Paulina Borkowska

Medical University of Silesia in Katowice | SUM · Department of Medical Genetics

One of the problems with using MSCs (mesenchymal stem cells) to treat different neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system is their low ability to spontaneously differentiate into functional neurons. The aim of this study was to investigate how the co-overexpression of the BCL and BDNF genes affects the ability of genetically modified...

Introduction: Nitric oxide (NO) is a potent modulator of programmed cell death, with the ability to both induce and prevent apoptosis. Some of the factors that are capable of triggering apoptosis of skin cells also cause NO overproduction in the epidermis. Unlike keratinocytes, melanin-producing melanocytes are highly resistant to apoptotic death....

The main problem with using MSC (mesenchymal stem cells) to treat the deficient diseases of the central nervous system is the low cell survival rate after the transplant procedure and their low ability to spontaneously differentiate into functional neurons. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of genetically modifying MSC. A co-over...

Background: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a heterogenous and highly vascularized brain tumor that avoid apoptosis due to P-glycoprotein (P-gp) mediated multi-drug resistance. Therefore, development of new therapeutic strategies that induce apoptosis and inhibit proliferation is urgently warranted. Objectives: We examined the efficacy of combi...

Background Nerve growth factor (NGF) is a protein exhibiting an influence on the neural development and also, its’ impact on the stem cells remains a great potential treatment strategy. The influence of its overexpression on the neural pathway differentiation on Wharton’s Jelly derived MSC (WJ-MSC) has not been studied so far, but considering the f...

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a cancer with extremely high aggressiveness, malignancy and mortality. Because of all of the poor prognosis features of GBM, new methods should be sought that will effectively cure it. We examined the efficacy of a combination of celastrol and a knockdown of the miR-9-2, miR-17 and miR-19 genes in the human glioblas...

Introduction Flavonoids are widely distributed in the wild. They constitute a large group of compounds that have a beneficial effect on the human body. Apigenin and kaempferol, which belong to the flavone subgroup, have, inter alia , an antitumor effect. The influence of these compounds on the survival of stem cells in a toxic environment has not y...

Introduction: There are many scientific reports on the beneficial effects of epigallocatechin gallate and resveratrol on the human body, e.g. antioxidant properties, a protective effect on the circulatory system and reduction of inflammation. Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of these substances on the survival of mesenchym...

Purpose: Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is a heterogenous and highly vascularized brain tumor that avoid apoptosis due to P-glycoprotein (P-gp) mediated multi-drug resistance. Therefore, development of new therapeutic strategies that induce apoptosis, inhibit proliferation, and overcome multi-drug resistance is urgently warranted. We examined the ef...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are potentially a good material for transplantation in many diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases. The main problem with using them is the low percentage of surviving cells after the transplant procedure and the naturally poor ability of MSC to spontaneously differentiate into certain types of cells, which resu...

Betulin (BT) is a natural pentacyclic lupane-type triterpene exhibiting anticancer activity. Betulin derivatives bearing propynoyloxy and phosphate groups were prepared in an effort to improve the availability and efficacy of the drug. In this study, a comparative assessment of the in vitro anticancer activity of betulin and its four derivatives wa...

Quantitative real time reverse transcription PCR, qRT-PCR, is one of the most important techniques for assessing the level of gene expression. Selecting the correct reference gene to normalize the results is a key step in this method. Inaccurate data can be generated if the correct reference gene is not selected. The level of the expression of refe...

Polyphenols such as apigenin, kaempferol or resveratrol are typically found in plants, including fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices, which have a wide range of biological functions such as antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, vasodilative, anticoagulative and proapoptotic. Discovering such multifunctional compounds in widely consumed plant-based pro...

Introduction: Epigenetic mechanisms regulate the transcription of genes, which can affect the differentiation of MSCs. The aim of the current work is to determine how the histone deacetylase inhibitors TSA and VPA affect the expression of neuronal lineage genes in a culture of rat MSCs (rMSCs). Materials and methods: We analyzed the expression o...

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant and invasive human brain tumor and it is characterized by a poor prognosis and short survival time. Current treatment strategies for GBM using surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy are ineffective. Thus new therapeutic strategies to target GBM are urgently needed. The effect of methylglyoxal (...

