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Young Cells (young + cell)
Selected AbstractsSlit-flow ektacytometry: Laser diffraction in a slit rheometerCYTOMETRY, Issue 1 2005Sehyun Shin Abstract Background Deformability of red blood cells (RBCs) is a determinant of blood flow resistance as RBCs pass through small capillaries of the microcirculation. Available techniques for measuring RBC deformability often require a washing process after each measurement, which is not optimal for day-to-day clinical use. Methods A laser diffraction technique has been combined with slit-flow rheometry, which shows significant advances in ektacytometric design, operation, and data analysis. The essential features of this design are its simplicity (ease of operation and no moving parts) and a disposable element that is in contact with the blood sample. Results With slit ektacytometry, the deformation of RBCs subjected to continuously decreasing shear stress in a slit flow can be quickly measured with extremely small quantities of blood. The measurements with the slit ektacytometer were compared with those of LORCA and a strong correlation was apparent. The deformability of the hardened RBCs was markedly lower than that of the normal RBCs. In addition, the young cells showed higher values of the elongation index than did the old cells. Conclusions The newly developed slit ektacytometer can measure RBC deformability with ease and accuracy. In addition, the slit ektacytometer can be easily used in a clinical setting owing to the incorporation of a disposable element that holds the blood sample. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Reactive oxygen species control senescence-associated matrix metalloproteinase-1 through c-Jun-N-terminal kinase,JOURNAL OF CELLULAR PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 1 2010Jaya Dasgupta The lifetime exposure of organisms to oxidative stress influences many aging processes which involve the turnover of the extracellular matrix. In this study, we identify the redox-responsive molecular signals that drive senescence-associated (SA) matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) expression. Precise biochemical monitoring revealed that senescent fibroblasts increase steady-state (H2O2) 3.5-fold (13.7,48.6,pM) relative to young cells. Restricting H2O2 production through low O2 exposure or by antioxidant treatments prevented SA increases in MMP-1 expression. The H2O2 -dependent control of SA MMP-1 is attributed to sustained JNK activation and c-jun recruitment to the MMP-1 promoter. SA JNK activation corresponds to increases and decreases in the levels of its activating kinase (MKK-4) and inhibitory phosphatase (MKP-1), respectively. Enforced MKP-1 expression negates SA increases in JNK phosphorylation and MMP-1 production. Overall, these studies define redox-sensitive signaling networks regulating SA MMP-1 expression and link the free radical theory of aging to initiation of aberrant matrix turnover. J. Cell. Physiol. 225: 52,62, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Age-related differences in insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor signaling regulates Akt/FOXO3a and ERK/Fos pathways in vascular smooth muscle cellsJOURNAL OF CELLULAR PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2 2008Muyao Li Advanced age is a major risk factor for atherosclerosis, but how aging per se influences pathogenesis is not clear. Insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) promotes aortic vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) growth, migration, and extracellular matrix formation, but how IGF-1R signaling changes with age in VSMC is not known. We previously found age-related differences in the activation of Akt/FOXO3a and ERK1/2 pathways in VSMC, but the upstream signaling remains unclear. Using explanted VSMC from Fischer 344/Brown Norway F1 hybrid rats shown to display age-related vascular pathology similar to humans, we compared IGF-1R expression in early passages of VSMC and found a constitutive activation of IGF-1R in VSMC from old compared to young rats, including IGF-1R expression and its tyrosine kinase activity. The link between IGF-1R activation and the Akt/FOXO3a and ERK pathways was confirmed through the induction of IGF-1R with IGF-1 in young cells and attenuation of IGF-1R with an inhibitor in old cells. The effects of three kinase inhibitors: AG1024, LY294002, and TCN, were compared in VSMC from old rats to differentiate IGF-1R from other upstream signaling that could also regulate the Akt/FOXO and ERK pathways. Genes for p27kip-1, catalase and MnSOD, which play important roles in the control of cell cycle arrest and stress resistance, were found to be FOXO3a-targets based on FOXO3a-siRNA treatment. Furthermore, IGF-1R signaling modulated these genes through activation of the Akt/FOXO3a pathway. Therefore, activation of IGF-1R signaling influences VSMC function in old rats and may contribute to the increased risk for atherosclerosis. J. Cell. Physiol. 217: 377,387, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Role of protein kinase C-dependent A-kinase anchoring proteins in lysophosphatidic acid-induced cAMP signaling in human diploid fibroblastsAGING CELL, Issue 6 2006Ji-Heon Rhim Summary Previously, we reported that lysophosphatidic acid (LPA)-induced adenosine 3,,5,-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) production by human diploid fibroblasts depends on the age of the fibroblasts. In this study, we examined the role of A-kinase anchoring proteins (AKAP) in the regulation of LPA-stimulated cAMP production in senescent fibroblasts. We found that levels of protein kinase C (PKC)-dependent AKAPs, such as Gravin and AKAP79, were elevated in senescent cells. Co-immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that Gravin and AKAP79 do not associate with adenylyl cyclase type 2 (AC2) but bind to AC4/6, which interacts with calcium-dependent PKCs ,/, both in young and senescent fibroblasts. When the expression of Gravin and AKAP79 was blocked by small interference RNA transfection, the basal level of cAMP was greatly reduced and the cAMP status after LPA treatment was also reversed. Protein kinase A showed a similar pattern in terms of its basal activity