Known high and low molecular weight (LMW) MAP2 protein isoforms result from alternative splicing of the MAP2 gene. Contrary to previous reports that MAP2 is neural-specific, we recently identified MAP2 mRNA and protein in somatic and germ cells of rat testis, and showed the predominant testicular isoform is LMW. Although cytoplasmic in neural tissue, MAP2 appeared predominantly nuclear in germ ...

We have compared the hemorrhagic and antithrombotic effects of a low molecular weight (LMW) heparin fraction and standard heparin in rabbits. Similar LMW heparin fractions have antithrombotic effects when tested in animals, but their hemorrhagic effects relative to standard heparin have not been established. Standard porcine mucosal heparin (mol wt 15,000 daltons) was depolymerized by nitrous a...

Upon tissue injury, high m.w. hyaluronan (HA), a ubiquitously distributed extracellular matrix component, is broken down into lower m.w. (LMW) fragments, which in turn activate an innate immune response. In doing so, LMW HA acts as an endogenous danger signal alerting the immune system of a breach in tissue integrity. In this report, we demonstrate that LMW HA activates the innate immune respon...

BACKGROUND Low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatase (LMW-PTP) is a polymorphic protein with two major isoforms whose role in tumorigenesis is currently controversial. MATERIALS AND METHODS We characterized LMW-PTP genotype, isoform expression and activity in six different human breast cancer epithelial cell lines (ZR75, MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-231BO, MCF7, MDA-MB-231BO2, MDA-MB-435) and c...

Oil extraction and transport activities in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), along with major marine oil spills riverine inputs, are exerting environmental pressure on this system by increasing concentration oil-related pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). To fully identify these changes related to activities, current PAH levels should be established. Here, we present low molecul...

RNA-directed DNA polymerase (reverse transcriptase) from leukocytes of individual leukemic patients can be grouped by velocity gradient analyses into two distinct classes, a low-molecular-weight (LMW) class of approximately 70,000 and a high-molecular-weight (HMW) class of 130,000 to 140,000. The reverse transcriptases from mammalian type-C viruses have with one exception (see text) been isolat...

Background: The incidence of allergic diseases such as allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, asthma, and food allergies has increased in several countries. Mast cells have critical roles in various biologic processes related to allergic diseases. Mast cells express the high-affinity receptor for immunoglobulin (Ig) E on their surface. The interaction of multivalent antigens with surface-bound I...

Cyclin E1 regulates the initiation of the S phase program in the mammalian cell division cycle. In normal cells, cyclin E1 protein expression is tightly controlled through a combination of transcriptional and proteolytic regulatory processes. However, in many types of human tumor, cyclin E1 expression is frequently dysregulated, including overexpression, nonperiodic expression relative to cell ...

Insulin regulates skeletal muscle protein degradation, but the types of proteins being degraded in vivo remain to be determined due to methodological limitations. We present a method to assess the types of skeletal muscle proteins that are degraded by extracting their degradation products as low-molecular weight (LMW) peptides from muscle samples. High-resolution mass spectrometry was used to i...

Low m.w. hyaluronan (LMW HA) has been shown to elicit the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines in various cells in vitro. However, the effects of this molecule in vivo are unknown. In this study, we report that intratracheal administration of LMW HA (200 kDa) causes inflammation in mouse lung. A lack of TLR4 is associated with even stronger inflammatory response in the lung as...