Suppression of COX-2, IL-1β and TNF-α expression and leukocyte infiltration in inflamed skin by bioactive compounds from Rosmarinus officinalis L.

In the present study, we evaluated the effects of extracts and purified compounds from fresh leaves of Rosmarinus officinalis L. Pretreatment with the major anti-inflammatory compounds, carnosic acid (CA) and carnosol (CS), inhibited phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-induced ear inflammation in mice with an EC(50) of 10.20 μg/cm(2) and 10.

CFTR gene analysis in Latin American CF patients: heterogeneous origin and distribution of mutations across the continent.

Background: Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is the most prevalent Mendelian disorder in European populations. Despite the fact that many Latin American countries have a predominant population of European-descent, CF has remained an unknown entity until recently. Argentina and Brazil have detected the first patients around three decades ago, but in most countries this disease has remained poorly documented.

Association between the APOE*4 allele and atherosclerosis is age dependent among Argentine males.

Several studies have shown evidence of an association between the *4 allele of apolipoprotein E (APOE) and coronary heart disease (CHD) in different populations. We determined the APOE genotype and total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) values in 189 patients with angiographically evaluated atherosclerosis. The APOE*4 allele was found to be statistically significantly more frequent (odds ratio, 1.

Early manifestations in multiple-low-dose streptozotocin-induced diabetes in mice.

Objective: Administration of multiple low doses of streptozotocin (mld-SZ) to mice results in the development of autoimmune diabetes. Hyperglycemia does not develop until a few days after the last injection. In this study, we explored immune-related alterations found in the very early stages of this diabetic syndrome and the capacity of mononuclear spleen cells (MSs) from mld-SZ mice to impair insulin secretion.

Correlation between synaptogenesis and the PTEN phosphatase expression in dendrites during postnatal brain development.

The PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10) tumor suppressor gene codifies a lipid inositol 3'-phosphatase that negatively regulates cell survival mediated by the phosphatidyl inositol 3' kinase (PIP3-kinase)--protein kinase B/Akt signaling pathway. Recently, PIP3-kinase was involved in axon polarization, but PTEN functions in dendrites are uncertain. Using amino-terminal antibodies against the catalytic domain, we found a 34 kDa fragment of PTEN protein detected only in mouse brain tissue, present in neuron dendrites and spines of cerebral cortex, cerebellum, hippocampus and olfactory bulb.