OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect and mechanism of bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) modified with CXCR-4 gene combined with stromal derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) in the treatment of acute spinal cord injury (SCI) in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS CXCR-4 gene was transfected by a virus. Spinal cord injury rats were randomly divided into four groups: control group, SDF-1α group, CXCR-4/BMSC group and co...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Information about the role of the stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α)/chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4) axis in ischemic postconditioning (IPOC) is currently limited. We hypothesized that the SDF-1α/CXCR4 signaling pathway is directly involved in the cardioprotective effect of IPOC. METHODS Isolated rat hearts were divided into four groups. The control group was ...

Tumor-associated macrophages promote tumor growth by stimulating angiogenesis and suppressing antitumor immunity. Thus, therapeutics that inhibit macrophage recruitment to tumors may provide new avenues for cancer therapy. In this study, we showed how chemoattractants stromal cell-derived growth factor 1 alpha (SDF-1α) and interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β) collaborate with myeloid cell integrin-α4β1 t...

BACKGROUND IL-1α and IL-6 are associated with the prognosis of a wide range of cancers, but their value in cervical cancer remains controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of IL-1α and IL-6 in cervical cancer and their significance in clinical prognosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS The expression of IL-1α and IL-6 in 105 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cervical cancer t...

Pancreatic cancer is characterized by a desmoplastic reaction that creates a dense fibroinflammatory microenvironment, promoting hypoxia and limiting cancer drug delivery due to decreased blood perfusion. Here, we describe a novel tumor-stroma interaction that may help explain the prevalence of desmoplasia in this cancer. Specifically, we found that activation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HI...

Using a mouse model with noise-induced cochlear blood-labyrinth-barrier (CBLB) injury, we examined the effects of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) on the recruitment of bone marrow-derived cells (BMDCs) to the CBLB after acoustic injury. Lethally irradiated C57BL/6J and B6.129P2-Nos2(tm1Lau)/J mice were transplanted with GFP(+)-BMDCs from C57Bl/6-Tg (UBC GFP) mice. Four weeks after transp...

BACKGROUND Stem cell transplantation is a promising method for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have clinical potential for lung repair/regeneration. However, the rates of engraftment and differentiation are generally low following MSC therapy for lung injury. In previous studies, we constructed a pulmonary surfactant-associated pr...

Four cycles of chemotherapy are required to assess responses of multiple myeloma (MM) patients. We investigated whether circulating endothelial progenitor cells (cEPCs) could be a biomarker for predicting patient response in the first cycle of chemotherapy with bortezomib and dexamethasone, so patients might avoid ineffective and costly treatments and reduce exposure to unwanted side effects. W...