c-Flip overexpression reduces cardiac hypertrophy in response to pressure overload.

Objective: Activation of Fas signaling has been associated with the development of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. In the present study, we investigated the effects of increased expression of c-Flip, a natural modulator of Fas receptor signaling, in a mouse model of cardiac growth response to pressure overload.

Methods: A transgenic mouse overexpressing c-Flip in the heart was generated in FVB/N strain.

Effect of chitinase inhibitors on endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU) in rabbits.

The acidic mammalian chitinase (AMCase) is significantly increased in tears of human allergic conjunctivitis. The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of chitinase inhibitors, allosamidin and caffeine versus dexamethasone, in rabbit endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU). EIU was induced in rabbits by a single intravitreal injection of 100ng/10microl lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

Green fluorescent protein incorporation by mouse myoblasts may yield false evidence of myogenic differentiation of human haematopoietic stem cells.

Aims: Haematopoietic CD34+ stem cells are able to differentiate into skeletal muscle, a potentially invaluable tool for treating degenerative diseases such as muscular dystrophy. However, some studies argue that the differentiative potential of these cells might have been overestimated. In vitro studies provide a controlled environment in which to investigate this point.

Modulation of the enzymatic efficiency of ferredoxin-NADP(H) reductase by the amino acid volume around the catalytic site.

Ferredoxin (flavodoxin)-NADP(H) reductases (FNRs) are ubiquitous flavoenzymes that deliver NADPH or low-potential one-electron donors (ferredoxin, flavodoxin, adrenodoxin) to redox-based metabolic reactions in plastids, mitochondria and bacteria. Plastidic FNRs are quite efficient reductases. In contrast, FNRs from organisms possessing a heterotrophic metabolism or anoxygenic photosynthesis display turnover numbers 20- to 100-fold lower than those of their plastidic and cyanobacterial counterparts.

Chitinase levels in the tears of subjects with ocular allergies.

Purpose: Chitin is abundant in the structural coatings of fungi, insects, and parasitic nematodes. The host defense against chitin-containing pathogens includes production of chitinases. An acidic mammalian chitinase (AMCase) is produced in human epithelial cells of lower airways through a TH2-specific, interleukin-13-dependent pathway and appears to be associated with allergic asthma.

beta-Endorphin concentration in colostrums of Burkinabe and Sicilian women.

Objective: Endorphins (EPs) present in human colostrum may be relevant for immediate postnatal fetal adaptation because this compound is involved in stress response and adaptation mechanisms. Endorphin levels in human colostrum are two-fold greater than corresponding maternal plasma levels; however, the high endorphin levels in human milk decrease as lactation continues. The aim of this study was to determine the beta-EP concentration in colostrums of women residing in Burkina Faso and Sicily.

Maternal exposure to low levels of corticosterone during lactation protects the adult offspring against ischemic brain damage.

A growing body of evidence underscores the importance of early life events as predictors of health in adulthood. Abnormalities in maternal care or other forms of early postnatal stress induce long-term changes in behavior and influence the vulnerability to illnesses throughout life. Some of these changes may be produced by the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which is invariably associated with stress.

Propranolol causes a paradoxical enhancement of cardiomyocyte foetal gene response to hypertrophic stimuli.

Background And Purpose: Pathological cardiac hypertrophy is associated with the expression of a gene profile reminiscent of foetal development. The non selective beta-adrenoceptor antagonist propranolol is able to blunt cardiomyocyte hypertrophic response in pressure-overloaded hearts. It remains to be determined whether propranolol also attenuates the expression of hypertrophy-associated foetal genes.

High levels of human chitotriosidase hinder the formation of peritrophic membrane in anopheline vectors.

In the Anopheles midgut, Plasmodium falciparum produces a specific chitinase able to penetrate the blood meal surrounding the chitin-containing peritrophic membrane (PM). High levels of an analogous chitinase, chitotriosidase (CHIT), may be found in human blood, being the markers of macrophage activation. To verify the hypothesis that CHIT present in malaria patient blood could help parasite to overcome PM, we carried out a bioassay by feeding Anopheles stephensi females on an artificial apparatus that contained human blood from four different sources and with different chitinase concentrations: (1) healthy donors, as negative controls; (2) patients with malaria; (3) patients with Gaucher disease; and (4) whole blood enriched with commercial P.

Oligosaccharides in colostrum of Italian and Burkinabe women.

Human milk contains a large number of compounds to provide nutrition and defense for the newborn. Among these, oligosaccharides are present in concentrations up to 12 g/L, and their composition varies during lactation. Colostrum from 53 Burkinabe women were collected at the maternity department of St Camille Medical Centre in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso, West Africa).

Cutaneous manifestations and massive genital involvement in Hennekam syndrome.

We describe a 16-year-old boy with intestinal lymphangiectasia, lymphedema of the limbs and genitalia, mild mental retardation, and facial anomalies (Hennekam syndrome) and cutaneous lesions. Severe edema in the genital area created a gigantic mass that included the scrotum and penis. Numerous grouped red-violaceous pseudo-vesicular lesions and plaques, as well as verrucous brown papules, were present on the penis and scrotum.

Immunomodulation of fucosyl-lactose and lacto-N-fucopentaose on mononuclear cells from multiple sclerosis and healthy subjects.

The 1,2-fucosyl-oligosaccharides, and among these the 2'-fucosyl-lactose (2'-FL) and lacto-N-fucopentaose (LNFP)-I, are quantitatively the most represented oligosaccharides of human milk. They are also seen to represent an important immune device to prevent nursing infants from severe infectious diarrhoea. Recent evidences show that the appearance of 2'-FL and LNFP-I in human colostrums is synchronised with the macrophage inhibition and that LNFP-III induces a Th2 response from the mouse peripheral immune system.

