S100A6 and its extracellular targets in Wharton's jelly of healthy and preeclamptic patients.

Introduction: In this work we compared the level, localization and binding partners of a calcium binding protein, S100A6, in extracellular matrix of Wharton's jelly of healthy and preeclamptic patients.

Methods: Studies were performed on the umbilical cords taken from 10 newborns delivered by healthy and 10 newborns delivered by preeclamptic mothers. To characterize S100A6 in Wharton's jelly immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry were applied.

Does vascular endothelial growth factor participate in uterine myoma growth stimulation?

Objective: Peptide growth factors play a role in the rebuilding of extracellular matrix in the course of leiomyoma growth, and exert a regulative effect on the cell only when they bind with a specific membrane receptor and transmit a signal into the cell. A high content of certain peptide growth factors and their receptors in leiomyoma suggests that in the course of the tumour growth hyperstimulation of cells takes place. A combined action of various peptide growth factors causes an amplification of signal paths in cells, inducing gene expression of proteins responsible for cell division and changes of metabolism.

Identification and localization of S100A6 in human umbilical cord.

S100A6, a calcium-binding protein also known as calcyclin, was detected in human umbilical cord by immunoblotting. Immunohistochemical studies showed an intensive reaction for S100A6 in the walls of vessels and Wharton's jelly. In the latter, S100A6 was found not only in the myofibroblasts but also in the ECM (extracellular matrix) surrounding these cells.

Spin wave excitations of a magnetic pillar with dipolar coupling between the layers.

It is demonstrated analytically that the spectrum of small-amplitude spatially uniform magnetization excitations in an in-plane magnetized magnetic pillar with two ferromagnetic layers coupled by dipole-dipole interaction can be approximately described by the traditional Kittel formula with reduced saturation magnetization and effective anisotropy field. The spectrum consists of a quasi-symmetric and a quasi-antisymmetric mode, and the apparent reduction of saturation magnetization for the quasi-symmetric mode (≤50%) is much larger than that for the quasi-antisymmetric mode (≤10%). The effect of dynamic dipolar coupling between the nano-pillar layers could be partly responsible for the apparent reduction of static magnetization seen in many spin-torque experiments performed on magnetic nano-pillars.

Glucose deficiency reduces collagen synthesis in breast cancer MCF7 cells.

We decided to study the effect of glucose deprivation on collagen metabolism in MCF7 cells. The incorporation of [3H]-proline into collagenase-sensitive and hydroxyproline-containing proteins was used as an index of collagen synthesis, whereas pulse-chase technique was employed to evaluate the degradation of newly synthesized proteins. The MCF7 cells incubated in high glucose medium synthesized detectable amounts of collagenous proteins.