Altered phenotype of dextran sulfate sodium colitis in interferon regulatory factor-1 knock-out mice.

Background And Aims: Interferon regulatory factor-1 (IRF-1) is a transcription factor with antiviral, proinflammatory and tumor suppressor properties. We examined the role of IRF-1 in dextran sulfate sodium colitis, a murine model of inflammatory bowel disease, to determine if absence of the gene would protect against colitis.

Methods: C57BL/6J mice with a targeted disruption of IRF-1 and wild-type C57BL/6J controls received five 7-day cycles of 2% dextran sulfate sodium alternating with five 7-day cycles of water.

Gene expression in mononuclear cells from patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Objectives: Discovery of Nod2 as the inflammatory bowel disease 1 (IBD1) susceptibility gene has brought to light the significance of mononuclear cells in inflammatory bowel disease pathogenesis. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients with untreated Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) as compared to patients with other inflammatory gastrointestinal disorders and to healthy controls.

Methods: We used a 2400 gene cDNA glass slide array (MICROMAX) to examine gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from seven patients with Crohn's disease, five patients with ulcerative colitis, 10 patients with other inflammatory gastrointestinal disorders, and 22 age- and sex-matched controls.

The effect of drug dose and drug exposure time on the binding, internalization, and cytotoxicity of radiolabeled somatostatin analogs.

Background: Creation of protease-resistant somatostatin analogs has allowed development of these peptides as clinically useful drugs. Widespread diagnostic use of radiolabeled somatostatin analogs has enhanced interest in the binding and intracellular distribution of these peptides. The degree of drug internalization and length of drug retention may be critical for drug-induced cytotoxicity.

Inhibition of angiogenic initiation and disruption of newly established human vascular networks by juice from Morinda citrifolia (noni).

noni, the juice of the fruit from the Morinda citrifolia plant, has been used for centuries as a medicinal agent. We tested the effects of noni juice in a three-dimensional fibrin clot matrix model using human placental vein and human breast tumor explants as sources for angiogenic vessel development. Noni in concentrations of 5% (vol/vol) or greater was highly effective in inhibiting the initiation of new vessel sprouts from placental vein explants, compared with initiation in control explants in media supplemented with an equivalent amount of saline.

Effect of human recombinant Endostatin protein on human angiogenesis.

Tumor growth and metastasis are dependent on the development of new blood vessels. Inhibitors of new vessel growth have been widely investigated as anti-tumor agents. Endostatin, a 20 kDa C-terminal fragment of collagen XVIII inhibits endothelial cell proliferation, induces endothelial cell apoptosis, and can both inhibit and reverse tumor growth in mice.

Population change in adult obesity and blood lipids in American Samoa from 1976-1978 to 1990.

Obesity in American Samoan adults in 1990 was compared to that in 1976-1978 to evaluate population changes concomitant with modernization. Body weight, stature, the body mass index (BMI), and two skinfolds were measured in 1990 in 830 males and females 25-74 years old, and were compared to corresponding data from 1976 and 1978 for 1,621 adults. Mean BMI and skinfold thicknesses increased markedly from 1976-1978 to 1990 in males at all ages.