The Effects of Immobility on Long Bone Remodelling in the Rhesus Monkey

Using Frost\u27s method for undecalcified bone sections, long bones of the lower extremities of ten rhesus monkeys were examined following two months\u27 immobilization and compared with thirteen controls. A decrease in appositional rate and in the surface extent of the ossification process were noted in the immobilized animals. No typical change in resorption was noted. The immobilized animals showed a decreased cortical-total area ratio. These findings suggest that a decrease in activity affects bone by depressing functions mediated by the osteoblast without necessarily evoking an Increased remodelling response

Relationships between Water Quality and Corrosion of Plumbing Materials in Buildings

published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewedOpe

Dewatering Well Assessment for the Highway Drainage System at Four Sites in the East St. Louis Area, Illinois (Phase 2)

published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewedOpe

Appendices For: Dewatering Well Assessment for the Highway Drainage System at Four Sites in the East St. Louis Area, Illinois (Phase 2)

published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewedOpe

Dewatering Well Assessment for the Highway Drainage System at Four Sites in the East St. Louis Area, Illinois (Phase 3)

published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewedOpe

Evaluation of the Ability of LL-37 to Neutralise LPS In Vitro and Ex Vivo

BACKGROUND: Human cathelicidin LL-37 is a cationic antimicrobial peptide (AMP) which possesses a variety of activities including the ability to neutralise endotoxin. In this study, we investigated the role of LPS neutralisation in mediating LL-37's ability to inhibit Pseudomonas aeruginosa LPS signalling in human monocytic cells. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Pre-treatment of monocytes with LL-37 significantly inhibited LPS-induced IL-8 production and the signalling pathway of associated transcription factors such as NF-κB. However, upon removal of LL-37 from the media prior to LPS stimulation, these inhibitory effects were abolished. These findings suggest that the ability of LL-37 to inhibit LPS signalling is largely dependent on extracellular LPS neutralisation. In addition, LL-37 potently inhibited cytokine production induced by LPS extracted from P. aeruginosa isolated from the lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. In the CF lung, polyanionic molecules such as glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and DNA bind LL-37 and impact negatively on its antibacterial activity. In order to determine whether such interactions interfere with the LPS neutralising ability of LL-37, the status of LL-37 and its ability to bind LPS in CF sputum were investigated. Overall our findings suggest that in the CF lung, the ability of LL-37 to bind LPS and inhibit LPS-induced IL-8 production is attenuated as a result of binding to DNA and GAGs. However, LL-37 levels and its concomitant LPS-binding activity can be increased with a combination of DNase and GAG lyase (heparinase II) treatment. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Overall, these findings suggest that a deficiency in available LL-37 in the CF lung may contribute to greater LPS-induced inflammation during CF lung disease

MicroRNA-135b Regulates Leucine Zipper Tumor Suppressor 1 in Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the second most common skin malignancy and it presents a therapeutic challenge in organ transplant recipient patients. Despite the need, there are only a few targeted drug treatment options. Recent studies have revealed a pivotal role played by microRNAs (miRNAs) in multiple cancers, but only a few studies tested their function in cSCC. Here, we analyzed differential expression of 88 cancer related miRNAs in 43 study participants with cSCC; 32 immunocompetent, 11 OTR patients, and 15 non-lesional skin samples by microarray analysis. Of the examined miRNAs, miR-135b was the most upregulated (13.3-fold, 21.5-fold; p=0.0001) in both patient groups. Similarly, the miR-135b expression was also upregulated in three cSCC cell lines when evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR. In functional studies, inhibition of miR-135b by specific anti-miR oligonucleotides resulted in upregulation of its target gene LZTS1 mRNA and protein levels and led to decreased cell motility and invasion of both primary and metastatic cSCC cell lines. In contrast, miR-135b overexpression by synthetic miR-135b mimic induced further down-regulation of LZTS1 mRNA in vitro and increased cancer cell motility and invasiveness. Immunohistochemical evaluation of 67 cSCC tumor tissues demonstrated that miR-135b expression inversely correlated with LZTS1 staining intensity and the tumor grade. These results indicate that miR-135b functions as an oncogene in cSCC and provide new understanding into its pathological role in cSCC progression and invasiveness

Dynamic Coupling of Pattern Formation and Morphogenesis in the Developing Vertebrate Retina

In this Research Article, Picker et al. show how cells in the retina get their spatial coordinates