Search results for "Unity"

Regulation of NOS expression in vascular diseases

2020

Nitric oxide synthases (NOS) are the major sources of nitric oxide (NO), a small bioactive molecule involved in the regulation of many cellular processes. One of the most prominent functions of NO is regulation of vasodilatation and thereby control of blood pressure. Most important for vascular tone is NOS3. Endothelial NOS3-generated NO diffuses into the vascular smooth muscle cells, activates the soluble guanylate cyclase resulting in enhanced cGMP concentrations and smooth muscle cell relaxation. However, more and more evidence exist that also NOS1 and NOS2 contribute to vascular function. We summarize the current knowledge about the regulation of NOS expression in the vasculature by tra…

Terrains of struggle : the Finnish forest industry cluster and corporate community responsibility to Indigenous Peoples in Brazil

2015

European Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) immune status and disease resistance are impaired by arginine dietary supplementation

2015

Infectious diseases and fish feeds management are probably the major expenses in the aquaculture business. Hence, it is a priority to define sustainable strategies which simultaneously avoid therapeutic procedures and reinforce fish immunity. Currently, one preferred approach is the use of immunostimulants which can be supplemented to the fish diets. Arginine is a versatile amino acid with important mechanisms closely related to the immune response. Aiming at finding out how arginine affects the innate immune status or improve disease resistance of European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) against vibriosis, fish were fed two arginine-supplemented diets (1% and 2% arginine supplementation). A…

Specific expression of antimicrobial peptide and HSP70 genes in response to heat-shock and several bacterial challenges in mussels

2007

Abstract Defensin, mytilin and myticin are antimicrobial peptides (AMP) involved in mussel innate immunity. Their in vitro antibacterial activity is different according to the targeted bacterial species. To determine if this specificity is correlated to different regulations of gene expressions, adult mussels were challenged in vivo with either Vibrio splendidus LGP32, Vibrio anguillarum , Micrococcus lysodeikticus or by heat shock. RNAs were isolated from circulating hemocytes and AMP mRNAs were quantified by Q-PCR using 28S rRNA as housekeeping gene. In addition, HSP70 gene expression was also quantified as representing non-specific response to stress. In naive mussels, the three AMP mRNA…

Respiratory syncytial virus inhibits ciliagenesis in differentiated normal human bronchial epithelial cells: effectiveness of N-acetylcysteine.

2012

Persistent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections have been associated with the exacerbation of chronic inflammatory diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This virus infects the respiratory epithelium, leading to chronic inflammation, and induces the release of mucins and the loss of cilia activity, two factors that determine mucus clearance and the increase in sputum volume. These alterations involve reactive oxygen species-dependent mechanisms. The antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) has proven useful in the management of COPD, reducing symptoms, exacerbations, and accelerated lung function decline. NAC inhibits RSV infection and mucin release in human A54…

Modification of the immune response against hepatitis B virus by the human immunodeficiency virus.

1989

Hepatitis B virus and the human immunodeficiency virus are similarly transmitted. Individuals with preexisting HIV infection have a higher chance to become HBsAg carriers than do anti-HIV negative persons. Cytotoxic T cells with specificity for HBcAg, that are under the control of HBcAg-specific helper T cells, are responsible for liver injury. There is good evidence that HIV infection lowers inflammatory activity, is associated with milder liver histology, high levels of viral replication and low seroconversion rates. In addition interferon alpha therapy is less effective in anti-HIV positive subjects. The immune response against HBsAg is helper T-cell dependent and vaccination against hep…

Coxsackievirus B3 VLPs purified by ion exchange chromatography elicit strong immune responses in mice

2014

Coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) is an important cause of acute and chronic viral myocarditis, and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Although vaccination against CVB3 could significantly reduce the incidence of serious or fatal viral myocarditis and various other diseases associated with CVB3 infection, there is currently no vaccine or therapeutic reagent in clinical use. In this study, we contributed towards the development of a CVB3 vaccine by establishing an efficient and scalable ion exchange chromatography-based purification method for CVB3 virus and baculovirus-insect cell-expressed CVB3 virus-like particles (VLPs). This purification system is especially relevant for vaccine development and produ…

The Efficacy of Antigen Processing Is Critical for Protection against Cytomegalovirus Disease in the Presence of Viral Immune Evasion Proteins▿

2009

ABSTRACT Cytomegaloviruses (CMVs) code for immunoevasins, glycoproteins that are specifically dedicated to interfere with the presentation of antigenic peptides to CD8 T cells. Nonetheless, the biological outcome is not an immune evasion of the virus, since CD8 T cells can control CMV infection even when immunoevasins are expressed. Here, we compare the processing of a protective and a nonprotective epitope derived from the same viral protein, the antiapoptotic protein M45 in the murine model. The data provide evidence to conclude that protection against CMVs critically depends on antigenic peptides generated in an amount sufficient to exhaust the inhibitory capacity of immunoevasins.

Towards new social dimensions for children's music making - JamMo as a collaborative and communal M-learning environment

2009

Children’s collaborative music making has recently gained a lot of interest in the field of musical development and learning. Mobile learning (M-learning) is a relatively new field of educational research and so far there has been only few studies about children’s musical collaboration with mobile devices. Current knowledge of children’s social development forms a basis for communicational design of the ubiquitous learning environment. In the present study, which is a part of EU FP7 UMSIC research project, a software JamMo (Jamming mobile) will be designed for the Nokia N810 Internet tablet. In this paper, we report on the communal features of JamMo, which are specified to Jammo’s different…

Le marketing tribal électronique: vers une rationalisation sociale généralisée de la socialisation en ligne ?

2010

International audience; L’instrumentalisation marchande du phénomène de socialisation électronique, sans nous questionner plus avant ici sur son efficacité économique réelle, réactualise la question de la rationalisation du lien social à l’heure de la massification d’Internet. Cette rationalisation est considérée par beaucoup de penseurs critiques, à la suite des travaux d’Habermas sur l’Espace Public, comme un affaiblissement, voire une disparition d’un être-ensemble détaché pour partie de la raison calculatoire, de la logique de l’intérêt. Ainsi, les stratégies marketing ciblant la population internaute, que l’on pourrait rassembler en nous inspirant de Bernard Cova et de Michel Maffesoli…