Then, the cells were pelleted down by centrifugation at 300 g. The supernatants

were collected and stored at −80°C for the measurement of IFN-γ by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits (BD Biosciences), according to the manufacturer’s protocol. All data are represented as the mean ± standard deviation (s.d.). Univariate and multivariate linear regression was buy Olaparib applied to calculate the correlation coefficient and significance among different parameters using STATA software (StataCorp, College Station, TX, USA). Statistical significance was assessed by Mann–Whitney U-test and a P-value less than 0·05 was considered statistically significant. The demographic and clinical data of the AS patients were recorded and are summarized in Table 1. The expression profile of 270 miRNAs in T cells from five AS patients and five healthy controls is shown in Fig. 1a. Each scatter-spot represents the average of normalized miRNA levels of T cells from five AS patients and normal controls. We noted that the expression of eight microRNAs, including miR-150, miR-16, miR-342-5p, miR-221, Selleckchem U0126 let-7i, miR-99b, let-7b and miR-513-5p, were significantly higher and five microRNAs including miR-218, miR-409-3p, miR-30e, miR-199a-5p and miR-215 were significantly lower in AS T cells than in normal

T cells (fold change >4·5 and P < 0·05; Fig. 1b). Then, we chose only the five most differentially expressed miRNAs (defined as fold change >6 and P < 0·05), including miR-150, miR-16, miR-342-5p, miR-221 and let-7i for further validation. In the second step, T cells from another 22 AS patients and 18 healthy controls were compared. We confirmed that the expression levels of miR-16, miR-221 and let-7i (fold change: 2·34, 2·38 and 3·17, Phosphoprotein phosphatase respectively; all the P values < 0·05) were significantly higher in AS T cells than in normal T cells (Fig. 1c). We then intended to correlate

different clinical parameters with the expression levels of miR-16, miR-221 and let-7i in AS T cells by univariate and multivariate linear regression analysis. We found that the expression of miR-221 (P = 0·022) and let-7i (P = 0·031) were associated positively with BASRI of lumber spine. The expression of miR-16 (P = 0·086) was associated positively with BASRI of lumbar spine (Fig. 2). After adjusting for age and gender, the expression of miR-221 (fold change = 1·58, P = 0·033) and let-7i (fold change = 1·75, P = 0·029), but not miR-16 (fold change = 1·67, P = 0·059), were still correlated positively with BASRI of lumbar spine, which reflects inflammatory activity in the lumbar spine (Table 2). However, expression of miR-16, miR-221 and let-7i did not correlate with serum C-reactive protein levels or sacroiliitis by radiography in AS patients (Table 2). Several studies have demonstrated that miR-16, miR-221 and let-7i regulate the protein expression of Bcl-2, c-kit and TLR-4, respectively [29-31].

Most vaccine strategies have focussed on the larval stage of the hookworms; however, there is some evidence that resistance to later stages is possible (60). In repeated experimental hookworm infections, it could be seen that although the majority of the newly infected larvae migrated from the skin to the gut, only a small number could attach successfully to the gut wall (60). The total number of worms attached (previously patent plus new arrivals) seemed dependent on levels of eosinophilic inflammation of the gut wall, and so it appears that resistance to the later gut feeding stages of the parasite is possible. Interestingly, in human enteric infection with dog hookworm in an Australian

community (see later), much more pronounced inflammation was seen than that with human hookworm (61). buy Maraviroc High levels of eosinophil infiltration in the gut wall caused inflammation and pathology. This inflammatory allergic response has been cited as

the cause of dog hookworm ejection from humans, and its absence in human hookworm infection (and dog hookworm infection in dogs) argues for active and species-specific suppression of the anti-hookworm response (62). Thus, eosinophilic attack of adult worms in the gut may lead to ejection of the parasite, but at the cost selleck kinase inhibitor of inducing a destructive eosinophilic enteritis. Other vaccine strategies to attack the adult parasite are being developed, which may not cause damaging inflammation. One approach is to target the gut of the adult worm to prevent

