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Interactions Among Murine Cytomegalovirus Us22 Family Gene Products That Influence Viral Pathogenesis, Zaruhi Karabekian

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a complex, ubiquitous herpesvirus that is characterized by acute, chronic, and latent infections. Monocytes-macrophages are the key target cell type involved in pathogenesis, which is most effectively studied using the murine model of CMV infection. Previously three murine CMV (MCMV) genes (M139, M140, and M141) were identified to regulate viral expression in cultured macrophages and in mice. These genes are members of the US22 gene family with respect to HCMV homology. There is no function assigned to the proteins encoded by these genes. However, deletion of M139, M140, and M141 significantly curtails growth of MCMV in macrophages …

Commencement, Philadelphia (2001), Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine

Commencements

Philadelphia Campus D.O. Commencement Program, 110th Class. Degrees include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine.

Commencement Speaker: The Honorable Ruth Ann Minner, Governor of Delaware

Amino Acid Concentrations In Fluids From The Bovine Oviduct And Uterus And In Ksom-Based Culture Media., Y M Elhassan, G Wu, A C Leanez, R J Tasca, A J Watson, M E Westhusin

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

Amino acids in bovine oviductal and uterine fluids were measured and compared with those in modified simplex optimized medium (KSOM) supplemented with either fetal calf serum or Minimum Essential Medium amino acids in addition to bovine serum albumin, fetal calf serum or polyvinyl alcohol. Concentrations of cysteine, threonine, tryptophan, alanine, aspartate, glycine, glutamate, proline, beta-alanine, and citrulline were higher in oviductal fluids than in KSOM-based culture media. Nonessential and essential amino acids were present in ratios of 5:1 and 2:1 in oviductal and uterine fluids, respectively. Concentrations of alanine (3.7 mM), glycine (14.1 mM) and glutamate (5.5 mM) were high …

Post-Infarction Left Venticular Free Wall Rupture, S M. Nadeem, S A. Sami, G Khan, N Basir, K A. Kazmi

Section of Cardiology

No abstract provided.

Regulation Of Blastocyst Formation., A J Watson, L C Barcroft

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

Preimplantation or pre-attachment development encompasses the "free"-living period of mammalian embryogenesis, which directs development of the zygote through to the blastocyst stage. Blastocyst formation is essential for implantation, establishment of pregnancy and is a principal determinant of embryo quality prior to embryo transfer. Cavitation (blastocyst formation) is driven by the expression of specific sets of gene products that direct the acquisition of cell polarity within the trophectoderm, which is both the first epithelium of development and the outer cell layer encircling the inner cell mass of the blastocyst. Critical gene families controlling these events include: the E-cadherin-catenin cell adhesion family, …

Clumping Factor A Mediates Binding Of Staphylococcus Aureus To Human Platelets, Ian R. Siboo, Ambrose L. Cheung, Arnold S. Bayer, Paul M. Sullam

Dartmouth Scholarship

The direct binding of bacteria to platelets may be an important virulence mechanism in the pathogenesis of infective endocarditis. We have previously described Staphylococcus aureus strain PS12, a Tn551-derived mutant of strain ISP479, with reduced ability to bind human platelets in vitro. When tested in an animal model of endocarditis, the PS12 strain was less virulent than its parental strain, as measured by bacterial densities in endocardial vegetations and incidence of systemic embolization. We have now characterized the gene disrupted in PS12 and its function in platelet binding. DNA sequencing, Southern blotting, and PCR analysis indicate that PS12 contained two …

Induction Of Beta3-Integrin Gene Expression By Sustained Activation Of The Ras-Regulated Raf-Mek-Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase Signaling Pathway., Douglas Woods, Holly Cherwinski, Eleni Venetsanakos, Arun Bhat, Stephan Gysin, Martine Humbert, Paul F. Bray, Vicki L. Saylor, Martin Mcmahon

Cardeza Foundation for Hematologic Research

Alterations in the expression of integrin receptors for extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins are strongly associated with the acquisition of invasive and/or metastatic properties by human cancer cells. Despite this, comparatively little is known of the biochemical mechanisms that regulate the expression of integrin genes in cells. Here we demonstrate that the Ras-activated Raf-MEK-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway can specifically control the expression of individual integrin subunits in a variety of human and mouse cell lines. Pharmacological inhibition of MEK1 in a number of human melanoma and pancreatic carcinoma cell lines led to reduced cell surface expression of alpha6- and …

Thrombolytic Therapy For Acute Myocardial Infarction In The Elderly, Bernard Bun-Lap Wong, Wai-Hong Chen

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Patients ≥75 years constitute up to 30% of the acute MI population and are associated with a 50% in-hospital mortality. Thrombolytic therapy was shown in a metaanalysis of 9 largest randomized controlled trials to reduce 35-day mortality. However, the benefit was observed mainly among patients < 75 years old. For patients ≥ 75 years, the 35-day mortality was 24.3% in those treated with thrombolytic therapy and 25.3% in the placebo group, a difference not reaching statistical significance.

