The degree of cross-linking of polyacrylic acid affects the fibrogenicity in rat lungs.

Polyacrylic acid (PAA) with different concentrations of cross-linker was instilled into the trachea of rats to examine the effect of PAA crosslink density on lung disorders. Methods: F344 rats were intratracheally exposed to low and high doses of PAA with cross-linker concentrations of 0.1, 1.

Developmental Changes in Gap Junction Expression in Rat Adrenal Medullary Chromaffin Cells.

Cell-to-cell communications are desirable for efficient functioning in endocrine cells. Gap junctions and paracrine factors are major mechanisms by which neighboring endocrine cells communicate with each other. The current experiment was undertaken to morphologically examine gap junction expression and developmental changes in rat adrenal medullary chromaffin (AMC) cells.

Caspase-4 promotes metastasis and interferon-γ-induced pyroptosis in lung adenocarcinoma.

Caspase-4 (CASP4) is a member of the inflammatory caspase subfamily and promotes inflammation. Here, we report that CASP4 in lung adenocarcinoma cells contributes to both tumor progression via angiogenesis and tumor hyperkinesis and tumor cell killing in response to high interferon (IFN)-γ levels. We observe that elevated CASP4 expression in the primary tumor is associated with cancer progression in patients with lung adenocarcinoma.

Intratracheal instillation of polyacrylic acid induced pulmonary fibrosis with elevated transforming growth factor-β1 and connective tissue growth factor.

We investigated the intratracheal instillation of Polyacrylic acid (PAA) in rats to determine if it would cause pulmonary disorders, and to see what factors would be associated with the pathological changes. Male F344 rats were intratracheally instilled with low (0.2 mg/rat) and high (1.

The Effects of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress via Intratracheal Instillation of Water-Soluble Acrylic Acid Polymer on the Lungs of Rats.

Polyacrylic acid (PAA), an organic chemical, has been used as an intermediate in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. It has been suggested recently that PAA has a high pulmonary inflammatory and fibrotic potential. Although endoplasmic reticulum stress is induced by various external and intracellular stimuli, there have been no reports examining the relationship between PAA-induced lung injury and endoplasmic reticulum stress.

Delayed cortical bone healing due to impaired nuclear Nrf2 translocation in COPD mice.

The effect of the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on bone fracture healing is unknown. Oxidative stress has been implicated in the systemic complications of COPD, and decreased activity of Nrf2 signaling, a central component of the in vivo antioxidant mechanism, has been reported. We investigated the process of cortical bone repair in a mouse model of elastase-induced emphysema by creating a drill hole and focusing on Nrf2 and found that the amount of new bone in the drill hole was reduced and bone formation capacity was decreased in the model mice.

Pulmonary disorder induced by cross-linked polyacrylic acid.

Objectives: Organic polymers are materials widely used in our daily lives, such as daily necessities, foods, and medicines. There have been reports recently that cross-linked polyacrylic acid (CL-PAA) can possibly cause serious lung disease. We investigated whether intratracheal instillation of CL-PAA causes pulmonary disorder in rats.

Crosslinked Structure of Polyacrylic Acid Affects Pulmonary Fibrogenicity in Rats.

We conducted intratracheal instillations of polyacrylic acid (PAA) with crosslinking and non-crosslinking into rats in order to examine what kinds of physicochemical characteristics of acrylic-acid-based polymers affect responses in the lung. F344 rats were intratracheally exposed to similar molecular weights of crosslinked PAA (CL-PAA) (degree of crosslinking: ~0.1%) and non-crosslinked PAA (Non-CL-PAA) at low and high doses.

Pulmonary toxicity of tungsten trioxide nanoparticles in an inhalation study and an intratracheal instillation study.

Objectives: We conducted inhalation and intratracheal instillation studies in order to examine the effects of tungsten trioxide (WO ) nanoparticles on the lung, and evaluated whether or not the nanoparticles would cause persistent lung inflammation.

Methods: In the inhalation study, male 10-week-old Fischer 334 rats were classified into 3 groups. The control, low-dose, and high-dose groups inhaled clean air, 2, and 10 mg/m WO nanoparticles, respectively, for 6 h each day for 4 weeks.

Oxidative stress causes muscle structural alterations via p38 MAPK signaling in COPD mouse model.

Introduction: Sarcopenia is a complication of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) that negatively affects physical activity and quality of life. However, the underlying mechanism by which COPD affects skeletal muscles remains to be elucidated. Therefore, we investigated the association between oxidative stress and structural alterations in muscles in elastase-induced emphysema mouse models.

Effect of Different Molecular Weights of Polyacrylic Acid on Rat Lung Following Intratracheal Instillation.

Background: We conducted intratracheal instillations of different molecular weights of polyacrylic acid (PAA) into rats in order to examine what kinds of physicochemical characteristics of acrylic acid-based polymer affect responses in the lung.

