The potential effects of stem cell-released microvesicles (MVs) in proangiogenic therapy were explored. MVs were released from adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) and were able to increase the migration and tube formation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells. MVs from ASCs, particularly from endothelial differentiation medium-preconditioned ASCs, were found to have elevated levels of microRNA-31 and to promote angiogenesis.

Background: Prohibitin is essential in adipocyte differentiation and mitochondrial functions, but the regulative mechanisms of prohibitin by microRNA remain unclear. Results: miR-27 negatively regulates adipogenesis by targeting prohibitin and impairing mitochondrial biogenesis, structure, and activity. Conclusion: miR-27 targets prohibitin and suppresses adipocyte differentiation. Significance: Manipulation of miR-27 may offer opportunities for the therapeutic modulation of adipogenesis in obesity.

The present study demonstrates that PPARgamma is critical to myocardial redox homeostasis. These findings should provide new insights into understanding the roles of PPARgamma in the heart.

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] acclimation to flooding has been investigated at biochemical and physiological levels, but longterm acclimation to flooding may be associated with morphological changes. Supplementing legumes with nitrate ameliorates flooding stress, compared with plants dependent on N2 fixation. Two experiments evaluated morphological and anatomical changes induced by flooding for plants relying on N2 fixation or supplemented with nitrate. An additional experiment assessed the role of aerenchyma in flooding acclimation by blocking aerenchyma formation with silver. Flooding soybean for 21 d with nutrient solution without N increased biomass allocation to roots. No aerenchyma was observed in roots of nonflooded plants; however, it was abundant in roots of flooded plants. Porosity measurements of root and stem‐base tissues indicated that 10 to 15% of the volume was gas filled in flooded plants, while gasfilled volume was negligible in the nonflooded controls. Flooding in the presence of nitrate decreased aerenchyma and increased adventitious roots, compared with plants flooded with nutrient solution without N. Increased growth under flooding of nitrate‐supplemented plants, therefore, was not directly associated with increased root porosity. For flooded plants dependent on N2 fixation, silver prevented aerenchyma and adventitious root development and decreased biomass accumulation and N2 fixation by approximately one‐half compared with plants flooded in the absence of silver. These results indicate that acclimation to flooding in soybean involves preferential allocation of photosynthates to development of porous adventitious roots and that aerenchyma formation for soybean relying on N2 fixation is critical for acclimation to flooding.

SummaryMutation in Eu3 eliminates activity of both soybean ureases, the embryo-speci®c (encoded by Eu1) and the tissue-ubiquitous (encoded by Eu4). eu3-e1 is a completely recessive null allele. Eu3-e3 is a semidominant specifying 0.1% wild-type urease activity in the homozygous state and 5±10% as a heterozygote . Antibodies to plant UreG, a homologue of the bacterial urease accessory protein, revealed a 32 kDa protein (p32) in embryos of the Eu3/Eu3 precursor genotype. p32 is identical to UreG by the criteria of size, antigenicity, and its ability to bind Ni 2+ , a trait expected from the deduced histidine-rich N-terminus of UreG. UreG was absent in eu3-e1/eu3-e1, and lack of UreG co-segregated with eu3-e1. Eu3-e3 speci®ed a UreG transcript which coded valine in place of alanine at residue 142 (A142V) con®rming that Eu3 encodes UreG, which is renamed Eu3. Eu3 (A142V) retained Ni-binding ability. Eu3 is directly involved in urease activation, since anti-Eu3 (UreG) antibodies inhibited the in vitro activation of urease. Eu1 (embryo urease) and Eu3 accumulated in parallel in the developing embryo. The presence of Eu1 was not necessary for the high embryonic level of Eu3. However, the presence of Eu3 appeared to be important for accumulation of Eu1, perhaps by stabilizing it by Ni insertion. At the level of sensitivity employed Eu3 was detected in crude extracts of embryos but not non-embryonic tissues which have 1/500th the embryo urease activity. Functional Eu3, however, is necessary for activation of the ubiquitous urease in non-embryonic tissues.