BACKGROUND In the long-germ insect Drosophila, a single extraembryonic membrane, the amnioserosa, covers the embryo at the dorsal side. In ancestral short-germ insects, an inner membrane, the amnion, covers the embryo ventrally, and an outer membrane, the serosa, completely surrounds the embryo. An early differentiation step partitions the uniform blastoderm into the anterior-dorsal serosa and ...

OBJECTIVE Tendon injuries produce considerable morbidity, long-lasting disability, and remain a considerable challenge for clinicians and patients. The objective of the study was to assess the effect of amnion-derived multipotent progenitor (AMP) cells and amnion-derived cell cytokine solution on Achilles tendon healing by using a rat model. METHODS Achilles tendons of Sprague-Dawley rats wer...

The intrauterine renin angiotensin system (RAS) is implicated in placentation and labour onset. Here we investigate whether promoter methylation of RAS genes changes with gestation or labour and if it affects gene expression. Early gestation amnion and placenta were studied, as were term amnion, decidua, and placenta collected before labour (at elective caesarean section) or after spontaneous l...

To investigate labour-associated changes in production of activin and related hormones by gestational tissues we prepared extracts from amnion, choriodecidual and placental tissues delivered at term before labour (TNL; n=15), at term after spontaneous labour (TSL; n=15) or preterm (PTD; n=31) and measured concentrations of inhibin A, activin A and follistatin by ELISA. Activin concentrations in...

background :   keratitis caused by pseudomonas  aeruginosa   is often resulted in  severe  corneal  ulcers  and  perforation,  which  leads  to  losses  of  vision. human amniotic membrane (ham) forms the inner wall of the membranous sac which surrounds and protects the embryo during gestation. the purpose of this  study  was  to  evaluate  the  effectiveness  of  the  amniotic  membrane's heal...

The amnion is a specialized tissue in contact with the amniotic fluid, which is in a constantly changing state. To investigate the importance of epigenetic events in this tissue in the physiology and pathophysiology of pregnancy, we performed genome-wide DNA methylation profiling of human amnion from term (with and without labor) and preterm deliveries. Using the Illumina Infinium HumanMethylat...

OBJECTIVE To prepare a tissue engineering approach to fetal membrane repair after premature rupture of the membranes (PROM) by characterizing the proliferation potential of human amnion epithelial and mesenchymal cells from preterm and term placenta in primary culture. METHODS Amnion epithelial and mesenchymal cells from 15 preterm (23-36 week) and 27 term placentas collected at cesarean sect...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are capable of self-renewal and differentiation into lineages of mesenchymal tissues that are currently under investigation for a variety of therapeutic applications. The purpose of this study was to compare cytokine gene expression in MSCs from human placenta, cord blood (CB) and bone marrow (BM). The cytokine expression profiles of MSCs from BM, CB and placenta (...

We recently developed novel cell transplantation method "cell transfer technology" utilizing photolithography. Using this method, we can transfer ex vivo expanded cells onto scaffold material in desired patterns, like printing of pictures and letters on a paper. We have investigated the possibility of this novel method for cell-based therapy using several disease models. We first transferred en...