Background Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant and invasive human brain tumor, and it is characterized by a poor prognosis and short survival time. Current treatment strategies for GBM, using surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, are ineffective. The PI3K/AKT/PTEN signaling pathway is frequently deregulated in this cancer, and...

Background: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant and invasive human brain tumor and it is characterized by a poor prognosis and short survival time. The PI3K/AKT/PTEN signaling pathway plays a crucial role in GBM development and it is connected with the regulation of apoptosis and autophagy. Akt is involved in various aspects of can...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are able to differentiate into cells from all three germ layers. The aim of the current work was the differentiation rat MSCs into GABAergic, cholinergic and dopaminergic cells. In this paper, we present differentiation cocktails with a hippocampal astrocyte conditioned medium and with a glioblastoma conditioned medium...

Bone marrow is a valuable source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) that can be used in regenerative medicine. MSCs are able to differentiate into cells from all three germ layers under specific conditions. The aim of the current work was to study the differentiation of rat MSCs (rMSCs) into neuron-like cells. We investigated how the antidepressants...

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common primary brain malignancy, having a very poor prognosis and is characterized by extensive brain invasion as well as resistance to the therapy. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/PTEN signaling pathway is deregulated in GBM. Besides, florid vascularization and aberrantly elevated vascular endothe...

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant and invasive human brain tumor that is difficult to treat and has a very poor prognosis. Thus, new therapeutic strategies that target GBM are urgently needed. The PI3K/AKT/PTEN signaling pathway is frequently deregulated in a wide range of cancers. The present study was designed to examine the inh...

Introduction: Pentacyclic triterpenes are a group of compounds known to have anticancer activity. One of the best characterized triterpenes is betulin, which can be isolated from bark of birch trees and modified into new compounds with various interesting medical properties. Betulin is involved in activation of the caspase cascade and promotes cel...

HSP70 genes have been considered as promising schizophrenia candidate genes based on their protective role in the central nervous system under stress conditions. In this study, we analyzed the potential implication of HSPA1A +190G/C, HSPA1B +1267A/G, and HSPA1L +2437T/C polymorphisms in the susceptibility to paranoid schizophrenia in a homogenous C...

Numerous reports have brought attention to the potential role of cytokines in schizophrenia. The aim of the study was to determine whether polymorphisms of IL-2, IL-6, and TNFα genes are risk factors for development of paranoid schizophrenia in a Polish population. Promoter polymorphisms of IL-6 (rs1800795), TNFα (rs1800629), and IL-2 (rs2069762) g...

Numerous reports have brought attention to the potential role of cytokines in schizophrenia. The aim of the study was to determine whether polymorphisms of IL-2, IL-6, and TNFα genes are risk factors for development of paranoid schizophrenia in a Polish population. Promoter polymorphisms of IL-6 (rs1800795), TNFα (rs1800629), and IL-2 (rs2069762) g...

Changes in immunological system are one of dysfunctions reported in schizophrenia. Some changes based on an imbalance between Th1 and Th2 cytokines results from cytokine gene polymorphisms. Interleukin-4 gene (IL4) is considered as a potential candidate gene in schizophrenia association studies. The aim of the current case-control study was to exam...

To elucidate a genetic predisposition to major depressive disorder, we investigated two polymorphisms (-31T/C and -511C/T) in the interleukin-1beta promoter region in patients who suffered from major recurrent depression. The aim of the current work was to compare alleles and genotype layout between patients with major recurrent depression and heal...

Schizophrenia is a multifactorial disease with changes affecting the immune system. Dysregulation of the cytokine network in schizophrenia has been well documented. Such changes may occur due to disturbances in cytokine levels that are linked to polymorphisms of cytokine genes. However, research in the role of cytokine gene polymorphisms in schizop...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a heterogeneous disorder caused by a complex interaction of a large number of genetic and non-genetic factors as well as epigenetic processes. Extensive studies have identified several polymorphisms in genes encoding for serotonin transporter (SERT), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), monoamine oxidase (MAO...

Achondroplasia is the most common non-lethal skeletal dysplasia. This autosomal dominant disorder is caused by point mutation in the gene encoding the type 3 receptor for fibroblast growth factor FGFR3. Achondroplasia can be diagnosed prenatally postnatally or in blastomers before implantation. Molecular detection of achondroplasia is based on typi...