Used Markers (used + marker)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Long-lasting coexpression of nestin and glial fibrillary acidic protein in primary cultures of astroglial cells with a major participation of nestin+/GFAP, cells in cell proliferation

JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH, Issue 8 2006
Solčne Sergent-Tanguy
Abstract Nestin, a currently used marker of neural stem cells, is transiently coexpressed with glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) during development and is induced in reactive astrocytes following brain injury. Nestin expression has also been found in cultures of astroglial cells, but little is known about the fate and the mitotic activity of nestin-expressing cells in this in vitro model. The present study reveals a long-lasting expression of nestin in primary cultures of astroglial cells derived from the rat brain. Over 70% of the cells were nestin+ at 12 weeks, with a large majority coexpressing the GFAP astrocytic marker. Time-course analyses supported a transition from a nestin+/GFAP, to a nestin+/GFAP+ phenotype over time, which was further increased by cell cycle arrest. Interestingly, double staining with Ki67 revealed that over 90% of cycling cells were nestin+ whereas only 28% were GFAP+ in a population consisting of almost equivalent numbers of nestin+ and GFAP+ cells. These observations indicated that nestin+/GFAP, cells are actively engaged in mitotic activity, even after 2 weeks in vitro. Part of these cells might have retained properties of neural stem cells, insofar as 10% of cells in a primary culture of glial cells were able to generate neurospheres that gave rise to both neurons and astrocytes. Further studies will be necessary to characterize fully the proliferating cells in primary cultures of glial cells, but our present results reveal a major contribution of the nestin+/GFAP, cells to the increase in the number of astrocytes, even though nestin+/GFAP+ cells proliferate also. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Ventricular Asynchrony of Time-to-Peak Systolic Velocity in Structurally Normal Heart by Tissue Doppler Imaging

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 7 2010
Hakimeh Sadeghian M.D.
Background: Echocardiographic measurements of time-to-peak systolic velocities (Ts) are helpful for assessing the degree of cardiac asynchrony. We assessed the degree of ventricular asynchrony in structurally normal heart according to Ts by tissue Doppler imaging. Methods: We performed conventional echocardiography and tissue velocity imaging for 65 healthy adult volunteers to measure the Ts of 12 left ventricular segments in the mid and basal levels delay of Ts and standard deviation (SD) of Ts in all and basal segments. Six frequently used markers of dyssynchrony were measured and were also compared between men and women. Data are presented as median (25th and 75th percentile). Results: Septal-lateral and anteroseptal-posterior delays were 50 (20, 90) and 20 (0, 55) ms. The delay between the longest and the shortest Ts in basal and all segments were 100 (80, 120) and 110 (83, 128) ms, respectively. SD of Ts was 39 (24, 52) ms for basal and 41 (28, 51) ms for all segments. Overall, 76.9% of cases had at least one marker of dyssynchrony. Frequencies of dyssynchrony markers were almost significantly higher in women compared to men. The most frequently observed dyssynchrony marker was SD of Ts of all segments (70.8%) and the lowest was anteroseptal-posterior delay (21.5%). Conclusions: Normal population almost had dyssynchrony by previously described markers and many of these markers were more frequent in women. Conducting more studies on normal population by other tissue Doppler modalities may give better description of cardiac synchronicity. (Echocardiography 2010;27:823-830) [source]


Redefining epithelial progenitor potential in the developing thymus

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 9 2007
Simona
Abstract Cortical and medullary epithelium represent specialised cell types that play key roles in thymocyte development, including positive and negative selection of the T cell repertoire. While recent evidence shows that these epithelial lineages share a common embryonic origin, the phenotype and possible persistence of such progenitor cells in the thymus at later stages of development remain controversial. Through use of a panel of reagents including the putative progenitor marker Mts24, we set out to redefine the stages in the development of thymic epithelium. In the early embryonic day (E)12 thymus anlagen we find that almost all epithelial cells are uniformly positive for Mts24 expression. In addition, while the thymus at later stages of development was found to contain distinct Mts24+ and Mts24, epithelial subsets, thymus grafting experiments show that both Mts24+ and Mts24, epithelial subsets share the ability to form organised cortical and medullary thymic microenvironments that support T cell development, a function shown previously to be lost in the Mts24, cells by E15 when lower cell doses were used. Our data help to clarify stages in thymic epithelial development and provide important information in relation to currently used markers of epithelial progenitors. See accompanying commentary: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/eji.200737709 [source]


Carbohydrate-Deficient Transferrin (CDT) and HDL Cholesterol (HDL) Are Highly Correlated in Male Alcohol Dependent Patients

