Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0001511 (Adhesion)
 5,955 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

1. A mesodermal stem cell line C3H10T1/2 was induced to differentiate to muscle by adding 0.3 microM-5-aza-2'-deoxy-cytidine to the medium for 24 h. The changes in membrane currents during differentiation were studied by whole-cell recording and changes in the expression of fibronectin, Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule (NCAM), myosin and desmin were studied immunohistochemically. 2. The stem cells showed the morphology of fibroblastic cells. Most of the stem cells showed ATP-induced slow K+ current. T-type Ca2+ current and inward rectifier K+ current were observed in 19% of the stem cells. The stem cells expressed fibronectin, but not NCAM, myosin or desmin. 3. About 2 weeks after the addition of 5-aza-2'-deoxy-cytidine, large multinucleated skeletal muscle-like cells appeared. Most of the induced muscles showed L-type Ca2+ current, responses to acetylcholine, outward K+ current, inward rectifier K+ current and contraction upon depolarizing stimulation. They expressed NCAM, myosin and desmin, but not fibronectin, and showed no ATP response. 4. In some batches (2/14), the induced muscles showed spontaneous twitches, and possessed tetrodotoxin (TTX)-sensitive Na+ current in addition to the currents described above. Furthermore clear striation was observed in some of the twitching muscles under Nomarski optics. 5. To ascertain the properties of cells at the initial step of muscle differentiation, whose differentiation is determined but not yet evident morphologically or electrophysiologically, subcloning was performed from the heterogeneous cells 10 days after induction. Three myogenic clones were obtained, which proliferated at low cell densities but differentiated to muscle with a high incidence at high cell densities, as well as ten non-myogenic clones. 6. Most myogenic clones still showed ATP-induced K+ current and fibronectin. In addition, most of them showed T-type Ca2+ current and inward rectifier K+ current. They had already expressed NCAM. No other properties observed in muscles had yet been expressed. Most cells of the non-myogenic clones showed ATP-induced K+ current and fibronectin. T-type Ca2+ current was also expressed, but not inward rectifier K+ current or NCAM. 7. The properties of the observed ionic currents were studied. The TTX-sensitive Na+ current could be completely blocked by 0.1 microM-TTX. It could be evoked by depolarizing steps to a level above -40 mV, while steady-state inactivation was detectable around -75 mV and reached half by -52 mV. T-type Ca2+ current could be evoked by a depolarizing pulse to a level above -45 mV, with a maximum amplitude around -15 mV.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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PMID:Electrophysiological and immunohistochemical analysis of muscle differentiation in a mouse mesodermal stem cell line. 166 64

Our past work has shown that long, flexible type IV pili (single or in bundles) are the predominant pili expressed on fecal isolates of diarrhea-associated species of Aeromonas (Aeromonas veronii biovar sobria and A. caviae). They represent a family of type IV pili which we have designated Bfp (for bundle-forming pili). Reports from Japan suggest that Bfp are intestinal colonization factors. This study presents compelling evidence to support this conclusion. Aeromonas bacteria and/or Bfp purified from a strain of A. veronii biovar sobria were shown to adhere to epithelial and intestinal cell lines, freshly isolated human enterocytes, and fresh and fixed human and rabbit intestinal tissues, as determined by light and electron microscopy and immunohistochemical detection. Removal of Bfp by mechanical means decreased adhesion to cell lines by up to 80%. Purified Bfp blocked adhesion of the test strain to intestinal cells in a dose-dependent manner. Adhesion was also blocked by the Fab fraction of anti-Bfp immunoglobulin G. Moreover, ultrastructural studies (ruthenium red staining and transmission and scanning electron microscopy) demonstrated for the first time that Aeromonas adhesion to human enterocytes is pilus mediated and suggested that Bfp may also promote colonization by forming bacterium-to-bacterium linkages. Bfp-positive isolates examined for type IV pilus-mediated twitching motility in agar and slide culture assays developed for Pseudomonas aeruginosa did not, however, exhibit this function.
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PMID:Functional characterization of type IV pili expressed on diarrhea-associated isolates of Aeromonas species. 1049 28

DNA acquisition promotes the spread of resistance to antibiotics and virulence among bacteria. It is also linked to several natural phenomena including recombination, genome dynamics, adaptation and speciation. Horizontal DNA transfer between bacteria occurs via conjugation, transduction or competence for natural transformation by DNA uptake. Among these, competence is the only mechanism of transformation initiated and entirely controlled by the chromosome of the recipient bacteria. While the molecular mechanisms allowing the uptake of extracellular DNA are increasingly characterized, the function of competence for natural transformation by DNA uptake, the selective advantage maintaining it and the reasons why bacteria take up DNA in the first place are still debated. In this synthesis, I review some of the literature and discuss the four hypotheses on how and why do bacteria take up DNA. I argue that DNA uptake by bacteria is an accidental by-product of bacterial adhesion and twitching motility. Adhesion and motility are generally increased in stressful conditions, which may explain why bacteria increase DNA uptake in these conditions. In addition to its fundamental scientific relevance, the new hypothesis suggested here has significant clinical implications and finds further support from the fact that antibiotics sometimes fail to eliminate the targeted bacterium while inevitably causing stress to others. The widespread misuse of antibiotics may thus not only be selecting for resistant strains, but may also be causing bacteria to take up more DNA with the consequent increase in the chances of acquiring drug resistance and virulence-a scenario in full concordance with the previously reported induction of competence genes by antibiotics in Streptococcus pneumoniae and Legionella pneumophila.
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PMID:Could DNA uptake be a side effect of bacterial adhesion and twitching motility? 2338 40