Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.4.24.35 (matrix metalloproteinase 9)
 2,207 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We have studied the enzymatic gelatinolytic activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) present in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of samples obtained from 67 individuals, twenty-one nonneurological patients (considered controls) and 46 subjects with various neurological disorders e.g., vascular lesions, demyelination, inflammatory, degenerative and prion diseases. Biochemical characterization of MMPs, a family of neutral proteolytic enzymes involved in extracellular matrix modeling, included determination of substrate specificity and Ca+2 dependency, as well as the effects of protease inactivators, carboxylic and His (histidine) residue modifiers, and antibiotics. Whereas all CSF samples expressed MMP-2 (gelatinase A) activity, it corresponded in most cases (normal and pathological samples) to its latent form (proenzyme; pMMP-2). In general, inflammatory neurological diseases (especially meningitis and neurocisticercosis) were associated with the presence of a second enzyme, MMP-9 (or gelatinase B). Whereas MMP-9 was found in the CSF of every tropical spastic paraparesis patient studied, its presence in samples from individuals with vascular lesions was uncommon. Patients blood-brain barrier damage was ascertained by determining total CSF protein content using both, the conventional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis procedure under denaturing conditions and capillary zone electrophoresis.
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PMID:Gelatinase activity of matrix metalloproteinases in the cerebrospinal fluid of various patient populations. 1060 77

Bioethical issues related to the manipulation of embryonic stem cells have hindered advances in the field of medical research. For this reason, it is very important to obtain adult stem cells from different tissues such as adipose, umbilical cord, bone marrow and blood. Among the possible sources, dental pulp is particularly interesting because it is easy to obtain in respect of bioethical considerations. Indeed, human Dental Pulp Stem Cells (hDPSCs) are a type of adult stem cells able to differentiate in neuronal-like cells and can be obtained from the third molar of healthy patients (13-19 ages). In particular, the dental pulp was removed with an excavator, cut into small slices, treated with collagenase IV and cultured in a flask. To induce the neuronal differentiation, hDPSCs were stimulated with EGF/bFGF for 2 weeks. Previously, we have demonstrated that during the differentiation process the content of cellular prion Protein (PrPC) in hDPSCs increased. The cytofluorimetric analysis showed an early expression of PrPC that increased after neuronal differentiation process. Ablation of PrPC by siRNA PrP prevented neuronal differentiation induced by EGF/bFGF. In this paper, we illustrate that as we enhanced the isolation, separation and in vitro cultivation methods of hDPSCs with several easy procedures, more efficient cell clones were obtained and large-scale expansion of the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) was observed. We also show how the hDPSCs, obtained with methods detailed in the protocol, are an excellent experimental model to study the neuronal differentiation process of MSCs and subsequent cellular and molecular processes.
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PMID:Isolation, Propagation, and Prion Protein Expression During Neuronal Differentiation of Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells. 3093 68