Overexpression of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I) receptor and the invasiveness of cultured keloid fibroblasts. (1/183)

Keloid is a dermal fibroproliferative tissue of unknown etiology. Protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) play an important role in the regulation of cell growth and differentiation. Activation of PTK cascades in keloid fibroblasts is thought to be closely linked to abnormal cell proliferation and migration. We determined the expression profile of PTK genes in normal skin and keloid fibroblasts using the homology cloning method with a degenerated primer. Eight PTK genes were expressed among a total of 46 receptor-type clones. The most abundant type of PTK receptors was the platelet-derived growth factor receptor in both fibroblasts. However, insulin-like growth factor-I receptor (IGF-IR) was overexpressed only in keloid-derived fibroblasts (9 of 24). Immunohistochemical analysis confirmed the high expression of IGF-IR in keloid fibroblasts, but not in normal fibroblasts. To examine the functional properties of the IGF-I/IGF-IR pathway, we investigated cell proliferation and invasion activities of both types of fibroblasts. The mitogenic effect of IGF-I on both fibroblasts was very weak compared with serum stimulation. In contrast, the invasive activity of keloid fibroblasts was markedly increased in the presence of IGF-I, and inhibited by a neutralizing antibody against IGF-IR. Our results indicate the involvement of activated IGF-I/IGF-IR in the pathogenesis of keloid by enhancing the invasive activity of fibroblasts.  (+info)

Expression of type XVI collagen in human skin fibroblasts: enhanced expression in fibrotic skin diseases. (2/183)

Abundance of type XVI collagen mRNA in normal human dermal fibroblasts explanted from different horizontal layers was determined using RNase protection assays. Type XVI collagen mRNA level in the fibroblasts explanted from the upper dermis was greater than those of the middle and lower dermis. The antibody raised against the synthetic N-terminal noncollagenous region reacted with approximately 210 kDa collagenous polypeptide in the culture medium of fibroblasts. Immunohistochemical study of normal human skin demonstrated that the antibody reacted preferentially with the fibroblasts and the extracellular matrix in the upper dermis rather than those in the middle and lower dermis. Type XVI collagen mRNA level was elevated 2.3-fold in localized scleroderma and 3.6-fold in systemic scleroderma compared with keloid and normal controls. Immunofluorescent study revealed that an intense immunoreactivity with the antibody was observed in the upper to lower dermal matrix and fibroblasts in the skin of systemic scleroderma as compared with normal skin. The results suggest that expression of type XVI collagen, a member of fibril-associated collagens with interrupted triple helices, in human skin fibroblasts can be heterogeneous in the dermal layers and can be modulated by some fibrotic diseases.  (+info)

Jorge Lobo's disease: experimental inoculation in Swiss mice. (3/183)

Sixty-four isogenic Swiss mice were intradermically inoculated in both hind foot pads. The inocula, consisting of fungal suspensions from biopsies obtained from Jorge Lobo's Disease patients, had the total number of fungi and the viability index determined using a Neubauer chamber and the fluorescein diacetate-ethidium bromide technique (FD-EB), respectively. The animals were sacrificed at times ranging from ten days to eighteen months after inoculation. The cellular infiltrate, mainly consisting of macrophages containing fungi, increased progressively up to end of the study; however, no macroscopic alterations were observed in the inoculated feet. After nine months, small numbers of Langhans' giant cells started to appear in the infiltrate. A considerable number of fungi was observed at the end of the experimental period, but only a few were viable when stained by the FD-EB technique. This fact suggests that there is a multiplication of fungal cells, which are destroyed by the macrophages but remain in the tissue for a long time due perhaps to the difficulties in their elimination. These findings led us to conclude that in spite of the maintenance of the infection in these animals, Swiss mice cannot be considered an ideal model to study Jorge Lobo's Disease. However, the authors call attention to the possibility of other mouse strains being more susceptible to Paracoccidioides loboi.  (+info)

Myofibroblast phenotype and apoptosis in keloid and palmar fibroblasts in vitro. (4/183)

Keloid formation is a wound healing response, which fails to resolve and leads to formation of a raised collagen mass extending beyond the original wound margins. Keloids are typically excluded from palms and soles. Therefore we compared keloid and palmar fibroblasts in vitro using fibroblasts from nonaffected individuals as controls. Collagen I, alpha-smooth muscle actin and thrombospondin-1 were found at higher levels in keloid than in palmar fibroblasts. These differences were ameliorated by addition of TGFbeta1. The potential for resolution of the wound healing response was estimated analyzing apoptosis during serum starvation. Annexin V and TUNEL assays showed that palmar fibroblasts underwent faster apoptosis, than did the keloid fibroblasts, and started detaching. Addition of TGFbeta1 counteracted this effect. The weak expression of the myofibroblast phenotype and the advanced apoptosis of palmar fibroblasts suggest mechanisms for the exclusion of keloids from palmar sites.  (+info)

Reduced hyaluronan in keloid tissue and cultured keloid fibroblasts. (5/183)

