title: Characterization of transforming growth factors beta1 and 2 in ferrets (Mustela putorius furo).
abstract: Unwanted scar tissue after surgical procedures remains a central problem in medicine. Nowhere is this problem more evident than within the pediatric airway, where excess scarring, termed subglottic stenosis, can compromise breathing. Recent advances in molecular biology have focused on ways to decrease scar formation through understanding of the wound repair process. Transforming growth factor beta (TFGbeta) plays a central role in this pathway. Ferrets serve as an ideal model for the pediatric airway, and reproduction of subglottic stenosis in ferrets is possible. However, ferret cytokine profiles have not been established. In this study, we characterized the presence and nucleotide sequence of the TGFbeta1 and 2 genes in ferrets by using total RNA isolated from airways. Amino acid sequence homology between human and ferret was determined to be 96.6% for TGFbeta1 and 99.3% for TGFbeta2. Given the nearly total homology between TGFbetas of ferret and human origin, the ferret may serve as an ideal model for future molecular studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, HI, USA. andrew.senchak@amedd.army.mil
authors.forename: Andrew J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Senchak
authors.forename: Aileen K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Raymond
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vazquez
authors.forename: Christopher E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Keller
authors.forename: Benjamin B
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Cable
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002648:Child; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D005289:Ferrets / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D023421:Models, Animal; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013045:Species Specificity; D014132:Trachea / Q000473:pathology; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000235:genetics*; D053781:Transforming Growth Factor beta2 / Q000235:genetics*; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D053781:Transforming Growth Factor beta2