Methods: F344 rats were intratracheally exposed to a high molecular weight (HMW) of 598 thousand g/mol or a low molecular weight (LMW) of 30.9 thousand g/mol PAA at low and high doses.

Deletion of Wnt10a Is Implicated in Hippocampal Neurodegeneration in Mice.

The hippocampus plays an important role in maintaining normal cognitive function and is closely associated with the neuropathogenesis of dementia. Wnt signaling is relevant to neuronal development and maturation, synaptic formation, and plasticity. The role of Wnt10a in hippocampus-associated cognition, however, is largely unclear.

Deficiency of Wnt10a causes female infertility via the β-catenin/Cyp19a1 pathway in mice.

Wnt signaling is relevant for a wide range of biological processes, including reproductive function. The function of Wnt10a in female fertility, however, remains obscure. In the present study, we explored the structure and function of the female reproductive organs in Wnt10a knockout (KO) mice.

Inflammogenic effect of polyacrylic acid in rat lung following intratracheal instillation.

Background: Some organic chemicals are known to cause allergic disorders such as bronchial asthma and hypersensitivity pneumonitis, and it has been considered that they do not cause irreversible pulmonary fibrosis. It has recently been reported, however, that cross-linked acrylic acid-based polymer, an organic chemical, might cause serious interstitial lung diseases, including pulmonary fibrosis. We investigated whether or not intratracheal instillation exposure to cross-linked polyacrylic acid (CL-PAA) can cause lung disorder in rats.

Microglia-Based Sex-Biased Neuropathology in Early-Stage Alzheimer's Disease Model Mice and the Potential Pharmacologic Efficacy of Dioscin.

Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common form of dementia, is characterized by amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation, microglia-associated neuroinflammation, and synaptic loss. The detailed neuropathologic characteristics in early-stage AD, however, are largely unclear. We evaluated the pathologic brain alterations in young adult App knock-in model mice at 3 and 6 months of age, which corresponds to early-stage AD.

Spontaneous pulmonary emphysema in mice lacking all three nitric oxide synthase isoforms.

The roles of endogenous nitric oxide (NO) derived from the entire NO synthases (NOSs) system have yet to be fully elucidated. We addressed this issue in mice in which all three NOS isoforms were deleted. Under basal conditions, the triple n/i/eNOSs mice displayed significantly longer mean alveolar linear intercept length, increased alveolar destructive index, reduced lung elastic fiber content, lower lung field computed tomographic value, and greater end-expiratory lung volume as compared with wild-type (WT) mice.

Effect of metformin treatment and its time of administration on joint capsular fibrosis induced by mouse knee immobilization.

Joint contracture leads to major patient discomfort. Metformin, one of the most extensively used oral drugs against type 2 diabetes has recently been found to suppress tissue fibrosis as well. However, its role in suppressing tissue fibrosis in joint contractures remains unknown.

Chewing Behavior Attenuates the Tumor Progression-Enhancing Effects of Psychological Stress in a Breast Cancer Model Mouse.

We examined whether chewing behavior affects the tumor progression-enhancing impact of psychological stress. Human breast cancer cell line (MDA-MB-231) cells were inoculated into the mammary fat pads of athymic nude mice. The mice were assigned randomly to control, stress, and stress+chewing groups.

Development of a novel knee contracture mouse model by immobilization using external fixation.

Aims: Several studies have used animal models to examine knee joint contracture; however, few reports detail the construction process of a knee joint contracture model in a mouse. The use of mouse models is beneficial, as genetically modified mice can be used to investigate the pathogenesis of joint contracture. Compared to others, mouse models are associated with a lower cost to evaluate therapeutic effects.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease severity in middle-aged and older men with osteoporosis associates with decreased bone formation.

Objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a risk factor for osteoporosis. Nevertheless, much remains unclear regarding the bone metabolism dynamics associated with COPD. The present study focuses on the associations between the COPD severity and serum bone metabolism biomarkers.

Predictive Biomarkers for the Ranking of Pulmonary Toxicity of Nanomaterials.

We analyzed the mRNA expression of chemokines in rat lungs following intratracheal instillation of nanomaterials in order to find useful predictive markers of the pulmonary toxicity of nanomaterials. Nickel oxide (NiO) and cerium dioxide (CeO) as nanomaterials with high pulmonary toxicity, and titanium dioxide (TiO) and zinc oxide (ZnO) as nanomaterials with low pulmonary toxicity, were administered into rat lungs (0.8 or 4 mg/kg BW).

Effects of Maternal Chewing on Prenatal Stress-Induced Cognitive Impairments in the Offspring via Multiple Molecular Pathways.

We aimed to investigate the effects of maternal chewing on prenatal stress-induced cognitive impairments in the offspring and to explore the molecular pathways of maternal chewing in a mice model. Maternal chewing ameliorated spatial learning impairments in the offspring in a Morris water maze test. Immunohistochemistry and Western blot findings revealed that maternal chewing alleviated hippocampal neurogenesis impairment and increased the expression of hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the offspring.