title: Drop of connexin 43 in replicative senescence of human fibroblasts HEL-299 as a possible biomarker of senescence.
abstract: The expression of connexin 43 (cx43) and cell-cell communication were studied in replicative senescence of cultured HEL-299 fibroblasts. A progressive decrease in fluorescent dye transfer was detected by a scrape-loading technique in aging fibroblasts. This change was accounted for by a marked decrease in the amount of cx43 in aging cells, as detected by western blot analysis (cell extracts) and indirect fluorescence (cells in culture). However, semiquantitative RT-PCR assays of cx43 mRNA did not reveal appreciable changes, which suggests several possible explanations for the mechanism(s) underlying the decrease of cx43 in aging cells. These findings support the idea that the reduced expression of cx43 might be a biomarker of cell senescence.
authors.affiliation: Institute of General Pathology, University of Milan, CNR Center for Research in Cellular Pathology, Via L. Mangiagalli 31, 20133 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Statuto
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bianchi
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Perego
authors.forename: Ugo
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Del Monte
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers; D002450:Cell Communication; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D016922:Cellular Senescence / Q000502:physiology*; D018031:Connexin 43 / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000502:physiology; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes / Q000502:physiology; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D018031:Connexin 43; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex