OBJECTIVE The study objective was to evaluate the possible role of the macrophage molecule CD14 in insulin resistance. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The effects of recombinant human soluble CD14 (rh-sCD14) on insulin sensitivity (clamp procedure) and adipose tissue gene expression were evaluated in wild-type (WT) mice, high fat-fed mice, ob/ob mice, and CD14 knockout (KO) mice. We also studied ...

Hemopoietic system derived progenitor cells with mesenchymal features have been identified including CD14(+) monocyte-derived progenitors. However, it is unclear whether there are mesenchyme derived progenitors with hematopoietic potential. Herein, we identified a novel CD14(-) cell-derived population with both mesenchymal and hematopoietic features in rat peripheral blood, and this cell popula...

BACKGROUND Transplantation of ex vivo expanded circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) from peripheral blood mononuclear cells improves the neovascularization after critical ischemia. However, the origin of the endothelial progenitor lineage and its characteristics have not yet been clearly defined. Therefore, we investigated whether the phenotype and functional capacity of EPCs to impr...

PURPOSE Ocular pigment epithelial cells are hypothesized to play a role in the pathogenesis of acute anterior uveitis (AAU), where LPS activation of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) may serve as a trigger. In this study, the expression of LPS receptors in iris pigment epithelium (IPE) was determined. METHODS RT-PCR, flow cytometry, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry were used to investigate the...

Upregulation of CD14 in Kupffer cells has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several forms of liver injury, including alcoholic liver disease. However, it remains unclear whether CD14 mediates lipopolysaccharide (LPS) signaling in this specialized liver macrophage population. In this series of experiments, we determined the role of CD14 in LPS activation of Kupffer cells by using several co...

In elderly subjects and in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, there is an increased subset of monocytes with a CD14(+)CD16(+) phenotype, whose origin and functional relevance has not been well characterized. In this study, we determined whether prolonged survival of human CD14(++)CD16(-) monocytes promotes the emergence of senescent cells, and we analyzed their molecular phenotypic an...

TLR4 is the primary recognition molecule for inflammatory responses initiated by bacterial LPS (endotoxin). Internalization of endotoxin by various cell types is an important step for its removal and detoxification. Because of its role as an LPS-signaling receptor, TLR4 has been suggested to be involved in cellular LPS uptake as well. LPS uptake was investigated in primary monocytes and endothe...

Pattern recognition receptors are a key component of the first line host defense against infection, recognizing specific microbial products. We hypothesize that monocyte hyporesponsiveness in human sepsis is associated with a downregulation of the pattern recognition receptors Toll-like receptor (TLR)-2 and TLR4.Protein expression of CD14, TLR2 and TLR4 on blood monocytes was examined using flo...

Bacterial infections play an important role in the multifactorial etiology of rheumatoid arthritis. The arthropathic properties of Gram-positive bacteria have been associated with peptidoglycan-polysaccharide complexes (PG-PS), which are major structural components of bacterial cell walls. There is little agreement as to the identity of cellular receptors that mediate innate immune responses to...

The cytosolic Ca2+-binding S100A9 and S100A8 proteins form heterodimers that are primarily expressed in human neutrophils and monocytes. We have recently shown that S100A9 binds to TLR4 in vitro and induces TLR4-dependent NF-κB activation and a pro-inflammatory cytokine response in monocytes. In the present report we have further investigated the S100A9-mediated stimulation of TLR4 in monocytes...