Introduction. The carpal and metacarpophalangeal joints have a high incidence of disease in the equine athlete. Pathological change in the articular cartilage of these joints occurs in specific regions, particularly those areas exposed to high impact loading[1]. The ability of articular cartilage to resist compressive loading is largely due to the entrapment of high concentrations of aggrecan w...

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a family of extracellular endoproteinases that are receiving considerable attention from biologists, clinicians, and the pharmaceutical industry. MMPs play a major role in normal development, reproduction, and tissue remodeling. In addition, these molecules are involved in a number of pathogenic processes including cancer, arthritis, angiogenesis, and wound ...

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are zinc-dependent endopeptidases that degrade the extracellular matrix (ECM) and regulate the extracellular microenvironment. Despite the significant role that MMP activity plays in cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions, migration, and differentiation, analyses of MMPs in vitro and in vivo have relied upon their abundance using conventional immunoassays, rather t...

Purpose: Metalloproteinases (MMPs) regulate extracellular matrix turnover and degrade basal lamina. Aim of the study was to examine the regulation of MMPs and the effect of an MMP inhibitor in transplant related ischemia/reperfusion injury. Methods: Heterotopic cardiac transplantation was performed after 4 h of ischemia in three groups of six rats: allografts (black hooded inbred strain, PVG do...

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are zinc-dependent endopeptidases that are released from neurons in an activity dependent manner. Published studies suggest their activity is important to varied forms of learning and memory. At least one MMP can stimulate an increase in the size of dendritic spines, structures which represent the post synaptic component for a large number of glutamatergic synap...

BACKGROUND The classical paradigm of liver injury asserts that hepatic stellate cells (HSC) produce, remodel and turnover the abnormal extracellular matrix (ECM) of fibrosis via matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). In extrahepatic tissues MMP production is regulated by a number of mechanisms including expression of the glycoprotein CD147. Previously, we have shown that CD147 is expressed on hepato...

INTRODUCTION Production and activation of proteases, such as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), the recently identified aggrecanases (ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS11), and the plasminogen activator (PA)/plasmin system, are involved in the cartilage breakdown process during chronic inflammatory arthritides and osteoarthritis. The PAs are serine proteases, which catalyse the activation of plasminogen to plas...

BACKGROUND Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their inhibitors (TIMPs) play a central role in arterial wall remodeling, affecting stability of fibrous caps covering atherosclerotic plaques. The objective of this study was to determine the spatial distribution of TIMP mass and MMP mass and activity of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) tissues and relate it to the distribution of atherosclerotic les...

Objective: The use of bioactive extracellular matrix (ECM) grafts such as amniotic membranes is an attractive treatment option for enhancing wound repair. In this study, the concentrations, activity, and distribution of matrix components, growth factors, proteases, and inhibitors were evaluated in PURION® Processed, micronized, dehydrated human amnion/chorion membrane (dHACM; MiMedx Group, Inc....

Fibroblast migration, proliferation, extracellular matrix protein synthesis and degradation are the key events in various biological and pathological processes in pulmonary fibrosis. In addition, biopsy specimens from the lungs of patients with pulmonary fibrosis show increased numbers of mast cells which have metachromatic granules containing heparin, histamine and proteases. Little is known a...