Acetylcholine-induced membrane potential changes in endothelial cells of rabbit aortic valve. (1/1922)

1. Using a microelectrode technique, acetylcholine (ACh)-induced membrane potential changes were characterized using various types of inhibitors of K+ and Cl- channels in rabbit aortic valve endothelial cells (RAVEC). 2. ACh produced transient then sustained membrane hyperpolarizations. Withdrawal of ACh evoked a transient depolarization. 3. High K+ blocked and low K+ potentiated the two ACh-induced hyperpolarizations. Charybdotoxin (ChTX) attenuated the ACh-induced transient and sustained hyperpolarizations; apamin inhibited only the sustained hyperpolarization. In the combined presence of ChTX and apamin, ACh produced a depolarization. 4. In Ca2+-free solution or in the presence of Co2+ or Ni2+, ACh produced a transient hyperpolarization followed by a depolarization. In BAPTA-AM-treated cells, ACh produced only a depolarization. 5. A low concentration of A23187 attenuated the ACh-induced transient, but not the sustained, hyperpolarization. In the presence of cyclopiazonic acid, the hyperpolarization induced by ACh was maintained after ACh removal; this maintained hyperpolarization was blocked by Co2+. 6. Both NPPB and hypertonic solution inhibited the membrane depolarization seen after ACh washout. Bumetanide also attenuated this depolarization. 7. It is concluded that in RAVEC, ACh produces a two-component hyperpolarization followed by a depolarization. It is suggested that ACh-induced Ca2+ release from the storage sites causes a transient hyperpolarization due to activation of ChTX-sensitive K+ channels and that ACh-activated Ca2+ influx causes a sustained hyperpolarization by activating both ChTX- and apamin-sensitive K+ channels. Both volume-sensitive Cl- channels and the Na+-K+-Cl- cotransporter probably contribute to the ACh-induced depolarization.  (+info)

The cyclo-oxygenase-dependent regulation of rabbit vein contraction: evidence for a prostaglandin E2-mediated relaxation. (2/1922)

1. Arachidonic acid (0.01-1 microM) induced relaxation of precontracted rings of rabbit saphenous vein, which was counteracted by contraction at concentrations higher than 1 microM. Concentrations higher than 1 microM were required to induce dose-dependent contraction of vena cava and thoracic aorta from the same animals. 2. Pretreatment with a TP receptor antagonist (GR32191B or SQ29548, 3 microM) potentiated the relaxant effect in the saphenous vein, revealed a vasorelaxant component in the vena cava response and did not affect the response of the aorta. 3. Removal of the endothelium from the venous rings, caused a 10 fold rightward shift in the concentration-relaxation curves to arachidonic acid. Whether or not the endothelium was present, the arachidonic acid-induced relaxations were prevented by indomethacin (10 microM) pretreatment. 4. In the saphenous vein, PGE2 was respectively a 50 and 100 fold more potent relaxant prostaglandin than PGI2 and PGD2. Pretreatment with the EP4 receptor antagonist, AH23848B, shifted the concentration-relaxation curves of this tissue to arachidonic acid in a dose-dependent manner. 5. In the presence of 1 microM arachidonic acid, venous rings produced 8-10 fold more PGE2 than did aorta whereas 6keto-PGF1alpha and TXB2 productions remained comparable. 6. Intact rings of saphenous vein relaxed in response to A23187. Pretreatment with L-NAME (100 microM) or indomethacin (10 microM) reduced this response by 50% whereas concomitant pretreatment totally suppressed it. After endothelium removal, the remaining relaxing response to A23187 was prevented by indomethacin but not affected by L-NAME. 7. We conclude that stimulation of the cyclo-oxygenase pathway by arachidonic acid induced endothelium-dependent, PGE2/EP4 mediated relaxation of the rabbit saphenous vein. This process might participate in the A23187-induced relaxation of the saphenous vein and account for a relaxing component in the response of the vena cava to arachidonic acid. It was not observed in thoracic aorta because of the lack of a vasodilatory receptor and/or the poorer ability of this tissue than veins to produce PGE2.  (+info)

Differences in the actions of some blockers of the calcium-activated potassium permeability in mammalian red cells. (3/1922)

