0000000000417329

AUTHOR

Andreas Steege

Identification of the Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor Subtype Mediating Cholinergic Vasodilation in Murine Retinal Arterioles

To identify the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtype that mediates cholinergic vasodilation in murine retinal arterioles.Muscarinic receptor gene expression was determined in murine retinal arterioles using real-time PCR. To assess the functional relevance of muscarinic receptors for mediating vascular responses, retinal vascular preparations from muscarinic receptor-deficient mice were studied in vitro. Changes in luminal arteriole diameter in response to muscarinic and nonmuscarinic vasoactive substances were measured by video microscopy.Only mRNA for the M(3) receptor was detected in retinal arterioles. Thus, M(3) receptor-deficient mice (M3R(-/-)) and respective wild-type controls …

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Role of α1-adrenoceptor subtypes on corneal epithelial thickness and cell proliferation in mice

Adrenergic stimuli are important for corneal epithelial structure and healing. The purpose of the present study was to examine the hypothesis that the lack of a single α1-adrenoceptor (α1-AR) subtype affects corneal epithelial thickness and cell proliferation. Expression levels of α1-AR mRNA were determined in mouse cornea using real-time PCR. In mice devoid of one of the three α1-AR subtypes (α1A-AR−/−, α1B-AR−/−, α1D-AR−/−) and in wild-type controls, thickness of individual corneal layers, the number of epithelial cell layers, and average epithelial cell size were determined in cryosections. Endothelial cell density and morphology were calculated in corneal explants, and epithelial cell p…

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Role of the M3 Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor Subtype in Murine Ophthalmic Arteries After Endothelial Removal

We tested the hypothesis that the M3 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtype mediates cholinergic responses in murine ophthalmic arteries after endothelial removal.Muscarinic receptor gene expression was determined in ophthalmic arteries with intact and with removed endothelium using real-time PCR. To examine the role of the M3 receptor in mediating vascular responses, ophthalmic arteries from M3 receptor-deficient mice (M3R(-/-)) and respective wild-type controls were studied in vitro. Functional studies were performed in nonpreconstricted arteries with either intact or removed endothelium using video microscopy.In endothelium-intact ophthalmic arteries, mRNA for all five muscarinic rece…

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Functional Role of α1-Adrenoceptor Subtypes in Murine Ophthalmic Arteries

PURPOSE To identify the α(1)-adrenoceptor (α(1)-AR) subtypes mediating vascular adrenergic responses in murine ophthalmic arteries. METHODS Expression of mRNA was quantified for individual α(1)-AR subtypes in murine ophthalmic arteries using real-time PCR. To assess the functional relevance of α(1)-ARs for mediating vascular responses, ophthalmic arteries from mice deficient in one of the three α(1)-AR subtypes (α(1A)-AR(-/-), α(1B)-AR(-/-), and α(1D)-AR(-/-), respectively) and wild-type controls were isolated, cannulated with micropipettes, and pressurized. Changes in luminal artery diameter in response to the α(1)-AR agonist phenylephrine, the sympathetic transmitter noradrenaline, and to…

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Cholinergic Responses of Ophthalmic Arteries in M3and M5Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor Knockout Mice

PURPOSE. To determine the functional role of M 3 and M 5 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes in ophthalmic arteries using gene-targeted mice. METHODS. Muscarinic receptor gene expression was quantified in murine ophthalmic arteries using real-time PCR. To test the functional relevance of M 3 and M 5 receptors, ophthalmic arteries from mice deficient in either subtype (M3R -/- , M5R -/- , respectively) and wild-type controls were isolated, cannulated with micropipettes, and pressurized. Changes in luminal vessel diameter in response to muscarinic and nonmuscarinic receptor agonists were measured by video microscopy. RESULTS. With the use of real-time PCR, all five muscarinic receptor …

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The α1B-adrenoceptor subtype mediates adrenergic vasoconstriction in mouse retinal arterioles with damaged endothelium

Background and Purpose The α1-adrenoceptor family plays a critical role in regulating ocular perfusion by mediating responses to catecholamines. The purpose of the present study was to determine the contribution of individual α1-adrenoceptor subtypes to adrenergic vasoconstriction of retinal arterioles using gene-targeted mice deficient in one of the three adrenoceptor subtypes (α1A-AR−/−, α1B-AR−/− and α1D-AR−/− respectively). Experimental Approach Using real-time PCR, mRNA expression for individual α1-adrenoceptor subtypes was determined in murine retinal arterioles. To assess the functional relevance of the three α1-adrenoceptor subtypes for mediating vascular responses, retinal vascular…

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Contribution of nitric oxide synthase isoforms to cholinergic vasodilation in murine retinal arterioles.

Abstract Nitric oxide synthases (NOSs) are critically involved in regulation of ocular perfusion. However, the contribution of the individual NOS isoforms to vascular responses is unknown in the retina. Because some previous findings suggested an involvement of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the regulation of retinal vascular tone, a major goal of the present study was to examine the hypothesis that iNOS is involved in mediating cholinergic vasodilation responses of murine retinal arterioles. Another subject of this study was to test the contribution of the other two NOS isoforms, neuronal (nNOS) and endothelial NOS (eNOS), to cholinergic retinal arteriole responses. Expression o…

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Role of  1-Adrenoceptor Subtypes in Pupil Dilation Studied With Gene-Targeted Mice

PURPOSE The α₁A-adrenoceptor (α₁A-AR) subtype was suggested to mediate contraction and trophic effects in the iris dilator muscle, and thus its pharmacological blockade may be involved in intraoperative floppy iris syndrome. We tested the hypothesis that the α₁A-AR mediates pupil dilation and trophic effects in the mouse iris. METHODS The α₁-AR subtype mRNA expression was quantified in iris tissue by real-time PCR. To assess the role of individual α₁-ARs for mediating pupil dilation, the α₁-AR agonist phenylephrine was topically applied to the ocular surface of mice deficient in one of the three α₁-AR subtypes (α₁A-AR(-/-), α₁B-AR(-/-), α₁D-AR(-/-), respectively) and wild-type controls. Cha…

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