0000000000427681

AUTHOR

Pia Villa

Derivatives of Erythropoietin That Are Tissue Protective But Not Erythropoietic

Erythropoietin (EPO) is both hematopoietic and tissue protective, putatively through interaction with different receptors. We generated receptor subtype–selective ligands allowing the separation of EPO's bioactivities at the cellular level and in animals. Carbamylated EPO (CEPO) or certain EPO mutants did not bind to the classical EPO receptor (EPOR) and did not show any hematopoietic activity in human cell signaling assays or upon chronic dosing in different animal species. Nevertheless, CEPO and various nonhematopoietic mutants were cytoprotective in vitro and conferred neuroprotection against stroke, spinal cord compression, diabetic neuropathy, and experimental autoimmune encephalomyeli…

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Induction of hepatic heme oxygenase-1 by diclofenac in rodents: role of oxidative stress and cytochrome P-450 activity

Abstract Background/Aims : The role of oxidative stress in diclofenac hepatotoxicity is still not clear. This study examined whether the drug induced heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), a stress protein. Methods : HO-1 mRNA and HO activity were measured in mouse liver and in rat hepatocytes after treatment with diclofenac parallel to release of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH) as a marker of hepatic damage. Results : HO-1 was transcriptionally and dose-dependently induced by diclofenac in mouse liver and rat hepatocytes. HO-1 mRNA, ALT and SDH peaked at the same time. Mechanistic studies revealed that the drug synergized with buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) in lowerin…

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