Publications by authors named "A T Tool"

Sitosterolemia is a rare autosomal recessive genetic disorder in which patients develop hypercholesterolemia and may exhibit abnormal hematologic and/or liver test results. In this disease, dysfunction of either ABCG5 or ABCG8 results in the intestinal hyperabsorption of all sterols, including cholesterol and, more specifically, plant sterols or xenosterols, as well as in the impaired ability to excrete xenosterols into the bile. It remains unknown how and why some patients develop hematologic abnormalities.

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Article Synopsis
  • Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome type 2 (HPS2) is a rare genetic disorder caused by mutations that lead to protein mis-sorting within cells, resulting in severe neutropenia.
  • Using iPSCs from an HPS2 patient, researchers found that while granulocyte development was impaired, the neutrophils produced displayed characteristics similar to healthy neutrophils.
  • The study revealed that despite normal viability, neutrophil yield was reduced due to macrophages phagocytosing them, indicating that both developmental delays and macrophage activity contribute to the limited neutrophil output in HPS2.
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The adenosine A receptor (AAR) is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that exerts immunomodulatory effects in pathophysiological conditions such as inflammation and cancer. Thus far, studies toward the downstream effects of AAR activation have yielded contradictory results, thereby motivating the need for further investigations. Various chemical and biological tools have been developed for this purpose, ranging from fluorescent ligands to antibodies.

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Activated eosinophils are described to release eosinophil extracellular traps (EETs), which consist of the cell's DNA covered with granule-derived antimicrobial peptides. Upon stimulation of eosinophils with the known EET-inducers phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, monosodium urate crystals, or Candida albicans, we observed that their plasma membrane became compromised, resulting in accessibility of the nuclear DNA for staining with the impermeable DNA dye Sytox Green. However, we did not observe any DNA decondensation or plasma membrane rupture by eosinophils, which sharply contrasts with neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation and the subsequent cell death known as NETosis.

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Background: Neutrophils kill antibody-opsonized tumor cells using trogocytosis, a unique mechanism of destruction of the target plasma. This previously unknown cytotoxic process of neutrophils is dependent on antibody opsonization, Fcγ receptors and CD11b/CD18 integrins. Here, we demonstrate that tumor cells can escape neutrophil-mediated cytotoxicity by calcium (Ca)-dependent and exocyst complex-dependent plasma membrane repair.

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