S
panish using translation/back‐translation, an expert bilingual committee, and consensus building. Cronbach's
alpha
was used to measure the instrument's internal consistency, and iterated principal factor analysis with promax rotation was employed to explore its underlying factor structure. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate methods were used to examine the patterns of association between individual stressors, factor scores and students' characteristics.
Results
Three hundred and four students comprised the study's analytical sample, with two‐thirds of those being female. The
DES
30‐
S
p demonstrated good internal consistency (
C
ronbach's α
= 0.89). A four‐factor solution emerged and included ‘academic workload’, ‘clinical training’, ‘time constraints’ and ‘self‐efficacy beliefs’ factors. ‘Fear of failing a course or a year’, ‘examinations and grades’ and ‘lack of time for relaxation’ were amongst the top individual‐item stressors reported by students in both schools. Amongst this group of undergraduate dental students, those in
A
rgentina, in higher study year, and females reported higher perceived stress.
Conclusions
Increased workload, time constraints and some aspects of clinical training were the top stressors of approximately 300
C
hilean and
A
rgentinean dental undergraduates. Some variations between schools, males and females and study years were noted. The
S
panish version of the
DES
30 questionnaire performed well, but future studies should evaluate the instrument's properties in larger and more diverse dental student populations.
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