Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry Priciples for Free Access to Science
  Search:   
    >> Advanced Search

Guidelines | Subscriptions | About | exPRESS - Current - Archive | Business Information | Contact
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Morris, S. M.
Right arrow Articles by Stone, P. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Morris, S. M.
Right arrow Articles by Stone, P. J.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Complore   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?

Immunocytochemical study of the degradation of elastic fibers in a living extracellular matrix

SM Morris and PJ Stone

Biochemistry Department, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts, USA.

We used ultrastructural and immunocytochemical technique to follow the movement of human neutrophil elastase (HNE) and porcine pancreatic elastase (PPE) through a living extracellular matrix produced by cultured smooth muscle cells and to compare the effect of the two elastases on elastic fibers in situ. Although both enzymes solubilize elastin purified from these cultures at similar rates, PPE solubilized 11.5 times more elastin from the intact cultures than did HNE. The difference in the rate of elastin solubilization from the cultures parallels the degree of elastic fiber degradation and the emphysema- inducing potency of the two elastases when they are instilled into animal lungs. Immunohistochemical studies employing antibodies to HNE and PPE revealed that PPE penetrates the smooth muscle cell cultures more readily than does HNE. Because the amount of elastin in these cultures increases with increasing distance from the free surface, the lesser amounts of elastin solubilized by HNE may be partly due to poor penetration of HNE into the living extracellular matrix, resulting in limited access to elastin substrate. Ultrastructural and immunocytochemical studies indicated, however, that even when HNE does have access to elastin substrate, it is less efficient than PPE at penetrating and degrading individual elastic fibers.

Volume 43, Issue 11, pp. 1145-1153, 11/01/1995
Copyright © 1995 by The Histochemical Society


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Complore Complore   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Biophys. JHome page
L. D. Black, P. G. Allen, S. M. Morris, P. J. Stone, and B. Suki
Mechanical and Failure Properties of Extracellular Matrix Sheets as a Function of Structural Protein Composition
Biophys. J., March 1, 2008; 94(5): 1916 - 1929.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Appl. Physiol.Home page
L. D. Black, K. K. Brewer, S. M. Morris, B. M. Schreiber, P. Toselli, M. A. Nugent, B. Suki, and P. J. Stone
Effects of elastase on the mechanical and failure properties of engineered elastin-rich matrices
J Appl Physiol, April 1, 2005; 98(4): 1434 - 1441.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Appl. Physiol.Home page
H. Yuan, S. Kononov, F. S. A. Cavalcante, K. R. Lutchen, E. P. Ingenito, and B. Suki
Effects of collagenase and elastase on the mechanical properties of lung tissue strips
J Appl Physiol, July 1, 2000; 89(1): 3 - 14.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]



Guidelines | Subscriptions | About | exPRESS - Current - Archive | Business Information | Contact
The Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry is owned, published, and licensed by The Histochemical Society © 1995