236 research outputs found
Developmental regulation of gene expression for the MPTPĪ“ isoforms in the central nervous system and the immune system
AbstractMPTPĪ“ is a murine transmembrane protein tyrosine phosphatase which has three isoforms, types AāC, differing in the structure of the extracellular regions. In this study, we examined MPTPĪ“ isoform expression in the brain and the immune system at discrete developmental or differentiation stages. RT-PCR analysis demonstrated that another isoform, type D, is transcribed from the MPTPĪ“ gene. In the brain, only type D was expressed until postnatal day 7 (P7), but after P14, all four isoforms were detected. In contrast, the spleen, thymus and all the hematopoietic cell lines examined express only types B and C isoforms. An in situ hybridization study showed that MPTPĪ“ mRNA is diffusely expressed throughout the spleen, but its expression in the thymus is restricted to the medullary region
Multiple Integration by a Modified Clenshaw-Curtis Quadrature Whose Number of Sample Points Is Increased with Arithmetic Progression (Numerical Integration and Related Topics)
Adrenomedullin in peritoneal effluent expressed by peritoneal mesothelial cells
BACKGROUND: Adrenomedullin (AM) possesses vasodilative and cell-protective properties. Glycine combines with the C-terminal of AM to form mature, physiologically active AM (mAM). AM is reportedly induced by high glucose condition in vascular endothelial or smooth muscle cells; however, little is known on how AM is activated by amidation. To investigate the behavior of AM in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis (PD), the concentrations of AM, mAM and CA125 were measured. The mAM to AM ratio (mAM/AM ratio) was also evaluated as a marker of amidation activity. METHODS: Twenty patients were recruited for this study. The effluent at the time of the peritoneal equilibration test was collected and AM, mAM and CA125 concentrations were measured. The expression of AM in peritoneal mesothelial cells (PMCs) collected from effluent was also examined with an indirect immunofluorescent method. RESULTS: Mean values of AM and mAM in effluent were 18.1Ā Ā±Ā 1.6 and 4.1Ā Ā±Ā 0.3Ā fmol/mL, respectively. In plasma, they were 42.6Ā Ā±Ā 3.3 and 5.6Ā Ā±Ā 0.6Ā fmol/mL, respectively. AM concentrations in effluent did not correlate with plasma AM level but correlated well with the dialysate-to-plasma ratio of creatinine (D/P ratio of creatinine). Moreover, in 7 of 20 cases, concentrations of the mAM and mAM/AM ratio in effluent were higher than in plasma. In effluent, AM concentration but not the mAM/AM ratio correlated with CA125 concentration. Immunocytological study revealed diffuse, cytoplasmic expression of AM in PMCs which were collected from effluent during PD. CONCLUSION: AM is expressed by PMCs and actively amidated in the abdominal cavity of patients undergoing PD
Distribution of localized states from fine analysis of electron spin resonance spectra of organic semiconductors: Physical meaning and methodology
We develop an analytical method for the processing of electron spin resonance
(ESR) spectra. The goal is to obtain the distributions of trapped carriers over
both their degree of localization and their binding energy in semiconductor
crystals or films composed of regularly aligned organic molecules [Phys. Rev.
Lett. v. 104, 056602 (2010)]. Our method has two steps. We first carry out a
fine analysis of the shape of the ESR spectra due to the trapped carriers; this
reveals the distribution of the trap density of the states over the degree of
localization. This analysis is based on the reasonable assumption that the
linewidth of the trapped carriers is predetermined by their degree of
localization because of the hyperfine mechanism. We then transform the
distribution over the degree of localization into a distribution over the
binding energies. The transformation uses the relationships between the binding
energies and the localization parameters of the trapped carriers. The
particular relation for the system under study is obtained by the Holstein
model for trapped polarons using a diagrammatic Monte Carlo analysis. We
illustrate the application of the method to pentacene organic thin-film
transistors.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figure
LACTATE/MCT4/GPR81 AXIS IN BONE PAIN OF BREAST CANCER
Breast cancer (BC) bone metastasis causes bone pain (BP), which detrimentally damages the quality of life and outcome of patients with BC. However, the mechanism of BCāBP is poorly understood, and effective treatments are limited. The present study demonstrated a novel mechanism of BCāBP using a mouse model of bone pain, in which mouse (EO771) and human (MDAāMBā231) BC cells were injected in the bone marrow cavity of tibiae. Western blot analysis using sensory nerves, in vivo assessment of cancer pain and in vitro calcium flux analysis were performed. These mice developed progressive BCāBP in tibiae in conjunction with an upregulation of phosphorylated pERK1/2 and cAMPāresponse elementābinding protein (pCREB), which are molecular indicators of neuron excitation, in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) of sensory nerves. Importantly, mice injected with BC cells, in which the expression of the lactic acid transporter monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4) was silenced, exhibited decreased BCāBP with downregulated expression of pERK1/2 and pCREB in the DRG and reduced circulating levels of lactate compared with mice injected with parental BC cells. Further, silencing of the cellāsurface orphan receptor for lactate, G proteinācoupled receptor 81 (GPR81), in the F11 sensory neuron cells decreased lactateāpromoted upregulation of pERK1/2 and Ca2+ influx, suggesting that the sensory neuro excitation was inhibited. These results suggested that lactate released from BC cells via MCT4 induced BCāBP through the activation of GPR81 of sensory neurons. In conclusion, the activation of GPR81 of sensory neurons by lactate released via MCT4 from BC was demonstrated to contribute to the induction of BCāBP, and disruption of the interactions among lactate, MCT4 and GPR81 may be a novel approach to control BCāBP
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009āassociated Pneumonia in Children, Japan
To describe clinical aspects of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virusāassociated pneumonia in children, we studied 80 such children, including 17 (21%) with complications, who were admitted to 5 hospitals in Japan during AugustāNovember 2009 after a mean of 2.9 symptomatic days. All enrolled patients recovered (median hospitalization 6 days). Timely access to hospitals may have contributed to favorable outcomes
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