it from successfully feeding. Hookworms ingest blood from ruptured capillaries in the host gut wall, where the blood is digested in the hookworm’s own gut and absorbed. A cascade of proteolytic enzymes carries out the digestion of host blood, and these enzymes can be considered ‘cryptic’ antigens – they are never exposed to the host immune system, and so an immune response is never raised against them. During the course of feeding, however, selleck the hookworm gut is exposed to antibodies in the host blood, a phenomenon of which we are targeting in our vaccine development strategy (63). A vaccine candidate, aspartic protease-1 (APR-1), has been identified from the adult blood-feeding stage of the parasite; a vaccine targeting APR-1 is aimed primarily at preventing effective nutrient uptake in the gut of the adult hookworm, effectively starving it to death (64). APR-1 is a protease involved in the haemoglobin digestion cascade within the gut of hookworms (65). It has been shown to be effective against both A. caninum infection in dogs (64,66) and N. americanus in hamsters (67). Indeed, the proposed mechanism by which APR-1 vaccines protect the host is via the induction of antibodies that neutralize the enzymatic activity of the protease, thus rendering it unable to digest haemoglobin and other blood proteins (Figure 1).

, 2003; Jasinskas et al., 2007; Heise et al., 2010; Andreotti Kinase Inhibitor Library purchase et al., 2011). In most studies, these bacteria

are present in almost 100% of ticks of both sexes. In a recent study, Andreotti et al. showed the presence of Coxiella-like bacteria in ovaries, eggs and adult males of Rh. microplus ticks. In ovaries, this constitutes more than 98% of all identified bacterial species. This may indicate that some bacteria of the Coxiella genus are tick-associated primary endosymbionts that can be transmitted vertically (Andreotti et al., 2011). Interestingly, the reproductive fitness of Amblyomma americanum infected with a Coxiella spp. endosymbiont was reduced by an antibiotic treatment (Zhong et al., 2007). Moreover, as expected for a tick symbiont, the genome of the Coxiella-like bacteria was reduced

Selleckchem KPT 330 in size as compared to C. burnetii genome, with a lack of several hypothetical proteins of C. burnetii including the recN gene product involved in DNA repair (Jasinskas et al., 2007). Bacteria of the genus Arsenophonus are considered as endosymbionts of many insects (hymenoptera, whiteflies, triatomine bugs, hippoboscidae flies and lice) (Novakova et al., 2009). Arsenophonus nasoniae induces the male-killing phenomenon in the wasp Nasonia vitripennis, a parasite of several fly species (Ferree et al., 2008). Interestingly, the strain of A. nasoniae was identified in hard ticks of the genera Amblyomma and Dermacentor in the USA (Clay et al., 2008; Dergousoff & Chilton, 2010). Recently, a strain almost identical to A. nasoniae from wasps was isolated from the nymph of a Ixodes ricinus tick collected in Slovakia. Molecular screening of the ticks from the same location showed that 37% of the nymphs contain this bacterium, while only 3.6% of adults do. This suggests that the bacterium is pathogenic towards early developmental stages of the tick or that its presence in ticks’ bodies depends on the developmental stage. A. nasoniae may play a role

in tick fitness and/or development, but data on the precise nature of the bacteria/tick relationship are still lacking. The pathogenicity Farnesyltransferase of Arsenophonus spp. for vertebrates is also yet unknown. The recently described bacterium D. massiliensis was isolated from the hard tick I. ricinus (Mediannikov et al., 2010). It is an obligate intracellular Gram-negative bacterium phylogenetically close to the genus Rickettsiella, a clade of intracellular bacteria that infect a wide range of arthropods including insects, crustaceans and arachnids (Fournier & Raoult, 2005). Further, it can be grouped into the Family Coxiellaceae and the Order Legionellales (Gammaproteobacteria). The Coxiellaceae Family currently includes three genera: Diplorickettsia, Coxiella and Rickettsiella (La Scola et al., 2001). Coxiella-like bacteria, as described above, should be placed in the same family, when isolated and fully characterized.

“
“Language learners rapidly acquire extensive semantic knowledge, but the development of this knowledge is difficult to study, in part because it is difficult to assess young children’s lexical semantic representations. In our studies, we solved this problem by investigating lexical semantic knowledge in 24-month-olds using the Head-turn Preference

