Regulation of eukaryotic transcription initiation in response to cellular stress.

Transcription initiation is a vital step in the regulation of eukaryotic gene expression. It can be dysregulated in response to various cellular stressors which is associated with numerous human diseases including cancer. Transcription initiation is facilitated via many gene-specific trans-regulatory elements such as transcription factors, activators, and coactivators through their interactions with transcription pre-initiation complex (PIC). These trans-regulatory elements can uniquely facilitate PIC formation (hence, transcription initiation) in response to cellular nutrient stress. Cellular nutrient stress also regulates the activity of other pathways such as target of rapamycin (TOR) pathway. TOR pathway exhibits distinct regulatory mechanisms of transcriptional activation in response to stress. Like TOR pathway, the cell cycle regulatory pathway is also found to be linked to transcriptional regulation in response to cellular stress. Several transcription factors such as p53, C/EBP Homologous Protein (CHOP), activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6α), E2F, transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß, Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC), SMAD, and MYC have been implicated in regulation of transcription of target genes involved in cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and DNA damage repair pathways. Additionally, cellular metabolic and oxidative stressors have been found to regulate the activity of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA). LncRNA regulates transcription by upregulating or downregulating the transcription regulatory proteins involved in metabolic and cell signaling pathways. Numerous human diseases, triggered by chronic cellular stressors, are associated with abnormal regulation of transcription. Hence, understanding these mechanisms would help unravel the molecular regulatory insights with potential therapeutic interventions. Therefore, here we emphasize the recent advances of regulation of eukaryotic transcription initiation in response to cellular stress.

The new (challenging) role of academia in biomaterial translational research and medical device development.

With the ever-changing landscape of translational research, the medical device and pharmaceutical industries increasingly license technologies with the added value of clinical and/or pre-clinical data rather than those in earlier stages of development. Universities have the potential to fill the gap in product development from academic laboratories through enhanced student training and increased implementation of some development and manufacturing activities that are traditionally found only in the private sector. A development roadmap is described from initial product feasibility through commercialization in the context of efficient development practices. The specific challenges in the design and development of biomaterial-based medical devices are described in the context of this development path with an emphasis on unique challenges for academic laboratories.

Prevention of calcification of bioprosthetic heart valve cusp and aortic wall with ethanol and aluminum chloride.

BACKGROUND: Calcification is frequently associated with device failure of bioprostheses fabricated from either glutaraldehyde pretreated porcine aortic valves or bovine pericardium. It was hypothesized that differential pretreatment with ethanol-aluminum chloride will prove safe and efficacious for inhibiting the calcification of both the porcine aortic valve bioprosthetic cusp and the aortic wall. METHODS: Glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine aortic valves were subjected to differential aluminum chloride (AlCl3) and ethanol pretreatment; aortic wall segments were treated exclusively with AlCl3 (0.1 moles/L) for 45 minutes, 6 hours, or 8 hours (groups 3A, B, and C, respectively), followed by valve cusp incubations in ethanol (80%, pH 7.4). Nontreated control bioprosthetic valves were either stent-mounted porcine aortic valve bioprostheses (Carpentier-Edwards, group 1) (Edwards, Santa Anna, CA) or St. Jude Toronto SPV valves (St. Jude Medical, St. Paul, MN) (group 2). Mitral valve replacements were carried out in juvenile sheep for 150 days. RESULTS: Calcium in cusps from group 3A was 2.84 +/- 0.62 mg calcium/g tissue versus control, 22.79 +/- 8.46 mg calcium/g tissue, p = 0.04. Valves pretreated with AlCl3 for 45 minutes, 6 hours, and 8 hours had significantly lower levels of calcium in the aortic wall compared to controls (40.38 +/- 5.66, 26.77 +/- 4.02, and 28.94 +/- 8.25 mg calcium/g tissue for groups 3A, 3B, and 3C, respectively, vs 95.47 +/- 17.14 mg calcium/g tissue for group 1, p < 0.001, and 133.42 +/- 3.96 mg calcium/g tissue for group 2, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Differentially applied ethanol and aluminum chloride pretreatment significantly inhibited calcification of both the glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine aortic valve bioprosthetic cusp and the aortic wall.

