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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Palmitic Acid Activation Of Dendritic Cells: Implications For Type 2 Diabetes, Dequina Angelina Nicholas Sep 2015

Palmitic Acid Activation Of Dendritic Cells: Implications For Type 2 Diabetes, Dequina Angelina Nicholas

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Infiltration of immune cells into visceral adipose tissue is observed in type 2 diabetes development. Monocytes are recruited to obese visceral adipose tissue in large numbers and retain the ability to differentiate into dendritic cells, important antigen presenting cells in the immune system. Differentiation of monocytes into dendritic cells likely accounts for the increased number of dendritic cells observed in the adipose tissue of type 2 diabetic patients. We have demonstrated this differentiation process is regulated in part by a major reduction of linker histone proteins. In adipose tissue, dendritic cells are exposed to high levels of saturated fatty acids. …


Curcumin: A Multi-Dimensional Approach To Pancreatic Cancer Targeting Cell Death And Exosomes, Carlos J. Diaz Osterman Jun 2015

Curcumin: A Multi-Dimensional Approach To Pancreatic Cancer Targeting Cell Death And Exosomes, Carlos J. Diaz Osterman

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Pancreatic cancer is currently one of the most difficult diseases to treat due to difficulty of detection and the aggressive nature of the disease. In addition, pancreatic cancer has the highest mortality rates compared to other cancer types. These mortality rates are attributable in part to increasing resistance to cancer therapy. Cancer therapy resistance is caused by adaptations that favor survival within cancer cells and their environment, termed the tumor microenvironment. Intracellular adaptations include the overexpression of resistance-linked genes, such as the inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) family of proteins and overall resistance to cell death. Adaptations in the tumor microenvironment …


Chlorinated Tyrosine Species As Markers Of Inflammation: A Kinetic Study, Matthew Peter Curtis Jun 2015

Chlorinated Tyrosine Species As Markers Of Inflammation: A Kinetic Study, Matthew Peter Curtis

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Chronic inflammation is associated with numerous human diseases. During inflammation, leukocytes release the enzyme myeloperoxidase (MPO) which generates reactive oxygen species such as hypochlorous acid (HOCl). Additionally, MPO generates reactive nitrogen species. These reactive species can damage host fats, proteins, and DNA, contributing to disease pathology. Because of the reactivity and short half-lives of reactive species, measurement of surrogate markers is necessary to determine their extent and source. Chlorination of the tyrosine phenol ring by HOCl to produce 3-chlorotyrosine (3ClTyr) or nitration of the phenol ring by reactive nitrogen species to produce 3-nitrotyrosine (NO2Tyr) are two such markers. Both are …


Crotalus Snake Venom Preconditioning To Prevent Surgical Brain Injury, Cherine Hee-Sun Kim Jun 2015

Crotalus Snake Venom Preconditioning To Prevent Surgical Brain Injury, Cherine Hee-Sun Kim

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Preventive measures are increasingly relevant to medical practice. Preconditioning, a preemptive therapy that administers mildly harmful stimuli to induce endogenous protective mechanisms before major injury, has been shown to minimize injury in many animal models. Given the elective nature of most neurosurgical procedures, the surgical brain injury (SBI) rodent model provides an ideal platform for preconditioning. Our work shows that preconditioning with Crotalus rattlesnake venom, known for its hemorrhagic and inflammatory effects, mitigates some harmful effects of SBI. We have identified two proteins of interest in Crotalus venom: snake venom metalloproteinase (SVMP), an enzyme with hemorrhagic effects, and phospholipase A2 …


Existence Of Inhibitor Of Apoptosis In Tumor Exosomes, Malyn May Asuncion Valenzuela Mar 2015

Existence Of Inhibitor Of Apoptosis In Tumor Exosomes, Malyn May Asuncion Valenzuela

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Pancreatic cancer is a deadly and aggressive disease. The only option for metastatic pancreatic cancer is chemotherapy where only the antimetabolites gemcitabine (Gem) and 5-fluorouracil (5FU) are used clinically. However, resistance to these antimetabolites remains a problem highlighting the need to discover and develop new antimetabolites that will improve a patient’s overall survival. Cancer is a disease that has acquired numerous molecular, biochemical and cellular changes. Resistance to apoptosis is one of the characteristics of cancer, of which the inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) family of proteins plays an important role. It has also been shown that cancer cells secrete vesicles …