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 4 2000
Armin Szegedi
Background: Serum levels of total HDL cholesterol (HDL) are reportedly influenced by recent alcohol intake. We examined the correlation between HDL cholesterol and widely used markers of excessive alcohol intake, such as carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT), ,-glutamyl-transferase (GGT), or mean corpuscular volume of erythrocytes (MCV), of which CDT is thought to be the most specific. Methods: Several serological markers [i.e., CDT, GGT, aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT), alanine aminotransferase (ALAT), MCV, and HDL] were determined in 100 actively drinking male patients with alcohol dependence (DSM-IV) and in 27 non-alcohol-dependent controls, according to routine procedures. Spearman,s rank correlation coefficients were calculated. Results: We found a highly significant positive correlation between HDL and CDT (rs= 0.55;p < 0.0005) in patients, but not in controls (rs= 0.13;p= 0.51). HDL was also positively correlated with GGT, ALAT, ASAT, and MCV only in patients. Conclusions: HDL cholesterol, as a widely determined parameter, may represent a useful routine marker for recent excessive alcohol intake. High HDL cholesterol levels should alert clinicians to investigate a patient's recent pattern of alcohol consumption. [source]


Modeling Human Fertility in the Presence of Measurement Error

BIOMETRICS, Issue 1 2000
David B. Dunson
Summary. The probability of conception in a given menstrual cycle is closely related to the timing of intercourse relative to ovulation. Although commonly used markers of time of ovulation are known to be error prone, most fertility models assume the day of ovulation is measured without error. We develop a mixture model that allows the day to be misspecified. We assume that the measurement errors are i.i.d. across menstrual cycles. Heterogeneity among couples in the per cycle likelihood of conception is accounted for using a beta mixture model. Bayesian estimation is straightforward using Markov chain Monte Carlo techniques. The methods are applied to a prospective study of couples at risk of pregnancy. In the absence of validation data or multiple independent markers of ovulation, the identifiability of the measurement error distribution depends on the assumed model. Thus, the results of studies relating the timing of intercourse to the probability of conception should be interpreted cautiously. [source]


Type-IV hypersensitivity to betamethasone valerate and clobetasol propionate: results of a multicentre study

BRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2002
S. Sommer
SummaryBackground,Most studies investigating steroid allergy have been performed with tixocortol pivalate, hydrocortisone butyrate and budesonide. Betnovate® and Dermovate® are widely prescribed in the U.K. but little is known about the frequency of sensitization to them. Objectives,To determine the optimum method to detect contact allergy to betamethasone valerate (BV) and clobetasol propionate (CP). Methods,Seven centres tested consecutive patients attending for investigation of suspected allergic contact dermatitis to these steroids at a range of concentrations in different vehicles. Results,Of 1562 patients tested, 16 (1%) reacted to either BV or CP. Ten patients (0·7%) reacted to BV and 13 (0·8%) to CP. Two patients of a further centre were included in analysis of dilutions and vehicles. Sixteen of a total of 25 reactions (64%) were identified with a 1% dilution in ethanol. Conclusions,Consideration should be given to adding BV and CP to a standard allergy series, given that both are frequently used in the treatment of eczema and that most patients sensitized to them are not identified with currently used markers of steroid allergy. If patch tests to BV and CP are initially negative, but an allergy is suspected, the patient should be further investigated. Further studies are required to identify the ideal patch test material. [source]


The use of molecular markers of bone turnover in the management of patients with metastatic bone disease

CLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGY, Issue 6 2008
Markus J. Seibel
Summary Biochemical markers of bone turnover are widely used in clinical practice. These indices have been shown to be associated with the occurrence, prognosis and therapeutic response of malignant bone lesions. For example, markers of bone resorption are often elevated in patients with established bone metastases and while this may point to a role of these markers in the diagnostic workup of cancer patients, the available evidence does not permit any final conclusions as to the accuracy and validity of the presently used markers in the early diagnosis of bone metastases. Many bone turnover markers appear to respond to antiresorptive and antineoplastic therapies, and recent evidence from prospective trials suggests that the aim of bisphosphonate therapy should be to normalize rates of bone remodelling to optimize therapeutic and prognostic outcomes. However, it remains unknown whether the use of bone markers in the routine clinical setting has any defined beneficial effects on overall outcome in cancer patients. Clearly, bone turnover markers have insufficient diagnostic or prognostic value to be used in isolation; however, the combination of these markers with other diagnostic techniques may improve clinical assessment of patients with bone-seeking cancers. This article reviews the available evidence (as of August 2007) on the clinical use of bone turnover markers in the management of patients with metastatic bone disease. [source]