The activin-follistatin anti-inflammatory cycle is deregulated in synovial fibroblasts.

Background: Activin A and follistatin exhibit immunomodulatory functions, thus affecting autoinflammatory processes as found in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The impact of both proteins on the behavior of synovial fibroblasts (SF) in RA as well as in osteoarthritis (OA) is unknown.

Methods: Immunohistochemical analyses of synovial tissue for expression of activin A and follistatin were performed.

Expression of adipokines in osteoarthritis osteophytes and their effect on osteoblasts.

Objective: Osteophyte formation in osteoarthritis (OA) is mediated by increased osteoblast activity, which is -in turn- regulated by the Wnt signaling pathway. Obesity is regarded a risk factor in OA, yet little is known about the interaction between adipose tissue-derived factors, the adipokines, and bone formation, although adipokines are associated with the pathogenesis of OA. Therefore, the effect of adipokines on bone and cartilage forming cells and osteophyte development was analyzed.

Characterization of an alphamesonivirus 3C-like protease defines a special group of nidovirus main proteases.

Unlabelled: Cavally virus (CavV) and related viruses in the family Mesoniviridae diverged profoundly from other nidovirus lineages but largely retained the characteristic set of replicative enzymes conserved in the Coronaviridae and Roniviridae. The expression of these enzymes in virus-infected cells requires the extensive proteolytic processing of two large replicase polyproteins, pp1a and pp1ab, by the viral 3C-like protease (3CL(pro)). Here, we show that CavV 3CL(pro) autoproteolytic cleavage occurs at two N-terminal (N1 and N2) and one C-terminal (C1) processing site(s).