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Biomedical subjects

A Fujimori

Publications and source records attributed to A Fujimori.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Anticoagulant factor protein S inhibits the proliferation of rat astrocytes after injury.

The actions of protein S (PS) on the scratch injury-induced proliferation of rat astrocytes (AC) were studied. PS (10-300 nM) markedly inhibited [3H]thymidine incorporation into injured AC. The effect of 100 nM PS was comparable with that of transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta 1; 20 ng/ml). The incorporation of bromodeoxyuridine, which is usually detectable in AC along the border of the wound, was undetectable in the presence of 300 nM PS. The level of PS mRNA in the injured AC was slightly increased 15 h after the injury, although the level of its receptor, Tyro 3 mRNA was not changed significantly. The results of the present study suggest that PS plays an important role in tissue repair processes in the central nervous system (CNS) by suppressing the proliferation of AC as in the case of TGF-beta 1.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Phosphate transport in osteoclasts: a functional and immunochemical characterization.

Osteoclasts are polarized cells involved in bone resorption. They are exposed to high ambient concentrations of inorganic phosphate (Pi) during the active process of bone resorption. We hypothesize that osteoclasts may possess specific Pi-transport system(s) for transcellular movement of Pi released from bone into the resorption cavity. We have previously reported the existence of a Na-dependent Pi cotransporter in the avian osteoclast, which provides a model culture system for the fully differentiated phenotype capable of bone resorption. In whole cell Pi-uptake studies, the rate of Pi transport was sensitive to both ouabain and 2,4-DNP, an inhibitor of aerobic ATP production. When these osteoclasts were exposed to bone particles, there was an immediate stimulation of Pi transport, independent of de novo protein synthesis. The stimulatory effect of bone particles was inhibited by peptides with the Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (RGDS) motif, an effect which implicates integrins and cell-matrix interaction in the regulation of Pi transport. We performed Western blots on both whole cell lysates and membrane fractions using a polyclonal antibody to the N-terminal of NaPi-2 (the rat variant) and found a single approximately 100 kDa protein; the non-immune serum was used as control. Immunofluorescence studies using the same N-terminal antibody to NaPi-2 detected the protein in discrete vesicles. There was an induction of the protein in membrane fractions isolated from osteoclasts cultured in the presence of bone particles. Our preliminary studies indicate that a Na-Pi cotransporter may exist in the avian osteoclast, immunologically related to the NaPi-2 family, and which may be regulated through integrin-mediated pathways in the presence of bone. We also hypothesize that there may be a redistribution of vesicular pools containing the Na-Pi cotransporter toward discrete plasma membrane sites on the polarized osteoclast for transcellular movement of Pi during active bone resorption.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Silencing and selective methylation of the normal topoisomerase I gene in camptothecin-resistant CEM/C2 human leukemia cells.

Camptothecin resistance of the human leukemia CEM/C2 cells is associated with a topoisomerase I (top1) mutation: Asn722Ser (Fujimori, A. et al. Cancer Res. 55:1339-1346; 1995). The corresponding DNA point mutation generates a novel site for the restriction endonuclease DdeI. We found that only the mutated top1 transcript was detectable in CEM/C2 by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Genomic DNA analysis by Southern blotting with DdeI showed that both the mutated and normal top1 genes were present in CEM/C2 cells. The mechanism of normal top1 allele silencing was further investigated. Cytogenetic analysis with a human chromosome 20 specific probe and restriction mapping by Southern blotting showed that both cell lines had a similar copy number of chromosome 20, with the predominant population containing 5-6 copies, and no detectable top1 gene rearrangement. Southern blotting using methylcytosine-sensitive restriction endonuclease (HpaII) indicated differential top1 methylation in CEM/C2 cells. Global cytosine methylation, however, appeared similar in CEM/C2 and wild-type CEM cells. These results indicate that gene-specific DNA methylation can play a role in downregulating top1 gene(s) and in the cellular resistance to camptothecins.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic↗
PubMed1996

Acquired camptothecin resistance of human breast cancer MCF-7/C4 cells with normal topoisomerase I and elevated DNA repair.

A camptothecin (CPT)-resistant cell line (MCF-7/C4) was established from MCF-7 cells by mutagenic treatment with methylmethanesulfonate and selection with CPT. MCF-7/C4 is 30-fold resistant to CPT and is cross-resistant to UV and cis-dichlorodiammineplatinum(II) but not to VP-16 or ionizing radiation. Topoisomerase I (top1)-mediated cleavable complexes in the presence of CPT, measured by oligonucleotide assay and by alkaline elution, were similar in both cell lines. Other top1 parameters such as top1 protein, RNA levels, and DNA relaxation were also similar in both cell lines. Thus, CPT resistance is not due to alterations in top1 activity but is caused by changes in the downstream pathways from the top1-induced damage. Both cell lines had similar doubling time (22 hr), but MCF-7/C4 cells showed reduced S-phase fraction in the absence of CPT and reduced G2 delay after CPT treatment. p53, GADD45, and p21WAF1/CIP1 were induced similarly by CPT in both cell lines. The overall repair capacity estimated by the ability of cells to reactivate UV-damaged pSV-CAT plasmid was increased in MCF-7/C4 cells. These observations suggest that enhanced DNA repair is one of the factors involved in CPT resistance.

Breast Neoplasms↗