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Institution

University of Turku

EducationTurku, Finland
About: University of Turku is a education organization based out in Turku, Finland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Galaxy. The organization has 16296 authors who have published 45124 publications receiving 1505428 citations. The organization is also known as: Turun yliopisto & Åbo universitet.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results demonstrate that A. muciniphila adheres to the intestinal epithelium and strengthens enterocyte monolayer integrity in vitro, suggesting an ability to fortify an impaired gut barrier.
Abstract: Akkermansia muciniphila is a Gram-negative mucin-degrading bacterium that resides in the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and animals. A. muciniphila has been linked with intestinal health and improved metabolic status in obese and type 2 diabetic subjects. Specifically, A. muciniphila has been shown to reduce high-fat-diet-induced endotoxemia, which develops as a result of an impaired gut barrier. Despite the accumulating evidence of the health-promoting effects of A. muciniphila, the mechanisms of interaction of the bacterium with the host have received little attention. In this study, we used several in vitro models to investigate the adhesion of A. muciniphila to the intestinal epithelium and its interaction with the host mucosa. We found that A. muciniphila adheres strongly to the Caco-2 and HT-29 human colonic cell lines but not to human colonic mucus. In addition, A. muciniphila showed binding to the extracellular matrix protein laminin but not to collagen I or IV, fibronectin, or fetuin. Importantly, A. muciniphila improved enterocyte monolayer integrity, as shown by a significant increase in the transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) of cocultures of Caco-2 cells with the bacterium. Further, A. muciniphila induced interleukin 8 (IL-8) production by enterocytes at cell concentrations 100-fold higher than those for Escherichia coli, suggesting a very low level of proinflammatory activity in the epithelium. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that A. muciniphila adheres to the intestinal epithelium and strengthens enterocyte monolayer integrity in vitro, suggesting an ability to fortify an impaired gut barrier. These results support earlier associative in vivo studies and provide insights into the interaction of A. muciniphila with the host.

395 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
05 Oct 2012-Science
TL;DR: This work tested the prediction that Insect herbivores are hypothesized to be major factors affecting the ecology and evolution of plants by suppressing insects in replicated field populations of a native plant, Oenothera biennis, which reduced seed predation, altered interspecific competitive dynamics, and resulted in rapid evolutionary divergence.
Abstract: Insect herbivores are hypothesized to be major factors affecting the ecology and evolution of plants. We tested this prediction by suppressing insects in replicated field populations of a native plant, Oenothera biennis, which reduced seed predation, altered interspecific competitive dynamics, and resulted in rapid evolutionary divergence. Comparative genotyping and phenotyping of nearly 12,000 O. biennis individuals revealed that in plots protected from insects, resistance to herbivores declined through time owing to changes in flowering time and lower defensive ellagitannins in fruits, whereas plant competitive ability increased. This independent real-time evolution of plant resistance and competitive ability in the field resulted from the relaxation of direct selective effects of insects on plant defense and through indirect effects due to reduced herbivory on plant competitors.

395 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The coevolutionary interactions between plants and butterflies are examined, and evidence for an escalating evolutionary arms-race is uncovered, providing an important connection between the origins of biodiversity, coev evolution, and the role of gene and genome duplications as a substrate for novel traits.
Abstract: Coevolutionary interactions are thought to have spurred the evolution of key innovations and driven the diversification of much of life on Earth. However, the genetic and evolutionary basis of the innovations that facilitate such interactions remains poorly understood. We examined the coevolutionary interactions between plants (Brassicales) and butterflies (Pieridae), and uncovered evidence for an escalating evolutionary arms-race. Although gradual changes in trait complexity appear to have been facilitated by allelic turnover, key innovations are associated with gene and genome duplications. Furthermore, we show that the origins of both chemical defenses and of molecular counter adaptations were associated with shifts in diversification rates during the arms-race. These findings provide an important connection between the origins of biodiversity, coevolution, and the role of gene and genome duplications as a substrate for novel traits.

394 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It took more than 100 years before it was established that the proteins that form intermediate filaments (IFs) comprise a unified protein family, the members of which are ubiquitous in virtually all differentiated cells and present both in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus.
Abstract: It took more than 100 years before it was established that the proteins that form intermediate filaments (IFs) comprise a unified protein family, the members of which are ubiquitous in virtually all differentiated cells and present both in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus. However, during the past 2 decades, knowledge regarding the functions of these structures has been expanding rapidly. Many disease-related roles of IFs have been revealed. In some cases, the molecular mechanisms underlying these diseases reflect disturbances in the functions traditionally assigned to IFs, i.e., maintenance of structural and mechanical integrity of cells and tissues. However, many disease conditions seem to link to the nonmechanical functions of IFs, many of which have been defined only in the past few years.

393 citations


Authors

Showing all 16461 results

NameH-indexPapersCitations
Kari Alitalo174817114231
Mika Kivimäki1661515141468
Jaakko Kaprio1631532126320
Veikko Salomaa162843135046
Markus W. Büchler148154593574
Eugene C. Butcher14644672849
Steven Williams144137586712
Terho Lehtimäki1421304106981
Olli T. Raitakari1421232103487
Pim Cuijpers13698269370
Jeroen J. Bax132130674992
Sten Orrenius13044757445
Aarno Palotie12971189975
Stefan W. Hell12757765937
Carlos López-Otín12649483933
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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers from the Institution in previous years
YearPapers
2023102
2022290
20212,673
20202,688
20192,407
20182,189