Extracellular matrix (ECM) composition has an important role in determining airway structure. We postulated that ECM lung composition of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients differs from that observed in smoking and nonsmoking subjects without airflow obstruction. We determined the fractional areas of elastic fibres, type-I, -III and -IV collagen, versican, decorin, biglycan, l...

Moreover, typical bullous lesions on erythematous skin were Sir, observed on his upper limbs. Mucosae were not involved. Family Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is a generalized disorder of history was negative for PXE. Ophthalmological examinations and the connective tissue, characterized by an involvement of the echocardiogram were normal and routine laboratory tests, including cardiovascular s...

BACKGROUND and objectives: In this study, we investigated how enteric plexuses protect themselves from complement mediated attack. For this purpose, the expression patterns of membrane bound complement regulatory proteins (mCRP) and their association with C3 deposition was determined. In addition, mCRP expression patterns of enteric plexuses were compared with those in the central nervous syste...

Pigs are models in human phoniatry. However, features of maturation and ageing have not been considered with regard to the so-called body-cover model in this species. Therefore, the glottis of "young" (2-3 months; n = 6) and "old" (4-7 years; n = 6) minipigs was investigated. Their cranial (CraF) and caudal (CauF) vocal folds were histomorphometrically and stratigraphically analysed with emphas...

BACKGROUND Lysozyme is increased in inflammatory reactions and is a component of the extracellular matrix, but its possible role in lung diseases such as emphysema and interstitial fibrosis has not been investigated. METHODS To characterise differences in lysozyme content among normal, emphysematous, and fibrotic human lungs, tissue sections obtained from necropsy specimens were immunostained...

Elastin is the protein responsible for the characteristic elastic properties of many tissues including the skin, lungs and large blood vessels. Loss-of-function mutations in the elastin gene are known to cause the heart defect supravalvular aortic stenosis (SVAS). We and others have identified deletions, nonsense mutations and splice site mutations in SVAS patients that abolish the function of ...

Organ failure secondary to fibrosis is the main cause of morbidity and death in patients with systemic sclerosis. Gastrointestinal tract dysmotility is a major visceral manifestation, clinically ranging from an asymptomatic form to severe paresis. Although the oesophagus is the most frequently affected part of the gastrointestinal tract, all other segments can be involved. The present study was...

Leishmania is inoculated, by the bite of an infected sandfly, into the skin of the host, where the promastigotes are phagocyted by dermal macrophages. The dermal region comprises cells and abundant extracellular matrix. Studies show that matrix metalloproteinases play an important role in host defense responses against pathogens in mammals and that their activities lead to the production of ant...