Transgenic expression of Hsc70 in pancreatic islets enhances autoimmune diabetes in response to beta cell damage.

Inflammation following tissue damage promotes lymphocyte recruitment, tissue remodeling, and wound healing while maintaining self tolerance. Endogenous signals associated with tissue damage and cell death have been proposed to initiate and instruct immune responses following injury. In this study, we have examined the effects of elevated levels of a candidate endogenous danger signal, heat shock cognate protein 70 (hsc70), on stimulation of inflammation and autoimmunity following cell damage.

Calcification is associated with loss of functional calcium-sensing receptor in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Aims: Vascular calcification (VC) is highly correlated with increased morbidity and mortality in advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Allosteric modulation of the calcium-sensing receptor (CaR) by calcimimetics inhibits VC in animal models of advanced CKD. Here, we investigated the expression of the CaR in the vasculature and tested the ability of calcimimetics to prevent vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) calcification in vitro.