Procedure. In Experiment 1, looking times to a repeating spoken word stimulus (e.g., kitty-kitty-kitty) were shorter for trials preceded by a semantically related word (e.g., dog-dog-dog) than trials preceded by an unrelated word (e.g., juice-juice-juice). Experiment 2 yielded similar results using a method in which pairs of words were presented on the same trial. The studies provide www.selleckchem.com/products/AG-014699.html evidence that young children activate of lexical semantic knowledge, selleck compound and critically, that they do so in the absence of visual referents or sentence contexts. Auditory lexical priming is a promising technique for studying the development and structure of semantic knowledge in young children. “
“The aim of this study was to examine the combined influences of infants’ attention and use of social cues in the prediction of their language outcomes. This longitudinal study measured infants’ visual attention on a distractibility task (11 months), joint attention (14 months), and language outcomes (word–object

association, 14 months; MBCDI vocabulary size and multi-word productions at 18 months of age). Path analyses were conducted for two different language outcomes. The analysis for vocabulary revealed unique direct prediction from infants’

visual attention on a distractibility task (i.e., maintaining attention to a target event in the presence of competing events) and joint attention (i.e., more frequent response selleck chemicals to tester’s bids for attention) for larger vocabulary size at outcome; this model accounted for 48% of variance in vocabulary, after controlling for baseline communication status (assessed at 11 months). The analysis for multi-word productions yielded direct effects for infants’ distractibility, but not joint attention; this model accounted for 45% of variance in multi-word productions, again after controlling for baseline communication status. Indirect effects were not significant in either model. Results are discussed in light of the unique predictive role of attentional factors and social/attention cues for emerging language. “
“Two studies illustrate the functional significance of a new category of prelinguistic vocalizing—object-directed vocalizations (ODVs)—and show that these sounds are connected to learning about words and objects. Experiment 1 tested 12-month-old infants’ perceptual learning of objects that elicited ODVs. Fourteen infants’ vocalizations were recorded as they explored novel objects.

Hypoxia is an important microenvironmental factor to which DCs have to adapt in diseased tissues [10, 11, 16]. Results shown in this study give a strong indication that chronic hypoxic conditions, similar to those present at pathologic sites, can functionally reprogram monocyte-derived iDCs by differentially AZD3965 nmr modulating the expression profile of genes coding for immune-related receptors. iDCs are specialized for antigen capture and processing and play a critical role in the induction of protective immunity

to microbial invasion [3, 5, 12, 27]. Microarray data suggest that iDCs development under chronic hypoxia is associated with the differential expression of various PRR-coding genes. Given the role of these molecules in the recognition of specific pathogen-associated molecular patterns on infectious agents [34], it is conceivable that hypoxia may contribute to the fine tuning of iDC antimicrobial activities through the selective modulation of these receptors. Of relevance is selleck products the upregulation of G2A and CD36, which function as endocytic receptors/transporters of lipoproteins and phospholipids and may thus be implicated in lipid-loaded

foam cell formation and atherosclerotic plaques development [2, 35]. Moreover, CD163 scavenger receptor, which is endowed with anti-inflammatory Silibinin and atheroprotective activities, is downregulated [41], consistent with the view that hypoxia exerts a pathogenic role in atherosclerosis [15, 36]. Antigen uptake, in concert with activation stimuli and tissue environmental factors, induces iDCs to mature into mDCs, which have a higher capacity for antigen presentation and T-cell priming [1, 3, 6, 12]. Interestingly, H-iDCs are induced to upregulate genes coding for both classical and nonclassical antigen-presenting receptors as well as molecules that associate with and promote MHC clustering and peptide presentation

and T-cell activation [31, 32], suggesting enhanced antigen-presenting ability of iDCs generated at hypoxic sites compared with that of cells in the bloodstream [10, 21, 38]. Hypoxia also affects the expression of a number of genes coding for inhibitory/stimulatory Ig-like immunoregulatory signaling receptors. Of relevance, mRNA for FcγRIIA, FcγRIIB, and FcεRII, which trigger phagocytosis and immune complex clearance, antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity and respiratory burst [33] is increased. The differential modulation of other Ig-like family members, the most relevant of which are SLAMF9, CD58, TREM-1, LIR9, CMRF-35H, and CD33-related Siglecs, is also noteworthy given the role of these molecules in triggering DCs maturation, proinflammatory cytokine production, and T-cell activating properties [26, 42, 43].

