Effect of conjugated linoleic acid on testosterone levels in vitro and in vivo after an acute bout of resistance exercise.

The purposes of the present study were to investigate the effect of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) supplementation on testosterone levels in vitro on a cell line derived from Leydig cells (R2C) and in vivo in the blood of physically active subjects before and after a resistance exercise bout. In vitro R2C cells were treated with different CLA concentrations (0-30 μM) for 24 and 48 hours. After treatment, supernatant media were tested to determine testosterone secretion.

OPLA scaffold, collagen I, and horse serum induce an higher degree of myogenic differentiation of adult rat cardiac stem cells.

In the last few years, a major goal of cardiac research has been to drive stem cell differentiation to replace damaged myocardium. Several research groups have attempted to differentiate potential cardiac stem cells (CSCs) using bi- or three-dimensional systems supplemented with growth factors or molecules acting as differentiating substances. We hypothesize that these systems failed to induce a complete differentiation because they lacked an architectural space.

Cardiac stem cell research: an elephant in the room?

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the industrialized world, and stem cell therapy seems to be a promising treatment for injured cardiac tissue. To reach this goal, the scientific community needs to find a good source of stem cells that can be used to obtain new myocardium in a very period range of time. Since there are many ethical and technical problems with using embryonic stem cells as a source of cells with cardiogenic potential, many laboratories have attempted to isolate potential cardiac stem cells from several tissues.

HSP90 and eNOS partially co-localize and change cellular localization in relation to different ECM components in 2D and 3D cultures of adult rat cardiomyocytes.

Background Information: Cultivation techniques promoting three-dimensional organization of mammalian cells are of increasing interest, since they confer key functionalities of the native ECM (extracellular matrix) with a power for regenerative medicine applications. Since ECM compliance influences a number of cell functions, Matrigel-based gels have become attractive tools, because of the ease with which their mechanical properties can be controlled. In the present study, we took advantage of the chemical and mechanical tunability of commonly used cell culture substrates, and co-cultures to evaluate, on both two- and three-dimensional cultivated adult rat cardiomyocytes, the impact of ECM chemistry and mechanics on the cellular localization of two interacting signalling proteins: HSP90 (heat-shock protein of 90 kDa) and eNOS (endothelial nitric oxide synthase).