Rac1 modulates the vitreous-induced plasticity of mesenchymal movement in retinal pigment epithelial cells.

Background: The vitreous has been shown to induce epithelial-mesenchymal transdifferentiation because it induces fibroblast-like morphology, enhanced migration and invasion in retinal pigment epithelial cells in proliferative vitreoretinopathy. Rac1 is the principal mediator of cell migration. In the current study, the relationship between Rac1 and cell migration, and invasion in vitreous-transformed retinal pigment epithelial cells was investigated using NSC23766, a specific inhibitor of Rac guanosine-5'-triphosphatase activity, and the involvement of a Rac1 guanosine-5'-triphosphatase-dependent pathway was detected.

Infertility in mice induced by the rhesus monkey chorionic gonadotropin beta-subunit glycoprotein (rmCGbeta) using DNA immunization.

The recombinant eukaryotic expression vector pCMV4-rmCGbeta, inserted full-length cDNA of the beta-subunit of rhesus monkey chorionic gonadotropin (rmCGbeta), as DNA immuno-contraceptive against CGbeta glycoprotein, has previously demonstrated the biological expression of rmCGbeta in vitro and in vivo. The plasmid DNA of pCMV4-rmCGbeta was inoculated into BALB/c mice at different doses and routes as DNA immuno-contraceptive to understand its antifertility effect. The results of immune responses indicated that the intradermal inoculation is the optimal pCMV4-rmCGbeta DNA delivery method for BALB/c mice, and the dose of 10 microg should be enough to elicit immune response.