In the design phase, we defined the model scope, including: (a) the system-level behaviours that the model must reproduce to characterize the disease state adequately (e.g. hyperglycaemia); (b) the biological components,

functions and interactions needed to give rise to the system-level behaviours (e.g. cytotoxic CD8+ T lymphocytes, perforin-mediated β cell killing); and (c) the system-level behaviours against which the simulation results are compared in order to validate the virtual mouse (e.g. MAPK inhibitor diabetic remission in response to anti-CD3). System-level behaviours were selected based on general agreement within the community on key disease characteristics. Major biological components were selected based on demonstrated

importance in disease. For example, the inclusion of CD4+ T cells is supported by data demonstrating NOD mice genetically or therapeutically deficient in CD4+ T cells fail to progress to diabetes [11,12]. For validation, interventions were selected to probe the modelled biology vigorously, ensuring that the virtual mouse could meet multiple constraints. More specifically, interventions were selected that: targeted different aspects of the biology; The model scope (Table 1) was based on thorough review of the public literature. It was reviewed and approved by an independent scientific advisory board appointed by the American Diabetes Association. To provide a more detailed overview of the biology represented in the model, we describe the main model components, including their functional activities, modes Temozolomide research buy of interaction and a selection of pertinent

references. The complete set of references used in building and validating the model are contained within the model itself. The model simulates the quantities of the different cell populations, antigens and cytokines in the PLN and pancreatic islets (Fig. 1). The descriptions provided below reflect cellular activities in both the pancreas and PLN, except where noted. PLN and pancreas.  The PLN and pancreas are modelled as distinct tissue compartments. Interislet heterogeneity in leucocyte infiltration (i.e. co-existence of heavily, lightly and unfiltrated islets) and β cell destruction are mafosfamide well documented [13–16]. Given that this heterogeneity impacts residual β cell mass over time, we anticipated challenges in reproducing remission with a simplified representation of a single islet. Instead, 10 islets are modelled. Each islet represents a fraction (or ‘bin’) of the total islets in the pancreas of the NOD mouse. No islets are infiltrated at birth (at the start of a simulation), but with disease progression islets become progressively infiltrated with autoreactive immune cells, resulting in an increasing number of infiltrated islets. Islet β cells.

Subjects.  A detailed personal history

via questionnaires from 80 patients of 37 Czech families was obtained. All patients had laboratory and with two exceptions also clinical findings consistent with a diagnosis of HAE. The clinical phenotype of patients was graded using two scoring systems. The first one, based on the localization and frequency of attacks, was adopted from Cumming et al. [7] Cell Cycle inhibitor (score 1). The second one used the former system modified by adding criterion regarding the disease onset, and the disease severity was considered by a more complexed approach (score 2) (see Table 1 for details). Becasue of a lack of correlation among particular disease manifestations, patients were also grouped separately according to the number of oedema episodes per year, the age of first angiooedema episode and the overall disease buy Erlotinib severity (see Table 2). All phenotypic data were related to the period without treatment. The control group of general Czech

population included 104 umbilical cord blood samples obtained from consecutively born newborns of Caucasian origin. This group was supplemented by 255 heathy children for MBL2 genotyping [20]. All persons involved in the study (mothers in case of newborns and one of parents in case of children) provided a written statement of informed consent approved by the Ethics Committee of the Centre for Cardiovascular Surgery and Transplantation Brno. Molecular genetic analyses.  DNA was isolated from peripheral blood leucocytes using routine techniques. The polymorphisms −699g/c and 1098a/g

in the BDKR1, and −58c/t and 181c/t in the BDKR2 genes were detected using PCR with subsequent restriction analyses as described previously [16, 21, 22]. PCR products were visualized under UV light after electrophoresis in 3% agarose gel (NuSieve, FMC) and subsequent ethidium bromide staining. The polymorphism D/I in the Farnesyltransferase ACE gene was examined using PCR with forward (5′ GCC CTG CAG GTG TCT GCA TGT 3′) and reverse (5′ GGA TGG CTC TCC CCG CCT TGT CTC 3′) primers. Briefly, 100–500 ng of genomic DNA were combined with 25 μl of reaction mix containing 10 mm Tris (pH 8.4), 50 mm KCl, 0.2 mg/ml bovine serum albumin (BSA), 0.2 mm dNTP, 2.0 mm MgCl2, 1.0 μm of each primer and 1 U of Taq polymerase (MBI Fermentas). The PCR amplification was for thirty cycles at 95 °C for 30 s, 62 °C for 30 s and 72 °C for 90 s, with a terminal elongation at 72 °C for 7 min. PCR products of 312 and 599 bp corresponding to D and I variant, respectively, were visualized under UV light after electrophoresis on a 2% agarose ethidium bromide stained gel. Mannose-binding lectin 2 genotyping was performed using multiplex-PCR with sequence-specific primers, as described elsewhere [20]. Mutations in codons 52, 54 and 57 in the coding region and polymorphisms –550g/c and –221c/g in the promotor region of the MBL2 gene were detected.

