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- Andersson, Emil, et al.
(författare)
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Low pericyte coverage of endometrial microvessels in heavy menstrual bleeding correlates with the microvessel expression of VEGF-A.
- 2015
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - : Spandidos Publications. - 1791-244X .- 1107-3756. ; 35:2, s. 433-438
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A prospective clinical study was carried out to investigate whether endometrial microvessels in patients with idiopathic heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) of endometrial origin (HMB-E) are fragile due to low pericyte coverage. Idiopathic HMB-E is characterized by large endothelial cell gaps related to the microvascular overexpression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A and VEGF receptors 1-3. A total of 10 women with a normal menstrual cycle and a history of HMB of <5 years, and 17 healthy women with a normal menstrual cycle were recruited from the Karolinska University Hospital. Blood samples were obtained for hormone analysis and coagulation tests. Endometrial biopsies were collected in the proliferative or in the secretory phase. Pericyte coverage was assessed using immunohistochemical staining for smooth muscle actin-α (SMAα) and by image analysis (microvascular density) of endometrial biopsies from 10 patients with HMB-E and 17 healthy ovulating women (control subjects). Previously published data on endothelial cell gap size and the expression of VEGF receptors were used. Although microvascular density did not differ between the patients with HMB-E and the control subjects, the number of SMAα-positive microvessels in the proliferative phase was significantly (P=0.005) lower in the patients with HMB-E than in the control subjects. Moreover, the number of SMAα-positive microvessels in the control subjects was significantly fewer in the secretory (P=0.04) than in the proliferative phase, whereas this number did not differ among the patients with HMB-E regardless of phase. A significant negative correlation was observed between the number of VEGF-A-positive microvessels and microvessels with pericyte coverage (r=0.8; P=0.04). Finally, the endothelial cell layer was significantly thicker in the patients with HMB-E than in the control subjects. Thus, the upregulation of VEGF-A in idiopathic HMB-E is associated with a low pericyte coverage during the proliferative phase of intense angiogenesis, which may confer vessel fragility, possibly leading to excessive blood loss.
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- Andersson, Malin E, 1978, et al.
(författare)
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Kinesin gene variability may affect tau phosphorylation in early Alzheimer's disease.
- 2007
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Ingår i: International journal of molecular medicine. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 20:2, s. 233-9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Kinesin is a microtubule-associated motor protein that transports Alzheimer-associated amyloid precursor protein (APP) in neurons. In animal models, impaired kinesin-mediated APP transport seems to enhance formation of the neurotoxic 42 amino acid fragment of beta-amyloid (A beta 42). In man, one study suggests that a polymorphism (rs8702, 56,836G>C) in the kinesin light chain 1 gene (KNS2) may affect the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). To further assess KNS2 as a susceptibility gene for AD we analyzed 802 patients with sporadic AD and 286 controls, 134 longitudinally followed patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and 39 cognitively stable controls for the rs8702 polymorphism. The rs8702 polymorphism did not influence risk of AD (p=0.46). However, rs8702 interacted with APOE epsilon 4 carrier status in AD (p=0.006) and influenced cerebrospinal fluid levels of hyperphosphorylated tau in MCI patients who converted to AD during follow-up (p=0.018). These findings support earlier indications that genetic variability in the KNS2 gene may play a role during early stages of AD pathogenesis.
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- Basic, Vladimir T., 1982-, et al.
(författare)
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TNF stimulation induces VHL overexpression and impairs angiogenic potential in skeletal muscle myocytes
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - : Spandidos Publications. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 34:1, s. 228-236
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Decreased skeletal muscle capillarization is considered to significantly contribute to the development of pulmonary cachexia syndrome (PCS) and progressive muscle wasting in several chronic inflammatory diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). It is unclear to which extent the concurrent presence of systemic inflammation contributes to decreased skeletal muscle capillarization under these conditions. The present study was designed to examine in vitro the effects of the pro-inflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), on the regulation of hypoxia-angiogenesis signal transduction and capillarization in skeletal muscles. For this purpose, fully differentiated C2C12 skeletal muscle myocytes were stimulated with TNF and maintained under normoxic or hypoxic conditions. The expression levels of the putative elements of the hypoxia-angiogenesis signaling cascade were examined using qPCR, western blot analysis and immunofluorescence. Under normoxic conditinos, TNF stimulation increased the protein expression of anti-angiogenic von-Hippel Lindau (VHL), prolyl hydroxylase (PHD)2 and ubiquitin conjugating enzyme 2D1 (Ube2D1), as well as the total ubiquitin content in the skeletal muscle myocytes. By contrast, the expression levels of hypoxia-inducible factor 1‑α (HIF1-α) and those of its transcriptional targets, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)A and glucose transporter 1 (Glut1), were markedly reduced. In addition, hypoxia increased the expression of the VHL transcript and further elevated the VHL protein expression levels in C2C12 myocytes following TNF stimulation. Consequently, an impaired angiogenic potential was observed in the TNF-stimulated myocytes during hypoxia. In conclusion, TNF increases VHL expression and disturbs hypoxia-angiogenesis signal transduction in skeletal muscle myocytes. The current findings provide a mechanism linking systemic inflammation and impaired angiogenesis in skeletal muscle. This is particularly relevant to further understanding the mechanisms mediating muscle wasting and cachexia in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, such as COPD.
