In this study we aim to extensively investigate the anti-influenza virus immune responses in human pharyngeal epithelial cell line (Hep-2) and evaluate the protective role of Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands in seasonal influenza A H1N1 (sH1N1) infections in vitro. We first investigated the expression of the TLRs and cytokines genes in resting and sH1N1 infected Hep-2 cells. Clear expressions o...

This paper describes a novel system for automatic classification of images obtained from Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA) pathology tests on Human Epithelial type 2 (HEp-2) cells using the Indirect Immunofluorescence (IIF) protocol. The IIF protocol on HEp-2 cells has been the hallmark method to identify the presence of ANAs, due to its high sensitivity and the large range of antigens that can be de...

We motivate and summarize our analysis of hep-th/0610276 in which we consider D7-brane probe embeddings in the Polchinski-Strassler background with N = 2 supersymmetry. The corresponding dual gauge theory is given by the N = 2 theory with fundamental matter. Based on a talk given by C. Sieg at the RTN Workshop 2006, Napoli. ∗[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]...

The Saffold virus (SAFV) genome is translated as a single long polyprotein precursor and co-translationally cleaved to yield 12 separate viral proteins. Little is known about the activities of SAFV proteins although their homologs in other picornaviruses have already been described. To further support research on functions and activities of respective viral proteins, we investigated the spatio-...

Enterohemorrhagic E. coli strains (EHEC) had emerged as foodborne pathogens and cause in human diarrhea and hemolytic-uremic syndrome. Because of the widespread distribution of EHEC serotypes and O157 and non-O157 in cattle population, its control will require interventions at the farm level such as the administration of probiotics that produce inhibitory metabolites. E. coli O157:H7 shows tiss...

The ability of 22 Edwardsiella strains to penetrate and replicate in cultured epithelial cells was initially evaluated by light microscopy methods and by the recovery of gentamicin-resistant (Gmr) bacteria from the Triton X-100 cell lysates of HEp-2-infected monolayers. Giemsa-stained HEp-2 cells revealed the presence of numerous internalized bacteria 3 h postinfection, often appearing as paral...

We have previously demonstrated that the steroid receptor antagonist mifepristone (RU486) causes growth inhibition of Chlamydophila pneumoniae by binding to and subsequently destroying the bacteria during their normal developmental cycle in epithelial HEp-2 cells. In the present study, we assessed the efficacy of treatment with RU486 against persistent C. pneumoniae infection in interferon (IFN...

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a treatment modality that has clinical applications in both non-neoplastic and neoplastic diseases. PDT involves a light-sensitive compound (photosensitizer), light and molecular oxygen. This procedure may lead to several different cellular responses, including cell death. Alterations in the attachment of cancer cells to the substratum and to each other are importa...

The effect of 25-hydroxycholesterol (25-OH-cholesterol) and chenodeoxycholic (CDC) acid on apoprotein secretion, low-density lipoprotein receptor activity, and [3H]triacylglycerol secretion in Hep G2 cells was studied. Both 25-OH-cholesterol and CDC acid increased the secretion of apolipoprotein (apo) E by Hep G2 cells. The secretion of apo A-I was slightly lowered (less than 10% disease). The ...

Senescence Marker Protein-30 (SMP30) is an androgen-independent factor that decreases with aging. We recently characterized SMP30 as a gluconolactonase (GNL) involved in the biosynthetic pathway of vitamin C and established that SMP30 knockout mice could not synthesize vitamin C in vivo. Although mice normally synthesize vitamin C, humans are prevented from doing so by mutations that have alter...