Down-regulation of perlecan expression contributes to the inhibition of rat cardiac microvascular endothelial cell proliferation induced by hypoxia. (1/8855)

Exposure of endothelial cells (ECs) to hypoxia leads to a decrease in EC proliferation. However, the mechanism by which hypoxia inhibits EC proliferation is unclear. Perlecan has been reported to play an important role in regulating EC proliferation. We hypothesized that perlecan was involved in the hypoxia-induced inhibition of EC proliferation. To test this hypothesis, rat cardiac microvascular ECs were cultured under normoxic or hypoxic conditions for 12 h and harvested for determination of perlecan mRNA expression using real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The results showed that exposure of ECs to hypoxia for 12 h induced a decrease in perlecan mRNA expression (61.72%, P<0.05). Concomitantly, the down-regulation of endogenous perlecan induced by hypoxia or the neutralization of endogenous perlecan with anti-perlecan antibody significantly inhibited EC proliferation and responsiveness to basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), and decreased focal adhesion kinase (FAK) expression and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) activation. These data indicate that down-regulation of perlecan expression contributes to hypoxia-induced inhibition of rat cardiac microvascular EC proliferation by suppressing FAK-mediated and ERK1/2-dependent growth signals.  (+info)

Expression of ovarian tumour suppressor OPCML in the female CD-1 mouse reproductive tract. (2/8855)

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Rapid effects of LH on gene expression in the mural granulosa cells of mouse periovulatory follicles. (3/8855)

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Studies of granulosa cell maturation in dominant and subordinate bovine follicles: novel extracellular matrix focimatrix is co-ordinately regulated with cholesterol side-chain cleavage CYP11A1. (4/8855)

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Preterm and infection-driven preterm labor: the role of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors and retinoid X receptor. (5/8855)

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Gene expression profile of rat ovarian tissue following xenotransplantation into immune-deficient mice. (6/8855)

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Toll-like receptor signaling in hen ovarian granulosa cells is dependent on stage of follicle maturation. (7/8855)

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Temporal regulation of BMP2, BMP6, BMP15, GDF9, BMPR1A, BMPR1B, BMPR2 and TGFBR1 mRNA expression in the oocyte, granulosa and theca cells of developing preovulatory follicles in the pig. (8/8855)

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