Cells Commons^™

Direct Inputs To Off Α And G9 Ganglion Cells From Aii Amacrine Cells In Rabbit Retina, Wei-Li Liu

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

In the mammalian retina, AII amacrine cells are essential in the rod pathway for dark-adapted vision. But they also have a “day job”, to provide inhibitory inputs to certain OFF ganglion cells in photopic conditions. This is known as crossover inhibition. Physiological evidence from several different labs implies that AII amacrine cells provide direct input to certain OFF ganglion cells. However, previous EM analysis of the rabbit retina suggests that the dominant output of the AII amacrine cell in sublamina a goes to OFF cone bipolar cells (Strettoi et al., 1992).

Two OFF ganglion cell types in the rabbit retina, …

Cardiac Tissue Regeneration - The Use Of Stem Cells, Chavy Friedlander

The Science Journal of the Lander College of Arts and Sciences

The following is the introduction to the article: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of illness and fatality. Diseases such as coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction and subsequent congestive heart failure pose a serious problem to much of the population in the Unites States and all over the world. The heart’s compromised function that results from the above conditions is so influential as the heart has little capacity to repair its lost tissue; once the cardiac myocytes are destroyed its effects are amplified by a drastic decrease in cardiac function. Until recently with the advent of stem cell technology, researchers …

Hypertension In Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Clinical And Basic Science Perspective, Shobha Ratnam, Surya M. Nauli

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Cardiovascular complications are major causes of morbidity and mortality in patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). In particular, hypertension is insidious and remains a continuous problem that evolves during the course of the disease. Hypertension in ADPKD has been associated with abnormality in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS). Early vascular changes have also been reported in young ADPKD patients. In addition, the cellular functions of mechanosensory cilia within vascular system have emerged recently. The basic and clinical perspectives of RAAS, vascular remodeling and sensory cilia are reviewed with regard to hypertension in ADPKD

Chemosensitization Of Cancer Cells By Sirna Using Targeted Nanogel Delivery, Erin B. Dickerson, William H. Blackburn, Michael H. Smith, Laura B. Kapa, L. Andrew Lyon, John F. Mcdonald

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Background: Chemoresistance is a major obstacle in cancer treatment. Targeted therapies that enhance cancer cell sensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents have the potential to increase drug efficacy while reducing toxic effects on untargeted cells. Targeted cancer therapy by RNA interference (RNAi) is a relatively new approach that can be used to reversibly silence genes in vivo by selectively targeting genes such as the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), which has been shown to increase the sensitivity of cancer cells to taxane chemotherapy. However, delivery represents the main hurdle for the broad development of RNAi therapeutics.

Methods: We report here …

Physical And Functional Coupling Of Cftr And Pde3a, Himabindu Penmatsa

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Formation of multiple-protein macromolecular complexes at specialized subcellular microdomains increases the specificity and efficiency of signaling in cells. In this study, we demonstrated that phosphodiesterase type 3A (PDE3A) is physically and functionally coupled to cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR). PDE3A inhibition increases cyclic adenosine 3′, 5′-monophosphate (cAMP) levels in a compartmentalized manner at the plasma membrane, which potentiates CFTR channel function and further clusters PDE3A and CFTR into microdomains. Actin skeleton disruption reduces PDE3A-CFTR interaction; segregates PDE3A from its interacting partners thus compromise the integrity of the macromolecular complex. Consequently, PDE3A inhibition no longer activates CFTR channel function in …

Enumeration Of Endothelial Progenitor Cells In Hind Limb Suspended Rats And The Mechanics Of Endothelial Wound Healing, Jarrod Matthew Pennington

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The endothelium repairs itself through two methods. One is by the activity of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs). EPCs are immature endothelial cells that circulate the bloodstream that are capable of proliferation and differentiation into mature endothelium. It is thought that EPCs contribute to the repair and replacement of damaged endothelial cells in the process of reendothelialization. Physical inactivity and bed rest are known to be deleterious to the endothelium. It is possible that this inactivity is also deleterious to the number of viable EPCs, which would reduce the ability of the endothelium to repair itself. We used hind limb …

Primary Cilia: Highly Sophisticated Biological Sensors, Wissam A. Aboualaiwi, Shao T. Lo, Surya M. Nauli