1. The actions of some inhibitors of the Ca2+-activated K+ permeability in mammalian red cells have been compared. 2. Block of the permeability was assessed from the reduction in the net loss of K+ that followed the application of the Ca2+ ionophore A23187 (2 microM) to rabbit red cells suspended at a haematocrit of 1% in a low potassium solution ([K]0 0.12-0.17 mM) at 37 degrees C. Net movement of K+ was measured using a K+-sensitive electrode placed in the suspension. 3. The concentrations (microM +/- s.d.) of the compounds tested causing 50% inhibition of K+ loss were: quinine, 37 +/- 3; cetiedil, 26 +/- 1; the cetiedil congeners UCL 1269, UCL 1274 and UCL 1495, approximately 150, 8.2 +/- 0.1, 0.92 +/- 0.03 respectively; clotrimazole, 1.2 +/- 0.1; nitrendipine, 3.6 +/- 0.5 and charybdotoxin, 0.015 +/- 0.002. 4. The characteristics of the block suggested that compounds could be placed in two groups. For one set (quinine, cetiedil, and the UCL congeners), the concentration-inhibition curves were steeper (Hill coefficient, nH, > or = 2.7) than for the other (clotrimazole, nitrendipine, charybdotoxin) for which nH approximately 1. 5. Compounds in the first set alone became less active on raising the concentration of K+ in the external solution to 5.4 mM. 6. The rate of K+ loss induced by A23187 slowed in the presence of high concentrations of cetiedil and its analogues, suggesting a use-dependent component to the inhibitory action. This was not seen with clotrimazole. 7. The blocking action of the cetiedil analogue UCL 1274 could not be overcome by an increase in external Ca2+ and its potency was unaltered when K+ loss was induced by the application of Pb2+ (10 microM) rather than by A23187. 8. These results, taken with the findings of others, suggest that agents that block the red cell Ca2+-activated K+ permeability can be placed in two groups with different mechanisms of action. The differences can be explained by supposing that clotrimazole and charybdotoxin act at the outer face of the channel whereas cetiedil and its congeners may block within it, either at or near the K+ binding site that determines the flow of K+.  (+info)

Bcl-2 alters the balance between apoptosis and necrosis, but does not prevent cell death induced by oxidized low density lipoproteins. (4/1922)

Oxidized low density lipoproteins (oxLDL) participate in atherosclerosis plaque formation, rupture, and subsequent thrombosis. Because oxLDL are toxic to cultured cells and Bcl-2 protein prevents apoptosis, the present work aimed to study whether Bcl-2 may counterbalance the toxicity of oxLDL. Two experimental model systems were used in which Bcl-2 levels were modulated: 1) lymphocytes in which the (high) basal level of Bcl-2 was reduced by antisense oligonucleotides; 2) HL60 and HL60/B (transduced by Bcl-2) expressing low and high Bcl-2 levels, respectively. In cells expressing relatively high Bcl-2 levels (lymphocytes and HL60/B), oxLDL induced mainly primary necrosis. In cells expressing low Bcl-2 levels (antisense-treated lymphocytes, HL60 and ECV-304 endothelial cells), the rate of oxLDL-induced apoptosis was higher than that of primary necrosis. OxLDL evoked a sustained calcium rise, which is a common trigger to necrosis and apoptosis since both types of cell death were blocked by the calcium chelator EGTA. Conversely, a sustained calcium influx elicited by the calcium ionophore A23187 induced necrosis in cells expressing high Bcl-2 levels and apoptosis in cells expressing low Bcl-2 levels. This suggests that Bcl-2 acts downstream from the calcium peak and inhibits only the apoptotic pathway, not the necrosis pathway, thus explaining the apparent shift from oxLDL-induced apoptosis toward necrosis when Bcl-2 is overexpressed.  (+info)

Release of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum increases mitochondrial [Ca2+] in rat pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. (5/1922)

1. The Ca2+-sensitive fluorescent indicator rhod-2 was used to measure mitochondrial [Ca2+] ([Ca2+]m) in single smooth muscle cells from the rat pulmonary artery, while simultaneously monitoring cytosolic [Ca2+] ([Ca2+]i) with fura-2. 2. Application of caffeine produced an increase in [Ca2+]i and also increased [Ca2+]m. The increase in [Ca2+]m occurred after the increase in [Ca2+]i, and remained elevated for a considerable time after [Ca2+]i had returned to resting values. 3. The protonophore carbonyl cyanide p-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylhydrazone (FCCP), which causes the mitochondrial membrane potential to collapse, markedly attenuated the increase in [Ca2+]m following caffeine application and also increased the half-time for recovery of [Ca2+]i to resting values. 4. Activation of purinoceptors with ATP also produced increases in both [Ca2+]i and [Ca2+]m in these smooth muscle cells. In some cells, oscillations in [Ca2+]i were observed during ATP application, which produced corresponding oscillations in [Ca2+]m and membrane currents. 5. This study provides direct evidence that Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum, either through ryanodine or inositol 1,4, 5-trisphosphate (InsP3) receptors, increases both cytosolic and mitochondrial [Ca2+] in smooth muscle cells. These results have potential implications both for the role of mitochondria in Ca2+ regulation in smooth muscle, and for understanding how cellular metabolism is regulated.  (+info)

Mitochondrial regulation of the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration and the InsP3-sensitive Ca2+ store in guinea-pig colonic smooth muscle. (6/1922)

