5 documents found, page 1 of 1
Laminin-α2 chain deficiency in skeletal muscle causes dysregulation of multiple...
Martins, Susana G; Ribeiro, Vanessa; Melo, Catarina; Paulino-Cavaco, Cláudia; Antonini, Dario; Dayalan Naidu, Sharadha; Murtinheira, FernandaLAMA2, coding for the laminin-α2 chain, is a crucial ECM component, particularly abundant in skeletal muscle. Mutations in LAMA2 trigger the often-lethal LAMA2-congenital muscular dystrophy (LAMA2-CMD). Various phenotypes have been linked to LAMA2-CMD; nevertheless, the precise mechanisms that malfunction during disease onset in utero remain unknown. We generated Lama2-deficient C2C12 cells and found that Lama2...
NFIXing Cancer: The Role of NFIX in Oxidative Stress Response and Cell Fate
Ribeiro, Vanessa; Martins, Susana G.; Lopes, Ana Sofia; Thorsteinsdottir, Solveig; Zilhão, Rita; Carlos, Ana RitaNFIX, a member of the nuclear factor I (NFI) family of transcription factors, is known to be involved in muscle and central nervous system embryonic development. However, its expression in adults is limited. Similar to other developmental transcription factors, NFIX has been found to be altered in tumors, often promoting pro-tumorigenic functions, such as leading to proliferation, differentiation, and migration...
Linking Oxidative Stress and DNA Damage to Changes in the Expression of Extrace...
Martins, Susana G.; Zilhão, Rita; Thorsteinsdottir, Solveig; Carlos, Ana RitaCells are subjected to endogenous [e.g., reactive oxygen species (ROS), replication stress] and exogenous insults (e.g., UV light, ionizing radiation, and certain chemicals), which can affect the synthesis and/or stability of different macromolecules required for cell and tissue function. Oxidative stress, caused by excess ROS, and DNA damage, triggered in response to different sources, are countered and resolv...
Dominance Between Plasmids Determines the Extent of Biofilm Formation
Gama, João Alves; Fredheim, Elizabeth G. Aarag; Cléon, François; Reis, Ana Maria; Zilhão, Rita; Dionisio, FranciscoBacterial biofilms have an impact in medical and industrial environments because they often confer protection to bacteria against harmful agents, and constitute a source from which microorganisms can disperse. Conjugative plasmids can enhance bacterial ability to form biofilms because conjugative pili act as adhesion factors. However, plasmids may interact with each other, either facilitating or inhibiting plas...
Plasmid Interactions Can Improve Plasmid Persistence in Bacterial Populations
Gama, João Alves; Zilhão, Rita; Dionisio, FranciscoIt is difficult to understand plasmid maintenance in the absence of selection and theoretical models predict the conditions for plasmid persistence to be limited. Plasmid-associated fitness costs decrease bacterial competitivity, while imperfect partition allows the emergence of plasmid-free cells during cell division. Although plasmid conjugative transfer allows mobility into plasmid-free cells, the rate of su...