BACKGROUND Whether paricalcitol (PCT) reduces proteinuria in the presence of intensified inhibition of Renin-Angiotensin-System (RAS) is poorly studied. We evaluated the antiproteinuric effect of PCT in non-dialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients with proteinuria greater than 0.5 g/24 h persisting despite anti-RAS therapy titrated to minimize proteinuria in the absence of adverse effects...

Human cells contain four homologous Ras proteins, but it is unknown whether these homologues have different biological functions. As a first step in determining if Ras homologues might participate in distinct signaling cascades, we assessed whether a given Ras guanine nucleotide exchange factor could selectively activate a single Ras homologue in vivo. We found that Ras-GRF/Cdc25Mm activates Ha...

The Ras(17N) dominant negative antagonizes endogenous Ras function by forming stable, inactive complexes with Ras guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs; e.g., SOS1). We have used the growth-inhibitory phenotype of Ras(17N) to characterize two aspects of Ras interaction with GEFs. First, we used a nonprenylated version of Ras(17N), designated Ras(17N/186S), which no longer associates with th...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS The aim of this study was to detect Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in colorectal cancer tissue specimens and relate the possible role of this microorganism in the etiology of colorectal cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS From February 2002 to April 2003 83 CRC patients (55 male, 28 female) and 40 control patients (19 male, 21 female) entered the prospective study. The biopsy sa...

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and mean platelet volume (MPV) in patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS).   Materials and Methods: Eighty patients who were diagnosed with RAS between January 2014 and January 2016 were included in this study. Eighty age- and gender-matched healthy subject...

Ras GTPases include the isoforms H-Ras, K-Ras, and N-Ras. Despite their great biochemical and biological similarities, evidence is mounting suggesting that Ras proteins may not be functionally redundant. A widespread strategy for studying small GTPases is the utilization of dominant inhibitory mutants that specifically block the activation of their respective wild-type proteins. As such, H-Ras ...

R-Ras promotes cell adhesion and activation of integrins through a process that is yet unknown. We show here that active R-Ras (38V) promotes the formation of focal adhesions and a spread cell shape. By contrast, the dominant-negative mutant of R-Ras (43N) reduces the number of focal adhesions, leading to the formation of refractile cells. In adherent cells wild-type R-Ras, activated (38V) R-Ra...