Biomedical subjects

G Mincione

Publications and source records attributed to G Mincione.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1996

Enhanced expression of heregulin in c-erb B-2 and c-Ha-ras transformed mouse and human mammary epithelial cells.

Heregulin beta 1 was found to stimulate the anchorage-dependent, serum-free growth of nontransformed human MCF-10A mammary epithelial cells. Unlike epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor alpha, or amphiregulin, heregulin beta 1 was also able to induce the anchorage-independent growth of MCF-10A cells. In contrast, the anchorage-independent, serum-free growth of c-Ha-ras or c-erb B-2 transformed MCF-10A cells was unaffected by heregulin beta 1, whereas heregulin beta 1 was able to stimulate the anchorage-independent growth of these cells. c-Ha-ras or c-erb B-2 (c-neu) transformed MCF-10A or mouse NOG-8 mammary epithelial cells express elevated levels of 2.5, 5.0, 6.5, 6.8, and 8.5 kb heregulin mRNA transcripts and/or synthesize cell-associated 25, 29, 50, and 115 kDa isoforms of heregulin. Since the MCF-10A cells and transformants also express c-erb B-3, these data suggest that endogenous heregulin might function as an autocrine growth factor for Ha-ras or erb B-2 transformed mammary epithelial cells.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Cysteinyl-leukotriene D4 induced IL-1 beta expression and release in rat vascular smooth muscle cells.

Vascular cells, including smooth muscle cells (VSMC), may release interleukin 1 (IL-1) and transcribe its genes for both isoforms. Previous studies have shown that cysteinyl-leukotrienes can modulate cytokine production by monocytes and a cytokine-eicosanoid network has been suggested during atherosclerosis. In this study the effects of cysteinyl-leukotriene D4 (LTD4) on IL-1 beta production and IL-1 beta mRNA expression were tested on rat VSMC. LTD4 showed a significant dose-dependent (from basal production of 55 +/- 15 pg/ml to maximal production of 177 +/- 14 pg/ml) and time-dependent (peaking at 24 h 16 +/- 54 pg/ml) increase of IL-1 beta immunoreactivity in the supernatants of conditioned medium and cell lysates. Furthermore, LTD4 induced an increased mRNA expression which began at 1 h and peaked at 12 h incubation time. The production of IL-1 beta was inhibited by MK-571 (from 145 +/- 12 to 60 +/- 10 pg/ml), a specific receptor antagonist of LTD4 and partially reduced by IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1 ra) (from 160 +/- 12 to 85 +/- 5 pg/ml). These experiments suggest that cysteinyl-leukotrienes, potentially produced in the vascular wall by leukocytes or by transcellular metabolism, may be involved in local IL-1 production.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1995

Epithelial rat thyroid cell clones, escaping from transforming growth factor beta negative growth control, are still inhibited by this factor in the ability to trap iodide.

Transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) acts on epithelial thyroid cells, negatively controlling their proliferation and functions. The effects of TGF beta on epithelial rat thyroid cells (FRTL-5) and on two TGF beta-resistant rat thyroid cell clones (FRTL-5H2 and FRTL-R) were investigated. FRTL-5H2 represents a rat thyroid cell clone overexpressing active erbB-2 oncogene, recently obtained after FRTL-5 cell infection with a retrovirus vector carrying the erbB-2 human oncogene (G. Mincione et al., Cancer Res., 53: 5548-5553, 1993). FRTL-R is a FRTL-5 subclone spontaneously isolated after long term in culture. FRTL-5H2 and FRTL-R cell clones were stimulated by TGF beta at the same concentration of 5 ng/ml that induced 70% inhibition of [3H]thymidine incorporation in control FRTL-5 thyroid cells. Nuclear events regulated by TGF beta, such as cyclin and cyclin-dependent kinase gene expression, were then analyzed. In FRTL-5 cells, TGF beta was found to reduce the expression of cdk2 and cyclin A genes; the same treatment did not modify nuclear gene expression in the resistant cell clones. TGF beta is known to reduce iodide uptake in thyroid cells; in both FRTL-5H2 and FRTL-R cells, TGF beta was found to inhibit the thyrotropin-induced iodide uptake. Thus, thyroid cell clones, resistant to the growth-inhibitory activity of TGF beta, were sensitive to TGF beta inhibition of iodide incorporation, suggesting that TGF beta activates divergent signaling pathways in these cells, separately controlling cell proliferation and differentiation parameters. Studies on TGF beta receptors showed similar amounts of TGF beta-binding species on FRTL-5 cells and TGF beta-resistant clones, while 125I-labeled TGF beta cross-linking experiments revealed differences; thus, the TGF beta-resistant cells showed a 40% decrease in the amount of labeled type II TGF beta receptor on the cell surface. However, this different pattern of TGF beta receptors cannot totally account for the shown TGF beta resistance to growth inhibition that might also be due to perturbation in signaling pathways.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Vesical dysfunction in systemic sclerosis (scleroderma)