The role of STAT3

for normal signalling of the IL-6 receptor has important consequences for normal host defence. Together with other cytokines such as IL-1β and IL-23, the IL-6/STAT3 pathway is crucial for the normal development of CD4+–T helper type 17 (Th17) cells [6,7]. Because IL-17 has an important role in the activation of neutrophil-dependent immunity [8], defective Th17 generation as a result of STAT3 mutation may play an important role in the pathogenesis of HIES. In a recent paper, Milner et al. have demonstrated that T lymphocytes from patients with HIES are unable to differentiate into Th17 after mitogenic stimulation [9]. These data were supported by two reports that also showed defective generation of Th17 when anti-CD3/anti-CD28/IL-2

or cytokine cocktails were used [10,11]. These studies reported the defective generation of Th17 using mitogenic cocktails in patients with established buy C59 wnt RAD001 solubility dmso mutations in the SH2 and DNA-binding domains of STAT3. In contrast, patients with atopic dermatitis and high IgE, but without skin and respiratory infections and without STAT3 mutations, had normal Th17 responses [9,12]. In the present paper, we aimed to extend these initial findings by investigating the generation of Th17 cells and IL-17 production by relevant microbial stimuli for HIES. In addition, we assessed Th17 profiles in three distinct groups of patients: ‘classical’ HIES patients with STAT3 mutations in the SH2/DNA-binding domains, ‘classical’ HIES without STAT3 mutations and a family with ‘variant’ HIES that we described as having a milder clinical phenotype [13], with deletion of a triplet in the linker domain. The differences in the degree of IL-17 production defects after stimulation with Staphylococcus aureus or Candida albicans determined the severity of the clinical phenotype. Eight patients with a clinical diagnosis of HIES at the out-patient clinic for infectious diseases and immunodeficiencies of the Department of General Internal Medicine ASK1 of Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre were enrolled into the study. Three of these patients were family members. After

informed consent, blood was collected from eight healthy, non-smoking volunteers who were free of infectious or inflammatory disease and the enrolled HIES patients by venipuncture into 10 ml ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) syringes (Monoject; BD Vacutainer, Plymouth, UK). STAT3 mutation analysis was kindly performed in the Laboratory of Human Molecular Biology and Genetics, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy (head Professor Roberto Colombo). C. albicans American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) MYA-3573 (UC820), a strain well described elsewhere [14], was used. C. albicans was grown overnight in Sabouraud broth at 37°C, cells were harvested by centrifugation, washed twice and resuspended in culture medium (RPMI-1640 Dutch modification; ICN Biomedicals, Aurora, OH, USA) [15]. C.

They should be counselled regarding the increased perioperative

risk and potential long-term risk of renal buy Carfilzomib disease and advised to lose weight prior to donation and encouraged to achieve their ideal weight following donation. American Society of Transplantation Position Statement on the Medical Evaluation of Living Kidney Donors (2007)89 Morbid obesity is an exclusion criterion. 1 Longitudinal assessment of the impact of obesity on the incidence of diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease in donors from ethnically diverse backgrounds. It is important that the appropriate control population be studied as donors should be healthier than the general population. Given that the life expectancy of most

donors is greater than 20 years, it would be important that such a study be carried out for an extended period of time (i.e. >20 years). Nicole Isbel has no relevant financial affiliations that would cause a conflict of interest according to the conflict of interest statement set down by CARI. “
“Aim:  To evaluate the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) four-level race equation in the Selleck Pembrolizumab assessment of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in Chinese people with chronic kidney disease (CKD), which was published in 2011, compared with the cystatin C-based GFR estimation equation (CysC GFR) and the combination of CysC and serum creatinine equation (CysC-Scr GFR). Methods:  The CKD-EPI four-level race equation estimated GFR (CKD-EPI GFR) was compared with the CysC GFR and CysC-Scr GFR. Three equations were compared with body surface area (BSA) standardized GFR (sGFR), which was measured by 99mTc-DTPA renal dynamic imaging method in 111 CKD cases. Results:  A statistically significant correlation was found between sGFR and CKD-EPI GFR, CysC GFR and CysC-Scr GFR. Three estimated GFR (eGFR) equations of 30% accuracy were 58.6%, 56.8% and 63.5%, respectively. Average deviations of eGFR from sGFR were 2.34, 1.19, and 1.32 (mL/min per 1.73 m2) (P > 0.05), respectively. There was no significant deviation in the CKD from stages 1 to 5 in CKD-EPI GFR and CysC-Scr