Extracellular matrix hyaluronan is prominent during wound healing, appearing at elevated levels early in the repair process. It is prevalent throughout the course of fetal wound healing, which is scar-free, but decreases late in adult wound repair, that is often marked by scarring. To determine whether aberrant hyaluronan metabolism is associated with the excessive scarring that characterizes keloids, cultured fibroblasts derived from keloids and from the dermis of normal human skin and scar were compared. Levels of hyaluronan in 48 h conditioned media of keloid-derived cultures were significantly lower than in cultures of normal skin and scar fibroblasts. Profiles of hyaluronan polymer size were comparable in these two cell types, suggesting that excessive hyaluronan degradation was not involved. Hydrocortisone decreased hyaluronan levels approximately 70% in the conditioned media of both keloid and normal fibroblasts. Diminished hyaluronan accumulation in keloid-derived cells compared with normal fibroblasts was also observed in an in vitro wound healing model. Histolocalization of hyaluronan in keloids, normal skin, and scar samples confirmed the biochemical observations that the dermis of keloids, which comprises most of the scar tissue, contained markedly diminished levels of hyaluronan. Alterations in hyaluronan in the epidermis overlying keloids, however, were also observed. A modest increase in hyaluronan staining intensity was observed in the epidermis of keloids, as well as changes in the patterns of distribution within the epidermis, compared with that in normal skin and scar. Increased hyaluronan was present in the granular and spinous layers of the keloid epidermis Abnormalities are present apparently in both the overlying epidermis as well as in the dermis of keloids. Aberrations in signaling between keloid stroma and keloid epidermis may underlie abnormalities that contribute to the excessive fibrosis characteristic of these lesions.  (+info)

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I)/IGF-I receptor axis and increased invasion activity of fibroblasts in keloid. (6/183)

Activation of signals for insulin-like growth factor-I receptor (IGF-IR) is thought to be closely linked to abnormal cell proliferation and differentiation in various diseases. The keloid in which fibroblasts invade beyond the margins of the original wound, is a dermal fibroproliferative tissue of unknown etiology. Clinically, keloids are most commonly observed in subjects at ages between 10 and 30 years. Interestingly, plasma levels of growth hormone and IGF-I are also high during the same period, suggesting that IGF-I might be involved in the patho-physiology of keloid fibroblasts. We therefore first examined the expression level of IGF-IR in normal and keloid tissues. Immunohistochemical analysis confirmed increased expression of IGF-IR in keloid fibroblasts, but not in normal fibroblasts. On the other hand, the staining intensity of IGF-IR in the epidermis of normal tissues was almost equal to that in keloids. Next, to study the functional properties of the IGF-I/IGF-IR axis in both normal and keloid fibroblasts, we investigated invasion activities. The invasive activity of IGF-IR overexpressing keloid fibroblasts was greatly increased in the presence of IGF-I, and inhibited by a neutralizing antibody to IGF-I. In contrast, its activity of IGF-IR weak-expressing normal fibroblasts was not changed. Our results indicate the involvement of the activated IGF-I/IGF-IR axis in the pathogenesis of the invasive activity of fibroblasts.  (+info)

Inoculation of BALB/c mice with Lacazia loboi. (7/183)

In a previous study, the authors inoculated Swiss mice with Lacazia loboi (L. loboi) and succeeded in maintaining a granulomatous infiltrate and viable fungal cells up to one year and six months after inoculation. Considering the experimental work on paracoccidioidomycosis, 0.03 ml of a fungal suspension obtained from a biopsy of a Jorge Lobo's Disease patient were inoculated into both hind foot pads of 32 six week-old BALB/c mice of both sexes. The animals were sacrificed 1, 4, 7 and 10 months post inoculation. The suspension contained 1.3 x 10(6) fungi/ml and presented 38% viability. Seven months after inoculation, most of the animals presented profuse infiltrates consisting of isolated histiocytes, foreign body and Langhans' giant cells and a large number of fungi, most of them viable. Emergence of macroscopic lesions was observed during the 8th month. Based on fungal count, viability index before and after inoculation, presence of macroscopic lesions and histopathological findings similar to the findings in humans, the authors believe that BALB/c mice may be a good experimental model to study Jorge Lobo's Disease, mainly regarding therapeutic evaluation.  (+info)

Keloid-derived fibroblasts are refractory to Fas-mediated apoptosis and neutralization of autocrine transforming growth factor-beta1 can abrogate this resistance. (8/183)

The pathogenesis of keloid remains poorly understood. As no effective therapy for keloid is as yet available, an insight into its pathogenesis may lead to novel approaches. Apoptosis has been found to mediate the decrease in cellularity during the transition between granulation tissue and scar. Here, we report that in contrast to hypertrophic scar-derived and normal skin-derived fibroblasts, keloid-derived fibroblasts are significantly resistant to both Fas-mediated and staurosporine-induced apoptosis. The caspases-3, -8, and -9 were not activated indicating that the block in the apoptotic pathway in keloid is upstream of the caspases. There were no significant differences in the level of expression of Fas, Bcl-2, and Bax between the three groups but addition of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 significantly inhibited Fas-mediated apoptosis in hypertrophic scar-derived and normal skin-derived fibroblasts and neutralization of autocrine TGF-beta1 with anti-TGF-beta1 antibody abrogated the resistance of keloid-derived fibroblasts. Anti-apoptotic activity was not observed with TGF-beta2. This is the first study linking refractory Fas-mediated apoptosis to cellular phenotype in keloids and indicating a pivotal role for the anti-apoptotic effect of TGF-beta1 in this resistance. Hence, it becomes important to treat keloids as a separate entity different from hypertrophic scars and enhancement of Fas-sensitivity could be a promising therapeutic target.  (+info)