Efficacy and Safety of Massage for Osteoarthritis of the Knee: a Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Current treatment options for knee osteoarthritis have limited effectiveness and potentially adverse side effects. Massage may offer a safe and effective complement to the management of knee osteoarthritis.

Objective: Examine effects of whole-body massage on knee osteoarthritis, compared to active control (light-touch) and usual care.

Interprofessional Integrative Medicine Training for Preventive Medicine Residents.

Integrative medicine training was incorporated into the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Preventive Medicine residency at the Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences Newark Campus as a collaboration between the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and the School of Health Related Professions. Beginning in 2012, an interdisciplinary faculty team organized an Integrative Medicine program in a Preventive Medicine residency that leveraged existing resources across Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences. The overarching aim of the programs was to introduce residents and faculty to the scope and practice of integrative medicine in the surrounding Newark community and explore evidence-based research on integrative medicine.

Ubiquitin-mediated interaction of p210 BCR/ABL with β-catenin supports disease progression in a murine model for chronic myelogenous leukemia.

We have identified a ubiquitin-binding domain within the NH2-terminal sequences of p210 BCR/ABL and determined that the binding site co-localizes with the binding site for β-catenin. The domain does not support the auto- or trans-kinase activity of p210 BCR/ABL or its ability to interact with GRB2 and activate ERK1/2 signaling. Expression of p210 BCR/ABL, but not a β-catenin-binding mutant, in hematopoietic cells is associated with the accumulation of p-β-catenin (Tyr654) and increased TCF/LEF-mediated transcription.

Utilization of virtual learning environments in the allied health professions.

Multiple technology based tools have been used to enhance skill development in allied health education, which now includes virtual learning environments. The purpose of this study was to explore whether, and how, this latest instructional technology is being adapted in allied health education. An online survey was circulated to all Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions (ASAHP) member institutions and focused on three broad areas of virtual learning environments: the uses of, the perceived pros and cons of, and the outcomes of utilizing them.

Bcr interacts with components of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport-I and is required for epidermal growth factor receptor turnover.

Virtually all patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) express an aberrant protein (p210 Bcr-Abl) that contains NH2-terminal sequences from Bcr fused to COOH-terminal sequences from Abl. In a yeast two-hybrid screen, we have identified TSG101 as a binding partner for Bcr. Because TSG101 is a subunit of the mammalian endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT), which regulates protein sorting during endosomal trafficking, this association suggests that Bcr may have a related cellular function.

Transformation by the Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor Dbs requires ROCK I-mediated phosphorylation of myosin light chain.

Dbs was identified in a cDNA-based expression screen for sequences that can cause malignant growth when expressed in murine fibroblasts. In previous studies we have shown that Dbs is a Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor that can activate RhoA and/or Cdc42 in a cell-specific manner. In this current study we have used a combination of genetic and pharmacological approaches to examine the relative contributions of RhoA x PRK and RhoA x ROCK signaling to Dbs transformation.

XGef mediates early CPEB phosphorylation during Xenopus oocyte meiotic maturation.

Polyadenylation-induced translation is an important regulatory mechanism during metazoan development. During Xenopus oocyte meiotic progression, polyadenylation-induced translation is regulated by CPEB, which is activated by phosphorylation. XGef, a guanine exchange factor, is a CPEB-interacting protein involved in the early steps of progesterone-stimulated oocyte maturation.

The Sec14 homology domain regulates the cellular distribution and transforming activity of the Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor Dbs.

Dbs is a Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor that was identified in a screen for proteins whose overexpression cause deregulated growth in murine fibroblasts. Dbs contains multiple recognizable motifs including a centrally located Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor domain, a COOH-terminal Src homology 3 domain, two spectrin-like repeats, and a recently identified NH(2)-terminal Sec14 homology domain. The transforming potential of Dbs is substantially activated by the removal of inhibitory sequences that lie outside of the core catalytic sequences, and in this current study we mapped this inhibition to the Sec14 domain.

Pleckstrin homology domain-mediated activation of the rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor Dbs by Rac1.

Dbs is a Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor that was identified in a screen for proteins whose expression causes deregulated growth in NIH 3T3 mouse fibroblasts. Although Rac1 has not been shown to be a substrate for Dbs in either in vitro or in vivo assays, the Rat ortholog of Dbs (Ost) has been shown to bind specifically to GTP.Rac1 in vitro.

XGef is a CPEB-interacting protein involved in Xenopus oocyte maturation.

XGef was isolated in a screen for proteins interacting with CPEB, a regulator of mRNA translation in early Xenopus development. XGef is a Rho-family guanine nucleotide exchange factor and activates Cdc42 in mammalian cells. Endogenous XGef (58 kDa) interacts with recombinant CPEB, and recombinant XGef interacts with endogenous CPEB in Xenopus oocytes.

Multifunctional roles for the PH domain of Dbs in regulating Rho GTPase activation.

Dbl family members are guanine nucleotide exchange factors specific for Rho guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) and invariably possess tandem Dbl (DH) and pleckstrin homology (PH) domains. Dbs, a Dbl family member specific for Cdc42 and RhoA, exhibits transforming activity when overexpressed in NIH 3T3 mouse fibroblasts. In this study, the PH domain of Dbs was mutated to impair selectively either guanine nucleotide exchange or phosphoinositide binding in vitro and resulting physiological alterations were assessed.

The c-Myc Oncoprotein Interacts with Bcr.

Bcr is a multifunctional protein that is the fusion partner for Abl (p210 Bcr-Abl) in Philadelphia chromosome positive leukemias. We have identified c-Myc as a binding partner for Bcr in both yeast and mammalian cells. We are also able to observe interactions between natively expressed c-Myc and Bcr in leukemic cell lines.

RhoGEF specificity mutants implicate RhoA as a target for Dbs transforming activity.

Dbs is a Rho-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor (RhoGEF) that exhibits transforming activity when overexpressed in NIH 3T3 mouse fibroblasts. Like many RhoGEFs, the in vitro catalytic activity of Dbs is not limited to a single substrate. It can catalyze the exchange of GDP for GTP on RhoA and Cdc42, both of which are expressed in most cell types.

p38 MAPK-mediated activation of NF-kappaB by the RhoGEF domain of Bcr.

The oncogenic fusion protein p210 Bcr-Abl is causally associated with virtually all cases of chronic myelogenous leukemia. The wild-type Bcr product has several recognizable structural and functional motifs including a domain that contains guanine nucleotide exchange activity for Rho family GTPases (DH/PH domain). Although this domain is retained within p210 Bcr-Abl, it has no known signaling activities in vivo.