Pressure overload causes cardiac hypertrophy in beta1-adrenergic and beta2-adrenergic receptor double knockout mice.

Objective: Cardiac hypertrophy arises as an adaptive response to increased afterload. Studies in knockout mice have shown that catecholamines, but not alpha1-adrenergic receptors, are necessary for such an adaptation to occur. However, whether beta-adrenergic receptors are critical for the development of cardiac hypertrophy in response to pressure overload is not known at this time.

Treatment of an extensive superficial basal cell carcinoma of the face with imiquimod 5% cream.

The efficacy and safety of imiquimod, an immune-response modifier approved for the treatment of anogenital warts that has antiviral and antitumor activity, in the management of an extensive superficial basal cell carcinoma (sBCC) of the face as an alternative to surgical treatment was evaluated in a 75-year-old male with a 4-year history of a progressively enlarging lesion located on the right temporal region. Imiquimod 5% cream was applied daily until clinical resolution. Histopathological confirmation of clinical diagnosis and of tumor clearance were performed before starting treatment and at the end of treatment, respectively.

Infantile psoriasis.

Psoriasis is a common inherited papulosquamous dermatosis that may be a diagnostic dilemma, particularly in infants and children. The treatment of children with psoriasis should be handled with caution and tailored according to the child's age, as well as to the extent, distribution, and type of psoriasis.

Interferon-gamma, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and lipopolysaccharide promote chitotriosidase gene expression in human macrophages.

Human chitotriosidase (Chit), a chitinolytic enzyme, is a member of the chitinase family. In human plasma, Chit activity has been proposed as a biochemical marker of macrophage activation in several lysosomal diseases. Recently we found that Chit activity is higher in patients affected by Plasmodium falciparum malaria infection, suggesting that Chit may reflect induction of an immunological response.

Effect of interferon-gamma, interleukin-10, lipopolysaccharide and tumor necrosis factor-alpha on chitotriosidase synthesis in human macrophages.

Human chitotriosidase is a chitinolytic enzyme and mainly produced by activated macrophages. Recently, we observed that prolactin, which is structurally related to several cytokines and is involved in regulating monocyte/macrophage functions, upregulates chitotriosidase gene expression in human macrophages, suggesting that chitotriosidase is not only a biochemical marker of macrophage activation in lysosomal diseases and hematological disorders, but also may reflect induction of an immunological response. To confirm this hypothesis we evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR the mRNA chitotriosidase levels in human monocytes/macrophages following treatment with pro-inflammatory stimuli such as interferon-gamma, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, lipopolysaccharide, and interleukin-10, an anti-inflammatory cytokine.

Topical immunomodulator therapy with squaric acid dibutylester (SADBE) is effective treatment for severe alopecia areata (AA): results of an open-label, paired-comparison, clinical trial.

Unlabelled: Severe alopecia areata (AA) may have a chronic relapsing course and is often resistant to current treatments.

Objectives: The aim of our study was to evaluate whether topical immunotherapy with squaric acid dibutylester (SADBE) is able to improve the course of severe AA and to reduce the severity of relapses.

Methods: Fifty-four patients affected by severe AA treated with SADBE who were followed for a period of at least 2 years were selected as the study group.

Chitotriosidase activity in colostrum from African and Caucasian women.

Chitotriosidase (ChT), a protein produced by activated macrophages, belongs to the chitinases, a group of enzymes able to hydrolyze chitin, a structural component of fungi and nematodes. A codominant inherited deficiency in ChT activity is frequently reported in plasma of Caucasian subjects, whereas in the African population this deficiency is rare. This study compares ChT activity in colostrum of 53 African women and 50 Caucasian women.

Hyperhomocysteinemia in acute Plasmodium falciparum malaria: an effect of host-parasite interaction.

Background: Plasmodium falciparum utilises the polyamine pathway, essential in proliferation and differentiation, and imposes an oxidative stress on host cell, enhancing the loss of glutathione.

Methods: Standard hematological parameters were determined in 40 black African subjects with acute P. falciparum malaria, 30 aged 5-24 months, 5 aged 4-10 years and 5 aged 19-35 years.

A new method of orotracheal intubation in mice.

A new method of orotracheal intubation in mice is described. After intraperitoneal induction of anaesthesia, 36 male animals, belonging to common laboratory strains, have been intubated with the aid of a straight, small bore arthroscope, connected to a video-camera. After the insertion of a guide wire of appropriate size across the vocal cords, a polyethylene (PE) cannula has been introduced over it as an endotracheal tube.

Prolactin induces chitotriosidase gene expression in human monocyte-derived macrophages.

Human chitotriosidase (Chit), a chitinolytic enzyme, is a member of the chitinase family. In human's plasma Chit activity have been proposed as a biochemical marker of macrophage activation in several lysosomal diseases. Recently we found that Chit activity is higher in patients affected by Plasmodium falciparum malaria infection suggesting that chitotriosidase may induce an immunological response.

Na+/H+ exchange inhibition attenuates left ventricular remodeling and preserves systolic function in pressure-overloaded hearts.

Cardiac hypertrophy is a homeostatic response to elevated afterload. Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE) inhibition reduces the hypertrophic response in animal models of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and myocardial infarction. We examined the effect of chronic treatment with cariporide, a selective inhibitor of Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 (NHE-1), on left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function under pressure overload conditions.