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F Curcio

Publications and source records attributed to F Curcio.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

Refinement of a thyroid cultured cell system used in clinically relevant bioassays.

Thyroid cultured cells are now used worldwide in clinical bioassays of TSH and of thyroid autoantibodies. Having originally developed the thyroid cell cultures (Ambesi-Impiombato et al. 1980) from rat glands in our laboratory, we now aim to improve the system, moving in two directions: a) TSH-independent mutants have been produced and characterized, which can be used in clinical bioassays without "starvation" from the hormone. b) Human cultures have been attempted using our experience with rat cells, as well as innovative strategies. Preliminary results now indicate that human normal differentiated cells may be available for clinical studies in vitro, when species-specific differences may be critical.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Subclones of a rat parathyroid cell line (PT-r): regulation of growth and production of parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHRP).

Four subclones from a rat parathyroid cell line (PT-r cell) have been isolated, and morphological and functional characteristics have been examined. Subclones 1 and 2 display a polygonal shape, show growth and secretory responses to calcium (half-maximal suppressions at 1.2 and 1.7 mM, respectively), and respond to secretin with cAMP production (14.5-fold and 16.9-fold over basal) and hormone secretion (41 and 58% over basal). Subclone 4 is elongated in form and does not respond to calcium or secretin. Subclone 3 shows mixed morphology, elongated and polygonal shapes, with moderate response to calcium (half-maximal suppression at 1.7 mM) and secretin (cAMP, 3.2-fold increase and hormone secretion, 50% increase over basal). The clones were tested for content of messenger RNA (mRNA) representing parathyroid hormone (PTH) and parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHRP). Only PTHRP mRNA was found. The peptide released is virtually all PTHRP. PTH mRNA was not detected even with a sensitive RNA probe. The amount of mRNA for PTHRP closely paralleled the amount of PTH-like bioactivity released into the medium from each clone (144.7 +/- 12.1, 110.0 +/- 12.9, 68.0 +/- 5.6, and 39.9 +/- 2.4 pgEq of rat PTH-(-34) per 10(7) cells per 12 h in a medium with 0.7 mM ionized calcium, from subclones 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively). Culture conditions, low-density passage (less than 1:50 split ratio) or high-density passage (greater than 1:10 split ratio), affected morphology and function of the clones 1 and 2. They became elongated and functionally dedifferentiated like subclone 4 and 3 months of high-density culture.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Establishment and characterization of a clonal line of parathyroid endothelial cells.

We have isolated endothelial cells derived from bovine parathyroid tissue. These cells have been cloned and maintained by serial passage for more than 40 months without showing signs of senescence. Prolonged culture was accomplished by using a medium favoring endothelial cell growth and methods for enriching endothelial cells in primary culture. The cloned parathyroid endothelial cells contained factor VIII-related antigen, took up acetylated low-density lipoproteins and parathyroid hormone, and showed morphological features comparable to other endothelial cells. Bovine parathyroid endothelial cells replicated with a mean doubling time of 65 h. Fibroblast growth factors, platelet-derived growth factor, and calcium acted as mitogens for parathyroid endothelial cells, whereas transforming growth factor beta inhibited proliferation.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Cloned endothelial cells from fetal bovine bone.

Primary cell cultures from fetal bovine sternum were developed in Coon's modified Ham's F-12 medium containing 10% Nu-Serum, 1% Ultroser-G, and 200 mg of galactose per liter. Clones were obtained by colony isolation; one clone, BBE-1, was selected for characterization. BBE-1 cells exhibited typical endothelial morphology by light and electron microscopy and immunofluorescence for factor VIII-related antigen throughout their life span of 8 months. The cells showed mitogenic responses to endothelial cell growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, insulin-like growth factor types I and II, platelet-derived growth factor, ascorbic acid, and progesterone. Parathyroid hormone stimulated intracellular accumulation of cAMP in BBE-1 cells but not in endothelial cells from two other tissues. These clonal cells provide a useful system for studies on bone vasculature, including its interactions with other bone cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Cell cultures of neuroblasts from rat olfactory epithelium that show odorant responses.

We have developed procedures that permit isolation and propagation of clonal cell cultures from the olfactory epithelium of the 5- to 7-day-old rat that appear to represent the neuroblasts that repopulate the sensory neurons in the olfactory epithelium throughout life. The cell lines we report here synthesize neuron-specific enolase, which is a neuron marker, 43-kDa growth-associated protein, a protein associated with neuronal growth cones, and carnosine, a possible olfactory neurotransmitter. In two of the cell lines we have found dose-dependent cAMP accumulation following exposure to submicromolar concentrations of chemical odorants in the medium. These two cell lines show different patterns of odorant specificity when tested against a panel of six chemicals commonly used as test odorants. We anticipate that these and similarly derived cell lines will prove valuable in studying aspects of neurogenesis and olfaction.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Conversations with autistic children: contingent relationships between features of adult input and children's response adequacy.

The relationship between certain features of adult speech and autistic children's response adequacy was examined within the context of unstructured, dyadic conversations. On separate sessions, four verbal, nonecholalic children were observed talking with their mothers and teachers. Analysis of conversational turns showed that as the number of facilitating features contained in adults' eliciting utterances increased, the proportion of adequate replies from the children increased. In this analysis, facilitating features included the use of Yes/No questions, questions that were conceptually simple, and questions that were semantically contingent on the child's topic. In a further analysis, it was found that adults tended to modify their use of these features in response to child feedback, although this tendency was relatively small and observed only in a minority of the sequences evaluated. The findings are discussed in terms of pragmatic deficits associated with autism and implications for intervention with this population.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1987

Functional epithelial cell line cloned from rat parathyroid glands.

Primary cultures of rat parathyroid cells were developed in medium containing 5% calf serum, 1% Nutridoma-SP (a serum-free medium supplement from Boehringer Mannheim), and 0.7 mM calcium. The PT-r strain was purified by successive colony isolations and maintained differentiated characteristics (secretion of bioactive and radioimmunoactive parathyroid hormone into the culture medium, sensitivity to calcium regulation, and modulation by secretin) for 7 months in continuous culture. These cultured cells are epithelioid, display diploid chromosome numbers, and do not show a transformed phenotype. There has been no decrease in the rate of cell division or decline in parathyroid hormone secretion since the cell line was established. This clonal cell line provides an important system for further studies on the biology of the parathyroid cell.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Depressed antithrombin III biological activity in opiate addicts.

Antithrombin III activity was significantly decreased in opiate addicts, but no difference was found between addict and control groups in antithrombin III plasma concentration. Moreover, glycosylated haemoglobin concentration was increased in opiate addicts, but no correlation between glycosylated haemoglobin and antithrombin III activity was found. These data show that in opiate addicts there is depressed biological activity of antithrombin III. Further characterisation of the molecular changes in antithrombin III in addicts is needed to establish whether the impaired activity is affected by altered glucose metabolism.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Language processing and forms of immediate echolalia in autistic children.

Several aspects of echolalic speech produced by five autistic children were investigated. We found that the incidence of echolalia was influenced by the type of question addressed to the child and, to a lesser extent, by the child's comprehension of the specific relationships expressed in the question. Additionally, acoustic analysis showed that a substantial proportion of echoes involved a prosodic modification of the examiner's question. Further analyses indicated that some of these modified echoes represent more than just a primitive conversational strategy. Specifically, they seem to reflect a higher level of processing and serve a semantic function, that of affirming the examiner's question.

Adolescent↗