Transforming growth factor (TGF)β acts on fibroblasts to promote the production and remodeling of extracellular matrix (ECM). In adult humans, excessive action of TGFβ is associated with fibrotic disease and fibroproliferative conditions, including gingival hyperplasia. Understanding how the TGFβ1 signals in fibroblasts is therefore likely to result in valuable insights into the fundamental mec...

BACKGROUND Earlier studies have reported that transforming growth factor beta 1(TGFβ1) is a critical mediator of hyperoxia-induced acute lung injury (HALI) in developing lungs, leading to impaired alveolarization and a pulmonary phenotype of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). However, the mechanisms responsible for the TGFβ1-induced inflammatory signals that lead to cell death and abnormal alveo...

BACKGROUND Heart failure is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The ubiquitously expressed cytokine transforming growth factor-β1 (TGFβ1) promotes cardiac fibrosis, an important component of progressive heart failure. Membrane-associated endoglin is a coreceptor for TGFβ1 signaling and has been studied in vascular remodeling and preeclampsia. We hypothesized that reduced endogli...

Proton radiotherapy has gained more favor among oncologists as a treatment option for localized and deep-seated tumors. In addition, protons are a major constituent of the space radiation astronauts receive during space flights. The potential for these exposures to lead to, or enhance cancer risk has not been well studied. Our objective is to study the biological effects of low energy protons o...

BACKGROUND Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic antigen mediated disease associated with substantial esophageal remodeling and fibrosis. The functional TGFβ1 promoter SNP C-509 associates with renal fibrosis and asthma. The effect of TGFβ1 genotype and EoE severity or potential gene-environment interactions have not been previously reported in EoE. METHODS Genotype at TGFβ1 C-509T and ...

Background & Aim: Bombax costatum stem bark is traditionally used in treatment of liver diseases but the anti-hepatofibrotic effect of its ethyl acetate fraction has not been scientifically evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate the anti-hepatofibrotic effect of ethyl acetate fraction of B. costatum stem bark (EAB) against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) induced liver fibrosis in mice. Experimenta...

MRC2 (Mannose Receptor C Type 2) is a constitutively recycling endocytic receptor belonging to the mannose receptor family, which has been found to be closely involved with cancer metastasis. This study attempted to determine MRC2 expression on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and its significance on postsurgical prognosis of HCCs. The expression of both MRC2 and transforming growth factor (TGFβ1...

The L10P single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) is located in the signal sequence of the transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1) gene. The proline-encoding (Pro-) allele of this SNP has been associated with an increased breast cancer risk, which has been attributed to the elevated secretion of this TGFβ1 variant observed in vitro and in male subjects. Here we investigated the association of the L10...

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is an aggressive cancer with a poor prognosis. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) affect tumorigenesis by creating an environment primed for growth and invasion through the secretion of factors, including hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1). In the present study, the levels of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), TGFβ1 a...

BACKGROUND Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFβ1) can induce epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in various human cancers, but the complex mechanisms underlying this have not been fully elucidated. Inhibitor of DNA binding 1 (Id-1) has been identified as a novel marker of ovarian cancer progression. This study aims to investigate the role of Id-1 in TGFβ1-induced EMT in human ovarian can...