There have been only a few reports on the involvement of the urinary tract in patients with systemic sclerosis, a disease of the connective tissue characterized by thickening and fibrosis of the skin, abnormality of the small arteries, and involvement of the gastrointestinal tract, heart, lung and kidney. We report the urodynamic assessment and histological examination of 9 women with scleroderma. Three patients voided less than 100 ml. with a significant residual volume and 4 presented with detrusor areflexia during a filling cystometrogram. Histopathological examination in all patients with detrusor areflexia demonstrated the presence of arterial lesions and derangement of the capillary bed of the detrusor musculature. Our data provide evidence for the functional and histological involvement of the bladder in patients with systemic sclerosis.

Female↗

PubMed1994

Antisense peptides to the 43-57 region of acylphosphatase and to the 46-60 region of two isoenzymes of a low-M(r) phosphotyrosine protein phosphatase do not interact with the corresponding proteins.

Three peptides complementary to exposed regions of two low-M(r) phosphotyrosine protein phosphatase isoenzymes and of the acylphosphatase muscle isoenzyme have been synthesized. Each peptide was synthesized on two different types of resins; the peptides were anchored to the resins by amide linkages. The peptide resins were checked by amino acid analysis and Edman degradation and directly used for enzyme purification. Despite our attempts, none of the resins was able to bind significant amounts of the corresponding protein, indicating the lack of interaction between the three proteins and the corresponding complementary peptides. This result agrees with many other reports, confirming that the molecular-recognition theory has no general validity.

Acid Anhydride Hydrolases↗

PubMed1993

Loss of thyrotropin regulation and transforming growth factor beta-induced growth arrest in erbB-2 overexpressing rat thyroid cells.

Amplification of erbB-2 gene and overexpression of gp185erbB-2 gene product is found in approximately one-third of primary human breast and ovarian cancer. Overexpression of gp185erbB-2 was recently found in human papillary thyroid carcinomas, but not in thyroid follicular carcinomas or adenomas. The erbB-2 gene encodes a cell surface growth factor receptor with intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. Wild type human erbB-2 has been shown to act as a potent oncogene when overexpressed in mouse fibroblasts. To test whether overexpression of normal human erbB-2 gene can transform epithelial differentiated rat thyroid cells, these cells were infected with a recombinant retroviral expression vector containing the erbB-2 protooncogene. Rat thyroid cells expressing high levels of gp185erbB-2 do not display a fully transformed and tumorigenic phenotype. However, the isolated cell clones that overexpress gp185erbB-2, show changes in their growth properties if compared to normal thyroid cells, since they can grow in absence of thyrotropin, the main growth factor controlling thyroid cell proliferation in vitro, and do not respond to the growth inhibitory effect of transforming growth factor beta.

Animals↗

PubMed1992

TGF beta inhibits rat thyroid cell proliferation without alterations in the expression of TSH-induced cell cycle-related genes.

Transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) is a secreted polypeptide factor that is thought to play a major role in the regulation of proliferation of many cell types and various differentiation processes. TGF beta acts on thyroid cells by inhibiting cell proliferation and expression of differentiation markers, such as thyroglobulin production and iodide uptake. Exponentially growing thyroid cells cultures accumulate mostly in G0/G1 after exposure to TGF beta for 48 hours. TGF beta inhibits the TSH induced transition of quiescent thyroid cell from the G0 to the S phase. These effects on the thyroid cell growth, however, are not mediated by changes in the TSH-induced cell cycle-related genes expression; both immediate early and progression genes expression is unaffected by the TGF beta treatment.

Animals↗

PubMed1976