Inhibition of cusp and aortic wall calcification in ethanol- and aluminum-treated bioprosthetic heart valves in sheep: background, mechanisms, and synergism.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: Calcification of bioprosthetic heart valves fabricated from glutaraldehyde (GA)-pretreated heterograft tissue is frequently responsible for the clinical failure of these devices. Stentless bioprostheses fabricated from GA-fixed porcine aortic valves pose an important challenge in this regard, as pathologic calcification can affect not only the bioprosthetic cusps, but also the aortic wall segment. METHODS: A synergistic approach was used to prevent bioprosthetic cusp and aortic wall calcification. Ethanol pretreatment of bioprosthetic heart valves was shown to inhibit cuspal calcification due to multiple mechanisms, including alterations of collagen structure and lipid extraction. AlCl3 pretreatment of bioprostheses to prevent calcification was also investigated; this alters elastin structure, inhibits alkaline phosphatase, and complexes with phosphoesters, thereby inhibiting aortic wall mineralization. RESULTS: Experimental data from rat subdermal implants and sheep mitral replacements showed successful synergism with co-pretreatment of porcine aortic valve bioprostheses with ethanol and AlCl3. Significant inhibition of both cusp and aortic wall calcification was achieved by differential pretreatments that restrict AlCl3 to only the aortic wall, and not the cusp, accompanied by ethanol cuspal exposure. Sequential exposure of bioprostheses, first to AlCl3 and then to ethanol, led to unexpectedly severe cuspal calcification. CONCLUSION: Differential pretreatment of stentless bioprostheses with ethanol and AlCl3 can effectively inhibit both cuspal and aortic wall calcification.

Calcification resistance with aluminum-ethanol treated porcine aortic valve bioprostheses in juvenile sheep.

BACKGROUND: Calcification of glutaraldehyde fixed bioprosthetic heart valve replacements frequently leads to the clinical failure of these devices. Previous research by our group has demonstrated that ethanol pretreatment prevents bioprosthetic cusp calcification, but not aortic wall calcification. We have also shown that aluminum chloride pretreatment prevents bioprosthetic aortic wall calcification. This study evaluated the combined use of aluminum and ethanol to prevent both bioprosthetic porcine aortic valve cusp and aortic wall calcification in rat subcutaneous implants, and the juvenile sheep mitral valve replacement model. METHODS: Glutaraldehyde fixed cusps and aortic wall samples were pretreated sequentially first with aluminum chloride (AlCl3) followed by ethanol pretreatment. These samples were then implanted subdermally in rats with explants at 21 and 63 days. Stent mounted bioprostheses were prepared either sequentially as previously described or differentially with AlCl3 exposure restricted to the aortic wall followed by ethanol pretreatment. Mitral valve replacements were carried out in juvenile sheep with elective retrievals at 90 days. RESULTS: Rat subdermal explants demonstrated that sequential exposure to AlCl3 and ethanol completely inhibited bioprosthetic cusp and aortic wall calcification compared with controls. However the sheep results were markedly different. The differential sheep explant group exhibited very low levels of cusp and wall calcium. The glutaraldehyde group exhibited little cusp calcification, but prominent aortic wall calcification. All sheep in the two groups previously described lived to term without evidence of valvular dysfunction. In contrast, animals in the sequential group exhibited increased levels of cusp calcification. None of the animals in this group survived to term. Pathologic analysis of the valves in the sequential group determined that valve failure was caused by calcification and stenosis of the aortic cusps. CONCLUSIONS: The results clearly demonstrate that a combination of aluminum and ethanol reduced aortic wall calcification and prevented cuspal calcification. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that exclusion of aluminum from the cusp eliminated the cuspal calcification seen when aluminum and ethanol treatments were administered in a sequential manner.