Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) may be involved in a key mechanism of the skin aging process, influencing several aspects related to the age-related degeneration of skin cells, including antioxidant unbalance. Therefore, we investigated whether the up-modulation of this nuclear receptor exerts a protective effect in a stress-induced premature senescence (SIPS) model bas...

cdx4, a caudal-related homeodomain-containing transcription factor, functions as a regulator of hox genes, thereby playing a critical role in anterior-posterior (A-P) patterning during embryogenesis. In zebrafish, homozygous deletion of the cdx4 gene results in a mutant phenotype known as kugelig, with aberrant A-P patterning and severe anemia characterized by decreased gata1 expression in the ...

Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) are discussed as causative agents of various diseases including cancers. Expression of endogenous retroviral sequences can be induced by ultraviolet (UV) light, which is also considered as a cofactor in the development of cutaneous melanoma. Therefore, we investigated whether ultraviolet C (UVC) induces HERV-K rec and np9 expression in normal human epiderma...

BACKGROUND Previous success rates of psoralen and ultraviolet A (PUVA) and narrowband UVB (NB-UVB) in the treatment of chronic urticaria are reported in few studies with no previous reports on the comparable efficacy of both modalities in the disease. AIM We aimed to compare the efficacy of PUVA versus NB-UVB in the treatment of chronic urticaria. METHODS Twenty-four patients with chronic u...

Digestion of rat liver nuclei by endogenous nucleases or micrococcal nuclease releases a chromatin fraction containing RNA polymerases I and II bound to DNA fragments in ternary transcription complexes. To label the DNA in these transcription complexes, the polymerases were allowed to add radioactively labelled ribonucleotides in vitro to in vivo-initiated RNA chains. During this transcription ...

Currently, there is no effective therapy for high grade gliomas. 8-Methoxypsoralen (8-MOP) is a compound used in the treatment of skin diseases combined with UV light irradiation. In this work, rat glioma C6 cells, normal astrocytes and human glioblastoma GL-15 cells comprised an in vitro model to evaluate the antitumor activity of 8-MOP. We found that 8-MOP promoted a time- and concentration-d...

Vitiligo is an acquired depigmenting disorder. To date, there is no predictive model for its response rate to narrowband ultraviolet B (NBUVB) phototherapy. The aim of this study was to investigate the different types of response of patients with non-segmental vitiligo undergoing NBUVB 3 times a week. Many patients who were previously considered non-responders were given the opportunity to cont...

Psoralen photochemotherapy [psoralen ultraviolet A (PUVA)] plays an important part in dermatological therapeutics, being an effective and generally safe treatment for psoriasis and other dermatoses. In order to maintain optimal efficacy and safety, guidelines concerning best practice should be available to operators and supervisors. The British Photodermatology Group (BPG) have previously publi...

Human cytochrome P450 2A6 (CYP2A6) is a highly polymorphic isoform of CYP2A subfamily. Our previous kinetic study on four CYP2A6 allelic variants (CYP2A6 15, CYP2A6 16, CYP2A6 21 and CYP2A6 22) have unveiled the functional significance of sequence mutations in these variants on coumarin 7-hydroxylation activity. In the present study, we further explored the ability of a typical CYP2A6 inhibitor...

Furanocoumarins, Phytoalexins, O-Methyltransferases, Fungal Elicitor, Cell Suspension Cultures Cultured parsley cells (Petroselinum crispum) treated with an elicitor from the soybean patho­ gen, Phytophthora megasperma f. sp. glycinea, were used as source for the separation, extensive purification and characterization of S-adenosyl-L-methionine: xanthotoxol and S-adenosyl-Lmethionine: bergaptol...