Phosphotidylserine

Cimetidine is a histamine type-2 (H2) receptor antagonist that has been demonstrated to have antitumor effects on various types of malignancy. However, its effect on cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), a chemotherapy-resistant bile duct tumor, has yet to be investigated. In the present study, the antitumor activity of cimetidine in vitro and in vivo was evaluated. A methylthiotetrazole assay revealed that the proliferation of certain CCA cell lines was inhibited by cimetidine, which induced the caspase-dependent apoptosis of CCA cells via suppression of the protein kinase B signaling pathway...

Amyloid β-protein (Aβ) is the major component of extracellular plaques in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease. It has been suggested that the interaction of Aβ with membrane cholesterol is essential for Aβ to exert neurotoxicity; however, the effect of phospholipids, another major membrane lipid component, on Aβ-induced neurotoxicity remains unclarified. Here we report the protective effect of phosphatidylcholine (PC) on primary cultured neurons against Aβ1-42-induced damage. Aβ1-42 caused neuronal death as demonstrated by lactose dehydrogenase (LDH) release, which was completely prevented by a pretreatment with PC in a dose-dependent manner...

Platelets play a vital role in hemostasis and thrombosis, and their demand and usage has multiplied many folds over the years. However, due to the short life span and storage constraints on platelets, it is allowed to store them for up to 7 days at room temperature (RT); thus, there is a need for an alternative storage strategy for extension of shelf life. Current investigation involves the addition of 50 mM N acetylcysteine (NAC) in refrigerated concentrates. Investigation results revealed that addition of NAC to refrigerated concentrates prevented platelet activation and reduced the sialidase activity upon rewarming as well as on prolonged storage...

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)-associated thromboembolic event often lacks precise aetiology. The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of phosphatidylserine (PS) exposure and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) towards the hypercoagulable state in IBD. We demonstrated that the levels of PS exposed MPs and the sources of MP-origin, platelets, erythrocytes, leukocytes and cultured endothelial cells (ECs) were higher in IBD groups than in healthy controls using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy...

The novel, cream coloured, Gram-negative-staining, rod-shaped, motile bacteria, designated strains AK23(T) and AK28, were isolated from sediment samples collected from Lonar Lake, Buldhana district, India. The predominant fatty acids were C18:1ω7c, C16:0, C10:0 3OH and C16:1ω7c and/or iso-C15:0 2OH (summed feature 3). Polar lipid content of strains AK23(T) and AK28 were found to be phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphotidylserine (PS), one unidentified phospholipid (PL) and two unidentified lipids (L1 and L2)...

Phytochemicals from Pseuduvaria species have been reported to display a wide range of biological activities. In the present study, a known benzopyran derivative, (6E,10E) isopolycerasoidol (1), and a new benzopyran derivative, (6E,10E) isopolycerasoidol methyl ester (2), were isolated from a methanol extract of Pseuduvaria monticola leaves. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic methods including 1D and 2D NMR, IR, UV, and LCMS-QTOF, and by comparison with previously published data...

Coagulation factor XII (fXII) is important for arterial thrombosis, but its physiological activation mechanisms are unclear. In this study, we elucidated the role of platelets and platelet-derived material in fXII activation. FXII activation was only observed upon potent platelet stimulation (with thrombin, collagen-related peptide, or calcium ionophore, but not ADP) accompanied by phosphatidylserine exposure and was localised to the platelet surface. Platelets from three patients with grey platelet syndrome did not activate fXII, which suggests that platelet-associated fXII-activating material might be released from α-granules...

Arsenic trioxide (ATO), one of the oldest drugs in both Western and traditional Chinese medicine, has become an effective anticancer drug, especially in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). However, thrombocytopenia occurred in most of ATO-treated patients with APL or other malignant diseases, and the pathogenesis remains unclear. Here we show that ATO dose-dependently induces depolarization of mitochondrial inner transmembrane potential (ΔΨm), up-regulation of Bax and down-regulation of Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL, caspase-3 activation, and phosphotidylserine (PS) exposure in platelets...

Exercise is linked with the type/intensity-dependent adaptive immune responses, whereas hypoxic stress facilitates the programmed death of CD4 lymphocytes. This study investigated how high intensity-interval (HIT) and moderate intensity-continuous (MCT) exercise training influence hypoxia-induced apoptosis and autophagy of CD4 lymphocytes in sedentary men. Thirty healthy sedentary males were randomized to engage either HIT (3-minute intervals at 40% and 80%VO2max, n=10) or MCT (sustained 60%VO2max, n=10) for 30 minutes/day, 5 days/week for 5 weeks, or to a control group that did not received exercise intervention (CTL, n=10)...

The outcome of producing apoptotic defects in cancer cells is the primary obstacle that limits the therapeutic efficacy of anticancer agents, and hence the development of novel agents targeting novel non-canonical cell death pathways has become an imperative mission for clinical research. Fisetin (3,3',4',7-tetrahydroxyflavone) is a naturally occurring flavonoid commonly found in fruits and vegetables. In this study, we investigated the potential anticancer effects of fisetin on breast cancer cells. The result showed fisetin induced higher cytotoxicity in human breast cancer MCF-7 than in MDA-MB-231 cells otherwise it did not exert any detectable cytotoxicity in non-tumorigenic MCF-10A cells...

