OBJECTIVES To determine methylation status of nine genes, previously described to be frequently methylated in cervical cancer, in squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL). METHODS QMSP was performed in normal cervix, low-grade (L)SIL, high-grade (H)SIL, adenocarcinomas and squamous cell cervical cancers, and in corresponding cervical scrapings. RESULTS Only CCNA1 was never methylated in norma...

The basic calcium phosphate mineral, hydroxyapatite (HAP) (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2)), is the prototype of one of the major constituents of bone and teeth. Thin layers of HAP were coated on the surface of type 316L stainless steel by electrophoretic deposition (EPD) from a 2.5% suspension in isopropyl alcohol, and this was followed by vacuum sintering at 800uC for 1 h. The development of HAP coatings wa...

Among eukaryotic organisms, the HAP complex is a conserved, multimeric transcription factor that regulates gene expression by binding to the consensus sequence CCAAT. In filamentous fungi, the HAP complex has been linked to primary and secondary metabolism, but its role in pathogenesis has not been investigated extensively. The overarching goal of this study was to elucidate the role of the HAP...

PURPOSE Aberrant promoter hypermethylation of several known or putative tumor suppressor genes occurs frequently during the pathogenesis of lung cancers and is a promising marker for cancer detection. We investigated the feasibility of detecting aberrant DNA methylation in the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples of lung cancer patients. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We examined the tumor and the match...

Retinoic acid causes a range of embryonic defects, including craniofacial abnormalities, in both birds and mammals and is believed to have a number of roles in normal development. We have previously shown that the distribution of retinoic acid receptor-beta (RAR-beta) transcripts is spatially restricted within the neural-crest-derived upper beak primordia of the chick embryo. We have now used i...

In a screen for receptor tyrosine kinase genes regionally expressed in the developing hindbrain, we cloned and characterised the chicken ret gene. Data derived from studies of congenital human disease and from disruption of murine ret have demonstrated roles for ret in development of the kidney and enteric nervous system; the latter has been most well-studied in the avian embryo. In agreement w...

Aberrant promoter methylation of retinoic acid receptor-beta(2) (RAR-beta(2)) is frequently detected in hepatitis B virus (HBV)-positive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); however, the mechanism of methylation and its biological significance are unknown. This study showed that HBx, the principal oncogene product of HBV, induced promoter hypermethylation of RAR-beta(2) via upregulation of DNA methy...

A hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the accumulation of plaques of Abeta 1-40 and 1-42 peptides, which result from the sequential cleavage of APP by the beta and gamma-secretases. The production of Abeta peptides is avoided by alternate cleavage of APP by the alpha and gamma-secretases. Here we show that production of beta-amyloid and plaques in a mouse model of AD are reduced by overexpr...

The human angiotensinogen (hAGT) gene has polymorphisms in its 2.5-kb promoter that form two haplotype (Hap) blocks: -6A/G (-1670A/G, -1562C/T, and -1561T/C) and -217A/G (-532T/C, -793A/G, -1074T/C, and -1178G/A). Hap -6A/-217A is associated with human hypertension, whereas Hap -6G/-217G reduces cardiovascular risk. Hap -6A/-217A has increased promoter activity with enhanced transcription facto...

We have compared Saccharomyces cerevisiae global gene expression in wild-type and mutants (Deltahap2 and Deltahap4) of the HAP transcriptional complex, which has been shown to be necessary for growth on respiratory substrates. Several hundred ORFs are under positive or negative control of this complex and we analyse here in detail the effect of HAP on mitochondria. We found that most of the gen...