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STAT1 mediates Interferon (IFN)-dependent positive and negative regulation of inflammatory gene expression in lung. In this study, we examined the effect of IFN-gamma on the expression of SCGB3A1 which is thought to play crucial roles in inflammation and epithelial cell differentiation in lung. We found that expression of SCGB3A1 was down-regulated by IFN-gamma in a time- and dose-dependent manner in the murine transformed Clara Cells (mtCC) line. IFN-gamma induced the phosphorylation of STAT1, which binds to a STAT-binding element (SBE) in the SCGB3A1 gene promoter, leading to decreased transcriptional activation of this gene.

Second generation antipsychotics are useful for the treatment of schizophrenia, but concerns have been raised about the side effects of diabetes mellitus and obesity. Olanzapine, especially, is associated with more weight gain than the others. It has been reported that olanzapine promotes adipocyte-differentiation in rodents both in vivo and in vitro. In this study the effects of antipsychotics on human adipocytes were investigated by using human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). When hMSCs were differentiated and treated with various antipsychotics, olanzapine and clozapine increased intracellular lipids. Olanzapine induced lipid accumulation in a dose-dependent manner. Proteomic analysis revealed that PLIN4 and several enzymes for lipid metabolism were increased in the hMSCs after olanzapine treatment. During adipocyte differentiation, olanzapine increased the protein expression of PLIN1, PLIN2 and PLIN4. These proteins are known to be associated with the initial stage of lipid droplet formation. Immunocytochemistry showed that olanzapine increased and enlarged the lipid droplets coated with PLIN1 and PLIN2 while PLIN4 was largely distributed in the cytosol. mRNA expression of PLIN2, but not PLIN1 or PLIN4, was increased by olanzapine. On the other hand, olanzapine did not alter the mRNA level of transcription regulators involved in adipocyte-differentiation or adipokines. The present study shows that olanzapine induced transient PLIN2 expression in hMSCs that could result in an accumulation of lipid droplets and overexpression of PLIN1 and PLIN4, providing information of possible interest for olanzapine-induced weight gain.

Lectin-like oxidized LDL receptor-1 (LOX-1) is an oxidized LDL receptor, and its role in restenosis after angioplasty remains unknown. We used a balloon-injury model of rabbit aorta, and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction revealed that LOX-1 mRNA expression was modest in the non-injured aorta, reached a peak level 2 days after injury, and remained elevated until 24 weeks after injury. Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization showed that LOX-1 was not detected in the media of non-injured aorta but expressed in both medial and neointimal smooth muscle cells (SMC) at 2 and 24 weeks after injury. Low concentrations of ox-LDL (10 microg/mL) stimulated the cultured SMC proliferation, which was inhibited by antisense oligonucleotides of LOX-1 mRNA. Double immunofluorescence staining showed the colocalization of LOX-1 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen in human restenotic lesion. These results suggest that LOX-1 mediates ox-LDL-induced SMC proliferation and plays a role in neointimal formation after vascular injury.

Periodontitis is characterized by chronic gingival tissue inflammation, and inflammatory mediators such as IL-8 and prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) are associated with disease progression. Previously we showed that oxidatively modified low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) was present in gingival crevicular fluid. In this study, the role of oxLDL in the gingival epithelial cell inflammatory response was further investigated using Ca9-22 cells and primary human oral keratinocytes (HOK). Treatment of Ca9-22 cells and HOK with oxLDL induced an up-regulation of IL-8 and the PGE(2)-producing enzymes, cyclooxygenase-2 and microsomal PGE(2) synthase-1. These responses induced by oxLDL were significantly suppressed by a nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) inhibitor. However, unlike the result in macrophages, oxLDL did not lead to an increase in CD36 expression in these two cells. These results suggest that oxLDL elicits gingival epithelial cell inflammatory responses through an activation of the NF-κB pathway. These data suggest a mechanistic link between periodontal disease and lipid metabolism-related disorders, including atherosclerosis.

Geranylgeraniol (GGO) induces apoptosis in various lines of human tumor cells through a mitochondrion-dependent pathway. The present study describes identification of a 21-kDa cytochrome c-releasing factor that appears in the cytosolic fraction after treatment of human leukemia U937 cells with GGO. Incubation of isolated mitochondria with a lysate of U937 cells that had been treated with GGO resulted in the release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria. Utilizing this cell-free system, we purified a 21-kDa protein that induced the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria and appeared to be involved in the apoptosis that is induced in U937 cells by GGO. We designated this protein cytochrome c-releasing factor 21 (CRF21). Overexpression of CRF21 in HeLa cells induced the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria, with subsequent apoptosis. Our results suggest that CRF21 might play an important role in the induction of apoptosis by GGO in leukemia U937 cells.