Several transmembrane receptors are documented to accumulate in nuclei, some as holoreceptors and others as cleaved receptor products. Our prior studies indicate that a population of the 7-transmembrane angiotensin type-1 receptor (AT(1)R) is cleaved in a ligand-augmented manner after which the cytoplasmic, carboxy-terminal cleavage fragment (CF) traffics to the nucleus. In the present report, we determine the precise cleavage site within the AT(1)R by mass spectrometry and Edman sequencing. Cleavage occurs between Leu(305) and Gly(306) at the junction of the seventh transmembrane domain and the intracellular cytoplasmic carboxy-terminal domain...

The Monascus pigment, rubropunctatin, was extracted and purified from red mold rice (RMR) and its cytotoxic activities against human gastric adenocarcinoma BGC-823 cells were studied both in vitro and in vivo. Rubropunctatin inhibited the proliferation of BGC-823 cells with an inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) of 12.57 μM, while it exhibited no significant toxicity to normal gastric epithelial cell GES-1 at the same concentration. Treatment of BGC-823 cells with rubropunctatin resulted in a dose- and time-dependent apoptosis, as validated by the increase in the percentage of cells in sub-G1 phase and phosphotidylserine externalization...

This study was carried out to determine if exposure to hot environmental temperatures had a direct, detrimental effect on sperm quality. For this the effect of whole-body heat exposure on epididymal spermatozoa of laboratory mice was investigated. C57BL/6 mice (n = 7) were housed in a microclimate chamber at 37 degrees C-38 degrees C for 8 h per day for three consecutive days, while control mice (n = 7) were kept at 23 degrees C-24 degrees C. Cauda epididymal spermatozoa were obtained 16 h after the last heat treatment...

AIM: Cigarette smoking is a recognized risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Platelet adhesiveness and aggregation increases as a result of smoking. Cigarette smoking modifies haemostatic parameters via thrombosis with a consequently higher rate of cardiovascular events, but smoking-induced alterations of platelet membrane fluidity and other changes have not been studied. METHODS: Thirty experimental and control subjects (mean age 35+/-8) were selected for the study...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: New antileishmanials from natural products are urgently needed due to the emergence of drug resistance complicated by severe cytotoxic effects. 16alpha-Hydroxycleroda-3,13 (14)Z-dien-15,16-olide (Compound 1) from Polyalthia longifolia was found to be a potential antileishmanial and non-cytotoxic, as evidenced by long-term survival (>6 months) of treated animals. This prompted us to determine its target and, using molecular modelling, identify the interactions responsible for its specific antileishmanial activity...

Although much is known about how TNF-alpha induces apoptosis in the presence of inhibitors of protein synthesis, little is known about how it induces apoptosis without these inhibitors. In this report we investigated temporal sequence of events induced by TNF-alpha in the absence of protein synthesis. Regardless of whether we measured the effects by plasma membrane phosphotidylserine accumulation, by DNA strand breaks, or activation of caspases, significant changes were observed only between 12-24 h of TNF-alpha treatment...

PURPOSE: Environmental exposure to arsenic is an important public health issue. The effects of arsenic on different tissues and organs have been intensively studied. However, the effects of arsenic on bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have not been reported. This study is designed to investigate the cell death process caused by arsenite and its related underlying mechanisms on MSCs. The rationale is that absorbed arsenic in the blood circulation can reach to the bone marrow and may affect the cell survival of MSCs...

Phagocytosis and oxidative burst are critical host defense mechanisms in which neutrophils clear invading pathogens. Clearing phagocytic neutrophils by triggering apoptosis is an essential process for controlling inflammation. This study elucidates how various exercise bouts with/without hypoxia affected neutrophil bactericidal activity and subsequent apoptosis in humans. Fifteen sedentary males performed six distinct experimental tests in an air-conditioned normobaric hypoxia chamber: two normoxic exercises [strenuous exercise (SE; up to maximal O2 consumption) and moderate exercise (ME; 50% maximal O2 consumption for 30 min) while exposed to 21% O2], two hypoxic exercises (ME for 30 min while exposed to 12% and 15% O2), and two hypoxic exposures (resting for 30 min while exposed to 12% and 15% O2)...

Milk fat globule-EGF factor 8 (MFG-E8) is a molecule implicated in phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells by bridging between macrophages and apoptotic cells. Defects in MFG-E8 cause lupus-like disease in murine models. The aim of our study is to determine whether genetic variation in MFG-E8 predisposes human to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). A case-control study of MFG-E8 genetic polymorphism was performed on 147 SLE patients and 146 non-lupus control subjects. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the coding sequence of human MFG-E8 gene were investigated...

Two new cell lines have been established from the muscle and swim bladder tissues of barramundi, Lates calcarifer, and designated as BM (barramundi muscle) and BSB (barramundi swimbladder), respectively. The cells multiplied well at 28 degrees C in Leibovitz's L-15 medium supplemented with 10% foetal bovine serum, and have been continuously subcultured more than 100 times to date. Morphologically, BM cells were mostly fibroblastic, whereas BSB were mostly epithelial. Both cell lines were susceptible to grouper iridovirus (GIV) and displayed characteristics of apoptosis after viral infection...