Digest Of The Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine (Spring 2001), Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine

Digest

The Spring 2001 issue of the Digest of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine includes the following articles:

• Opening Remarks
• PCOM Updates
• Alumni Board Profile
• Sign of Hope
• Technology as a Tool
• Donor Profile: Murray Zedeck, DO ’62
• Clinical Research 101
• Caring for the Whole Person
• Olympic Dreams
• Class Notes
• In Memoriam
• PCOM Events
• My Turn: Essay Section
• Graduate Programs at PCOM

Expression Of Pthrp And Pthr (Pth/Pthrp-R) Mrnas And Polypeptides In Bovine Ovary And Stimulation Of Bovine Blastocyst Development In Vitro Following Pthrp Treatment During Oocyte Maturation., P H Watson, M E Westhusin, A J Watson

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

Parathyroid hormone related protein (PTHrP) and its receptor have well-established roles in the development and regulation of many tissues, including bone and mammary gland. The objectives of this study were: (1) to characterize the distribution of mRNAs encoding parathyroid hormone (PTH)-related protein (PTHrP) and receptor (PTHR) in bovine ovary; (2) to characterize the distribution of PTHrP and PTHR polypeptides in bovine ovary; (3) to examine the influences of PTHrP (1-141) treatment during bovine oocyte maturation in vitro on blastocyst development. mRNAs encoding PTHrP and PTHR were detected by in situ hybridization methods in oocytes, and granulosa cells in all follicles …

Maternal Deaths In A Developing Country: A Study From The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan 1988-1999, R N. Qureshi, S Jaleel, R Hamid, S F. Lakha

Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology

Objective: The maternal deaths occurring over a twelve-year period (1988-1999) in a tertiary referral center were reviewed. The purpose of the study was to assess the causes of these maternal deaths.
Setting: The Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) Karachi, Pakistan.
Methods: The medical records of maternal deaths were reviewed. These were women who had either registered for delivery at the hospital; or were referred from another hospital or from home, when an emergency developed. They were either admitted to the Medicine, Surgery and the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Departments at the hospital.Results: A total of 81 maternal deaths were identified, of …

Functions Of The Rat's Temporal Association Cortex In Higher Perceptual Functions, Summer L. Maki

The Corinthian

The role of the rodent temporal cortex in relational perception was investigated. Eighteen Long Evans rats were separated into three surgical groups (sham, partial striate, and Te2/3) and trained on a preoperative and postoperative discrimination task. The rats were then presented a series of relational judgement trials consisting of both between category judgments and within category judgments. It was hypothesized that the rats with Te2/3 lesions would perform as well as controls on the preoperative and postoperative discrimination task, but show a considerable behavioral dysfunction on the tests of visual relational perception. The results showed no differences across groups in …

Com Outlook January 2001, College Of Osteopathic Medicine

COM Outlook

No abstract provided.

Department Of Radiology-Annual Executive Summary Report-July 1, 2000 To June 30, 2001, David C. Levin , M.D.

Department of Radiology Administrative Documents and Reports

101 page Department of Radiology Annual Executive Summary Report, July 1, 2000 to June 30, 2001, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.

Vital Signs, Winter 2001, Boonshoft School Of Medicine

Vital Signs

A twenty-three page newsletter created by the Boonshoft School of Medicine to document the current affairs of the school. This issue includes feature articles, a student profile, faculty notes, and more.

