Search results for "Wester"
showing 10 items of 1157 documents
Cleavage of desmoglein 3 can explain its depletion from keratinocytes in pemphigus vulgaris.
2008
We have previously demonstrated that serum of patients with pemphigus vulgaris induces reduction of desmoglein 3 (Dsg3) half-life in keratinocytes (FEBS Lett 2006: 580: 3276). This phenomenon seems to occur as a consequence of the progressive depletion of Dsg3 from desmosomes. Here we reported that reduction of full-length Dsg3 may be due to its progressive cleavage, leading to the formation of two fragmentation products with apparent molecular masses of about 60 kDa (fragment 1) and 70 kDa (fragment 2), as revealed by Western blotting. Unexpectedly, analysis of fragmentation pattern suggested cleavage to occur intracellularly. Consistently, fragment 1 was shed and localized within the cyto…
Potential antipsoriatic effect of chondroitin sulfate through inhibition of NF-κB and STAT3 in human keratinocytes
2012
Abstract Chondroitin sulfate (CS) is a natural glycosaminoglycan, formed by the 1–3 linkage of d -glucuronic acid to N-acetylgalactosamine, present in the extracellular matrix. It is used as a slow acting disease modifying agent in the treatment of osteoarthritis, and part of its beneficial effects are due to its antiinflammatory properties that result from an inhibitory effect on NF-κB signaling pathway. This ability raises the hypothesis that CS might be effective in other chronic inflammatory processes such as psoriasis, in which a deregulation of NF-κB is a key feature. In addition, psoriasis is characterized by an upregulation of STAT3 signaling pathway that is related to the epidermal…
Pore-forming Staphylococcus aureus alpha-toxin triggers epidermal growth factor receptor-dependent proliferation.
2006
Staphylococcal alpha-toxin is an archetypal killer protein that homo-oligomerizes in target cells to create small transmembrane pores. The membrane-perforating beta-barrel motif is a conserved attack element of cytolysins of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Following the recognition that nucleated cells can survive membrane permeabilization, a profile of abundant transcripts was obtained in transiently perforated keratinocytes. Several immediate early genes were found to be upregulated, reminiscent of the cellular response to growth factors. Cell cycle analyses revealed doubling of S + G2/M phase cells 26 h post toxin treatment. Determination of cell counts uncovered that after an …
Identification of an endothelial cell binding site on kininogen domain D3
1995
High and low molecular mass kininogen, two multidomain plasma proteins, bind to endothelial cells, platelets, and neutrophils in the intravascular compartment. The specific cell attachment site on their common heavy chain is mediated by domain-3, a cystatin-like structure with inhibitory capacity for papain-like proteinases (Jiang, Y., Müller-Esterl, W., and Schmaier, A. H. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 3712-3717). In this report, the domain-3 cell binding site is determined by an antibody-directed strategy. The epitope of monoclonal antibody HKH15, which binds to domain-3 and blocks the binding of kininogens to platelets and endothelial cells, was mapped using seven synthetic peptides, which …
Timbrel vaults in Sicily: analysis of a little-known construction technique
2016
La ricerca di alternative al legno per la realizzazione di orizzontamenti ha condotto ad approfondimenti e sperimentazioni sulle strutture voltate, con risultati di grande originalità in grado di coniugare economia e leggerezza senza perdere in sicurezza; vengono qui analizzate le volte siciliane costituite da più fogli di mattoni sottili uniti con gesso (volte realine secondo la definizione locale). Già ampiamente documentata nella Spagna tardo-medievale, la tecnica venne introdotta saltuariamente in Sicilia a partire dalla fine del XV secolo, ed assunse un ruolo importante dalla metà del XVIII. Attraverso l’analisi diretta e delle documentazioni relative ai maggiori cantieri e dai prezzia…
A View from the Inside: The Dawning Of De-Westernization of CEE Media and Communication Research?
2015
The Editorial outlines some characteristics of the development of the Central and Eastern European (CEE) media and communication scholarship during the past 25 years. In the majority of CEE countries, the media and communication research was re-established after the collapse of communism. Since then, a critical mass of active scholars has appeared who form an integral part of the larger European academia. A gradual integration of East and West perspectives in media and communication research is taking place along with moving away from the barely West-centred approach, and utilizing the research done by CEE scholars. Certain 'de-westernization' and internationalization of the research in ter…
Holocene interaction of maritime and continental climate in Central Europe: New speleothem evidence from Central Germany
2019
Central European climate is strongly influenced by North Atlantic (Westerlies) and Siberian High circulation patterns, which govern precipitation and temperature dynamics and induce heterogeneous climatic conditions, with distinct boundaries between climate zones. These climate boundaries are not stationary and shift geographically, depending on long-term atmospheric conditions. So far, little is known about past shifts of these climate boundaries and the local to regional environmental response prior to the instrumental era.\ud \ud High resolution multi-proxy data (stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios, S/Ca and Sr/Ca) from two Holocene stalagmites from Bleßberg Cave (Thuringia) are used…
Maturation of epidermal Langerhans cells: increased expression of beta- and gamma-actin isoforms as a basis of specialized cell functions.
1999
Epidermal Langerhans cells (LC) represent immature dendritic cells. During in vitro culture in the presence of keratinocytes they mature into potent immunostimulatory cells for naive T cells. This process is thought to simulate in vivo maturation of LC following activation by antigen contact. Maturation of LC is accompanied by morphological alterations. Applying a differential screening procedure we isolated differentially expressed cDNAs involved in the maturation events including cDNAs of the cytoskeletal actin isoforms beta- and gamma-actin. Stronger signals with hybridization probes derived from cultured LC compared with probes derived from freshly isolated LC indicate upregulation of a…
Law of the Land: Shades of Nordic Noir in an Arctic Western
2020
Armoton maa (Law of the Land, Jussi Hiltunen, 2017) is a contemporary western set on a peripheral border region in western Lapland, Finland. Combining crime story and family drama, it is a complex case of genre hybridity. This chapter asks how Law of the Land adapts elements from Nordic noir and modifies the Lapland film, a mixture of films set in Lapland. The melancholy mood and the dark aesthetic links the film to Nordic noir, which has traveled to remote regions recently. However, Lapland can also be seen as a Finnish version of the Wild West. Law of the Land exemplifies both the mutation and vitality of Nordic noir as a style, demonstrating that it can be adapted by other genres, even b…
Multi-proxy analysis suggests Late Pleistocene affinities of human skeletal remains attributed to Balzi Rossi
2021
: In two publications from 1967 and 1971, M. Masali described human skeletal remains presumed to have been found in the Balzi Rossi caves (Ventimiglia, Italy), based on a signed note dated to 1908. Since then, the remains - dubbed "Conio's Finds" and preserved at the University of Torino - had not been further studied. We performed a multidisciplinary investigation aimed at clarifying the geographical and chronological attribution of these specimens. Collagen extraction for AMS dating was unsuccessful, but we obtained two direct dates on the best- preserved crania via 231Pa/235U direct gamma-ray spectrometry (10,500±2,000 years BP and 12,500±2,500 years BP). We analyzed the metrics and morp…