A balanced cytotrophoblast cell turnover is crucial for placental development and anomalies in this process associated with gestational diseases. The endocannabinoid system (ECS) has emerged as a new player in several biological processes. However, its influence during placental development is still unknown. We report here the expression of the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) main...

The mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) signalling pathway functions as a nutrient sensor, both in individual cells and, more globally, in organs such as the fat body in Drosophila and the hypothalamus in the rat. The activity of placental amino acid transporters is decreased in IUGR (intrauterine growth restriction), and recent experimental evidence suggests that these changes contribute dire...

The human alkaline phosphatases constitute a multigene family with at least four members. Placental-like alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) is of particular interest because it is frequently present in tumors, where it serves as a marker of malignant transformation. Moreover, its expression is highly inducible by differentiating agents such as sodium butyrate. In the present study we have examined the...

Placentas of women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) exhibit an altered lipid metabolism. The mechanism by which GDM is linked to alterations in placental lipid metabolism remains obscure. We hypothesized that high glucose levels reduce mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation (FAO) and increase triglyceride accumulation in human placenta. To test this hypothesis, we measured FAO, fatty acid e...

Applications and limitations of alkaline phosphatase as a tumor marker are discussed. This review focuses on three characteristic isoenzymes that have been found in the serum of cancer patients: (1) the Regan isoenzyme in bronchogenic carcinoma; (2) the Nagao isoenzyme in pleuritis carcinomatosa; and (3) the hepatoma alkaline phosphatase. Tumor variants of alkaline phosphatase are classified ba...

Indirect evidence previously suggested that Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) vegetative storage protein (VSP) could play a role in defense against herbivorous insects. To test this hypothesis, other AtVSP-like sequences in Arabidopsis were identified through a Basic Local Alignment Search Tool search, and their transcriptional profiles were investigated. In response to methyl jasmonate applic...

OYA, M., SHIBATA, R., KIDO, A. and KOMATSU, N. A Further Study on the Polymorphism of Placental Alkaline Phosphatase in Japanese. Tohoku J. exp. Med., 1985, 146 (2), 175-179 Polymorphism of placental alkaline phosphatase (PL) was investigated in 120 Japanese placentae by means of starch gel electrophoresis and an improved staining method for the isoenzymes using naphthol AS-MX phosphate as subs...

OBJECTIVE Intrauterine glucocorticoid (GC) exposure is associated with disturbances in feto-placental growth. This study aimed to investigate whether folic acid supplementation can prevent dexamethasone (Dex)-induced feto-placental growth restriction. MATERIALS AND METHODS Female C57BL/6J mice were subject to four different treatments, respectively: normal drinking water plus saline injection...