Enhanced prenatal fatty streak formation in human fetuses has been associated with maternal hypercholesterolemia. However, the possible roles of maternal genetic background and in utero environment on development of atherosclerosis in adult life have not been unraveled. We generated genetically identical heterozygous apoE-deficient mice offspring with a different maternal background to study the intrauterine effect of maternal genotype and associated hypercholesterolemia on the developing vascular system. As read out for increased atherosclerosis development in adult life, a constrictive collar was placed around the carotid artery to induce lesion formation. A significant increase in endothelial cell activation and damage was detected in the carotid arteries of heterozygous apoE-deficient fetuses with apoE-deficient mothers compared with offspring from wild type mothers, but no fatty streak formation was observed. Postnatally, all carotid arteries revealed normal morphology. In adult offspring with maternal apoE-deficiency, the constrictive collar resulted in severe lesion (9/10) development compared with no to only minor lesions (2/10) in offspring of wild type mothers. Microarray analysis showed no effect of maternal apoE-deficiency on gene expression in adult offspring. We conclude that maternal apoE-deficiency not only affects fetal arteries, but also increases the susceptibility for development of collar-induced atherosclerosis in adult life.
Intrauterine exposure to maternal atherosclerotic risk factors increases the susceptibility to atherosclerosis in adult life.
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View SamplesClosure or patency of the ductus arteriosus is a critical event in neonatal life. We aimed to identify genes that are specifically expressed in the ductus arteriosus versus (the non-closing) aorta
Dlx1 and Rgs5 in the ductus arteriosus: vessel-specific genes identified by transcriptional profiling of laser-capture microdissected endothelial and smooth muscle cells.
Specimen part
View SamplesWe assessed vastus lateralis muscle gene expression levels of 12 women with the metabolic syndrome before and after a 6 month exercise training program
Upregulation of skeletal muscle inflammatory genes links inflammation with insulin resistance in women with the metabolic syndrome.
Sex, Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage, Treatment, Subject, Time
View SamplesThe leg of healthy volunteers was locally deconditioned using three weeks of unilateral lower limb suspension (ULLS). The extremely deconditioned legs of subjects with a spinal cord injury (SCI) were trained using eight weeks of functional electrical stimulation (FES) exercise, 2-3 times per week (total 20 sessions).
Expression of genes involved in fatty acid transport and insulin signaling is altered by physical inactivity and exercise training in human skeletal muscle.
Subject, Time
View SamplesMicroarrays were used to examine the genome-wide expression in FIH null, VHL null and VHL/FIH double null MEFs.
The asparaginyl hydroxylase factor inhibiting HIF-1alpha is an essential regulator of metabolism.
Specimen part
View SamplesBackground: Interaction between key signaling mechanisms is important to generate the diversity in signaling output required for proper control of cellular differentiation and function, although the molecular manifestations of such cross-talk are only partially understood. Notch signaling and the cellular response to hypoxia intersect at different points in the signaling cascades, and in this report we analyze the consequences of this cross-talk at the transcriptome level. Results: Mouse ES cells were subjected to various combinations of hypoxia and/or activated Notch signaling, and the transcriptome changes could be grouped into different categories, reflecting various modes of hypoxia and Notch signaling integration. Two principal categories of novel Notch- and hypoxia-induced genes were identified: i) a larger set of genes induced by one pathway and not significantly affected by the activity status of the other pathway; and ii) a smaller set of genes co-regulated by Notch and hypoxia. In the latter category, we identified genes that were induced by hypoxia and the expression of which was enhanced by active Notch signaling. In addition, a number of genes were induced by Notch and hypoxia independently, and a final category of genes required simultaneous activation of Notch and hypoxia to be significantly induced. Several of the hypoxia- and Notch-induced genes were found to be upregulated in various forms of cancer. Conclusions: We identify novel Notch and hypoxia downstream genes and genes co-regulated by the two pathways, providing a molecular platform to better understand the intersection between the two signaling cascades in normal development and cancer.
Interactions between Notch- and hypoxia-induced transcriptomes in embryonic stem cells.
Sex, Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesAmmonia is a toxic by-product of metabolism that causes cellular stress. Although a number of proteins are involved in adaptive stress response, specific factors that counteract ammonia-induced cellular stress and regulate cell metabolism that facilitate survival against toxicity have yet to be identified. We demonstrated that hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is stabilised and activated by ammonia stress. HIF-1 activated by ammonium chloride compromises ammonia-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, we identified glutamine synthetase (GS) as a key driver of cancer cell proliferation and glutamine-dependent metabolism under ammonia stress in ovarian cancer stem-like cells expressing CD90. Interestingly, activated HIF-1 counteracts glutamine synthetase function in glutamine metabolism by facilitating glycolysis and elevating glucose dependency. Our studies reveal the hitherto unknown functions of HIF-1 in biphasic ammonia stress management in cancer stem-like cells. GS facilitates proliferation and HIF-1 contributes to metabolic remodelling in cellular energy usage resulting in attenuated proliferation but conversely promoting cell survival.
Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α promotes cell survival during ammonia stress response in ovarian cancer stem-like cells.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Antiviral Protection via RdRP-Mediated Stable Activation of Innate Immunity.
Sex, Specimen part
View SamplesPreviously, we reported that mice made transgenic for a picornaviral RdRP the 3Dpol protein of Theilers murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) suppress infection by diverse viral families. How the picornaviral RdRP transgene exerted antiviral protection in vivo was not known. To investigate the molecular mechanism, we determined gene expression profiles in spinal cords of WT and RdRP transgenic mice prior to (baseline) and after (2 days) infection with Encephalomyocarditis Virus (EMCV).
Antiviral Protection via RdRP-Mediated Stable Activation of Innate Immunity.
Sex
View SamplesPreviously, we reported that mice made transgenic for a picornaviral RdRP the 3Dpol protein of Theilers murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) suppress infection by diverse viruses. Using mouse genetic studies, we determined that uninfected RdRP transgenic mice inherently induce an arsenel of prominent antiviral effectors and that this phenotype is MDA5-, MAVS- and IFNR-dependent. To determine the mechanism underlying MDA5 activation and induction of constitutive antiviral signaling by the picornaviral RdRP, we constructed mutant RdRP transgenes. First, we introduced pervasive, coding-neutral point mutations into the RdRP cDNA to maximally disrupt primary and secondary RNA structure (RdRPrna). Another mutant, RdRPcat, lacks catalytic activity due to alanine substitution of the key catalytic center triad aspartate residues (D233, D328, and D329), but is otherwise intact at the nucleotide and amino acid levels. The WT, RdRPrna, and RdRPcat versions of the RdRP transgenes were transduced with lentiviral vectors into human THP-1 monocytes, with RdRP mRNA transcription controlled by the Spleen Focus Forming Virus (SFFV) promoter. In parallel a control cell line transduced with a vector lacking any RdRP transgene (null THP-1) was generated.
Antiviral Protection via RdRP-Mediated Stable Activation of Innate Immunity.
Specimen part
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