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Primary cilia, thin hair-like structures protruding from the apical surface of most mammalian cells, have gained the attention of many researchers over the past decade. Primary cilia are microtubule-filled sensory organelles that are enclosed within the ciliary membrane. They originate at the cell surface from the mother centriole that becomes the mature basal body. In this review, we will discuss recent literatures on the roles of cilia as sophisticated sensory organelles. With particular emphasis on vascular endothelia and renal epithelia, the mechanosensory role of cilia in sensing fluid shear stress will be discussed. Also highlighted is the ciliary involvement in …

Golgi Specificity And Development Of Autoreactive B Cells, Fazlullah Salar Khan Nawazi

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

B cell receptors with certain heavy/light chain pairs predominate in the periphery of anti-DNA heavy chain transgenic mice while certain other B cell receptors are absent. We wanted to know why. To answer this, we re-constructed B cell receptors represented in the anti-DNA transgenic mice by cloning them as single chain variable fragments (scFv) to analyze their affinity to dsDNA. scFv representing receptors that were recovered from the spleens of transgenic mice had very little to no affinity to dsDNA. scFv representing receptors that were absent in the spleen had high affinity to dsDNA. We therefore concluded that receptors with …

Ciliary Dysfunction In Polycystic Kidney Disease: An Emerging Model With Polarizing Potential, Robert J. Kolb, Surya M. Nauli

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

The majority of different cell types in the human body have a cilium, a thin rod-like structure of uniquely arranged microtubules that are encapsulated by the surface plasma membrane. The cilium originates from a basal body, a mature centriole that has migrated and docked to the cell surface. The non-motile cilia are microtubule-based organelles that are generally considered sensory structures. The purpose of this review is to discuss the practicality of the ciliary hypothesis as a unifying concept for polycystic kidney disease and to review current literature in the field of cilium biology, as it relates to mechanosensation and planar …

Department Of Anatomy And Cell Biology: 1983-2007, Garl K. Rieke

UND Departmental Histories

This departmental history was written on the occasion of the UND Quasquicentennial in 2008.

Probing The Role Of Nascent Helicity In Protein Function: P27kip1 As A Regulator Of The Cell Cycle, Steve Otieno

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

p27^kip1 binds to and regulates the activity of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) which are the master timekeepers of the cell division cycle. Members of the p27 family of proteins, also including p21 and p57, are called cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CKIs). The amino terminal domain of p27 inhibits Cdk activity and is referred to as the kinase inhibitory domain (KID). The KID is comprised of a cyclin-binding domain (D1) and a Cdk binding domain (D2) joined by a 22 residue linker domain (LH). Structural analysis of the KID in solution before binding its Cdk targets revealed that D1 and D2 are …

Fibrocystin/Polyductin, Found In The Same Protein Complex With Polycystin-2, Regulates Calcium Responses In Kidney Epithelia, Shizuan Wang, Jingjing Zhang, Surya M. Nauli, Xiaogang Li, Patrick G. Starremans, Ying Luo, Kristina A. Roberts, Jing Zhou

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Recent evidence suggests that fibrocystin/polyductin (FPC), polycystin-1 (PC1), and polycystin-2 (PC2) are all localized at the plasma membrane and the primary cilium, where PC1 and PC2 contribute to fluid How sensation and may function in the same mechanotransduction pathways. To further define the exact subcellular localization of FPC, the protein product encoded by the PKHD1 gene responsible for autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (PKD) in humans, and whether FPC has direct and/or indirect cross talk with PC2, which, in turn, is pivotal for the pathogenesis of autosomal dominant PKD, we performed double immunostaining and coimmunoprecipitation as well as a microfluorimetry …

The Expression And Function Of Ppar And Hif-1 In Human Melanoma, Caroline Mills

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The first part of my dissertation focuses on the expression and function of PPARs in human melanoma. I found that the A375 cells were significantly growth inhibited in response to _PGJ2 and troglitazone treatment. HEMn-LP showed significant growth inhibition in response to troglitazone. I found that PPARγ and PPARδ mRNA is present in both the SK-Mel 28 and A375 cells. The relative level of PPARα mRNA expression is highest in SK-Mel 28 cells, ~3 fold higher relative to both the normal human melanocytes and A375 cells. PPARγ protein was ~50% higher in both SK-Mel 28 and A375 cells relative to …

Prostate Cancer: Some Clinical And Scientific Dilemmas., Paul D. Abel, El-Nasir Lalani

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

No abstract provided.