Cellular Senescence: Ex Vivo P53-Dependent Asymmetric Cell Kinetics., Lakshmi Rambhatla, Shirley A. Bohn, Patrizia B. Stadler, Jonathan T. Boyd, Ronald A. Coss, James L. Sherley

Department of Radiation Oncology Faculty Papers

Although senescence is a defining property of euploid mammalian cells, its physiologic basis remains obscure. Previously, cell kinetics properties of normal tissue cells have not been considered in models for senescence. We now provide evidence that senescence is in fact the natural consequence of normal in vivo somatic stem cell kinetics extended in culture. This concept of senescence is based on our discovery that cells engineered to conditionally express the well-recognized tumor suppressor protein and senescence factor, p53, exhibit asymmetric cell kinetics. In vivo, asymmetric cell kinetics are essential for maintenance of somatic stem cells; ex vivo, the same cell …

Cardiac Hypertrophy, Heart Failure, And Regulation Of Microtubule Stability, Kristie Lynn Beaton-Blade

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

This work focused on the regulation of the different isotypes of beta-tubulin during cardiac hypertrophy, with the specific hypothesis that increased levels of the beta I isotype leads to the increase in microtubule density seen during hypertrophy. Partial cDNAs for the three beta-tubulin isotypes expressed in the heart (I, II, and IV) have been cloned and used to show that there is a differential upregulation of the beta I and beta II isotypes during cardiac hypertrophy. Messenger RNA half-life studies of cells isolated from hypertrophied myocardium have shown that this upregulation is due to increased transcription of the genes encoding …

Synaptopodin Expression In Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome Of Childhood., Tarak Srivastava, Robert E. Garola, J M. Whiting, Uri S. Alon

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Synaptopodin is a proline-rich protein intimately associated with actin microfilaments present in the podocytes' foot processes. We investigated for synaptopodin expression in children with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (INS), including minimal change disease (MCD), diffuse mesangial hypercellularity (DMH), and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS); in children with congenital nephrotic syndrome of the Finnish type (CNF); and in normal kidney tissue. In particular, we examined whether an association exists between synaptopodin expression in podocyte cells and the response to steroids in INS, and whether synaptopodin expression can predict FSGS upon the initial kidney biopsy in children who progress from MCD or DMH …

Phosphonated Agents And Their Antiangiogenic And Antitumorigenic Use, Delwood C. Collins, Antonio Gagliardi, Peter Nickel

Obstetrics and Genecology Faculty Patents

Phosphonic acid agents are synthesized and characterized which are potent inhibitors of angiogenesis, tumorigenesis and metalloproteinase activity. Their method of use for the inhibition of angiogenesis and metalloproteinase and the treatment of tumors is also shown.

Mrnas Encoding Aquaporins Are Present During Murine Preimplantation Development., H Offenberg, L C Barcroft, A Caveney, D Viuff, P D Thomsen, A J Watson

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

The present study was conducted to investigate the mechanisms underlying fluid movement across the trophectoderm during blastocyst formation by determining whether aquaporins (AQPs) are expressed during early mammalian development. AQPs belong to a family of major intrinsic membrane proteins and function as molecular water channels that allow water to flow rapidly across plasma membranes in the direction of osmotic gradients. Ten different AQPs have been identified to date. Murine preimplantation stage embryos were flushed from the oviducts and uteri of superovulated CD1 mice. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) methods employing primer sets designed to amplify conserved sequences of AQPs (1-9) …

Disinfection Of Dentin By Intracanal Laser Irradiation: An In Vitro Model, Silvia Cristina Mafra Cecchini

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

A possible cause for root canal failure is the persistence of bacteria that have colonized dentinal tubules. To reduce this risk and, if possible, to also shorten the time consuming endodontic therapy, new equipment and materials are constantly being introduced. The aim of the present investigation was to study the effect of disinfection of dentinal tubules by intracanal laser irradiation using an in vitro model. The groups irradiated by various lasers were compared with calcium hydroxide, a material frequently used as intracanal medication between appointments. Freshly extracted, intact bovine incisors were used. The root cementum was removed and the teeth …

Attachment Of Toxoplasma Gondii To A Specific Membrane Fraction Of Cho Cells, Chaitali Dutta, Jane Grimwood, Lloyd H. Kasper

Dartmouth Scholarship

We have observed previously that attachment of Toxoplasma gondii to synchronized host cells is considerably increased at the mid-S phase (4 h postrelease). Synchronized CHO host cells at the mid-S phase were fractionated by molecular weight, and the antigens were used to produce a panel of polyclonal mouse antisera. The polyclonal antisera raised against fraction 4 with molecular mass ranging approximately from 18 to 40 kDa significantly reduced attachment to mid-S-phase host cells. Immunofluorescence assays demonstrated strong reactivity to mid-S-phase host cells and identified a number of potential receptors on Western blots. These data indicate that there is a specific …

Studies On The Purification And Role Of Igfbp-5 Protease In Bone, H. Garrett Rush Thompson

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by low bone density and deterioration of mineralized bone leading to enhanced susceptibility to fracture. Several growth factors have been implicated in the coupling of formation to resorption during the bone remodeling process. The net bone forming activity of many growth factors has prompted numerous studies focused on the regulation of osteoblast cell proliferation, differentiation and activity. The current study focuses on the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system, an important growth factor system involved in the regulation of bone formation and bone resorption.

