Influence of scaffold stiffness on subchondral bone and cartilage regeneration in an ovine model of osteochondral defect healing Karin Schlichting1, Devakara R. Epari1, Hanna Schell1, Ralf U. Kleemann1, Andreas Weiler2, Georg N. Duda1 1Center for Musculoskeletal Surgery, Charité University Medicine, Free and Humboldt-University, Berlin, Germany; 2Center for Special Joint Surgery, Berlin, German...

Genetic diversity detected by analysis of amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) of 54 Actinobacillus lignieresii isolates from different hosts and geographic localities is described. On the basis of variances in AFLP profiles, the strains were grouped in two major clusters; one comprising strains isolated from horses and infected wounds of humans bitten by horses and another consistin...

The CD154 (CD40 ligand) molecule is a member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) family and plays an important role in the interaction between antigen-specific lymphocytes and antigen-presenting cells. In this study, reverse transcription-PCR cloning was used to derive the sequence encoding ovine CD154. Sequence analysis of the cloned CD154 gene showed a similarity of 97%, 89%, and 88% with the ...

BACKGROUND Scaffold-assisted autologous chondrocyte implantation is an effective clinical procedure for cartilage repair. From the regulatory point of view, the ovine model is one of the suggested large animal models for pre-clinical studies. The aim of our study was to evaluate the in vitro re-differentiation capacity of expanded ovine chondrocytes in biomechanically characterized polyglycolic...

BACKGROUND Transmissible agents involved in prion diseases differ in their capacities to target different regions of the central nervous system and lymphoid tissues, which are also host-dependent. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Protease-resistant prion protein (PrP(res)) was analysed by Western blot in the spleen of transgenic mice (TgOvPrP4) that express the ovine prion protein under the con...

PURPOSE To characterize the phenotype and map the locus responsible for autosomal recessive inherited ovine microphthalmia (OMO) in sheep. METHODS Microphthalmia-affected lambs and their available relatives were collected in a field, and experimental matings were performed to obtain affected and normal lambs for detailed necropsy and histologic examinations. The matings resulted in 18 sheep f...

Ruminant lentiviruses share genomic sequences and biologic properties with human immunodeficiency viruses. Four ovine lentivirus strains were assessed for cytopathic effects and virus replication. Lentivirus isolate H/24 produced high virus titers and lysis of synovial cells but replicated slowly and caused no fusion of alveolar macrophages. Lentivirus isolates 84/28 and 85/14 produced low viru...

Control of growth and differentiation during mammalian embryogenesis may be regulated by growth factors. With the use of a very sensitive method, the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, expression of some growth factor transcripts was examined during ovine peri-implantation development. Transcripts for transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) were found in day 15 to day 30 conc...

Different non-established cultures were examined to find those that showed high sensitivity to Foot and Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV). Ovine kidney cultures showed high sensitivity to types A, O and C, and were suitable to detect viral infection in samples of animal, as well as cell culture origin. The level of detection in this system was up to ten times higher than in BHK21 cells, which were com...

Ovine scrapie can be transmitted via environmental reservoirs. A pool of ovine scrapie isolates were incubated on soil for one day or thirteen months and eluted prion was used to challenge tg338 mice transgenic for ovine PrP. After one-day incubation on soil, two PrP(Sc) phenotypes were present: G338 or Apl338ii. Thirteen months later some divergent PrP(Sc) phenotypes were seen: a mixture of Ap...