Search results for "Endocrine System"

Polycystin-1 downregulation induces ERK-dependent mTOR pathway activation in a cellular model of psoriasis

2018

Psoriatic plaques tend to localize to the knees and elbows, areas that are particularly subject to mechanical stress resulting from bending and friction. Moreover, plaques often develop at sites of mechanical trauma or injury (Koebner phenomenon). Nevertheless, mechanotransduction has never been linked to psoriasis. Polycystins (polycystin-1, PC1; polycystin-2, PC2) are mechanosensitive molecules that function as key regulators of cellular mechanosensitivity and mechanotransduction. The aim of this in vitro study was to investigate the role of polycystins in the development of psoriasis. We showed that PC1 knockdown in HaCaT cells led to an elevated mRNA expression of psoriasis-related biom…

Drp1 Controls Effective T Cell Immune-Surveillance by Regulating T Cell Migration, Proliferation, and cMyc-Dependent Metabolic Reprogramming

2018

Summary Mitochondria are key players in the regulation of T cell biology by dynamically responding to cell needs, but how these dynamics integrate in T cells is still poorly understood. We show here that the mitochondrial pro-fission protein Drp1 fosters migration and expansion of developing thymocytes both in vitro and in vivo. In addition, we find that Drp1 sustains in vitro clonal expansion and cMyc-dependent metabolic reprogramming upon activation, also regulating effector T cell numbers in vivo. Migration and extravasation defects are also exhibited in Drp1-deficient mature T cells, unveiling its crucial role in controlling both T cell recirculation in secondary lymphoid organs and acc…

The von Hippel-Lindau tumor suppressor gene

1997

Abstract The von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is an inherited tumor susceptibility syndrome featuring a high variety of benign and malignant tumors. The gene has been localized and cloned at 3p25-26. Recent functional analysis defined the VHL gene product as an inhibitor of the transcription elongation process. Its possible involvement in the vascularization process may explain the histologic features of VHL tumors providing insight into basic mechanism of tumorigenesis. Direct genetic testing is available for patients affected with VHL. Seventy to eighty percent of the germline mutations expected could be detected. As first geno/phenotype correlations have been established, we are now begin…

Mutational analysis ofBRCA1andBRCA2in Mediterranean Spanish women with early-onset breast cancer: Identification of three novel pathogenic mutations

2003

In Spain, the contribution of BRCA mutations to the population incidence of early-onset breast cancer was unknown. We carried out a mutational analysis of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes in 124 Spanish women diagnosed with breast cancer before the age 41 and who were not selected for a family history of this disease. The genetic study was performed by PCR-SSCP analysis and DNA sequencing. We identified 6 pathogenic BRCA mutations in 7 unrelated probands (5.6%; 95% CI=2.3% to 11.3%): 1 BRCA1 (c.2080delA) and 5 BRCA2 (p.Y3006X, p.Q1994X, c.9204_9217del14, c.9254_9258del5 and c.295+2T>C). Three out of 6 mutations were novel (BRCA2 p.Y3006X, c.9204_9217del14, and c.295+2T>C), and two further mutation…

Analysis ofBRCA1andBRCA2genes in Spanish breast/ovarian cancer patients: A high proportion of mutations unique to Spain and evidence of founder effec…

2003

We screened index cases from 410 Spanish breast/ovarian cancer families and 214 patients (19 of them males) with breast cancer for germ-line mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, using SSCP, PTT, CSGE, DGGE, and direct sequencing. We identified 60 mutations in BRCA1 and 53 in BRCA2. Of the 53 distinct mutations observed, 11 are novel and 12 have been reported only in Spanish families (41.5%). The prevalence of mutations in this set of families was 26.3%, but the percentage was higher in the families with breast and ovarian cancer (52.1%). The lowest proportion of mutations was found in the site-specific female breast cancer families (15.4%). Of the families with male breast cancer cases, …

Piwi proteins and piRNAs in mammalian oocytes and early embryos: From sample to sequence

2015

AbstractThe role of the Piwi/piRNA pathway during mammalian oogenesis has remained enigmatic thus far, especially since experiments with Piwi knockout mice did not reveal any phenotypic defects in female individuals. This is in striking contrast with results obtained from other species including flies and zebrafish. In mouse oocytes, however, only low levels of piRNAs are found and they are not required for their function. We recently demonstrated dynamic expression of PIWIL1, PIWIL2, and PIWIL3 during mammalian oogenesis and early embryogenesis. In addition, small RNA analysis of human, crab-eating macaque and cattle revealed that piRNAs are also expressed in the female germline and closel…

2015

Piwi-interacting (pi-) RNAs guide germline-expressed Piwi proteins in order to suppress the activity of transposable elements (TEs). But notably, the majority of pachytene piRNAs in mammalian testes is not related to TEs. This raises the question of whether the Piwi/piRNA pathway exerts functions beyond TE silencing. Although gene-derived piRNAs were described many times, a possible gene-regulatory function was doubted due to the absence of antisense piRNAs. Here we sequenced and analyzed piRNAs expressed in the adult testis of the pig, as this taxon possesses the full set of mammalian Piwi paralogs while their spermatozoa are marked by an extreme fitness due to selective breeding. We provi…

Conserved and ubiquitous expression of piRNAs and PIWI genes in mollusks antedates the origin of somatic PIWI/piRNA expression to the root of bilater…

2018

AbstractPIWI proteins and a specific class of small non-coding RNAs, termed Piwi interacting RNAs (piRNAs), suppress transposon activity in animals on the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level, thus protecting genomes from detrimental insertion mutagenesis. While in vertebrates the PIWI/piRNA system appears to be restricted to the germline, somatic expression of piRNAs directed against transposons is widespread in arthropods, likely representing the ancestral state for this phylum. Here, we show that somatic expression of PIWI genes and piRNAs directed against transposons is conserved in mollusks, suggesting that somatic PIWI/piRNA expression was already realized in an early bilate…

Genetics of Polyglandular Failure

2010

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the genetic aspects of polyglandular failure syndromes (APS).The polyglandular failure syndromes comprise of a wide spectrum of autoimmune disorders and encompass a rare juvenile type (APS1) and more frequent adult types (APS2 and APS3). The juvenile type APS1 is also known as autoimmune polyendocrinopathy candidiasis ectodermal dystrophy because it consists of three main disorders, namely chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis, autoimmune hypoparathyroidism and autoimmune Addison's disease. APS2 is defined as the association between Addison's disease and either autoimmune thyroid disease or type 1 diabetes mellitus and APS3 is characterized by the presen…

Genetic analysis of IDDM: The GAW5 multiplex family dataset

1989

In a collaborative effort by 12 centers from Europe and North America, data were assembled from 94 multiplex families with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) for analysis of genetic and other factors of possible etiological importance. The dataset contains information on the following genetic markers: HLA-DR beta and -DQ beta restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs), three RFLPs detected with two probes that map 5' to the insulin gene, the serologically defined HLA loci, and the immunoglobulin allotypes. Data also were included for auto-antibodies to insulin and pancreatic islet cells as possible indicators of pathogenesis and for antibodies to certain viruses that have bee…