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Selected AbstractsMechanisms of transjunctional transport of NaCl and water in proximal tubules of mammalian kidneysACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 1 2002F. KIILArticle first published online: 30 APR 200 ABSTRACT Tight junctions and the intercellular space of proximal tubules are not accessible to direct measurements of fluid composition and transport rates, but morphological and functional data permit analysis of diffusion and osmosis causing transjunctional NaCl and water transport. In the S2 segment NaCl diffuses through tight junctions along a chloride gradient, but against a sodium gradient. Calculation in terms of modified Nernst,Fick diffusion equation after eliminating electrical terms shows that transport rates (300,500 pmol min,1 mm,1 tubule length) and transepithelial voltage of +2 mV are in agreement with observations. Diffusion coefficients are Dtj=1500 ,m2 s,1 in the S1 segment, and Dtj=90,100 ,m2 s,1 in the S2 segment where apical intercellular NaCl concentration is 132 mM, 1 mM below complete stop (Dtj=0 and Donnan equilibrium). Tight junctions with gap distance 6 Å are impermeable to mannitol (effective molecular radius 4 Å); reflection coefficients are ,=0.92 for NaHCO3 and ,=0.28 for NaCl, because of difference in anion size. The osmotic force is provided by a difference in effective transjunctional osmolality of 10 mOsm kg,1 in the S1 segment and 30 mOsm kg,1 in the S2 segment, where differences in transjunctional concentration contribute with 21 mOsm kg,1 for NaHCO3 and ,4 mOsm kg,1 for NaCl. Transjunctional difference of 30 mOsm kg,1 causes a volume flow of 2 nL min,1 mm,1 tubule length. Luminal mannitol concentration of 30 mM stops all volume flow and diffusive and convective transport of NaCl. In conclusion, transjunctional diffusion and osmosis along gradients generated by transcellular transport of other solutes account for all NaCl transport in proximal tubules. [source] 11b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in proteinuric patients and the effect of angiotensin-II receptor blockadeEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION, Issue 7 2002M. N. Kerstens Abstract Background It has been suggested that an altered setpoint of the 11,HSD-mediated cortisol to cortisone interconversion towards cortisol contributes to sodium retention in nephrotic syndrome patients. We studied the parameters of 11,HSD activity in proteinuric patients, in particular its activity at the kidney level. We also studied the effect of angiotensin-II receptor blockade on the parameters of 11,HSD activity. Materials and methods Serum cortisol/cortisone ratio and the urinary ratios of (tetrahydrocortisol + allo-tetrahydrocortisol)/tetrahydrocortisone [(THF + allo-THF)/THE] and of urinary free cortisol/free cortisone (UFF/UFE) were measured in eight proteinuric patients and compared with eight matched, healthy subjects. Patients were subsequently studied after 4 weeks' treatment with losartan 50 mg day,1 and placebo, respectively. Results No significant differences between the proteinuric patients and the healthy subjects were observed in the serum cortisol, serum cortisone, serum cortisol to cortisone ratio, or in the urinary excretions of THF, allo-THF, THE, sum of cortisol metabolites, or the (THF + allo-THF)/THE ratio. Urinary free cortisol excretion and the UFF/UFE ratio were lower in the proteinuric patients than in the healthy subjects (56 ± 21 vs. 85 ± 24 pmol min,1, P < 0·05, and 0·39 ± 0·07 vs. 0·63 ± 0·28, P < 0·05, respectively). Mean arterial pressure and proteinuria were reduced significantly during losartan treatment, but without concomitant changes in peripheral cortisol metabolism. Conclusions Increased renal inactivation of cortisol in proteinuric patients does not support the contention that altered 11,HSD activity contributes to sodium retention in patients with nephrotic syndrome. Losartan 50 mg d.d. reduces mean arterial pressure and proteinuria, but does not exert a significant effect on the cortisol to cortisone interconversion. [source] Glucose clearance is higher in arm than leg muscle in type 2 diabetesTHE JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2 2005David B. Olsen Insulin-mediated glucose clearance (GC) is diminished in type 2 diabetes. Skeletal muscle has been estimated to account for essentially all of the impairment. Such estimations were based on leg muscle and extrapolated to whole body muscle mass. However, skeletal muscle is not a uniform tissue and insulin resistance may not be