TGFBR1*6A is a common hypomorphic variant of the type 1 transforming growth factor beta receptor (TGFBR1), which has been associated with increased cancer risk in some studies. Although TGFBR1*6A is capable of switching TGF-beta growth-inhibitory signals into growth-stimulatory signals when stably transfected into MCF-7 breast cancer cells, the biological effects of TGFBR1*6A are largely unknow...

Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) infection is common and has a worldwide distribution. Recently, HHV-6A and HHV-6B have been reclassified into two distinct species based on different biological features (genetic, antigenic, and cell tropism) and disease associations. A role for HHV-6A/B has been proposed in several autoimmune disorders (AD), including multiple sclerosis (MS), autoimmune connective t...

PURPOSE The matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3), also known as stromelysin-I, is a key-player for carcinogenesis and tumor growth. A 5A/6A promoter polymorphism is associated with differences in MMP3 activity and has been linked to cancer susceptibility in some studies. In the present study we evaluated the role of this polymorphism for breast cancer risk. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN A case-control stu...

Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) is a lymphotropic betaherpesvirus that productively infects T cells and monocytes. HHV-6 isolates can be differentiated into two groups, variants A and B (HHV-6A and HHV-6B). Here, we show a functional difference between HHV-6A and -6B in that HHV-6A induced syncytium formation of diverse human cells but HHV-6B did not. The syncytium formation induced by HHV-6A was o...

Biosynthesis, 2H-NMR, Phytoalexin, Pisatin, Pterocarpan 2H-NMR analysis of the 6a-hydroxypterocarpan phytoalexin pisatin derived in CuCl2-treated pea [Pisum sativum) pods from [6,1 la -2H2]maackiain has demonstrated the retention of all 2H labels. This establishes that no pterocarp-6a-ene or pterocarp-6-ene interm ediate is involved, and thus confirms a direct 6a-hydroxylation mechanism for the...

UNLABELLED Human herpesvirus 6A (HHV-6A), a member of the betaherpesvirus family, is associated with several human diseases. Like all herpesviruses, HHV-6A establishes a lifelong, latent infection in its host. Reactivation of HHV-6A is frequent within the immunosuppressed and immunocompromised populations and results in lytic viral replication within multiple organs, often leading to severe dis...

Apoptosis plays an important role in the pathogenesis of viral infections. In this study, we investigated the cell death processes during productive HHV-6A infection and the underlying mechanisms. Annexin V-PI staining and electron microscopy indicated that HHV-6A is a strong inducer of apoptosis. HHV-6A infection decreased mitochondrial transmembrane potential and led to morphological changes ...

Squamous metaplasia in airway epithelium is a pathological process arising from abnormal remodeling/repair responses to injury. Proteolytic maturation of many growth and differentiation factors involved in tissue remodeling is controlled by proprotein convertases (PCs). However, the role of these convertases in airway remodeling remains poorly understood. Using a retinoic acid deficiency-induce...