Inducible Gene Expression In Cell Cultures And In Microencapsulated Cells, Yong Yu

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The mifepristone-regulated transcriptional activation system provides a means to exogenously control gene expression in transformed mammalian cells in a temporal and spatial fashion. Such a promoter activation system consists of three components: The first of these is a steroidal inducer drug, mifepristone. This drug binds to the second component, a chimeric transcription factor complex, consisting of the mutant human progesterone receptor fused to the yeast GAL4 DNA-binding domain and the Herpes simplex virus protein VP 16 activation domain. The third component is a synthetic promoter, consisting of a series of GAL4 recognition sequences upstream of the adenovirus major late E1B …

The Regulation Of Manganese Superoxide Dismutase And Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase By Nuclear Factor-Kappa B And Activator Protein 1 In Rat Aortic Endothelial Cells, Scott L. Cobbs

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) are two enzymes that influence reactive oxygen species within the cell. The promoter regions for the genes encoding these enzymes have two specific transcription factor elements in common, activator protein 1 (AP-1) and nuclear factor kappa b (NF-KB). This study was initiated to determine if either NF-KB or AP-1 regulates the transcription of both genes in endothelial cells. To test whether NF-KB or AP-1 binding sites in the MnSOD and iNOS promoter region were important for transcriptional regulation, we performed induction analysis using various deletion constructs of MnSOD and iNOS …

Insulinlike Growth Factor 1- And 2-Augmented Collagen Gel Repair Of Facial Osseous Defects, James S. Toung, Roy C. Ogle, Raymond F. Morgan, William H. Lindsey

Medical Diagnostics & Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Defects of the facial bone structure are common problems for the facial plastic surgeon. Native type 1 collagen gels (T1CGs) have been shown to mediate repair of facial critical-size defects in rat models.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of T1CG augmented with insulinlike growth factor (IGF) 1, IGF-2, and a combination of IGF-1 and IGF-2 on the repair of facial critical-size defects in a rodent model.

METHODS: Twenty-four retired male breeder Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 4 groups of 6 animals. Facial critical-size defects were created by removing the nasalis bones with a bone-cutting drill. Defects were treated with …

Regulation Of The Insulin-Like Growth Factor System By Retinoic Acid In Human Osteoblast Cells, Yuehua Zhou

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Retinoic acid (RA) is an important regulator of growth and differentiation in many cell types, including bone. However, its effects on human osteoblast cell growth and differentiation have not been well studied. Therefore, I investigated the effect of RA on proliferation and differentiation of normal human bone cells (HBCs) and human osteosarcoma, SaOS-2 cells. RA decreased baseline as well as serum-stimulated proliferation in normal HBCs. To determine the effect of RA on differentiation, expression of several osteoblastic differentiation markers were studied. RA decreased type I procollagen mRNA levels and l,25(OH)₂D₃-stimulated osteocalcin and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) mRNA …

Stab Wounds To Rat Brains : Demyelination, Remyelination And The Cellular Response, Particularly Of Oligodendrocytes, Xie Dangci

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The present body of knowledge concerning the results of central nervous system injury is incomplete and controversial. The role of oligodendrocytes, the cells involved in phagocytosis, the stages of demyelination, and the evidence for remyelination are of interest. Following stab wounds to rat brain cortex, corpus callosum and hippocampus, the animals were examined at 4,7,11,18,23,29,45,60 and 70 days postoperation (dpo). To help in the identification of cells immunocytochemical markers for astrocytes and immature oligodendrocytes were used. These were labels for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and myelin/oligodendrocyte specific protein (MOSP) respectively. Light and electron microscopy were correlated using conventionally prepared …

Bcl-2 Protein Expression Is Widespread In The Developing Nervous-System And Retained In The Adult Pns, Diane E. Merry, Deborah J. Veis, William F. Hickey, Stanley J. Korsmeyer

Dartmouth Scholarship

Cell death is a common feature of neural development in all vertebrates. The bcl-2 proto-oncogene has been shown to protect a variety of cell types from programmed cell death. We have examined the distribution of bcl-2 protein in the developing and adult nervous systems. bcl-2 protein is widespread during embryonic development. Proliferating neuroepithelial cells of ventricular zones as well as the postmitotic cells of the cortical plate, cerebellum, hippocampus and spinal cord express bcl-2. Postnatally, bcl-2 is principally retained in the granule cells of the cerebellum and dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. bcl-2 expression in the CNS declines with aging. …

