Search results for "Extracellular space"
showing 10 items of 71 documents
Stimulatory and inhibitory effects of ethanol on hippocampal acetylcholine release
1998
Using the microdialysis technique and sensitive HPLC procedures for the determination of acetylcholine (ACh) and ethanol, we investigated the release of ACh in rat hippocampus after acute ethanol administration. Systemic administration of ethanol (0.8 and 2.4 g/kg i.p.) led to peak ethanol concentrations of 21 and 42 mM in the hippocampus, respectively. The high dose caused a long-lasting inhibition of basal ACh release by up to 33%. Local infusion of scopolamine (1 microM) enhanced hippocampal ACh release up to eightfold in the presence of neostigmine (10 microM), and this stimulated release was also inhibited after systemic ethanol administration (by up to 45%). The low dose of ethanol (0…
Evidence that depletion of internal calcium stores sensitive to noradrenaline elicits a contractile response dependent on extracellular calcium in ra…
1993
1. Noradrenaline 1 microM induced a contractile response in rat isolated aorta in the presence or in the absence of extracellular Ca2+ with depletion of intracellular Ca2+ stores. Thereafter, during incubation in the presence of Ca2+, an increase in the resting tone was observed. Such a contractile response did not occur after exposure to caffeine or 5-hydroxytryptamine. 2. This increase in tension was inhibited in a concentration-dependent manner by alpha-adrenoceptor antagonists (prazosin, phentolamine and yohimbine), the non-specific relaxing compound, papaverine and by the Ca(2+)-entry blocker, nifedipine. Therefore, this contractile process is related to depletion of Ca2+ stores sensit…
Inactivation and tachyphylaxis of heat-evoked inward currents in nociceptive primary sensory neurones of rats.
2000
In contrast to other sensory modalities, pain does not decrease when a noxious stimulus is applied at constant intensity (Greene & Hardy, 1962). From this lack of adaptation on the perceptive level it has traditionally been implied that primary nociceptive afferents also do not adapt upon constant stimulation. This is in contrast to the results of recordings from these afferents, which exhibit pronounced adaptation for physical as well as chemical stimuli (Meyer et al. 1994). Peripheral adaptation of nociceptive nerve endings is compensated by central summation (Mendell & Wall, 1965; Price et al. 1977); this slow summation process of small fibre input to the dorsal horn of the spinal cord i…
Dopamine agonist cabergoline reduces hemoconcentration and ascites in hyperstimulated women undergoing assisted reproduction.
2007
Abstract Context: Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) results from increased vascular permeability (VP) caused by ovarian hypersecretion of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which activates its receptor-2. In animals, the dopamine receptor 2 agonist cabergoline (Cb2) inactivates VEGF receptor-2 and prevents increased VP. Objective: Our objective was to test whether Cb2 reduces VP and prevents OHSS in humans. Design: We conducted a prospective, randomized, double-blind study on oocyte donors at risk of developing OHSS (>20 follicles, >12 mm developed, and >20 oocytes retrieved). Interventions: Cb2 0.5 mg/d (n = 37) or a placebo (n = 32) was administered fro…
CD73-generated extracellular adenosine in chronic lymphocytic leukemia creates local conditions counteracting drug-induced cell death
2011
Abstract Extracellular adenosine (ADO), generated from ATP or ADP through the concerted action of the ectoenzymes CD39 and CD73, elicits autocrine and paracrine effects mediated by type 1 purinergic receptors. We have tested whether the expression of CD39 and CD73 by chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells activates an adenosinergic axis affecting growth and survival. By immunohistochemistry, CD39 is widely expressed in CLL lymph nodes, whereas CD73 is restricted to proliferation centers. CD73 expression is highest on Ki-67+ CLL cells, adjacent to T lymphocytes, and is further localized to perivascular areas. CD39+/CD73+ CLL cells generate ADO from ADP in a time- and concentration-dependen…
Hsp60 is actively secreted by human tumor cells
2010
Background Hsp60, a Group I mitochondrial chaperonin, is classically considered an intracellular chaperone with residence in the mitochondria; nonetheless, in the last few years it has been found extracellularly as well as in the cell membrane. Important questions remain pertaining to extracellular Hsp60 such as how generalized is its occurrence outside cells, what are its extracellular functions and the translocation mechanisms that transport the chaperone outside of the cell. These questions are particularly relevant for cancer biology since it is believed that extracellular chaperones, like Hsp70, may play an active role in tumor growth and dissemination. Methodology/Principal Findings S…
Signal transduction pathways involved in the mechanical responses to protease-activated receptors in rat colon.
2002
Recording simultaneously in vitro the changes of endoluminal pressure (index of circular muscle activity) and isometric tension (index of longitudinal muscle activity), we examined the mechanisms responsible for the apamin-sensitive relaxant and contractile responses induced by protease-activated receptor (PAR)-1 and PAR-2 activating peptides, SFLLRN-NH2 and SLIGRL-NH2, respectively, in rat colon. In the circular muscle, the inhibitory effects of SFLLRN-NH2 and SLIGRL-NH2 were significantly reduced by ryanodine, an inhibitor of Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum, but unaffected by 1-[6-[[17beta-methoxyestra-1,3,5(10)-trien-17-yl]amino]hexyl]-1H-pyrrole-2,5-dione (U73122), a phosph…
Modulatory role of magnesium on the contractile response of rat aorta to several agonists in normal and calcium-free medium.
1993
Abstract Acute withdrawal of external Mg2+ increased basal tone of rat isolated aorta incubated in the presence of Ca2+. Above normal levels of Mg2+ (1–4 Mm) inhibited basal tone while much higher levels of the divalent cation (64–256 Mm) evoked contractile responses regardless of the presence of Ca2+. Contractile responses to noradrenaline (1μm) and KCl (80 Mm) were inhibited by addition of cumulative concentrations of Mg2+. Acetylcholine-induced contractions in the presence of physiological concentrations of Mg2+ (1 Mm) decreased gradually to the basal tone, but a sustained contraction was observed in the absence of this ion. In Ca2+-free medium, acetylcholine-induced phasic responses ind…
Biochemical evidence that the atypical antipsychotic drugs clozapine and risperidone block 5-HT(2C) receptors in vivo.
2002
Clozapine and risperidone are two atypical antipsychotic drugs which bind, among other receptors, to 5-HT(2C) receptor subtypes. They inhibit the basal inositol phosphate production in mammalian cells expressing rat or human 5-HT(2C) receptors. This biochemical effect is indicative of inverse agonist activity at these receptors. There is evidence that 5-HT(2C) receptors are involved in the control of the activity of central dopaminergic system. Therefore, the effects of clozapine (5 mg/kg ip), risperidone (0.08 mg/kg ip) and of the typical antipsychotic haloperidol (0.1 mg/kg ip) were studied on the extracellular concentration of dopamine (DA) in the nucleus accumbens of chloral hydrate-ane…
Requirement of caveolae microdomains in extracellular signal-regulated kinase and focal adhesion kinase activation induced by endothelin-1 in primary…
1999
Endothelin-1 (ET-1) mitogenic activity in astrocytes is mediated by the activation of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway together with the Rho-dependent activation of the focal adhesion kinase (FAK) pathway. To clarify the mechanisms responsible for the coordinate activation of both pathways in the ET-1 signal propagation, the involvement of caveolae microdomains, suggested to play a role in signal transduction, was evaluated. In this study, it is reported that caveolae of primary astrocytes are enriched in endothelin receptor (ETB-R). Furthermore, signaling molecules such as the adaptor proteins Shc and Grb2, and the small G protein Rho, also reside within these microd…