and LPA-dependent modulation. These data suggest that Gravin and to a lesser extent, AKAP79, may play important roles in maintaining the basal AC activity and in coupling the AC systems to inhibitory signals such as Gi, in young cells, and to stimulatory signals such as PKCs in senescent cells. This study also demonstrates that Gravin is especially important for the long-term activation of PKC by LPA in senescent cells. We conclude that LPA-dependent increased level of cAMP in senescent human diploid fibroblasts is associated with increases in Gravin levels resulting in its increased binding with and activation of calcium-dependent PKC ,/, and AC4/6. [source] Mos10 (Vps60) is required for normal filament maturation in Saccharomyces cerevisiaeMOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 5 2003Julia R. Köhler Summary Early pseudohyphal growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is well described, and is known to be subject to a complex web of developmental regulation. In maturing filaments, young cells differ significantly from their pseudohyphal progenitors, in their shape, and in their timing and direction of cell division. The changes that occur during filament maturation result in round and oval cells surrounding and covering the pseudohyphal filament. In a screen for mutants that affect this process, a vacuolar protein sorting gene, MOS10 (VPS60), and a gene encoding an , subunit of the proteasome core, PRE9, were isolated. Characterization of the mos10/mos10 phenotype showed that the process of filament maturation is regulated differently from early filamentous growth, and that the requirement for Mos10 is limited to the maturation stage of pseudohyphal development. The mos10/mos10 phenotype is unlikely to be an unspecific effect of disruption of endocytosis or vacuolar protein sorting, because it is not recapitulated by mutants in other genes required for these processes. Disruption of homologues of MOS10, which act as components of the ESCRT-III complex in targeting proteins for vacuolar degradation, results in abnormal early pseudohyphal growth, not in the filament maturation defect seen in mos10/mos10. Thus, Mos10 may function in targeting of specific cargo proteins for degradation, under conditions particular to maturing filaments. [source] Kinetic Study of the Conversion of Different Substrates to Lactic Acid Using Lactobacillus bulgaricusBIOTECHNOLOGY PROGRESS, Issue 3 2000Concepción N. Burgos-Rubio Lactic acid fermentation includes several reactions in association with the microorganism growth. A kinetic study was performed of the conversion of multiple substrates to lactic acid using Lactobacillusbulgaricus. Batch experiments were performed to study the effect of different substrates (lactose, glucose, and galactose) on the overall bioreaction rate. During the first hours of fermentation, glucose and galactose accumulated in the medium and the rate of hydrolysis of lactose to glucose and galactose was faster than the convesion of these substrates. Once the microorganism built the necessary enzymes for the substrate conversion to lactic acid, the conversion rate was higher for glucose than for galactose. The inoculum preparation was performed in such a way that healthy young cells were obtained. By using this inoculum, shorter fermentation times with very little lag phase were observed. The consumption patterns of the different substrates converted to lactic acid were studied to determine which substrate controls the overall reaction for lactic acid production. A mathematical model (unstructured Monod type) was developed to describe microorganism growth and lactic acid production. A good fit with a simple equation was obtained. It was found experimentally that the approximate ratio of cell to substrate was 1 to 10, the growth yield coefficient (YXS) was 0.10 g cell/g substrate, the product yield (YPS) was 0.90 g lactic acid/g substrate, and the , parameter in the Luedeking-Piret equation was 9. The Monod kinetic parameters were obtained. The saturation constant (KS) was 3.36 g/L, and the specific growth rate (,m ) was 1.14 l/h. [source] Human thiopurine methyltransferase activity varies with red blood cell ageBRITISH JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 5 2001L. Lennard Aims, Inherited differences in thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) activity are an important factor in the wide interindividual variations observed in the clinical response to thiopurine chemotherapy. The aim of this study was to establish a population range for red blood cell (RBC) TPMT activity in children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) at disease diagnosis. An additional aim was to investigate factors that can influence TPMT activity within the RBC. Methods,Blood samples were collected from children with ALL at disease diagnosis, prior to any blood transfusions, as part of the nationwide UK MRC ALL97 therapeutic trial. RBC TPMT activity was measured by h.p.l.c. RBCs were age-fractionated on Percoll density gradients. Results,Pretreatment blood samples were received from 570 children within 3 days of venepuncture. TPMT activities at disease diagnosis ranged from 1.6 to 23.6 units/ml RBCs (median 7.9) compared with 0.654,18.8 units (median 12.9), in 111 healthy control children (median difference 4.5 units, 95% CI 3.9, 5.1 units, P < 0.001). A TPMT quality control sample, aliquots of which were assayed in 60 analytical runs over a 12 month period, contained a median of 11.98 units with a CV of 11.6%. Seven children had their RBCs age-fractionated on density gradients. TPMT activities in the top gradient (young cells) ranged from 4.2 to 14.1 units (median 7.5) and in the bottom gradient (old cells) 1.5,12.6 units (median 4.7 units), median difference 2.3 units, 95% CI 0.7, 4.1, P = 0.035. Conclusions,Circulating RBCs do not constitute a homogeneous population. They have a life span of around 120 days and during that time undergo a progressive ageing process. The anaemia of ALL is due to deficient RBC production. The results of this study indicate that RBC TPMT activities are significantly lower in children with ALL at disease diagnosis. This may be due, at least in part, to a relative excess of older RBCs. [source] | ||||||||||