[Survey of Aluminium Content of Processed Food Using Baking Powder (2015-2016)].

The aluminium (Al) content of Japanese confectionery and foods containing flour was investigated. Some of these items were investigated in previous studies, which examined foods that made use of baking powder containing aluminium potassium sulfate (Alum). Al was detected in 41 of the 123 samples at levels ranging from 0.

Stimulatory effect of fibroblast-derived prostaglandin E₂ on keratinocyte stratification in the skin equivalent.

Epidermal-dermal interaction plays important roles in physiological events such as wound healing. In this study, we examined a double paracrine mechanism between keratinocytes and fibroblasts through interleukin-1 (IL-1) and an IL-1-induced inflammatory mediator prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂) using the skin equivalent. The epidermal layer of the skin equivalent expressed high levels of IL-1α mRNA (IL1A mRNA) and relatively low levels of IL-1β mRNA (IL1B mRNA).

Epidermal structure created by canine hair follicle keratinocytes enriched with bulge cells in a three-dimensional skin equivalent model in vitro: implications for regenerative therapy of canine epidermis.

Background: Keratinocytes in the hair follicle bulge region have a high proliferative capacity, with characteristics of epithelial stem cells. This cell population might thus be an ideal source for generating the interfollicular epidermis in a canine skin equivalent.

Hypothesis/objectives: This study was designed to determine the ability of canine hair follicle bulge cell-enriched keratinocytes to construct canine living skin equivalents with interfollicular epidermis in vitro.

IL-1beta stimulates activin betaA mRNA expression in human skin fibroblasts through the MAPK pathways, the nuclear factor-kappaB pathway, and prostaglandin E2.

During mouse skin wound healing, mRNAs encoding IL-1, activins, and TGF-βs significantly increased. To elucidate involvement of IL-1 in the regulation of activins and related factors in the wounded skin, human foreskin fibroblasts were stimulated with IL-1β, and levels of mRNAs encoding activins, TGF-βs, and follistatin family proteins were examined by quantitative real-time PCR. IL-1β increased activin βA (INHBA) and follistatin (FST) mRNA expression within 6 h.