Search results for " Fibroblasts"

Efficient selection of silenced primary cells by flow cytometry

2007

Background: RNA interference has emerged as a new and potent tool to knockdown the expression of target genes and to investigate their functions. For short time experiments with mammalian cell lines, RNA interference is typically induced by transfecting small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). Primary cells constitute important experimental systems in many studies because of their similarity to their in vivo counterparts; however, transfection of these cells has been found to be difficult. As a consequence, RNA interference of primary cells may result in mixed phenotypes because of the simultaneous presence in the same preparation of transfected and nontransfected cells. This may be particularly in…

Multiple independent variants at the TERT locus are associated with telomere length and risks of breast and ovarian cancer

2013

Journal article TERT-locus SNPs and leukocyte telomere measures are reportedly associated with risks of multiple cancers. Using the Illumina custom genotyping array iCOGs, we analyzed ~480 SNPs at the TERT locus in breast (n = 103,991), ovarian (n = 39,774) and BRCA1 mutation carrier (n = 11,705) cancer cases and controls. Leukocyte telomere measurements were also available for 53,724 participants. Most associations cluster into three independent peaks. The minor allele at the peak 1 SNP rs2736108 associates with longer telomeres (P = 5.8 × 10!-7), lower risks for estrogen receptor (ER)-negative (P = 1.0 × 10!-8) and BRCA1 mutation carrier (P = 1.1 × 10!-5) breast cancers and altered promot…

Wee1 inhibition potentiates Wip1-dependent p53-negative tumor cell death during chemotherapy

2016

AbstractInactivation of p53 found in more than half of human cancers is often associated with increased tumor resistance to anti-cancer therapy. We have previously shown that overexpression of the phosphatase Wip1 in p53-negative tumors sensitizes them to chemotherapeutic agents, while protecting normal tissues from the side effects of anti-cancer treatment. In this study, we decided to search for kinases that prevent Wip1-mediated sensitization of cancer cells, thereby interfering with efficacy of genotoxic anti-cancer drugs. To this end, we performed a flow cytometry-based screening in order to identify kinases that regulated the levels of γH2AX, which were used as readout. Another criter…

Stilbenes and resveratrol metabolites improve mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation defects in human fibroblasts

2014

International audience; Background: Inborn enzyme defects of mitochondrial fatty acid beta-oxidation (FAO) form a large group of genetic disorders associated to variable clinical presentations ranging from life-threatening pediatric manifestations up to milder late onset phenotypes, including myopathy. Very few candidate drugs have been identified in this group of disorders. Resveratrol (RSV) is a natural polyphenol with anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, recently shown to have beneficial metabolic properties in mice models. Our study explores its possible effects on FAO and mitochondrial energy metabolism in human cells, which are still very little documented.Methods: Using cells …

Topical anti-inflammatory potential of quercetin in lipid-based nanosystems: In vivo and in vitro evaluation

2013

Purpose: To develop quercetin-loaded phospholipid vesicles, namely liposomes and PEVs (Penetration Enhancer-containing Vesicles), and to investigate their efficacy on TPA-induced skin inflammation. Methods: Vesicles were made from a mixture of phospholipids, quercetin and polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG), specifically added to increase drug solubility and penetration through the skin. Vesicle morphology and self-assembly were probed by Cryo-Transmission Electron Microscopy and Small/Wide Angle X-ray Scattering, as well as the main physico-chemical features by Light Scattering. The anti-inflammatory efficacy of quercetin nanovesicles was assessed in vivo on TPA-treated mice dorsal skin by the d…

ALS-RELATED FUS PROTEIN IS MISLOCALIZED TO CYTOPLASM AND RECRUITED INTO STRESS GRANULES IN FIBROBLASTS OF ASYMPTOMATIC FUS P525L MUTATION CARRIERS

Symptoms onset in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) occur when over 70% of motor neurons is already lost, suggesting a relatively long pre-symptomatic phase. The description of several genes linked to ALS (e.g., SOD1, FUS, TARDP, C9orf72) has now allowed identification of pre-symptomatic carriers. These pre-symptomatic (or even preclinical) carriers can be followed up with the aim to identify the very early clinical disease-related changes or a valuable biomarker. These efforts seem at present the best approach for the implementation of an early symptomatic therapy or for the disease prevention. In this work, we studied the expression of FUS protein in cultured skin fibroblasts from pre-s…

SV40 transformed fibroblasts recognize the same 140 kD fibronectin chemotactic fragment as non-transformed cells

1985

SV40-virus-transformed human embryonal fibroblasts show an enhanced chemotactic response to the glycoprotein fibronectin. However, they recognize the same chemotactic active region as non-transformed fibroblasts. The result suggests that an enhancement of chemotaxis by fibroblasts which have been transformed with Simian Virus 40 is due not to the utilization of further chemotactic domains in the molecule, but to an increased sensitivity of the cells to the chemoattractant.