Search results for "membrane potentials"
showing 10 items of 149 documents
Glutamine potentiates TNF-α-induced tumor cytotoxicity
2001
L-glutamine (Gln) sensitizes tumor cells to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha-induced cytotoxicity. The type and mechanism of cell death induced by TNF-alpha was studied in Ehrlich ascites tumor (EAT)-bearing mice fed a Gln-enriched diet (GED; where 30% of the total dietary nitrogen was from Gln). A high rate of Gln oxidation promotes a selective depletion of mitochondrial glutathione (mtGSH) content to approximately 58% of the level found in tumor mitochondria of mice fed a nutritionally complete elemental diet (standard diet, SD). The mechanism of mtGSH depletion involves a glutamate-induced inhibition of GSH transport from the cytosol into mitochondria. The increase in reactive oxygen in…
Glucagon-like peptide-2 modulates neurally evoked mucosal chloride secretion in guinea pig small intestine in vitro
2009
Glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) is an important neuroendocrine peptide in intestinal physiology. It influences digestion, absorption, epithelial growth, motility, and blood flow. We studied involvement of GLP-2 in intestinal mucosal secretory behavior. Submucosal-mucosal preparations from guinea pig ileum were mounted in Ussing chambers for measurement of short-circuit current ( Isc) as a surrogate for chloride secretion. GLP-2 action on neuronal release of acetylcholine was determined with ELISA. Enteric neuronal expression of the GLP-2 receptor (GLP-2R) was studied with immunohistochemical methods. Application of GLP-2 (0.1–100 nM) to the serosal or mucosal side of the preparations evoke…
The endocannabinoid system controls key epileptogenic circuits in the hippocampus.
2006
SummaryBalanced control of neuronal activity is central in maintaining function and viability of neuronal circuits. The endocannabinoid system tightly controls neuronal excitability. Here, we show that endocannabinoids directly target hippocampal glutamatergic neurons to provide protection against acute epileptiform seizures in mice. Functional CB1 cannabinoid receptors are present on glutamatergic terminals of the hippocampal formation, colocalizing with vesicular glutamate transporter 1 (VGluT1). Conditional deletion of the CB1 gene either in cortical glutamatergic neurons or in forebrain GABAergic neurons, as well as virally induced deletion of the CB1 gene in the hippocampus, demonstrat…
Homogenous glycine receptor expression in cortical plate neurons and cajal-retzius cells of neonatal rat cerebral cortex
2004
Glycinergic membrane responses have been described in cortical plate neurons (CPn) and Cajal-Retzius cells (CRc) during early neocortical development. In order to elucidate the functional properties and molecular identity of glycine receptors in these two neuronal cell types, we performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings and subsequent single-cell multiplex reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analyses on visually identified neurons in tangential and coronal slices as well as in situ hybridizations of coronal slices from neonatal rat cerebral cortex (postnatal days 0-4). In both CPn and CRc the glycinergic agonists glycine, beta-alanine and taurine induced inward curren…
Ursodeoxycholic acid protects against secondary biliary cirrhosis in rats by preventing mitochondrial oxidative stress
2004
Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) improves clinical and biochemical indices in primary biliary cirrhosis and prolongs survival free of liver transplantation. Recently, it was suggested that the cytoprotective mechanisms of UDCA may be mediated by protection against oxidative stress, which is involved in the development of cirrhosis induced by chronic cholestasis. The aims of the current study were 1) to identify the mechanisms involved in glutathione depletion, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial impairment during biliary cirrhosis induced by chronic cholestasis in rats; and 2) to determine the mechanisms associated with the protective effects of UDCA against secondary biliary cirrhosis. The find…
Pre- and postjunctional effects of diadenosine polyphosphates in the guinea-pig vas deferens.
1995
Abstract The pre- and postjunctional activities of a number of diadenosine polyphosphates were examined in the guinea-pig isolated vas deferens at the level of the membrane-potential, using a modified sucrose-gap technique. P1,P3-Di(adenosine 5′)triphosphate (Ap3A), P1,P4-di(adenosine 5′)tetraphosphate (Ap4A) and P1,P5-di(adenosine 5′)pentaphosphate (Ap5 A) all caused concentration-dependent depolarization of the smooth muscle membrane. The potency order was: Ap5A > Ap4A. Ap3A. P1, P2-Di(adenosine 5′)pyrophosphate (Ap2A) did not evoke depolarization even at the highest concentration tested (1 mM). All the dinucleotides caused a reduction in the amplitude of evoked excitatory junction…
Signal characteristics of EMG during fatigue
1977
Electromyographic (EMG) activity of m. rectus femoris muscle was registered from young male and female subjects during maintained isometric knee extension at 60% of maximal voluntary contraction. The following EMG parameters were analyzed for the entire fatigue time: integrated EMG (IEMG), averaged motor unit potential (AMUP) and power spectral density function (PSDF). The results indicated a slight but continuous rise of IEMG during the fatigue period. AMUP showed sensitivity to fatigue with increase in amplitude, rise time, and number of spikes counted. PSDF was also easily affected by fatigue so that the total power density curve was shifted towards lower frequencies with a high frequenc…
Cardiac effects of isoliquiritigenin
1997
The effects of isoliquiritigenin on force of contraction (Fc), L-type Ca2+ current (I(Ca)) and intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) were investigated in rat ventricular heart muscle. Isoliquiritigenin increased Fc and I(Ca) and, after longer exposure times, resting tension and [Ca2+]i. The effect of isoliquiritigenin (100 microM) on I(Ca) was diminished by Rp-cAMPS (30 microM). 1H-[1,2,4]oxa- diazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one (50 microM) did not influence the effects of isoliquiritigenin on Fc and I(Ca). The positive inotropic effects of isoprenaline and forskolin, but not of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, were potentiated by isoliquiritigenin (100 microM). In the presence of milrinone (10…
Inhibition by Fendiline of the Transient Outward Current in Rat Ventricular Cardiomyocytes
1999
The effects of fendiline on the transient outward current (Ito) were investigated in rat ventricular cardiomyocytes. Extracellularly applied fendiline reduced peak and steady-state current amplitude of Ito; the inactivation of Ito was accelerated by the drug, which reflects onset of block. The described effects were concentration dependent: half-maximal effects were achieved at approximately 3 microM fendiline. Intracellularly applied fendiline (3 microM) did not affect Ito within 5 min. The steady-state current amplitude of Ito was more efficiently suppressed by the drug at 22 +/- 1 degrees C than at 36 +/- 1 degrees C. The recovery of Ito was analyzed by the application of twin depolarizi…
Mechanism of Block by 4-Aminopyridine of the Transient Outward Current in Rat Ventricular Cardiomyocytes
1998
The effects of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) on the transient outward current (I to ) were investigated in rat ventricular cardiomyocytes at different values of intracellular pH (pH i ) and extracellular pH (pH o ). The 4-AP was administered either extracellularly (bath application) or intracellularly (diffusion from the intrapipette solution). The 4-AP diminished I to given either from inside or outside the cell membrane. The block by extracellularly applied 4-AP (4-AP o ) of the peak amplitude of I to was decreased by external acidification but increased by external alkalinization: conversely. the block by 4-AP o was decreased by internal alkalinization but increased by internal acidification. I…