Cyclo-oxygenase is expressed in cells in two distinct isoforms. Cyclo-oxygenase-1 is present constitutively whilst cyclo-oxygenase-2 is expressed primarily after inflammatory insult. The activity of cyclo-oxygenase-1 and -2 results in the production of a variety of potent biological mediators (the prostaglandins) that regulate homeostatic and disease processes. Inhibitors of cyclo-oxygenase inc...

INTRODUCTION Synovial cells are potential sources of inflammatory mediators in bacterial-induced arthritis but their involvement in the inflammatory response to Candida albicans-induced septic arthritis is largely unknown. METHODS Primary cultures of rat synovial fibroblasts were infected with C. albicans (ATCC90028). Immunocytochemistry, western blotting, and RT-PCR were performed to assess ...

The beneficial effects of cyclo-oxygenase (COX) inhibitors in both colon cancer and adenomatous polyps suggest a role for the prostanoid pathway in epithelial malignancy. Although variable prostanoid synthesis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been demonstrated in freshly obtained tissue, COX messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) and protein localization in such tumours had not been investi...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) modulates autonomic transmission in the peripheral circulation. We investigated the role of endogenous PGE(2) and its presynaptic EP(1) receptor subtype in modulating the autonomic neurotransmission in cerebral vasculature. METHODS The standard in vitro tissue-bath technique was used for measuring changes in isolated porcine basilar arterial ...