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- Bilbija, Dusan, et al.
(författare)
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Expression of retinoic acid target genes in coronary artery disease
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - Athens, Greece : Spandidos Publications. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 33:3, s. 677-86
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Coronary atherosclerosis can lead to myocardial infarction, and secondarily to post-infarct remodelling and heart failure. Retinoic acid (RA) influences cell proliferation. We hypothesized that RA could influence gene expression and proliferation of cardiovascular cells. Left ventricular biopsies from patients with end-stage heart failure due to coronary artery disease (CAD) or dilated cardiomyopathy were investigated for the content of RA metabolites using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), and compared with healthy donors. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) was increased in the hearts of CAD patients. Gene expression (quantitative PCR) of RA target genes was not influenced in failing hearts, but was increased in the hearts of patients with CAD undergoing open heart surgery. The expression of RA target genes was increased in atherosclerotic lesions from carotid arteries compared to healthy arteries. Stimulation of cardiomyocytes, cardiofibroblasts, smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells with ATRA increased the gene expression of the key enzymes. Cardiofibroblast and smooth muscle cell proliferation were reduced by ATRA, which increased endothelial cell proliferation. Coronary artery disease leads to increased expression of RA target genes. ATRA accumulated in the failing human heart. All investigated cell types present in the heart had induced expression of RA target genes when stimulated with ATRA, which also influenced cell proliferation.
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- Böttiger, Anna K., 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Association of total plasma homocysteine with methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase genotypes 677C > T, 1298A > C, and 1793G > A and the corresponding haplotypes in Swedish children and adolescents
- 2007
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - Athens, Greece : D.A. Spandidos. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 19:4, s. 659-665
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We studied 692 Swedish children and adolescents (aged 9-10 or 15-16 years, respectively), in order to evaluate the effect of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) 677C > T, 1298A > C, and 1793G > A polymorphisms on total plasma homocysteine concentrations (tHcy). Genotyping was performed with Pyrosequencing (TM) technology. The MTHFR 677C > T polymorphism was associated with increased tHcy concentrations in both the children and the adolescents (P < 0.001 for both age groups) in both genders. The effect of MTHFR 1298A > C was studied separately in subjects with the 677CC and 677CT genotypes, and the 1298C allele was found to be associated with higher tHcy levels both when children were stratified according to 677C > T genotypes, and when using haplotype analyses and diplotype reconstructions. The 1793A allele was in complete linkage disequilibrium with the 1298C allele. It was still possible to show that the 1793A allele was associated with lower tHcy levels, statistically significant in the adolescents. In conclusion, a haplotype-based approach was slightly superior in explaining the genetic interaction on tHcy plasma levels in children and adolescents than a simple genotype based approach (R-2 adj 0.44 vs. 0.40). The major genetic impact on tHcy concentrations is attributable to the MTHFR 677C > T polymorphism. The common 1298A > C polymorphism had a minor elevating effect on tHcy, whereas the 1793G > A polymorphism had a lowering effect on tHcy.
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- Böttiger, Anna K., et al.
(författare)
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Mutations in exons 2 and 3 of the FOLR1 gene in demented and non-demented elderly subjects
- 2007
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - Athens, Greece : D.A. Spandidos. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 20:5, s. 653-662
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have previously reported six novel mutations in the 5'-UTR of the gene for folate receptor-alpha (FOLR1). In our search for additional mutations we screened patients, referred for investigation of suspected dementia (DGM subgroup) by SSCP and DNA sequencing from the end of exon 1 to the first bases of intron 3. We found 4 sequence variations, FOLR1 g.1314G>A, g.1816delC, g.1841G>A, and g.1928C>T. Pyrosequencing genotyping assays were developed for all of them, and 389 active seniors (AS subgroup) and the 202 DGM patients were genotyped for these mutations. The frequency q of the mutated allele was, among the AS subjects, 0.068, 0.0026, 0.0026, and 0.024 respectively, and among the DGM subjects, 0.067, 0.0076, 0.0078, and 0.023. The g.1816delC and g.1841G>A mutations thus were more frequent in the DGM than in the AS subgroup, but the difference did not reach statistical significance. The mutated alleles, FOLR1 1816(-) and 1841A, always occurred together in the same subjects, suggestive of a rare double-mutant haplotype. The two common polymorphisms, FOLR1 g. 1314G>A and g.1928C>T seemed not to raise tHcy plasma levels, whereas the double-mutated g.1816(-)-g.1841A haplotype may possibly have a slight tHcy-raising effect. Thus, so far 8 novel rare FOLR1 mutations with a combined prevalence of approximately 1.3% in Whites as well as two common polymorphisms with 5% and 13%, respectively, have been demonstrated. Only a few of the rare mutations may potentially be associated with raised plasma tHcy concentrations. No association with dementia was found.
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