Abnormally pulsatile umbilical artery (UA) Doppler ultrasound velocity waveforms are a hallmark of severe or early onset placental-mediated intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), whereas milder late onset IUGR pregnancies typically have normal UA …

Numerous epidemiological studies suggested that there is a variable cancer risk in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In the present study, the role of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) has …

Prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) targeted microbubbles (MBs) were developed using bioorthogonal chemistry. Streptavidin-labeled MBs were treated with a biotinylated tet- razine (MBTz) and targeted to PSMA expressing cells using trans-cyclooctene …

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal disease characterized by a prominent desmoplastic stroma that may constrain tumor progression but also limit the access of therapeutic drugs. In this study, we explored a tumor-targeting strategy …

RATIONALE Mutations in ACTA2, encoding the smooth muscle isoform of α-actin, cause thoracic aortic aneurysms, acute aortic dissections, and occlusive vascular diseases. OBJECTIVE We sought to identify the mechanism by which loss of smooth muscle α-actin …

Tendons are a mechanosensitive tissue, which enables them to transmit to bone forces that are derived from muscle. Patients with tendon injuries, such as tendinopathy or tendon rupture, were often observed with matrix degeneration, and the healing of …

Arterial stiffness can be evaluated by calculating pulse wave velocity (PWV), i.e., the speed with which the pulse wave travels in a conduit vessel. This parameter is being increasingly investigated in small rodent models in which it is used for assessing …

AIMS: Regulatory proteins of the sarcomere are pivotal for normal heart function and when affected by mutations are frequently causing cardiomyopathy. The exact function of these regulatory proteins and how mutations in these translate into distinct …

The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is an important organism as a model for understanding vertebrate cardiovascular development. However, little is known about adult ZF cardiac function and how contractile function changes to cope with fluctuations in ambient …

Background Echocardiography is a valuable noninvasive technique to estimate cardiac output (CO) from the left ventricle (LV) not only in clinical practice but also in small-animal experiments. CO is used to grade cardiac function and is especially …