Gehring
Fakultäten » Medizinische Fakultät » Biochemisches Institut » Prof. Dr. Heinz Gehring » Gehring
Completed research project
| Title / Titel | Characterization and identification of growth and survival factors released due to apoptotic cell death by fibroblasts | ||
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| Abstract (PDF, 14 KB) | |||
| Summary / Zusammenfassung | Apoptosis (programmed cell death) plays a crucial role in cellular homeostasis during early development, growth and maintenance of an organism but also in different diseases such as cancer and AIDS. In the course of the apoptotic cell death, cells fragment into apoptotic bodies, the elimination of which by phagocytosis is thought to avoid the release of cytosolic constituents and inflammation. Confluent cultures of chicken embryo fibroblasts, however, showed a different behavior. After serum deprivation, which induces apoptosis, they released mitogenic activity, lactate dehydrogenase and immunophilins into the serum-free culture medium until the culture reached about half of the initial density. Medium collected from cultures 24 hours after serum deprivation, completely prevented chicken embryo fibroblasts to undergo apoptosis, indicating the presence of survival factor(s) (Biol. cell 88, 15, 1997). From serum-free conditioned medium, a novel type of growth factor termed CDGF (chicken embryo fibroblast-derived growth factor) was isolated and characterized (Eur. J. Biochem. 207, 147, 1992; Exp. Cell Res. 204, 329, 1993) and a fast, transient expression of a mRNA belonging to a member of a new, recently described family of growth factors could be observed after inducing the apoptotic process. It is expected that the corresponding protein which contains a signal sequence is released into the medium. We are investigating whether these proteins are responsible for the mitogenic and apoptosis-preventing activity. Weitere Informationen |
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| Publications / Publikationen | Weitere Informationen | ||
| Keywords / Suchbegriffe | Growth/survival factors, apoptosis, fibroblasts, cell growth modulators | ||
| Project leadership and contacts / Projektleitung und Kontakte |
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| Funding source(s) / Unterstützt durch |
Universität Zürich (position pursuing an academic career), Foundation |
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| In collaboration with / In Zusammenarbeit mit |
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| Duration of Project / Projektdauer | Jan 1996 to Dec 2001 |