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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Interactions Of The Nlrp3 Inflammasome Complex, Nyasha Makoni
Interactions Of The Nlrp3 Inflammasome Complex, Nyasha Makoni
Dissertations
The innate immune system is the first line of defense in response to invasion by pathogens. One of the major pathways in the innate immune system involves a three-protein complex known as the NLRP3 inflammasome. This complex comprises of NLRP3, ASC, and procaspase-1. In response to stimuli, the inflammasome assembles to activate caspase-1 which subsequently facilitates production of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), an inflammatory cytokine. The NLRP3 inflammasome has been implicated in a variety of inflammatory disorders including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Amyloid beta (Aβ) is the protein that causes AD and Aβ deposits in the brain activate microglia resulting in chronic inflammation. …
Microglia Induced Neuroinflammation Through The Nlrp3 Inflammasome Following Blast Traumatic Brain Injury, Daniel Younger
Microglia Induced Neuroinflammation Through The Nlrp3 Inflammasome Following Blast Traumatic Brain Injury, Daniel Younger
Dissertations
The incidence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) among military personnel have been steadily increasing with modern conflicts. A recent RAND report estimated 320,000 service members, totaling 20% of deployed forces, suffer from TBI. However, of this population roughly 60% have not seen a medical professional specifically for TBI. Unlike the civilian population, the primary cause of TBI for active-duty military personnel is blast exposure. Blasts now account for over 70% of all US military casualties in operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation enduring freedom (OEF) and are the major cause of TBI. Among many pathological mechanisms associated with blast TBI, …
Modulating Matrix Metalloproteases And Inflammation In Huntington’S Disease, Alejandro Lopez Ramirez
Modulating Matrix Metalloproteases And Inflammation In Huntington’S Disease, Alejandro Lopez Ramirez
Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Biological Sciences Master's Theses
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a rare and incurable autosomal neurodegenerative disease affecting 1-10 in every 100,000 people in the world. There is no cure for HD and treatments available alleviate certain symptoms for short periods of time. Evidence suggests that neuropathology of HD begins with the proteolysis of the mutated Huntingtin (mHTT) protein. A variety of proteases, like the matrix metalloproteases, cleave mHTT creating proteinaceous fragments that are thought to be neurotoxic. As these fragments increase in the brain, the damage to neurons also increases, leading to chronic inflammation due to hyper reactive microglia and astrocytes attempting to minimize and …