Tetrahydrocurcumin, Curcumin, and 5-Fluorouracil Effects on Human Esophageal Carcinoma Cells.

Background: Esophageal cancer responds poorly to traditional therapies, and novel treatments are needed. The phytochemical curcumin is a potential treatment for Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (ESCC). A curcumin metabolite, tetrahydrocurcumin (THCUR), has anti-cancer effects and greater bioavailability than curcumin.

Circadian Clock Genes Are Essential for Normal Adult Neurogenesis, Differentiation, and Fate Determination.

Adult neurogenesis creates new neurons and glia from stem cells in the human brain throughout life. It is best understood in the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampus and the subventricular zone (SVZ). Circadian rhythms have been identified in the hippocampus, but the role of any endogenous circadian oscillator cells in hippocampal neurogenesis and their importance in learning or memory remains unclear.

Development of circadian oscillators in neurosphere cultures during adult neurogenesis.

Circadian rhythms are common in many cell types but are reported to be lacking in embryonic stem cells. Recent studies have described possible interactions between the molecular mechanism of circadian clocks and the signaling pathways that regulate stem cell differentiation. Circadian rhythms have not been examined well in neural stem cells and progenitor cells that produce new neurons and glial cells during adult neurogenesis.

A new method for identifying stem-like cells in esophageal cancer cell lines.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) appear to resist chemo-radiotherapy and initiate tumor recurrence in patients. Isolation and further characterization of this subpopulation is important for targeting CSCs. Flow cytometry using Aldefluor, a fluorescent substrate of aldehyde dehydrogenase, has been used to isolate CSCs from various cancer cell lines.

Effects of curcumin on stem-like cells in human esophageal squamous carcinoma cell lines.

Background: Many cancers contain cell subpopulations that display characteristics of stem cells. Because these cancer stem cells (CSCs) appear to provide resistance to chemo-radiation therapy, development of therapeutic agents that target CSCs is essential. Curcumin is a phytochemical agent that is currently used in clinical trials to test its effectiveness against cancer.

Properties of lewis lung carcinoma cells surviving curcumin toxicity.

The anti-inflammatory agent curcumin can selectively eliminate malignant rather than normal cells. The present study examined the effects of curcumin on the Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cell line and characterized a subpopulation surviving curcumin treatments. Cell density was measured after curcumin was applied at concentrations between 10 and 60 μM for 30 hours.

Elevated mPer1 gene expression in tumor stroma imaged through bioluminescence.

The tumor stroma has significant effects on cancer cell growth and metastasis. Interactions between cancer and stromal cells shape tumor progression through poorly understood mechanisms. One factor regulating tumor growth is the circadian timing system that generates daily physiological rhythms throughout the body.

Genetic analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and arbitrarily primed PCR: gel analysis compared with microchip gel electrophoresis.

Objectives: To assess the applicability of a newly emerging microchip gel electrophoresis for rapid strain differentiation among clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and to compare this technique with the traditional gel method for DNA separation.

Methods: One hundred clinical strains of P. aeruginosa obtained from a hospital in northwestern Ohio were tested for reactivity to 3 serotype-specific monoclonal antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

A monoclonal antibody to a carbohydrate epitope expressed on glycolipid and on alpha3beta1 integrin on human esophageal carcinoma.

A mouse monoclonal antibody (MAb-9) produced by immunization with a human esophageal carcinoma cell line, TE-2 (derived from undifferentiated squamous cell carcinoma) reacted specifically with about 30% of esophageal carcinoma cell lines and tissue sections from clinical samples. MAb-9 showed minimal reactivity with normal esophageal tissue. (125)I, fluorescent or gold particle labeled MAb-9 bound to TE-2 cell surfaces.