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Query: UNIPROT:P01178 (oxytocin)
 15,767 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Recent studies show that oxytocin has various effects on cellular behaviors. Oxytocin is reported to stimulate cardiomyogenesis of embryonic stem cells and endothelial cell proliferation. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are widely used for cardiac repair, and we elucidated the effect of oxytocin on umbilical cord derived-MSCs (UCB-MSCs). UCB-MSCs were pretreated with oxytocin (100 nM) and washed with saline prior to experiments. To evaluate their angiogenic potential and migration activity, tube formation assay and Boyden chamber assay were performed. For in vivo study, ischemia-reperfusion was induced in rats, and UCB-MSCs with or without oxytocin pretreatment were injected into the infarcted myocardium to evaluate the engraftment of injected cells. Histological and hemodynamic studies were performed. Oxytocin-treated UCB-MSCs showed a decrease in tube formation but a drastic increase in transwell migration activity. The transcription level of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 was increased in oxytocin-treated UCB-MSCs. Knock-down of MMP-2 by use of siRNA restored the tube formation, while reducing transmigration activity. In rats injected with oxytocin-treated UCB-MSCs, cardiac fibrosis and CD68 infiltration in the peri-infarct zone were reduced, whereas cell engraftment and connexin43 expression were greater than in rats injected with untreated UCB-MSCs. By contrast, angiogenesis did not differ significantly between the two groups. Cardiac contractility was higher in the group injected with oxytocin-treated UCB-MSCs than in the group injected with phosphate-buffered saline alone. Collectively, oxytocin is an effective priming reagent for stem cells for application to damaged heart tissue.
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PMID:Promigratory activity of oxytocin on umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells. 2062 60

Neuropeptides including oxytocin belong to the group of factors that may play a role in the control of neuronal cell survival, proliferation and differentiation. The aim of the present study was to investigate potential contribution of oxytocin to neuronal differentiation by measuring gene and protein expression of specific neuron and glial markers in the brain. Neonatal and adult oxytocin administration was used to reveal developmental and/or acute effects of oxytocin in Wistar rats. Gene and protein expression of neuron-specific enolase (NSE) in the hippocampus was increased in 21-day and 2-month old rats in response to neonatal oxytocin administration. Neonatal oxytocin treatment induced a significant increase of gene and protein expression of the marker of astrocytes - glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP). Oxytocin treatment resulted in a decrease of oligodendrocyte marker mRNA - 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase (CNPase) - in 21-day and 2-month old rats, while no change of CD68 mRNA, marker of microglia, was observed. Central oxytocin administration in adult rats induced a significant increase of gene expression of NSE and CNPase. The present study provides the first data revealing the effect of oxytocin on the expression of neuron and glial markers in the brain. It may be suggested that the oxytocin system is involved in the regulation of development of neuronal precursor cells in the brain.
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PMID:Oxytocin Modulates Expression of Neuron and Glial Markers in the Rat Hippocampus. 2880 58