Faculty of Health Sciences
School of Medicine
Department of Physiology
Selected Highlights from Research Findings
Researchers in the Department of Physiology report that that since there is an indication that strict regulation of oestradiol metabolism in breast tissue is necessary for homeostasis of cell numbers, attempts are being made to develop a novel diagnostic tool to predict susceptibility for the development of breast cancer. The action mechanism of a synthetic analogue of 2-methoxyestradiol is currently being investigated on gene expression profiles in vitro. Molecular mechanisms and cell signaling events associated with this analogue will enable researchers to focus on affected cellular mechanisms and contribute to the clarification of, and the extrapolation to breast tissue in vivo with possible diagnostic and/or prognostic value.
Contact person: Prof AM Joubert.
During bone remodeling bone is resorbed by osteoclasts and replaced again by osteoblasts through the process of bone formation. Clinical trials and in vivo animal studies suggest that specific polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) might benefit bone health. As the number of functional osteoblasts is important for bone formation the effects of specific PUFAs on in vitro osteoblastic cell proliferation were investigated. Morphological studies were conducted to determine whether exposure of the cells to these agents caused structural damage to the cells thereby yielding invalid results. Results from this study showed that arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) both inhibit cell growth significantly at high concentrations. The antimitotic effect of AA is possibly independent of PGE2 production, as PGE2 per se had little effect on proliferation. Further study is required to determine whether reduced proliferation due to fatty acids could be due to increased differentiation of osteoblasts to the mature mineralising osteoblastic phenotype.
Contact person: Dr M Coetzee.
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