1. Mitochondrial regulation of the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]c) in guinea-pig single colonic myocytes has been examined, using whole-cell recording, flash photolysis of caged InsP3 and microfluorimetry. 2. Depolarization increased [Ca2+]c and triggered contraction. Resting [Ca2+]c was virtually restored some 4 s after the end of depolarization, a time when the muscle had shortened to 50 % of its fully relaxed length. The muscle then slowly relaxed (t = 17 s). 3. The decline in the Ca2+ transient was monophasic but often undershot or overshot resting levels, depending on resting [Ca2+]c. The extent of the overshoot or undershoot increased with increasing peak [Ca2+]c. 4. Carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone (CCCP; 5 microM), which dissipates the mitochondrial proton electrochemical gradient and therefore prevents mitochondrial Ca2+ accumulation, slowed Ca2+ removal at high ( > 300 nM) but not at lower [Ca2+]c and abolished [Ca2+]c overshoots. Oligomycin B (5 microM), which prevents mitchondrial ATP production, affected neither the rate of decline nor the magnitude of the overshoot. 5. During depolarization, the global rhod-2 signal (which represents the mitochondrial matrix Ca2+ concentration, [Ca2+]m) rose slowly in a CCCP-sensitive manner during and for about 3 s after depolarization had ended. [Ca2+]m then slowly decreased over tens of seconds. 6. Inhibition of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ uptake with thapsigargin (100 nM) reduced the undershoot and increased the overshoot. 7. Flash photolysis of caged InsP3 (20 microM) evoked reproducible increases in [Ca2+]c. CCCP (5 microM) reduced the magnitude of the [Ca2+]c transients evoked by flash photolysis of caged InsP3. Oligomycin B (5 microM) did not reduce the inhibition of the InsP3-induced Ca2+ transient by CCCP thus minimizing the possibility that CCCP lowered ATP levels by reversing the mitochondrial ATP synthase and so reducing SR Ca2+ refilling. 8. While CCCP reduced the magnitude of the InsP3-evoked Ca2+ signal, the internal Ca2+ store content, as assessed by the magnitude of ionomycin-evoked Ca2+ release, did not decrease significantly. 9. [Ca2+]c decline in smooth muscle, following depolarization, may involve mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake. Following InsP3-evoked Ca2+ release, mitochondrial uptake of Ca2+ may regulate the local [Ca2+]c near the InsP3 receptor so maintaining the sensitivity of the InsP3 receptor to release Ca2+ from the SR.  (+info)

Inhibition of copper/zinc superoxide dismutase impairs NO.-mediated endothelium-dependent relaxations. (7/1922)

The superoxide anion (O-2.) appears to be an important modulator of nitric oxide (NO.) bioavailability. The present study was designed to characterize the role of copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn SOD) in endothelium-dependent relaxations. Cu/Zn SOD was inhibited with the Cu2+ chelator diethyldithiocarbamic acid (DETCA). In isolated canine basilar arteries, DETCA (7.6 x 10(-3) M) inhibited total vascular SOD activity by 46% (P < 0.0001, n = 6-8 dogs). DETCA (7.6 x 10(-3) M) significantly reduced relaxations to bradykinin and A-23187 (P < 0.05, n = 7-11). The inhibitory effect of DETCA was abolished by the O-2. scavenger 4,5-dihydroxy-1,3-benzenedisulfonic acid (Tiron; 9.4 x 10(-3) M; P < 0.05, n = 6-13). Tiron significantly potentiated the relaxations to bradykinin in control rings (P < 0.05, n = 13), and the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor Nomega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME; 3 x 10(-4) M) abolished these relaxations (P < 0.0001, n = 6). DETCA and Tiron had no effect on the relaxations to diethylamine-NONOate or forskolin (P > 0.05, n = 6). Our results demonstrate that endothelium-dependent relaxations mediated by NO. are impaired after the inhibition of Cu/Zn SOD. Relaxations to bradykinin (but not A-23187) were significantly augmented by Tiron. Pharmacological scavenging of O-2. reverses the effect of Cu/Zn SOD inhibition.  (+info)

Sialyltransferase isoforms are phosphorylated in the cis-medial Golgi on serine and threonine residues in their luminal sequences. (8/1922)

ST6Gal-I (alpha2,6-sialyltransferase) is expressed as two isoforms, STTyr and STCys, which exhibit differences in catalytic activity, trafficking through the secretory pathway, and proteolytic processing and secretion. We have found that the ST6Gal-I isoforms are phosphorylated on luminal Ser and Thr residues. Immunoprecipitation of 35S- and 32P-labeled proteins expressed in COS-1 cells suggests that the STTyr isoform is phosphorylated to a greater extent than the STCys isoform. Analysis of domain deletion mutants revealed that STTyr is phosphorylated on stem and catalytic domain amino acids, whereas STCys is phosphorylated on catalytic domain amino acids. An endoplasmic reticulum retained/retrieved chimeric Iip33-ST protein demonstrates drastically lower phosphorylation than does the wild type STTyr isoform. This suggests that the bulk of the ST6Gal-I phosphorylation is occurring in the Golgi. Treatment of cells with the ionophore monensin does not significantly block phosphorylation of the STTyr isoform, suggesting that phosphorylation is occurring in the cis-medial Golgi prior to the monensin block. This study demonstrates the presence of kinase activities in the cis-medial Golgi and the substantial phosphorylation of the luminal sequences of a glycosyltransferase.  (+info)