Efficient Immortalization Of Luminal Epithelial Cells From Human Mammary Gland By Introduction Of Simian Virus 40 Large Tumor Antigen With A Recombinant Retrovirus, Bartek J, Bartkova J, Kyprianou N, El-Nasir Lalani, Staskova Z, Shearer M, Chang S, Taylor Papadimitriou J

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

When defined in terms of markers for normal cell lineages, most invasive breast cancer cells correspond to the phenotype of the common luminal epithelial cell found in the terminal ductal lobular units. Luminal epithelial cells cultured from milk, which have limited proliferative potential, have now been immortalized by introducing the gene encoding simian virus 40 large tumor (T) antigen. Infection with a recombinant retrovirus proved to be 50-100 times more efficient than calcium phosphate transfection, and of the 17 cell lines isolated, only 5 passed through a crisis period as characterized by cessation of growth. When characterized by immunohistochemical staining …

Embryonic Chicken Fibroblast Collagen Binding Proteins: Distribution, Role In Substratum Adhesion, And Relationship To Integrins, Roy C. Ogle, A. Jeannette Potts, Marchall Yacoe, Charles D. Little

Medical Diagnostics & Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

Collagen binding proteins (CBP) are hydrophobic, cell surface polypeptides, isolated by collagen affinity chromatography. Antibodies to CBPs inhibit the attachment of embryonic chicken heart fibroblasts to native type I collagen fibrils in a dose-dependent manner. The CBP antibodies also induce rounding and detachment of cells adherent to a planar substratum. This process of antibody-mediated substratum detachment resulted in a clustering of CBP and cell-associated extracellular matrix at the cell surface, and the rearrangement of filamentous actin. Other functional studies showed that cells grown within a three-dimensional gel of type I collagen cannot be immunostained at the cell surface with CBP …

Collagen Binding Proteins Derived From The Embryonic Fibroblast Cell Surface Recognize Arginine-Glycine-Aspartic Acid, Roy C. Ogle, Charles D. Little

Medical Diagnostics & Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

Several cell surface proteins (Mr = 120,000, 90,000, 63,000 and 47,000) apparently integral to embryonic fibroblast plasma membranes were extracted with detergent and isolated by collagen affinity chromatography. Certain of these proteins (Mr = 120,000, 90,000, and 47,000) were specifically eluted from collagen affinity columns by synthetic peptides containing the amino acid sequence arginyl-glycyl-aspartic acid (RGD). These data show that a number of collagen binding proteins exist on the embryonic fibroblast cell surface. Some of the proteins may be collagen receptors binding to RGD sequences in the collagen molecule while at least one of the proteins (Mr = 63,000) recognizes …

Laminin Receptors For Neurite Formation, H. K. Kleinman, Roy C. Ogle, F. B. Cannon, C. D. Little, T. M. Sweeney, L. Luckenbill-Edds

Medical Diagnostics & Translational Sciences Faculty Publications

Laminin, a basement membrane glycoprotein promotes both cell attachment and neurite outgrowth. Separate domains on laminin elicit these responses, suggesting that distinct receptors occur on the surface of cells. NG108-15 neuroblastoma-glioma cells rapidly extend long processes in the presence of laminin. We report here that 125I-labeled laminin specifically binds to these cells and to three membrane proteins of 67, 110, and 180 kDa. These proteins were isolated by affinity chromatography on laminin-Sepharose. The 67-kDa protein reacted with antibody to the previously characterized receptor for cell attachment to laminin. Antibodies to the 110-kDa and 180-kDa bands demonstrated that the 110-kDa protein …

The Recombinant Dna Debate, Richard E. Brown

Honors Theses

The questions surrounding the recombinant DNA research debate are not just questions of technique and safety. They involve the driving forces of scientific research, especially those premises and presuppositions concerning the expansion of knowledge versus our ability to use that knowledge wisely. Basically, we ask if policy--scientific, industrial, or political--should be an integral part of our future steps in recombinant DNA research and development.

It is obvious from past mistakes involving pollution, waste of fossil fuels, and over-mechanization that we must try to avoid the crucial tendency that technology has of overrunning common sense and moral guidelines. This is especially …