evenly distributed. We measured basal and insulin-mediated (1 pmol min,1 kg,1) GC simultaneously in the arm and leg in type 2 diabetes patients (TYPE 2) and controls (CON) (n= 6 for both). During the clamp arterio-venous glucose extraction was higher in CON versus TYPE 2 in the arm (6.9 ± 1.0 versus 4.7 ± 0.8%; mean ±s.e.m.; P= 0.029), but not in the leg (4.2 ± 0.8 versus 3.1 ± 0.6%). Blood flow was not different between CON and TYPE 2 but was higher (P < 0.05) in arm versus leg (CON: 74 ± 8 versus 56 ± 5; TYPE 2: 87 ± 9 versus 43 ± 6 ml min,1 kg,1 muscle, respectively). At basal, CON had 84% higher arm GC (P= 0.012) and 87% higher leg GC (P= 0.016) compared with TYPE 2. During clamp, the difference between CON and TYPE 2 in arm GC was diminished to 54% but maintained at 80% in the leg. In conclusion, this study shows that glucose clearance is higher in arm than leg muscles, regardless of insulin resistance, which may indicate better preserved insulin sensitivity in arm than leg muscle in type 2 diabetes. [source] Repeatability of local forearm vasoconstriction to endothelin-1 measured by venous occlusion plethysmographyBRITISH JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 4 2002Fiona E. Strachan Aims ,We ,investigated ,the ,repeatability ,of ,the ,forearm ,blood ,flow ,response ,to intra-arterial infusion of endothelin-1 (ET-1), assessed by venous occlusion plethysmography. Methods In eight healthy men (aged 18,50 years), on four separate occasions, ET-1 (2.5 or 10 pmol min,1) was infused for 120 min via a 27 SWG cannula sited in the brachial artery of the nondominant arm. Each dose level was administered twice on consecutive visits. The dose order was randomized. Results are expressed as percentage change from baseline at 120 min (mean ± s.e. mean). Results ET-1 caused significant vasoconstriction (P < 0.0001 anova) at both doses (38 ± 3%, 2.5 pmol min,1 and 62 ± 3%, 10 pmol min,1; mean visit 1 and 2). There was no difference in the response to either dose on repeated challenge. Responses appeared to be less variable when expressed as percentage change in the ratio of blood flow (infused:noninfused) in both arms than as percentage change in blood flow in the infused arm alone, as indicated by repeatability coefficients (15% vs 21%, 2.5 pmol min,1 and 11% vs 13%, 10 pmol min,1; ratio vs infused arm alone). Conclusions We have shown dose-dependent vasoconstriction in the forearm vascular bed to intra-arterial infusion of ET-1 and that this response is less variable when expressed as percentage change in the ratio of forearm blood flow than percentage change in the infused arm. These data should also provide useful information to determine the power of early clinical pharmacology studies investigating the activity of endothelin receptor antagonists. [source] Reciprocal regulation of human soluble and particulate guanylate cyclases in vivoBRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 6 2006M Madhani Background & purpose: We demonstrated previously that reciprocal regulation of soluble (sGC) and particulate (pGC) guanylate cyclases by NO and natriuretic peptides coordinates cyclic cGMP-mediated vasodilatation in vitro. Herein, we investigated whether such an interaction contributes to vascular homeostasis in mice and humans in vivo. Experimental approach: Mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) changes in anaesthetized mice were monitored in response to i.v. administration of cGMP- and cAMP-dependent vasodilators in wild-type (WT), endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) and natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR)-A knockout mice. Forearm blood flow (FBF) in response to intra-brachial infusion of ANP (25, 50, 100, 200 pmol min -1) in the absence and presence of the NOS inhibitor NG -methyl-L-arginine (L-NMA; 4 ,mol min -1) and the control constrictor noradrenaline (240 pmol min -1) was assessed in healthy volunteers. Key results: Sodium nitroprusside (SNP; NO-donor) and atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) produced dose-dependent reductions in MABP in WT animals that were significantly enhanced in eNOS KO mice. In NPR-A K mice, SNP produced a dose-dependent reduction in MABP that was significantly greater than that in WT mice. Responsiveness to the cAMP-dependent vasodilator epoprostenol was similar in WT, eNOS KO and NPR-A KO animals. ANP caused vasodilatation of the forearm resistance vasculature that was significantly greater in individuals lacking endothelium-derived NO (i.e. L-NMA treated). Conclusions & implications: These data demonstrate that crosstalk occurs between the NO-sGC and ANP-pGC pathways to regulate cGMP-dependent vasodilatation in vivo in both mice and humans. These findings have implications for understanding the link between natriuretic peptide activity and cardiovascular risk. British Journal of Pharmacology (2006) 149, 797,801. