Buccal fat pads are biconvex adipose tissue bags that are uniquely found on both sides of the human face along the anterior border of the masseter muscles. Buccal fat pads are important determinants of facial appearance, facilitating gliding movements of facial masticatory and mimetic muscles. Buccal fad pad flaps are used for the repair of oral defects and as a rich and easily accessible source of mesenchymal stem cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLactate and ATP formation by aerobic glycolysis, the Warburg effect, is considered a hallmark of cancer. During angiogenesis in non-cancerous tissue, proliferating stalk endothelial cells (ECs) also produce lactate and ATP by aerobic glycolysis. In fact, all proliferating cells, both non-cancer and cancer cells, need lactate for the biosynthesis of building blocks for cell growth and tissue expansion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe large family of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are integral membrane proteins that function as environmental sensors and act as ion channels after activation by mechanical (touch), physical (heat, pain), and chemical stimuli (pungent compounds such as capsaicin). Most TRP channels are localized in the plasma membrane of cells but some of them are localized in membranes of organelles and function as intracellular Ca-ion channels. TRP channels are involved in neurological disorders but their precise role(s) and relevance in these disorders are not clear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSkin sensitivity and impaired epidermal barrier function are associated with aging and are at least partly due to increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Transient receptor potential vanilloid1 (TRPV1) is expressed in keratinocytes, fibroblasts, mast cells, and endothelial cells in skin. We investigated in skin biopsies of adult and elderly donors whether TRPV1 expression is involved in the skin aging process.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complicated neurodevelopmental disorder, and its etiology is not well understood. It is known that genetic and nongenetic factors determine alterations in several organs, such as the liver, in individuals with this disorder. The aims of the present study were to analyze morphological and biological alterations in the liver of an autistic mouse model, BTBR T + Itpr3tf/J (BTBR) mice, and to identify therapeutic strategies for alleviating hepatic impairments using melatonin administration.
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