Impact of an acute heat shock during maturation on interleukin 6 and its associated receptor component transcripts in bovine cumulus-oocyte complexes.

An acute heat stress event after the LH surge increased interleukin 6 (IL6) levels in the follicular fluid of the ovulatory follicle in hyperthermic cows. To examine direct consequences of a physiologically-relevant elevated temperature (41.0°C) on the cumulus-oocyte complex (COC), IL6 transcript abundance and related receptor components were evaluated throughout maturation.

Cardiomyopathy in the mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy caused by disordered secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor.

Background: Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a genetic neuromuscular disorder that affects skeletal muscles and cardiac muscle tissue. In some cases, myocardial injury secondary to hypoxia can lead to dilative cardiomyopathy (DCM). A genetic defect in the dystrophin gene may increase the susceptibility of myocardium to hypoxia.

From immunohistochemistry to pathophysiology of rheumatoid arthritis: cross reactivity of self anti-immunoglobulin antibodies with collagen(s) may contribute to mechanisms of connective tissue damage (a hypothesis).

The mechanism of initiation and development of rheumatoid arthritis was a subject of several hypotheses. None of those hypotheses has, however, convincingly explained all important facts, related to clinical, immunological and pathological aspects of the disease. A hypothesis is presented here, suggesting that, in the course of rheumatoid arthritis, an immune system produces anti-immunoglobulin antibodies, cross-reacting with self collagen(s).

Histological structure of bovine coronary arteries at varying distance from their origins from the aorta (a preliminary study).

Coronary arteries of three bovine hearts, obtained from animals, aged about 2 years, were studied. Both right and left coronary arteries were dissected out, divided into 10 mm long segments, fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin. Histological sections were cut in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the vessel and stained, using van Gieson's method; additional staining with resorcin-fuchsin.

Muscular dystrophy in mice caused by two different alterations of dystrophin gene.

The study addressed the question of the functional significance of various isoforms of dystrophin. Mice bearing two different alterations of the dystrophin gene, mdx and mdx-beta geo, were examined. Dystrophic mice with mdx mutation do not express full-length dystrophins, while they express short dystrophins; on the other hand, the dystrophic mice with mdx-beta geo mutation express neither full-length nor short dystrophins.