Evaluation of thymopoiesis in healthy Turkish children aged 0-6 years.

Background: Early diagnosis and effective treatment serve as life-saving procedures for primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) which are very common and a major public health problem in Turkey. Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is constitutively a T-cell defect in which naïve T-cell development is defective due to the mutations in genes responsible for the T cell differentiation and insufficient thymopoiesis. So, assessment of thymopoiesis is very important in the diagnosis of SCID and several combined immune deficiencies (CIDs).

Fatty Acid-binding Protein 4 Expression in Tumor Cells as a Potential Marker for Anaplastic Meningiomas.

Meningiomas are highly vascularized tumors originating from arachnoid cap cells of the leptomeninges. The majority of meningiomas are classified as World Health Organization (WHO) grade I and display a benign clinical course with a low risk of recurrence. In contrast, WHO grade III meningiomas carry a high risk of recurrence and poor prognosis.

Airway epithelial cell PPARγ modulates cigarette smoke-induced chemokine expression and emphysema susceptibility in mice.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a highly prevalent, chronic inflammatory lung disease with limited existing therapeutic options. While modulation of peroxisome proliferator-activating receptor (PPAR)-γ activity can modify inflammatory responses in several models of lung injury, the relevance of the PPARG pathway in COPD pathogenesis has not been previously explored. Mice lacking Pparg specifically in airway epithelial cells displayed increased susceptibility to chronic cigarette smoke (CS)-induced emphysema, with excessive macrophage accumulation associated with increased expression of chemokines, Ccl5, Cxcl10, and Cxcl15.

Fatty acid binding protein 4 expression in cerebral vascular malformations: implications for vascular remodelling.

Aim: Arteriovenous malformations (AVM) and cavernous malformations (CM) are the most commonly encountered cerebral vascular malformations, which are dynamic lesions with de novo growth potentials. Postnatal angiogenesis and vasculogenesis have been postulated to play a role in the pathogenesis of these malformations. Fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) is an intracellular lipid chaperone, which is expressed in a subset of endothelial cells.

The effect of mode of delivery on T regulatory (Treg) cells of cord blood.

Objective: To evaluate whether the mode of delivery (vaginal versus C-section) influences the levels of CD4+CD25+FOXP3+ Treg cells in cord blood and maternal peripheral blood and also to examine its relationship with plasma cortisol levels.

Methods: Newborns either born vaginally (n = 19) or via elective C- section (n = 20) and their mothers, as well as 20 healthy but not pregnant women, were included in the study. CD4+CD25+FOXP3 (Treg) cells were examined by flow cytometry.

Upregulation of CD63 or CD203c alone or in combination is not sensitive in the diagnosis of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug intolerance.

Background: The oral aspirin (ASA) provocation test is considered to be the gold standard in the diagnosis of ASA sensitivity. However, since it may be associated with severe adverse reactions, safer alternatives would be highly desirable. The basophil activation test has been proposed as such an alternative, but there is limited information about its usefulness.

Hypercholesterolemia impairs immunity to tuberculosis.

We demonstrate that apolipoprotein E -deficient (ApoE(-/-)) mice are highly susceptible to tuberculosis and that their susceptibility depends on the severity of hypercholesterolemia. Wild-type (WT) mice and ApoE(-/-) mice fed a low-cholesterol (LC) or high-cholesterol (HC) diet were infected with approximately 50 CFU Mycobacterium tuberculosis Erdman by aerosol. ApoE(-/-) LC mice were modestly more susceptible to tuberculosis than WT LC mice.

Tuberculosis susceptibility of diabetic mice.

Increased susceptibility to infections, including tuberculosis (TB), is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with diabetes. Despite the clinical importance of this problem, little is known about how diabetes impairs protective immunity. We modeled this phenomenon by infecting acute (< or = 1 mo) or chronic (> or = 3 mo) diabetic mice with a low aerosol dose of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) Erdman.

Monosymptomatic hypochondriacal psychosis presenting with recurrent oral mucosal ulcers and multiple skin lesions responding to olanzapine treatment.

Monosymptomatic hypochondriacal psychosis (MHP) is a form of psychosis characterized by the delusional idea that there is a serious problem in the skin or other body parts. Because MHP patients believe that their complaint is dermatological, not psychiatric, they often admit to several other medical disciplines before coming to a psychiatry clinic. This leads to a series of time-consuming examinations and treatment interventions.

Positive transcriptional regulatory element located within exon 1 of elastin gene.

Elastin gene transcription is cell type specific and developmentally regulated, but the promoter often exhibits relatively weak activity in transient transfections of cells that express elastin at high levels. To search for positive-acting regulatory sequences, we isolated genomic clones spanning the mouse elastin gene and extensive 5'- and 3'-flanking regions. Restriction fragments of potential regulatory regions were ligated 5' or 3' relative to the active promoter to test for enhancer activity in transient transfections of fetal rat lung fibroblasts, which express elastin at high levels, and distal lung epithelial cells, which do not express detectable elastin.

Epithelial cell PPAR[gamma] contributes to normal lung maturation.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-gamma is a member of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily that can promote cellular differentiation and organ development. PPARgamma expression has been reported in a number of pulmonary cell types, including inflammatory, mesenchymal, and epithelial cells. We find that PPARgamma is prominently expressed in the airway epithelium in the mouse lung.

Induction of macrophage elastase (MMP-12) gene expression by statins.

The statins (including mevastatin and lovastatin) are a widely prescribed class of serum-cholesterol lowering drugs that function by inhibiting 3-hydroxymethylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductase activity and cellular sterol synthesis. Statins are also widely being appreciated for their inhibitory effects upon inflammation, primarily mediated through direct regulation of inflammatory gene expression. Here we report that statins are also capable of increasing the expression of macrophage elastase (MMP-12).

Modulation of the membrane-binding domain of tau protein: splicing regulation of exon 2.

Tau is a microtubule-associated protein whose transcript undergoes complex regulated splicing in the mammalian nervous system. The N-terminal domain of the protein interacts with the axonal membrane, and is modulated by regulated inclusion of exons 2 and 3. These two tau exons are alternatively spliced cassettes, in which exon 3 never appears independently of exon 2.

Sleep quality in chronic pain patients.

Objective: Chronic pain patients have been reported to complain about poor sleep quality. Research aimed at delineating the predictors of poor sleep has produced conflicting results. Depressive mood and pain severity are the most frequently encountered predictors.

Modulation of the membrane-binding projection domain of tau protein: splicing regulation of exon 3.

Tau is a microtubule-associated protein whose transcript undergoes complex regulated splicing in the mammalian nervous system. The N-terminal domain of the protein interacts with the axonal membrane, and is modulated by differential inclusion of exons 2 and 3. These two tau exons are alternatively spliced cassettes, in which exon 3 never appears independently of exon 2.