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0706920 [source] Characterization of an anandamide degradation system in prostate epithelial PC-3 cells: synthesis of new transporter inhibitors as tools for this studyBRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 3 2004Lidia Ruiz-Llorente The response of anandamide is terminated by a carrier-mediated transport followed by degradation catalyzed by the cloned enzyme fatty acid amidohydrolase (FAAH). In this study, we provide biochemical data showing an anandamide uptake process and the expression of FAAH in human prostate. Anandamide was accumulated in PC-3 cells by a saturable and temperature-dependent process. Kinetic studies of anandamide uptake, determined in the presence of cannabinoid and vanilloid antagonists, revealed apparent parameters of KM=4.7±0.2 ,M and Vmax=3.3±0.3 pmol min,1 (106 cells),1. The accumulation of anandamide was moderately inhibited by previously characterized anandamide transporter inhibitors (AM404, UCM707 and VDM11) but was unaffected by inhibitors of other lipid transport systems (phloretin or verapamil) and moderately affected by the FAAH inhibitor methyl arachidonyl fluorophosphonate. The presence of FAAH in human prostate epithelial PC-3 cells was confirmed by analyzing its expression by Western blot and measuring FAAH activity. To further study the structural requirements of the putative carrier, we synthesized a series of structurally different compounds 1,8 and evaluated their capacity as uptake inhibitors. They showed different inhibitory capacity in PC-3 cells, with (9Z,12Z)- N -(fur-3-ylmethyl)octadeca-9,12-dienamide (4, UCM119) being the most efficacious, with maximal inhibition and IC50 values of 49% and 11.3±0.5 ,M, respectively. In conclusion, PC-3 cells possess a complete inactivation system for anandamide formed by an uptake process and the enzyme FAAH. These results suggest a possible physiological function of anandamide in the prostate, reinforcing the role of endocannabinoid system as a neuroendocrine modulator. British Journal of Pharmacology (2004) 141, 457,467. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0705628 [source] Value of the intravenous and oral glucose tolerance tests for detecting subtle impairments in insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function in former gestational diabetesCLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGY, Issue 2 2008A. Tura Summary Objective, Women with former gestational diabetes mellitus (fGDM) often show defects in both insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function but it is not clear which defect plays the major role or which appears first. This might be because fGDM women are often studied as a unique group and not divided according to their glucose tolerance. Different findings might also be the result of using different tests. Our aim was to study insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function with two independent glucose tolerance tests in fGDM women divided according to their glucose tolerance. Design and patients, A total of 108 fGDM women divided into normal glucose tolerance (IGT; N = 82), impaired glucose metabolism (IGM; N = 20) and overt type 2 diabetes (T2DM; N = 6) groups, and 38 healthy control women (CNT) underwent intravenous (IVGTT) and oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT). Measurements, Insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function were assessed by both the IVGTT and the OGTT. Results, Both tests revealed impaired insulin sensitivity in the normotolerant group compared to controls (IVGTT: 4·2 ± 0·3 vs. 5·4 ± 0·4 10,4 min,1 (µU/ml),1; OGTT: 440 ± 7 vs. 472 ± 9 ml min,1 m,2). Conversely, no difference was found in beta-cell function from the IVGTT. However, some parameters of beta-cell function by OGTT modelling analysis were found to be impaired: glucose sensitivity (106 ± 5 vs. 124 ± 7 pmol min,1 m,2 mm,1, P = 0·0407) and insulin secretion at 5 mm glucose (168 ± 9 vs. 206 ± 10 pmol min,1 m,2, P = 0·003). Conclusions, Both insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function are impaired in normotolerant fGDM but the subtle defect in beta-cell function is disclosed only by OGTT modelling analysis. [source] | |||||||||||||