Nerve growth factor (NGF) undergoes retrograde transport from peripheral target organs, and has been recently reported to regulate the production of some neuropeptides in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. Therefore, to ascertain whether or not the expression of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP), and galanin was regulated by the retrograde transpor...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is an important health issue in Taiwan. There were over ten thousand newly diagnosed CRC patients each year. The outcome of late stage CRC still remains to be improved, and tumor markers are expected to improve CRC detection and management. From a colorectal cancer cell secretome database, we chose four proteins as candidates for clinical verification, including tumor-as...

A single injection of estradiol valerate induces a form of cystic ovary resembling some aspects of the human polycystic ovarian syndrome. Preceding the development of follicular cysts, there is an increase in intraovarian synthesis of nerve growth factor (NGF) and the low affinity NGF receptor (p75 NGFR). Selective blockade of NGF actions and p75 NGFR synthesis in the ovary restored estrous cyc...

Using a mouse bone marrow transplantation model, the authors evaluated a Moloney murine leukemia virus (MMLV)-based vector encoding 2 anti-human immunodeficiency virus genes for long-term expression in blood cells. The vector also encoded the human nerve growth factor receptor (NGFR) to serve as a cell-surface marker for in vivo tracking of transduced cells. NGFR(+) cells were detected in blood...

Glioblastomas (GBM) are very difficult to treat and their aggressiveness is one of the main reasons for this as well as for the frequent recurrences. MicroRNAs post-transcriptionally regulate their target genes through interaction between their seed sequence and 3'UTR of the target mRNAs. We previously reported that miR-296-3p is regulated by neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2) and enhances the invasiven...

Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) is a tumor highly resistant to chemo- and radiotherapy. Drug resistance can be induced by epigenetic changes such as aberrant DNA methylation. To overcome drug resistance, we explored a promising approach based on the use of 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (AZA), a demethylating agent, in combination with the mTOR inhibitor everolimus in MTC cells (MZ-CRC-1 and TT). This c...

Nerve growth factor (NGF) regulates the proliferation, differentiation and survival of cells and is also involved in the wound healing and tissue remodeling processes. The biological effects of NGF are dependent upon receptor signal-mediating functions, which differ between cells. This study attempted to investigate the hepatoprotective effect and possible mechanism of β-NGF on D-galactosamine ...

The objective of this study was to find the sites with proliferative activity in the human gingival epithelium, where stem cells are likely to exist. Gingival tissues were excised from 16 adult patients and immunohistochemically examined for the presence of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)-incorporating, p63- and low affinity nerve growth factor receptor (p75(NGFR))-expressing cells. BrdU-incorporating...

Pax3 RNA is expressed in neural crest when Schwann cell (SC) precursors migrate to the PNS. Pax3 RNA and SC markers were monitored in sciatic nerves of mice during development and nerve repair. An inverse correlation was observed between expression of Pax3 RNA and myelin basic protein (MBP). Inverse correlation was also observed in SC primary cultures. Treating cultures with forskolin, an adeny...

The death domain superfamily, comprising the death domain, death effector domain, caspase recruitment domain and pyrin domain subfamilies, is one of the largest classes of protein interaction modules, and plays a particularly critical function in the assembly and activation of apoptotic and inflammatory complexes. Members of the death domain superfamily share a common structural feature, the 6-...