0000000000287193
AUTHOR
Bruno Tota
Coronary drainage in theOctopus vulgaris systemic heart
The vascular architecture of the coronary system of the systemic heart of the octopus (Octopus vulgaris) has been studied by means of both the corrosion-cast method and scanning electron microscopy. It is shown that the Octopus systemic heart myocardium is supplied through a very rich capillary network, the complexity of which probably reflects the complex organization of the ventricular wall. Drainage occurs by way of a classic venous system that originates from this capillary network. Morphological evidences are reported indicating that the coronary bed communicates directly with the ventricular lumen. In the isolated perfused systemic heart, the flow through this system is related direct…
Structural and Mechanical Characteristics of the Heart of the Icefish Chionodraco hamatus (Lönnberg)
The absence of haemoglobin from the blood of icefish, antarctic teleosts of the family Chaenichthydae, has stimulated important physiological mechanisms which serve to compensate for the absence of the respiratory pigment. In view of the central role played by the circulation in meeting the oxygen demands of the tissues, it is not surprising to find that the cardiocirculatory system has been extensively remodelled in icefish. These adaptations include: (1) increases in blood volume, from two to four times larger than that in many teleosts (Hemmingsen and Douglas 1970; Holeton 1970); (2) increases in blood flow associated with lowered oxygen demands (Hemmingsen and Douglas 1970; Holeton 1970…
Distinct signalling mechanisms are involved in the dissimilar myocardial and coronary effects elicited by quercetin and myricetin, two red wine flavonols
Abstract Background and Aims: Moderate red wine consumption associates with lower incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Attention to the source of this cardioprotection was focused on flavonoids, the non-alcoholic component of the red wine, whose intake inversely correlates with adverse cardiovascular events. We analysed whether two red wine flavonoids, quercetin and myricetin, affect mammalian basal myocardial and coronary function. Methods and results: Quercetin and myricetin effects were evaluated on isolated and Langendorff perfused rat hearts under both basal conditions and a- and b-adrenergic stimulation. The intracellular signalling involved in the effects of these flavonoids was ana…
New biological aspects of Chromogranin A-derived peptides: Focus on vasostatins
Chromogranin A (CgA), one component of the granin family, represents the major soluble protein co-stored and co-released with catecholamines, within chromaffin cells secretory granules. It is considered a diagnostic and prognostic marker of several diseases, including a variety of tumours and cardiac heart failure. It also represents a precursor of biologically active fragments, generated after proteolytic cleavage at the level of the multiple pairs of dibasic sites which enrich its sequence. CgA, and its derived fragments show an old evolutionary history being ubiquitously present throughout the animal word, from mammals to invertebrates. Their biological functions include control of hormo…
Comparative study of the arterial and lacunary systems of the ventricular myocardium of elasmobranch and teleost fishes.
The typical fish heart has a spongy trabeculated ventricular myocardium (spongiosa) supplied by the venous blood of the intertrabecular spaces (lacunae); hence it is called a "venous heart." However, in some fishes a more complex ventricular muscle is found (mixed type), in which the spongiosa is covered by an outer layer of densely arranged myocardial bundles (compacta). The compacta receives oxygenated blood from the coronary vessels. The objective of this study was to investigate relations between myoarchitecture and blood supply with an emphasis on the hitherto unexplored, putative vascular connections between the arterial and the lacunary circuits. Using histological methods combined w…
Cytoskeleton mediates negative inotropism and lusitropism of chromogranin A-derived peptides (human vasostatin1-78 and rat CgA(1-64)) in the rat heart
Cytoskeleton scaffold in cardiac myocytes provides structural support and compartmentalization of intracellular components. It is implicated in cardiac pathologies including hypertrophy and failure, playing a key role in the determinism of contractile and diastolic dysfunctions. Chromogranin A (CgA) and its derived peptides have revealed themselves as novel cardiovascular modulators. In humans, normal CgA levels considerably increase in several pathologies, including heart failure. Recent data have shown on the unstimulated rat heart that human recombinant Vasostatin-1 (hrVS-1) and rat chromogranin A 1-64 (rCgA(1-64)) induce negative inotropic and lusitropic effects counteracting the beta-a…
In vitro cardiac performance in the sub-antarctic notothenioids Eleginops maclovinus (subfamily eleginopinae), Paranotothenia magellanica, and Patagonotothen tessellata (subfamily nototheniinae)
There is lack of information concerning species diversification in the Non-Antarctic Nototheniid fish both in relation with their variation in organismal performance and in the morphofunctional characteristics underlying this variation. This work was designed to study in three Sub-Antarctic Nototheniids, Eleginops maclovinus, Patagonotothen tessellata, and Paranotothenia magellanica, cardiocirculatory features that may reflect interspecific differences in organismal performance, which in rum may explain aspects of evolutionary and ecological diversity. Haematocrit values were similar in all three species (between 28 and 3?), being in the range of that observed in other red-blooded Nototheni…