A. LÓPEZ-HERRERA^1*, J. RUIZ-SÁENZ², Y.P. GÓEZ³, W. ZAPATA³, P.A. VELILLA³, A.E. ARANGO³, S. URCUQUI-INCHIMA³

BIOCELL, Vol.33, No.2, pp. 121-132, 2009, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2009.33.121

Abstract To determine whether fibroblasts from Blanco Orejinegro cattle, exhibit any level of resistance to infection against vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) serotypes Indiana (VSV-I) or New Jersey (VSVNJ), 30 fibroblast cultures were phenotyped to evaluate their resistance/susceptibility. Thirty three % of Blanco Orejinegro fibroblast cultures were classified as very resistant, 50% as resistant, and 17% as susceptible to VSV-I infection, whereas 20% were classified as very resistant, 50% as resistant and 30% as susceptible to VSV-NJ infection. Therefore, there appears to be a large variation in phenotypic polymorphism among the fibroblasts to infection by VSV. To elucidate the mechanisms responsible for… More >

ANNIE JOUBERT^1*, SUMARI MARAIS¹, CHRISTINE MARITZ²

BIOCELL, Vol.33, No.1, pp. 67-70, 2009, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2009.33.067

Abstract Proteins of the B-cell lymphoma 2 family are crucial for the regulation of apoptosis. B-cell lymphoma 2-associated X is a pro-apoptotic protein, while B-cell lymphoma 2 protein opposes apoptosis. The influence of 1 μM 2-methoxyestradiol was investigated on the expression levels of these two proteins in MCF-7 cells. 2-Methoxyestradiol exposure did not influence B-cell lymphoma 2 protein expression levels after 24 h of exposure. In contrast, B-cell lymphoma 2-associated X protein levels were significantly reduced. An improved differential interference contrasting technique revealed compromised cell density and the presence of a mitotic block in exposed cells. The study proposes that the… More >

IIZUKA YOKO¹, SAMIN HONG², CHAN YUN KIM², SEUNG KAB KIM², GONG JE SEONG²

BIOCELL, Vol.32, No.3, pp. 245-250, 2008, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2008.32.245

Abstract Agmatine, 2-(4-aminobutyl)guanidine, has been reported to have neuroprotective effects against various neuronal damages. In this study it was investigated whether agmatine pretreatment rescues the retinal ganglion cells from oxidative injury in vitro. After differentiation of transformed rat retinal ganglion cells (RGC-5 cell line) with staurosporine, agmatine (0.0 to 100.0 μM) pretreatment was performed for 2 hours. Subsequently, they were exposed to hydrogen peroxide (0.0 to 2.5 mM) as an oxidative stress. Cell viability was monitored for up to 48 hours with the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assay and apoptosis was examined by the terminal deoxynucleotide transferase-mediated terminal uridine deoxynucleotidyl transferase nick… More >

GREGOR KOSEC^*¶, VANINA ALVAREZ^**¶, JUAN J. CAZZULO**

BIOCELL, Vol.30, No.3, pp. 479-490, 2006, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2006.30.479

Abstract Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite causing Chagas disease, contains a number of proteolytic enzymes. The recent completion of the genome sequence of the T. cruzi CL Brener clone suggests the presence of 70 cysteine peptidases, 40 serine peptidases (none of them from the chymotrypsin family), about 250 metallopeptidases (most leishmanolysin homologues), 25 threonine peptidases, and only two aspartyl peptidases, none of them from the pepsin family. The cysteine peptidases belong to 7 families of Clan CA, 3 families of Clan CD, and one each of Clans CE and CF. In Clan CA, the C1 family is represented by cruzipains 1 and… More >

ANDREA BOZZO*, CARLOS ALBERTO SOÑEZ*, MARÍA TERESA MUGNAINI*, ISABEL CECILIA PASTORINO*, ALICIA NÉLIDA ROLANDO*, MARÍA CRISTINA ROMANINI*, HÉCTOR FERNANDO GAUNA**

BIOCELL, Vol.30, No.3, pp. 439-445, 2006, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2006.30.439

Abstract Chronic stress by immobilization during gestation can alter several mechanisms that maintain homeostasis in adrenal gland. The aim of this work was to quantify the apoptotic index of adrenal cortex during mid-pregnancy and to prove cytological characteristics by electron microscopy. The apoptotic index did not present significant differences between the adrenal cortex areas of control and experimental rats in any of the three ages studied. The day of gestation influenced significantly on the apoptotic index in both groups. This index increased as gestation progressed. It may be concluded that chronic stress by immobilization might induce the increase of apoptotic index… More >

