http://www.hindawi.comThe latest articles from Hindawi Publishing Corporation© 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.http://www.hindawi.com/GetArticle.aspx?doi=10.1155/2008/912478ABCC6 is a member of the adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette (ABC) gene subfamily C that encodes a protein (MRP6) involved in active transport of intracellular compounds to the extracellular environment. Mutations in ABCC6 cause pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE), an autosomal recessive disorder of the connective tissue characterized by progressive calcification of elastic structures in the skin, the eyes, and the cardiovascular system. MRP6 is codified by 31 exons and contains 1503 amino acids. In addition to a full-length transcript of ABCC6, we have identified an alternatively spliced variant of ABCC6 from a cDNA of human liver that lacks exons 19 and 24. The novel isoform was named ABCC6 Δ19Δ24. PCR analysis from cDNA of cell cultures of primary human hepatocites and embryonic kidney confirms the presence of the ABCC6Δ19Δ24 isoform. Western blot analysis of the embryonic kidney cells shows a band corresponding to the molecular weight of the truncated protein.Maria Francesca Armentano, Angela Ostuni, Vittoria Infantino, Vito Iacobazzi, Maria Antonietta Castiglione Morelli, and Faustino Bisaccia© 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.http://www.hindawi.com/GetArticle.aspx?doi=10.1155/2008/801849Metabolic pulse-chase experiments demonstrated that 25-hydroxycholesterol (25-OH), the endogenous activator of the liver X receptor (LXR), significantly reduced the biosynthesis of phosphatidylethanolamine via CDP-ethanolamine (Kennedy) pathway at the step catalyzed by CTP: phosphoethanolamine cytidylyltransferase (Pcyt2). In the mouse embryonic fibroblasts C3H10T1/2, the LXR synthetic agonist TO901317 lowered Pcyt2 promoter-luciferase activity in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, 25-OH and TO901317 reduced mouse Pcyt2 mRNA and protein levels by 35–60%. The inhibitory effects of oxysterols and TO901317 on the Pcyt2 promoter function, mRNA and protein expression were conserved in the human breast cancer cells MCF-7. These studies identify the Pcyt2 gene as a novel target whereby LXR agonists may indirectly modulate inflammatory responses and atherosclerosis.Lin Zhu and Marica Bakovic© 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.http://www.hindawi.com/GetArticle.aspx?doi=10.1155/2008/639829Clotting blood contains fibrin-bound thrombin, which is a major source of procoagulant activity leading to clot extension and further activation of coagulation. When bound to fibrin, thrombin is protected from inhibition by antithrombin (AT) + heparin but is neutralized when AT and heparin are covalently linked (ATH). Here, we report the surprising observation that, rather than yielding an inert complex, thrombin-ATH formation converts clots into anticoagulant surfaces that effectively catalyze inhibition of thrombin in the surrounding environment.Lesley J. Smith, Tracy Anne Mewhort-Buist, Leslie R. Berry, and Anthony K. C. Chan© 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.