Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0155339 (Brown)
 12,436 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In aging Brown Norway rats, there is a striking increase in the number of halo cells in the epididymis; this reflects an activation of the immune system. As the blood-epididymis barrier should protect from immunological attack, we hypothesized that there would be changes in the structure and function of this barrier with age. To test this hypothesis, we assessed the immunocytochemical localization of occludin, ZO-1, and E-cadherin, as well as the lanthanum nitrate permeability of the blood-epididymis barrier, in the epididymides of Brown Norway rats aged 3, 18, and 24 mo. In the initial segment, occludin, ZO-1, and E-cadherin immunostaining was observed at the apico-lateral junction between principal cells in the 3-mo-old animals; with increasing age, occludin and ZO-1 reactivity decreased, while E-cadherin staining increased along the lateral membrane between principal cells. In the caput, corpus, and cauda epididymidis, occludin, ZO-1, and E-cadherin immunostaining showed segment-specific and age-dependent differences in their staining patterns. The most dramatic changes were seen in the corpus epididymidis with age; the intense E-cadherin cytoplasmic staining that was observed at 3 mo was absent by 24 mo, and no occludin or ZO-1 reactivity was observed in older animals. The greatest penetration of lanthanum nitrate across the blood-epididymis barrier and in the lumen was seen in the aging corpus epididymidis, while there was no barrier permeability in the initial segment or cauda epididymidis of the aged animals. Taken together, these data indicate that there are segment-specific decreases in the structural and functional integrity of the blood-epididymis barrier with age, most notably in the corpus epididymidis.
 ...
PMID:Segment-specific changes with age in the expression of junctional proteins and the permeability of the blood-epididymis barrier in rats. 1033 98

Intrahepatic cholestasis has been recognized as one of the characteristic features of the hepatic manifestations in graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Tight junctions (TJs) play crucial roles in bile formation and alterations of TJs in hepatocytes and/or biliary epithelial cells (BECs) that cause intrahepatic cholestasis. To assess the changes of TJs in hepatocytes and BECs in a rat model of GVHD, we examined the localization of TJ-associated proteins, 7H6 and zonula occludens (ZO)-1. GVHD was induced by injecting spleen cells of parental strain rats (Brown Norway) into non-irradiated (Brown Norway x Lewis) F1 hybrid rats. Untreated F1 hybrid rats served as controls. Double-labeled immunofluorescent staining for 7H6 and ZO-1 was performed in liver sections. In control rats, immunostaining for 7H6 and ZO-1 colocalized to the apical site of BECs and was continuous along the bile canaliculi. In GVHD, 7H6 expression was decreased in BECs and was discontinuous along the bile canaliculi. On the other hand, the intensity of ZO-1 staining in hepatocytes increased and did not change in BECs compared with that of control rats. Changes in TJ-associated proteins of both hepatocytes and BECs may reflect the immunopathogenesis of GVHD-associated intrahepatic cholestasis.
 ...
PMID:Cholestasis in a rat model of graft-versus-host disease is accompanied by alteration of the expression and distribution of tight-junction-associated proteins. 1570 33