Association of the condensin multiprotein complex with chromatin is required for chromosome condensation at mitosis. What regulates condensin targeting to chromatin is largely unknown. We previously showed that the nuclear A kinase-anchoring protein, AKAP95, is implicated in chromosome condensation. We demonstrate here that AKAP95 acts as a targeting protein for human chromosome-associated prot...

When cultured hepatocytes were incubated in cell culture medium at 4 degreesC for up to 30 h and then returned to 37 degreesC, blebbing of the plasma membrane, cell detachment, chromatin condensation and margination, enhanced nuclear stainability with Hoechst 33342, ruffling of the nuclear membrane, and DNA fragmentation occurred. Similar to hepatocytes, cultured liver endothelial cells exhibit...

Our recent studies have shown that extracellular-regulated protein kinase (ERK) promotes cell death in cerebellar granule neurons (CGN) cultured in low potassium. Here we report that the "death" phenotypes of CGN after potassium withdrawal are heterogeneous, allowing the distinction between plasma membrane (PM)-, DNA-, and PM/DNA-damaged populations. These damaged neurons display nuclear conden...

A natural predominant flavanone naringenin, especially abundant in citrus fruits, has a wide range of pharmacological activities. The search for antiproliferative agents that reduce skin carcinoma is a task of great importance. The objective of this study was to analyze the anti-proliferative and apoptotic mechanism of naringenin using MTT assay, DNA fragmentation, nuclear condensation, change ...

The chemotherapeutic cisplatin causes renal dysfunction and renal proximal tubular cell (RPTC) apoptosis. The goal of these studies was to examine the role of p53, caspase 3, 8, and 9, and mitochondria in the signaling of cisplatin-induced apoptosis. Cisplatin (50 microM) produced time-dependent apoptosis in RPTCs, causing cell shrinkage, a 50-fold increase in caspase 3 activity, a 4-fold incre...

We study dynamical gaugino condensation in superstring effective theories using the linear multiplet representation for the dilaton superfield. An interesting necessary condition for the dilaton to be stabilized, which was first derived in generic models of static gaugino condensation, is shown to hold for generic models of dynamical gaugino condensation. We also point out that it is stringy no...

Apoptosis is the predominant form of cell death observed in a variety of physiological and pathological conditions such as cancer involution, insect metamorphosis, the development of the immune and nervous systems, and embryogenesis. The typical nuclear changes taking place in apoptotic cells include extensive condensation of chromatin and internucleosomal DNA fragmentation into units of 200 ba...

Mitotic prophase chromosome condensation plays an essential role in nuclear division being therefore regulated by highly conserved mechanisms. However, degrees of chromatin condensation in prophase-prometaphase cells may vary along the chromosomes resulting in specific condensation patterns. We examined different condensation patterns (CPs) of prophase and prometaphase chromosomes and investiga...

For a dense stellar matter, which is electrically neutral and in beta equilibrium, the electron chemical potential, μe, will depend nontrivially on baryonic matter density. It is generally expected that as density increases, the electron chemical potential will increase and new degrees of freedom will emerge as μe becomes comparable to their energy scales. Assuming the electrical neutrality and...