Anti-CASP6 monoclonal antibody

Salivary gland tumors comprise a heterogeneous group of lesions with different histological features and diverse clinical pathophysiology. They account for about 3% of all head and neck tumors. Apoptosis plays an important role during morphogenesis of glandular structures, including that of the salivary gland. Recent studies have demonstrated that several microRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in the control of apoptosis. The aim of the present study was to determine the expression of apoptosis-related miRNAs (miR-15a, miR-16, miR-17-5p, miR-20a, miR-21, miR-29, and miR-34) and their target mRNAs in 25 pleomorphic adenomas, 23 mucoepidermoid carcinomas, and 10 non-neoplastic salivary gland samples by real-time RT-PCR. We observed upregulation of miR-15a, miR16, miR-17-5p, miR-21, miR-29, and miR-34a in pleomorphic adenomas. The expression of miR-21 and miR-34a was upregulated in 91 and 74% of mucoepidermoid carcinomas, respectively. Downregulation of miR-20a was observed in 75% of pleomorphic adenomas and in 57% of mucoepidermoid carcinomas. APAF1, BAX, BCL2, BID, CASP2, CASP8, DIABLO, and TP53 transcripts were upregulated in both tumor types. BAD transcripts were upregulated in pleomorphic adenomas. CASP3 and CASP6 transcripts were upregulated in mucoepidermoid carcinomas. BCL2, CASP2, CASP6, and CASP8 proteins were mostly absent in mucoepidermoid carcinomas but expressed in few cells in pleomorphic adenomas. Our study provides evidence of alterations in the expression of apoptosis-regulating miRNAs in salivary gland tumors, suggesting possible involvement of these microRNAs in salivary gland tumorigenesis.

This is a report of the assessment of the predictions made for the CASP6 protein structure prediction experiment conducted in 2004 in the New Fold (NF) category. There were nine protein domains that were judged to have new folds (NF) and 16 for which a similar structure was known but the sequence similarity was judged to be too low for them to be easily recognized (FR/A). We selected all NF targets and eight of the 16 FR/A targets judged to be at the borderline between NF and FR/A for evaluation in the NF category. A total of 165 prediction groups submitted over 7400 structural models for these targets. The quality of these models was evaluated using the GDT_TS scores of the structural similarity detection program LGA and by visual inspection of the top-scoring models. The best models submitted bore an overall similarity to the target structure for three or four of the nine NF targets and for all but one of the FR/A targets. High-scoring models for the NF targets were submitted by several different groups. When both the NF and FR/A targets were considered, Baker group dominated by submitting best models for seven of the 17 targets, but 14 other groups also managed to submit best models for one or more targets.