IL-17-producing CD4+ T-helper cells (Th17 cells) have been recognised as important drivers of pathogenesis in a multitude of inflammatory diseases, including arthritis. The cytokines and transcription factors that instruct and execute Th17 lineage differentiation have been identified. This has induced hopes that targeting Th17 cells might yield a magic bullet against autoimmune diseases. A new ...

The thermal stability of C60 dimers and 2D pressure-polymerized C60 is studied using highresolution capacitance dilatometry. The transformation of both the dimer and the polymer phases back to ‘normal’ C60 is excellently described by a simple thermally activated process, with activation energies of 1.75 r 0.1 eV (dimer) and 1.9 r 0.2 eV (polymer). These results are compared to previous data of ...

Arterial smooth muscle cells (SMCs) are arrested in the G1 phase of the cell cycle on polymerized type I collagen fibrils, while monomer collagen supports SMC proliferation. Cyclin E-associated kinase and cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (cdk2) phosphorylation are inhibited on polymerized collagen, and levels of the cdk2 inhibitors p27Kip1 and p21Cip1/Waf1 are increased compared with SMCs on monomer c...

We find that pADEO16, a recombinant cosmid carrying the rck gene of the Salmonella typhimurium virulence plasmid, when cloned into either rough or smooth Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains, confers high level resistance to the bactericidal activity of pooled normal human serum. The rck gene encodes a 17-kD outer membrane protein that is homologous to a family of virulence-associated outer ...

This study evaluated the effect of preliminary irradiation on the depth of cure and Knoop hardness of a veneering composite. The composite was filled into a mold, and irradiated with different irradiation duration or irradiance. After removing the mold, the depth of cure was measured, and the Knoop hardness number at each depth was determined and statistically analyzed using Mann-Whitney U test...

This paper describes a strategy for designing a chemically anchored phospholipid monolayer that could be used as coating materials for biomedical implants. To make a chemically anchored phospholipid monolayer on the polymer substrate, we prepared the mono-acrylated phospholipid (1-palmitoyl-2-[12-(acryloyloxy)-dodecanoyl]-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine; acryloyl-PC) and the acrylated polymer (poly...

The directional polymerization of actin on the erythrocyte membrane has been examined at various concentrations of G-actin by thin-section electron microscopy. For this purpose, a new experimental system using single-layered erythrocyte membranes with the cytoplasmic surfaces freely exposed was developed. The preformed actin filaments did not bind with the cytoplasmic surface of the erythrocyte...

Despite the large number of studies addressing the effect of microwave polymerization on the properties of acrylic resin, this method has received limited clinical acceptance. This study evaluated the influence of microwave polymerization on the flexural strength of a denture base resin. A conventional heat-polymerized (Clássico), a microwave-polymerized (Onda-Cryl) and a autopolymerizing acryl...

Abstracts of the XXII World Allergy Congress, 4–8 December, 2012 Cancún, Méxicos of the XXII World Allergy Congress, 4–8 December, 2012 Cancún, México ORAL ABSTRACT SESSION ALLERGEN IMMUNOTHERAPY 1 1 Ultra-Rush Specific Immune Therapy with Depigmented and Polymerized Allergen Extracts is Effective and Safe in Patients With Severe SAR Highly Sensitized against Pollen Allergens Michaela Gruber, a...