44 research outputs found
Future Exoplanet Research: Science Questions and How to Address Them
Started approximately in the late 1980s, exoplanetology has up to now
unveiled the main gross bulk characteristics of planets and planetary systems.
In the future it will benefit from more and more large telescopes and advanced
space missions. These instruments will dramatically improve their performance
in terms of photometric precision, detection speed, multipixel imaging,
high-resolution spectroscopy, allowing to go much deeper in the knowledge of
planets. Here we outline some science questions which should go beyond these
standard improvements and how to address them. Our prejudice is that one is
never too speculative: experience shows that the speculative predictions
initially not accepted by the community have been confirmed several years later
(like spectrophotometry of transits or circumbinary planets).Comment: Invited review, accepte
Taking lessons from dendritic cells: multiple xenogeneic ligands for leukocyte integrins have the potential to stimulate anti-tumor immunity
The CG-1 gene, a member of the kinectin and ES/130 family, maps to human chromosome band 14q22
Expression of cytoglobin by adeno-associated virus-2 gene transfer inhibits hepatic stellate cell activation and liver fibrosis in toxic and cholestatic models of liver injury
The mouseCD3-?, -?, and -? genes reside within 50 kilobases on chromosome 9, whereasCD3-? maps to chromosome 1, band H
Isolation of intact larval haemoglobin from the brine shrimp Artemia salina. Prevention of degradation in vitro by proteases induced during larval development
Cytoglobin overexpression protects against damage-induced fibrosis
Cytoglobin (Cygb), a member of the hexacoordinate globin superfamily (hxHb), is expressed in fibroblasts from a broad range of tissues. The physiological functions of hxHb are still unclear, but biochemical studies reveal that they can scavenge toxic species, such as nitric oxide, peroxynitrite, and hydrogen peroxide. We demonstrate that the overexpression of Cygb in rat hepatic stellate cells, both in vitro and in vivo, protects against oxidative stress, inhibiting their differentiation into a myofibroblast-like phenotype. Accordingly, the overexpression of Cygb reduces extracellular matrix deposition in both toxic and cholestatic models of liver injury. The overexpression of Cygb also promotes recovery from previously initiated damage-induced fibrogenesis. By inhibiting free radical-induced activation of hepatic stellate cells, Cygb plays an important role in controlling tissue fibrosis. Therefore, the normal upregulation of Cygb during tissue injury has a homeostatic effect, inhibiting free radical-induced fibroblast activation and tissue fibrosis. © 2006 The American Society of Gene Therapy.link_to_subscribed_fulltex