Growth differentiation factor-9 (GDF9) is an oocyte secreted paracrine factor essential for mammalian ovarian folliculogenesis. Like other members of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGFbeta) superfamily, GDF9 is synthesized as a prepropeptide which needs processing by furin-like proteases to result in an active mature protein. We have previously characterized a preparation of unpurified re...

Lentiviral vectors are among the promising viral based-vectors in gene therapy applications, but the efficiency of their targeting needs to be improved. (Strept)avidin-biotin adaptor system is a novel approach to modify the lentiviral envelope for better targeting properties. Herein, we describe utilization of this adaptor system by designing a candidate envelope protein-bearing biotin acceptor...

The neuronal damage characteristic of HIV-1-mediated CNS diseases is inflicted by HIV-1 infected brain macrophages. Several steps of viral replication, including assembly and budding, differ between macrophages and T cells; it is likely that cell-specific host factors mediate these differences. We previously defined Annexin 2 (Anx2) as an HIV Gag binding partner in human monocyte-derived macrop...

BACKGROUND Ulmus davidiana var. japonica Rehder (UD) has long been used in traditional folk medicine in Asia. This study is designed to investigate the antiadhesive activity of the ethanol extract of UD (UDE) and its underlying mechanisms in cultured endothelial cells. METHODS The dried root bark of UD was extracted with 80% (v/v) ethanol. The antiadhesive activity of the UDE was investigated...

A major challenge in studies of human diseases involving macrophages is low yield and heterogeneity of the primary cells and limited ability of these cells for transfections and genetic manipulations. To address this issue, we developed a simple and efficient three steps method for somatic 293T cells reprogramming into monocytes and macrophage-like cells. First, 293T cells were reprogrammed int...

Elongator complex has been associated with hyperphosphorylated RNA polymerase II and is known to play critical roles in transcriptional elongation, as well as in tRNA modification and exocytosis. However, the specific mechanism of how human Elongator complex regulates cell growth and cell cycle remains unclear. To investigate the composition of human Elongator complex and its effects on cell gr...

A dye emitted red fluorescence with aggregation-enhanced emission properties was reported here. It can be utilized to specifically recognize the cell membrane of MCF-7 and 293T cell lines during bio-imaging.