Project description:Microarray analysis of HT-29 cells co-cultured with tumor necrosis factor (TNF-a) in the presence or absence of polymeric formula as used for Exclusive Enteral Nutrition (EEN) therapy. Results provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of polymeric formula on intestinal epithelium.
Project description:Microarray analysis of HT-29 cells co-cultured with tumor necrosis factor (TNF-a) in the presence or absence of polymeric formula as used for Exclusive Enteral Nutrition (EEN) therapy. Results provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of polymeric formula on intestinal epithelium. Total RNA obtained from 9 samples of HT-29 cells. Six samples were treated with TNF-a in the presence (3 samples) or absence (3 samples) of Polymeric Formula. Three samples were untreated and used as a control.
Project description:Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) is an inflammation causing injury to the bowel in newborns. This project uses a rodent model that mimics the intestinal pathological changes seen in NEC to study the effect of formula feeding and hypoxia on NEC development
Project description:Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) is an inflammation causing injury to the bowel in newborns. This project uses a rodent model that mimics the intestinal pathological changes seen in NEC to study the effect of formula feeding and hypoxia on NEC development Keywords: time series, diet, hypoxia
Project description:Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a severe gastrointestinal complication of prematurity. Using small intestinal organoids derived from fetal tissue of a gestational age similar to an extremely preterm infant, this study aims to assess the effect of diet on intestinal epithelial growth and differentiation to elucidate the role nutrition type plays in intestinal development and modifies the risk for NEC. Organoids were cultured for 5 days in growth media and 5 days in differentiation media supplemented 1:40 with four different diets: maternal milk (MM), donor human milk (DHM), standard formula, or extensively hydrolyzed formula. Images were captured daily and organoids were quantified. Organoids were preserved for RNA sequencing and immunofluorescence staining with Ki67, cleaved caspase 3, and chromogranin-A. Media was saved for cytokine/chemokine and growth factor analysis.Human milk supplementation improved growth and differentiation of intestinal organoids generating larger organoids during the growth phase and organoids with longer and wider buds during differentiation compared to formula. Ki67 staining confirmed the proliferative nature of milk-supplemented organoids and chromogranin A staining proved that MM-supplemented organoids induced highest enteroendocrine differentiation. Human milk supplementation also upregulated genes involved in proliferation and promoted a homeostatic immune landscape while those supplemented with formula had a downregulation of cell-cycle-promoting genes and a more inflammatory immune signature. Our results show that MM, and to a lesser extent DHM, support robust intestinal epithelial proliferation and differentiation, suggesting a critical role for factors enriched in human milk in intestinal epithelial health.
Project description:Gene expression profiling of immortalized human mesenchymal stem cells with hTERT/E6/E7 transfected MSCs. hTERT may change gene expression in MSCs. Goal was to determine the gene expressions of immortalized MSCs.
Project description:Kynureninase is a member of a large family of catalytically diverse but structurally homologous pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) dependent enzymes known as the aspartate aminotransferase superfamily or alpha-family. The Homo sapiens and other eukaryotic constitutive kynureninases preferentially catalyze the hydrolytic cleavage of 3-hydroxy-l-kynurenine to produce 3-hydroxyanthranilate and l-alanine, while l-kynurenine is the substrate of many prokaryotic inducible kynureninases. The human enzyme was cloned with an N-terminal hexahistidine tag, expressed, and purified from a bacterial expression system using Ni metal ion affinity chromatography. Kinetic characterization of the recombinant enzyme reveals classic Michaelis-Menten behavior, with a Km of 28.3 +/- 1.9 microM and a specific activity of 1.75 micromol min-1 mg-1 for 3-hydroxy-dl-kynurenine. Crystals of recombinant kynureninase that diffracted to 2.0 A were obtained, and the atomic structure of the PLP-bound holoenzyme was determined by molecular replacement using the Pseudomonas fluorescens kynureninase structure (PDB entry 1qz9) as the phasing model. A structural superposition with the P. fluorescens kynureninase revealed that these two structures resemble the "open" and "closed" conformations of aspartate aminotransferase. The comparison illustrates the dynamic nature of these proteins' small domains and reveals a role for Arg-434 similar to its role in other AAT alpha-family members. Docking of 3-hydroxy-l-kynurenine into the human kynureninase active site suggests that Asn-333 and His-102 are involved in substrate binding and molecular discrimination between inducible and constitutive kynureninase substrates.
Project description:BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Loss of epithelial cell homeostasis and apoptosis highly con-tribute to intestinal inflammation. While endoplasmic reticulum unfolded protein response (UPR) has been implicated in chronic intestinal inflammation, functional correlation between UPR-related C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) expression and CHOP-mediated programming towards inflammation-related disease susceptibility remains unclear. In this study, we generated the new mouse model ChopIEC Tg/Tg to investigate consequences of intestinal epithelial cell (IEC)-specific CHOP overexpression. Transcriptional profiling of transgenic mice identified a set of CHOP-dependent target genes related to inflammatory and microbial defense program in the intestinal epithelium. Effect of CHOP overexpression in intestial epithelial cells was investigated on epithelial homeostasis using transgenic mice Disease-free mice do not show enhanced apoptotic signaling Intestinal epithelial cells were isolated from 12 week old females