Chronic wounds represent a substantial public health problem. The development of tools that would enable sophisticated scrutiny of clinical wound tissue material is highly desirable. This work presents evidence enabling rapid specific identification and laser capture of blood vessels from human tissue in a manner which lends itself to successful high-density (U133A) microarray analysis. Such screening of transcriptome followed by real-time PCR and immunohistochemical verification of candidate genes and their corresponding products were performed by using 3 mm biopsies. Of the 18,400 transcripts and variants screened, a focused set of 53 up-regulated and 24 down-regulated genes were noted in woundderived blood vessels compared with blood vessels from intact human skin. The mean abundance of periostin in wound-site blood vessels was 96-fold higher. Periostin is known to be induced in response to vascular injury and its expression is associated with smooth muscle cell differentiation in vitro and promotes cell migration. Forty-fold higher expression of heparan sulfate 6-Oendosulfatase1 (Sulf1) was noted in wound-site vessels. Sulf1 has been recently recognized to be anti-angiogenic. During embryonic vasculogenesis, CD24 expression is down-regulated in human embryonic stem cells. Wound-site vessels had lower CD24 expression. The findings of this work provide a unique opportunity to appreciate the striking contrast in the transcriptome composition in blood vessels collected from the intact skin and from the wound-edge tissue. Sets of genes with known vascular functions but never connected to wound healing were identified to be differentially expressed in wound-derived blood vessels paving the way for innovative clinically relevant hypotheses.angiogenesis ͉ microarray ͉ wound healing

Mate selection and maintenance of genetic diversity is crucial to successful reproduction and species survival. Plants utilize self-incompatibility system as a genetic barrier to prevent self pollen from developing on the pistil, leading to hybrid vigor and diversity. In Brassica (canola, kale, and broccoli), an allele-specific interaction between the pollen SCR/SP11 (S-locus cysteine rich protein/S locus protein 11) and the pistil S Receptor Kinase, results in the activation of SRK which recruits the Arm Repeat Containing 1 (ARC1) E3 ligase to the proteasome. The targets of Arm Repeat Containing 1 are proposed to be compatibility factors, which when targeted for degradation by Arm Repeat Containing 1 results in pollen rejection. Despite the fact that protein degradation is predicted to be important for successful self-pollen rejection, the identity of the various proteins whose abundance is altered by the SI pathway has remained unknown. To identify potential candidate proteins regulated by the SI response, we have used the two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis analysis, coupled with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization/time of flight/MS. We identified 56 differential protein spots with 19 unique candidate proteins whose abundance is down-regulated following self-incompatible pollinations. The identified differentials are predicted to function in various pathways including biosynthetic pathways, signaling, cytoskeletal organization, and exocytosis. Recognition of suitable pollen is a key aspect of reproductive success of angiosperms. Despite having little control over the type of pollen that lands on the stigma of the pistil, many plant species have developed elaborate recognition systems to allow the growth of only suitable pollen grains and to reject genetically similar (self-incompatible) and incompatible mates in order to increase the probability of successful reproduction and survival. Adherence of compatible pollen grains to the stigmatic papillae results in early signaling events leading to hydraulic connectivity with the stigma, which facilitates movement of water into the pollen grains. Following hydration, pollen grains germinate and produce tubes that penetrate the stigmatic cell walls and traverse the pistil down to the ovules where fertilization takes place (1, 2). In species of Brassicaceae (canola, broccoli, cabbage, Arabidopsis), which are characterized by dry stigmas, this recognition occurs at the earliest stages of pollen adhesion and hydration. Only compatible pollen is capable of inducing the stigma to release its resources such as water and other factors necessary for pollen growth, whereas incompatible pollen is blocked either prior to hydration or during attempts to penetrate the stigmatic barrier (3). Although multiple genetic screens have identified various compatible pollen factors necessary for the initial recognition mechanisms, the molecules or mechanisms behind delivery of stigma factors necessary to support pollen growth remain largely unknown (3, 4). The lipids o...

Doxorubicin (DOX), a prominent anticancer agent has enjoyed considerable popularity in the last few decades because of its usefulness in the management of various forms of cancers, but its organotoxic potential (cardio-, hepatoand nephrotoxicity) has constrained on its clinical use. This study investigated whether DOX has the ability to cause nephrotoxicity in vivo and if so, whether it is linked to oxidative stress (OS). Another important goal was to describe whether expression of pro- and anti-apoptotic genes in kidneys was driven by OS. In order to explore DOX's nephrotoxic potential, male rats (Sprague Dawley; 500-520g; fed ad libitum) were administered i.p. with a single dose of DOX (12 mg/kg) on day one and sacrificed seven days later (day 8). Changes in serum chemistries (i.e., serum urea nitrogen, SUN, and creatinine) were determined immediately upon sacrifice, whereas kidney tissues were subjected to several sensitive biomarkers for OS, such as, lipid peroxidation, Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and chromatin fragmentation. The most important goal was to evaluate the select expression of Apaf-1, Caspase-3, Bad, Bax, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, p53 and Mdm2 genes in order to understand the underlying link between extrinsic and intrinsic pathways of cell death. Data revealed that DOX-exposed animals showed significant nephrotoxicity as reflected in increased SUN (5.6-fold) and creatinine (2.65 fold) levels with considerably decreased body weight. Increases in kidney injury markers reflected parallel elevations in lipid peroxidation (1.7-fold) and genomic DNA fragmentation (2.9 fold) coupled with a proportionate reduction in total SOD activity suggesting DOX-assaulted kidneys encountered massive OS. Western blot showed very striking changes: i) substantial increases in the expression of pro-apoptotic APAF-1, Caspase-3, Bax and Bad proteins; ii) Reduction in the expression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL genes; iii) considerable increase in the expression of p53 and suppression of its regulator Mdm2. Serum chemistry and tissue biochemistry mirrored histopathology. In conclusion, this study for the first time may have shown a close link between mitochondrial perturbations and cell death regulating genes during DOXinduced nephrotoxicity, and described DOX's potential to inflict kidney injury in addition to other organs during chemotherapy in clinical setting.

Delayed healing in ischemic and diabetic wounds is caused by PARP hyperactivity, and PARP inhibition significantly enhanced ischemic and diabetic wound healing by promoting angiogenesis.

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