IGF binding protein -5 (IGFBP-5), the most abundant IGF binding protein in …

Estrogen-Induced Relaxation In Bovine Coronary Arteries In Vitro: Evidence For A New Mechanism, Jelica D. J. Kalenic, Rolando J. Ramirez, Stanley Einzig, William A. Neal, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Numerous studies have shown estrogen to be vasoactive in various circulations. Our objective was to determine the effect of estrogen on isolated bovine coronary arteries and the possible mechanism. Bovine coronary arteries, precontracted with thromboxane mimetic U₄₆₆₁₉ were given doses (0.01-30μM) of 17Β-estradiol in the presence and absence of endothelium and these inhibitors: 10μM indomethacin (cyclooxygenase inhibitor), 10μM methylene blue (inhibits soluble guanylate cyclase), 100μM nitro-L-arginine (inhibits nitric oxide synthesis), 100μM isobutylmethylxanthine (phosphodiesterase inhibitor) and 30μM mifepristone (Ru₃₈₄₈₆ steroid receptor antagonist). Our results indicated that, estrogen, in the highest concentration used (30μM), elicited an acute dose-dependent relaxation of …

Human Subject Research, Ethics And The Developing World, F Moazam

Department of Surgery Docs

No abstract provided.

Lack Of Cd4+ T Cells Does Not Affect Induction Of Cd8+ T-Cell Immunity Against Encephalitozoon Cuniculi Infection, Magali Moretto, Lori Casciotti, Brigit Durell, Imtiaz A. Khan

Dartmouth Scholarship

Cell-mediated immunity has been reported to play an important role in defense against Encephalitozoon cuniculi infection. Previous studies from our laboratory have underlined the importance of cytotoxic CD8⁺ T lymphocytes (CTL) in survival of mice infected with E. cuniculi. In the present study, immune response against E. cuniculi infection in CD4⁺T-cell-deficient mice was evaluated. Similar to resistant wild-type animals, CD4^−/− mice were able to resolve E. cuniculi infection even at a very high challenge dose (5 × 10⁷ spores/mouse). Tissues from infected CD4^−/−mice did not exhibit higher parasite loads in comparison to …

Brachytherapy In The New Millennium Abstracts, Jilin Chen, Runlin Gao, Qiangjun Cai, Yuejin Yang

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

In order to examine long-term efficacy of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), coronary stenting and to assess the factors affecting its efficacy, 790 patients who underwent successful PTCA and PTCS+Stent in this Hospital were followed by direct interview or letter.

Induction Of Apoptosis In Human Prostate Cancer Cells By Resveratrol, Gary Zulfikar Morris

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

Recently attention has been brought to trans-resveratrol's {TR) anticancer activity, as determined through a number of cultured cancer cell models. This activity was attributed to TR behaving as an estrogen, and the orientation of TR' s hydroxyl groups. Based on this work it was of interest to determine whether TR would also be toxic in prostate cancer cells; if toxic, did TR induce necrosis or apoptosis in the cells; was it toxic through hormone mediated pathways; and were TR's hydroxyl groups responsible for its biological activity. To this end, cellular viability was assessed in two different prostate cancer cell …

Combination Anti-Leukimic Therapy By Utilizing Suramin And Biologic Response Modifiers, Michael A. Doukas

Internal Medicine Faculty Patents

A method of treating leukemia which includes administering an effective amount of composition comprising suramin and a biological response modifier, wherein the suramin and the biological response modifier show synergistic or additive anti-leukemic activity. A pharmaceutical composition is also disclosed.

Connexin-32 Contributes To Radiation Resistance In Thyroid Follicles, Da-Thao Dinh Tran

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The objective of this study was to examine the role of gap junctions in the radiation resistance of thyroid follicles. The question of whether gap junctional intercellular communication plays an important role in the “contact effect”, wherein cells in direct apposition are more resistant to the damaging effects of radiation, has been debated for years. We used the Fischer rat thyroid cell line (FRTL-5) to carry out our experiments. This thesis is divided into two parts: 1) characterization of gap junctional properties in FRTL-5 cells and, 2) exposure of these cells to radiation.

We found that, unlike primary thyroid cells, …