Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 17, Issue 28, 2010

The mdm2 oncogene product, MDM2, is an ubiquitin protein ligase that inhibits the transcriptional activity of the tumor suppressor p53 and promotes its degradation. About 50% of all human cancers present mutations or deletions in the TP53 gene. In the remaining half of all human neoplasias that express the wild-type protein, aberrations of p53 regulators, such as MDM2, account for p53 inhibition. For this reason, d Read More

Histone H2A variant, H2A.Z, plays an essential role in transcriptional activation of ERα-dependent genes, cell proliferation, development, and differentiation. High expression of H2A.Z is ubiquitously detected in the progression of breast cancer, and is significantly associated with lymph node metastasis and patient survival. This makes H2A.Z an excellent target for diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. A recent study Read More

Thromboxane A2 (TxA2), a bioactive metabolite of the Arachidonic acid (AA), is a potent mediator of platelet aggregation, vasoconstriction and bronchoconstriction. It plays an important role in major human diseases, such as myocardial infraction, unstable angina, pregnancy-induced hypertension and preeclampsia, thrombosis and thrombotic disorders, pulmonary hypertension, asthma, septic shock, atherosclerosis, l Read More

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. Although most studies have emphasized the role of T cells in the pathogenesis of MS, increasing evidence supports the concept that B cells play a key role in the pathogenesis of MS, mainly in association with the deposition of antibodies and the activation of complement. Emerging pathophysiological findings of B-cell, follicle-lik Read More

Chymase plays a crucial role in angiotensin II formation in various tissues. Angiotensin II induces gene expressions of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, and chymase also converts precursors of TGF-β and MMP-9 to their active forms. All of angiotensin II, TGF-β and MMP-9 are considered to be closely involved in the development and progression of metabolic syndrome and its complicati Read More

Abscisic acid (ABA) is a plant hormone involved in stress tolerance, stomatal closure, seed dormancy, and other physiological events. Although ABA is registered as a farm chemical (plant growth regulator), its practical use has been limited, mainly due to its weak effect in field trials, which is considered to be due to its rapid inactivation through biodegradation. Catabolic inactivation of ABA is mainly controlled by ABA 8'-hydrox Read More

The human body is composed of 60 trillion cells, which have their origin in a fertilized egg. During development, the potential of a cell or tissue can be achieved by environmental manipulation. Then, what molecular determinants underlie or accompany the potential of the cells? To obtain a broader understanding of these problems, it is important to analyze all transcripts / genes in a wide selection of cell types. The develop Read More

Background: Hyperhomocysteinemia has been associated with cognitive dysfunction and dementia. The incidence of dementia in Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients is higher than in the general population and plasma Homocysteine concentrations are increased in L-dopa treated PD patients. Objective: We evaluated the possible correlations between L-Dopa related hyperhomocysteinemia and cognitive dysfunction in Read More

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated in the presence of O2 by mitochondria, phagocytic cells, peroxisomes, and cytochrome P450 enzymes under physiological conditions, may play a dual function in the human organism. On the one hand, they participate in cell signal transduction cascades, leading to the activation of some transcription factors responsible for regulating of the expression of genes relevant for cell g Read More

The aim of this study was to verify the existence of synergistic antibacterial effect between four essential oils (Aniba rosaeodora, Melaleuca alternifolia, Origanum vulgare, and Pelargonium graveolens) individually combined with the antibacterial drug Gentamicin. We investigated the effectiveness in vitro of the association of essential oil/Gentamicin, against fifteen different strains of Gram positive and Gram negative b Read More