Browsing Pathways

The members of the large family of matricellular proteins including thrombospondin-1 (TSP1) play important roles in genesis and remodeling of multiple tissues including cartilage and vasculature. TSP1 is one of the important pivots that regulate vascular tissue homeostasis whereas its key function is the negative control of angiogenesis. TSP1 was the first naturally occurring protein inhibitor of angiogenesis to be identified; its anti-angiogenic effects have since been established in a multitude of experimental models and linked to specific epitopes in the multi-domain, multi-functional TSP1 molecule. TSP1 is the first identified, and therefore best studied thrombospondin family representative, its structure is thus considered as prototype for the other family members. In the thrombospondin family, another member, TSP2 has a similar domain structure and, non-surprisingly, its functions significantly overlap with those of TSP1. Specifically, both TSP1 and TSP2 potently inhibit angiogenesis.

Prion diseases, often called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), are infectious diseases that accompany neurological dysfunctions in many mammalian hosts. Prion diseases include Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, "mad cow disease") in cattle, scrapie in sheep, and chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer and elks. The cause of these fatal diseases is a proteinaceous pathogen termed prion that lacks functional nucleic acids. As demonstrated in the BSE outbreak and its transmission to humans, the onset of disease is not limited to a certain species but can be transmissible from one host species to another. Such a striking nature ofprions has generated huge concerns in public health and attracted serious attention in the scientific communities. To date, the potential transmission ofprions to humans via foodbome infectiorn and iatrogenic routes has not been alleviated. Rather, the possible transmission of human to human or cervids to human aggravates the terrifying situation across the globe.

Aging is said to be one of the risk factor for breast cancer. Thus, aging-related gene is linked with the formation of breast cancer.

Wilson disaease