GFR. However, when estimated by CysC GFR, the deviation was increased, with the value Org 27569 of 12.41 mL/min per 1.73 m2 (P= 0.002) in CKD stage 5. Conclusion:  Our results showed that in a Chinese population with CKD, CKD-EPI GFR, CysC GFR and CysC-Scr GFR of bias and overall accuracy of 30% were very similar. There was little advantage in adding Asian coefficient to modifying the CKD-EPI equation. CysC GFR overestimated GFR in patients with CKD stages 4 and 5. “
“Aim:  There is conflict in published reports on the extent of availability of the functional renal reserve (RR) in healthy adults and in various stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The aim of the present study was to determine the RR in various stages of CKD.

In order to perform Western blot assays, HC– and SSc–MSC cells were pelleted, washed twice with PBS, lysed on ice in lysis buffer (1% Triton X-100, 0·5% NP-40, 50 mM Tris–Cl, pH 7·5, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, supplemented with 1 mM phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 1 mM NaF, 1 mM Na3VO4, 5 μg/ml aprotinin, 5 μg/ml leupeptin) for 30 min and cleared by centrifugation. The protein concentration was calculated by Bradford protein assay reagent (Bio-Rad, Hercules,

CA, USA). A 12% sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), under reducing conditions, was loaded with equal amount of proteins. All the loaded proteins were electrophoresed and then transferred to nitrocellulose EX 527 molecular weight membranes see more (Amersham Pharmacia Biotechnology, Piscataway, NJ, USA). After 1 h blocking at room temperature in blocking buffer [5% non-fat milk in Tris-buffered saline/1% Tween 20 (TBS/T)] and after washing three times for 5 min each in TBS/T, the membranes were incubated overnight at 4°C with the primary antibodies: p53 [DO-1-mouse monoclonal antibody (mAb); Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Santa Cruz, CA, USA], p21 (Waf1/Cip1-DCS60-mouse mAb; Cell Signaling, Danvers, MA, USA), diluted in 5% bovine

serum albumin in TBS/T. Following three washes with TBS/T, horseradish peroxidase-conjugated secondary antibody (Santa Cruz Biotechnology) diluted in blocking buffer was added for 30 min at room ID-8 temperature and washed three times with TBS/T. The

detection was performed by enhanced chemiluminescence detection (ECL) reaction (Amersham Pharmacia Biotechnology). All the signals were quantified by normalizing to the tubulin signal (CP06 anti-α-tubulin mouse mAb-DM1A). Total RNA was extracted from normally cultured, doxorubicin-treated and MSC co-cultured with peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) using Trizol (Sigma) reagent and reverse-transcribed into complementary DNA (cDNA) using ThermoScript reverse transcription–PCR kit (Invitrogen, San Diego, CA, USA). The qRT–PCR was performed using SYBR green kits (Applied Biosystems, Life Technologies distributors, Paisley, UK). Primers were designed on the basis of the reported sequences (PrimerBank NCBI; p21: 5′-TGGAGACTCTCAGGGTCGAAA-3′ (forward) and 5′- TCTACCACTCCAAACGCCG-3′ (reverse); p53: 5′-CCAGGGCAGCTACGGTTTC-3′ (forward) and 5′-CTCCGTCATGTGCTGTGACTG-3′ (reverse); β-actin: 5′- CCTGGCACCCAGCACAAT-3′ (forward) and 5′-AGTACTCCGTGTGGATCGGC-3′ (reverse); TGFβ: 5′-CTAATGGTGGAAACCCACAACG-3′ (forward) and 5′-TATCGCCAGGAATTGTTGCTG-3′ (reverse); and IL-6: 5′-AATTCGGTACATCCTCGAGGG-3′ (forward) and 5′-TTGGAAGGTTCAGGTTGTTTTCT-3′ (reverse). Ki67 and GAPDH gene expressions were assessed by commercial Taqman gene expression assay (assay ID: Hs01032443_m1; Hs02758991_g1, respectively). The RT–PCR was run in triplicate. Results were analysed after 40 cycles of amplification using the ABI 7500 Fast Real-Time PCR system.