M. F. IZAGUIRRE, M. N. VERGARA, V. H. CASCO.

BIOCELL, Vol.30, No.2, pp. 309-320, 2006, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2006.30.309

Abstract CAS might have a key role in the apoptosis induced by toxins, acting as anti-apoptotic factor, stimulating the cellular proliferation and the cell contact stabilization. To start to elucidate their role in the brain apoptosis of Bufo arenarum induced by cypermethrin (CY), the expression patterns of CAS and several cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) were established.
Bufo arenarum tadpoles of the control and acute bioassay survival at different doses (39, 156, 625 and 2,500 μg CY/L) and times (24, 48, 72 and 96 h) of CY treatment were fixed in Carnoy, embedded in paraffin and sectioned. CAS and CAMs expression… More >

NORA MOHAMAD, ALICIA GUTIÉRREZ, MARIEL NÚÑEZ, CLAUDIA COCCA, GABRIELA MARTÍN*, GRACIELA CRICCO, VANINA MEDINA, ELENA RIVERA, ROSA BERGOC*.

BIOCELL, Vol.29, No.2, pp. 149-161, 2005, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2005.29.149

Abstract Apoptosis or programmed cell death (PCD) is a physiological process characteristic of pluricellular organisms leading to self-destruction of the cell. It is therefore involved in development, homeostasis and host defense. However, a significant difference has been shown between mammalian cell apoptosis and non-mammalian cell apoptosis: mitochondria are implicated only in the former. Execution of PCD includes the release of several proapoptotic proteins from the intermembrane space of mitochondria. They could exert their actions through a caspase dependent as well as a caspase independent way. On the other hand, regulation of PCD is mainly given by the Bcl-2 family members, which… More >

Cristiane Dos Santos VERGILIO, Edésio José Tenório De MELO^*

BIOCELL, Vol.37, No.2, pp. 45-54, 2013, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2013.37.045

Abstract Cadmium (Cd) induces several effects in different tissues, but our knowledge of the toxic effects on organelles is insufficient. To observe the progression of Cd effects on organelle structure and function, HuH-7 cells (human hepatic carcinoma cell line) were exposed to CdCl2 in increasing concentrations (1 μM – 20 μM) and exposure times (2 h – 24 h). During Cd treatment, the cells exhibited a progressive decrease in viability that was both time- and dose-dependent. Cd treated cells displayed progressive morphological changes that included cytoplasm retraction and nuclear condensation preceding a total loss of cell adhesion. Treatment with 10 μM… More >

Lidia M. Lopez*, Marta Dubin**, Patricia H. Carrizo**, Mario H. Burgos***, Amanda Pellegrino De Iraldi*, Andrés O. M. Stoppani**

BIOCELL, Vol.27, No.2, pp. 213-224, 2003, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2003.27.213

Abstract CG 10-248 (3,4-dihydro-2,2-dimethyl-9-chloro-2H-naphtho[1,2b]pyran- 5,6-dione; CG-NQ), a β-lapachone analogue, modified the ultrastructure of rat hepatocytes, as demonstrated by light and electron microscopy. After 4 h incubation with 100 µM CG-NQ, the following effects were observed: (a) nuclear chromatin condensation; (b) chromatin fragmentation; (c) displacement of mitochondria, concentrated around the nucleus; (d) disruption or expansion of mitochondrial outer or inner membranes, respectively; (e) displacement and alteration of endoplasmic reticulum (rough and smooth); (f) decrease of microvilli; (g) blebbing of plasma membrane and production of apoptotic bodies formed by folding of plasma membrane fragments around mitochondria or peroxysomes; and (h) production of hydrogen… More >

Runze Zhao¹, Tingting Xia¹, Mengyue Wang¹, Fan Feng¹, Wanqian Liu^1,*, Li Yang^1,*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, Suppl.2, pp. 77-77, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.07155

Abstract This study was focus on the exploring the therapeutic function of lysyl oxidase (LOX) in rat nucleus pulposus (NP) cells in intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD). To do this, a Sprague-Dawley (SD) rat caudal spine degeneration model was established by puncturing the Co5-6 disc. NP cells apoptosis and extracellular matrix (ECM) degeneration in IVDD were evaluated by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), Hematoxylin-Eosin (H&E) and immunofluorescence. Then, the therapeutic effect of LOX on IVDD was evaluated by histological staining. In vitro, the regulator effect of LOX on degenerate rat NP cell was explored. ECM relate proteins and cytokines were… More >