Macrophage cholesterol metabolism, apolipoprotein E, and scavenger receptor AI/II mRNA in atherosclerosis-susceptible and -resistant mice.

Female mice known to be susceptible (C57BL) and resistant (C3H and BALB/c) to diet-induced atherosclerosis were studied. Feeding of a cholate-containing atherogenic diet for 1 month resulted in an increase in plasma total cholesterol, little or no change in total phospholipids and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and a fall in HDL phospholipid, which was most pronounced in the C57BL strain. In elicited macrophages, cholesterol esterification was lower with acetylated low density lipoprotein (acLDL) and higher with beta-very low density lipoprotein (beta-VLDL) in C57BL than in C3H or BALB/C strains.

A common mutation A1298C in human methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene: association with plasma total homocysteine and folate concentrations.

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is one of the main regulatory enzymes of homocysteine metabolism. Previous studies revealed that a common mutation in MTHFR gene C677T is related to hyperhomocysteinemia and occlusive vascular pathology. In the current study, we determined the prevalence of a newly described mutation in the human MTHFR gene A1298C, and the already known C677T mutation, and related them to plasma total homocysteine and folate concentrations.

Activation of the recombination activating gene 1 (RAG-1) transcript in bone marrow of senescent C57BL/6 mice by recombinant interleukin-7.

The level of the recombination activating gene 1 (RAG-1) mRNA in bone marrow cells decreases to a minimal level by the age of 10 months. Recominbant interleukin-7 (rIL-7) is a potent proliferative stimulus for B cell progenitors and upregulates RAG-1 expression in lymphocyte precursors. To investigate the stimulatory effect of rIL-7 on the expression of RAG-1 in old mice, we compared the level of RAG-1 message in short-term bone marrow cultures of cells from mice aged 1 month and 18 months.

Apolipoprotein E-epsilon4 genotype predicts a poor outcome in survivors of traumatic brain injury.

Objective: To determine the ability of apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotypes to predict days of unconsciousness and a suboptimal functional outcome in traumatic brain injury (TBI) survivors.

Background: TBI is known to be associated with neuropsychological deficits and functional disability. Recent evidence indicates that APOE plays a pivotal role in CNS response to injury.