Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0029713 (immaturity)
 4,335 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Thirty-three cases of European Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) were investigated by immunohistochemical methods using a panel of antibodies specific for the markers of the cell types proposed for its histogenesis in the literature: S-100 protein for Schwann cells; lysozyme for histiocytes; alpha-actin, desmin and vimentin for pericytes and other mesenchyme-derived cells; factor VIIIR:Ag and Ulex europaeus agglutinin-I for endothelial cells. Antifibronectin antibodies were also used in order to investigate some functional activities of the proliferating cells. Immunohistochemical results showed that KS cells were diffusely positive for vimentin and alpha-actin and negative for all other cell markers. Furthermore, KS cells were constantly surrounded by fibronectin-positive material. Since the KS cells are diffusely positive for vimentin, they may be considered a monotypic proliferation of mesenchyme-derived cells which lack the markers of full endothelial cell differentiation; however, the occurrence of fibronectin-positive material around them suggests that these cells are actively proliferating endothelial cells and their diffuse positivity for alpha-actin suggests a possible differentiation to pericytic cells. In conclusion KS cells may be considered as mesenchymal cells which are at an intermediate stage of maturity or immaturity in vascular differentiation.
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PMID:Immunocytochemical profile of Kaposi's sarcoma cells: their reactivity to a panel of antibodies directed against different tissue cell markers. 249 8

Serum response factor (SRF) is a crucial transcriptional factor for muscle-specific gene expression. We investigated SRF function in adult skeletal muscles, using mice with a postmitotic myofiber-targeted disruption of the SRF gene. Mutant mice displayed severe skeletal muscle mass reductions due to a postnatal muscle growth defect resulting in highly hypotrophic adult myofibers. SRF-depleted myofibers also failed to regenerate following injury. Muscles lacking SRF had very low levels of muscle creatine kinase and skeletal alpha-actin (SKA) transcripts and displayed other alterations to the gene expression program, indicating an overall immaturity of mutant muscles. This loss of SKA expression, together with a decrease in beta-tropomyosin expression, contributed to myofiber growth defects, as suggested by the extensive sarcomere disorganization found in mutant muscles. However, we observed a downregulation of interleukin 4 (IL-4) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) expression in mutant myofibers which could also account for their defective growth and regeneration. Indeed, our demonstration of SRF binding to interleukin 4 and IGF-1 promoters in vivo suggests a new crucial role for SRF in pathways involved in muscle growth and regeneration.
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PMID:New role for serum response factor in postnatal skeletal muscle growth and regeneration via the interleukin 4 and insulin-like growth factor 1 pathways. 1691 47