NaCl-induced renal vasoconstriction in salt-sensitive African Americans: antipressor and hemodynamic effects of potassium bicarbonate. (1/468)

In 16 African Americans (blacks, 14 men, 2 women) with average admission mean arterial pressure (MAP, mm Hg) 99.9+/-3.5 (mean+/-SEM), we investigated whether NaCl-induced renal vasoconstriction attends salt sensitivity and, if so, whether supplemental KHCO3 ameliorates both conditions. Throughout a 3-week period under controlled metabolic conditions, all subjects ate diets containing 15 mmol NaCl and 30 mmol potassium (K+) (per 70 kg body wt [BW] per day). Throughout weeks 2 and 3, NaCl was loaded to 250 mmol/d; throughout week 3, dietary K+ was supplemented to 170 mmol/d (KHCO3). On the last day of each study week, we measured renal blood flow (RBF) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) using renal clearances of PAH and inulin. Ten subjects were salt sensitive (SS) (DeltaMAP >+5%) and 6 salt resistant (SR). In NaCl-loaded SS but not SR subjects, RBF (mL/min/1.73 m2) decreased from 920+/-75 to 828+/-46 (P<0.05); filtration fraction (FF, %) increased from 19. 4+/- to 21.4 (P<0.001); and renal vascular resistance (RVR) (10(3)xmm Hg/[mL/min]) increased from 101+/-8 to 131+/-10 (P<0.001). In all subjects combined, DeltaMAP varied inversely with DeltaRBF (r =-0.57, P=0.02) and directly with DeltaRVR (r = 0.65, P=0.006) and DeltaFF (r = 0.59, P=0.03), but not with MAP before NaCl loading. When supplemental KHCO3 abolished the pressor effect of NaCl in SS subjects, RBF was unaffected but GFR and FF decreased. The results show that in marginally K+-deficient blacks (1) NaCl-induced renal vasoconstrictive dysfunction attends salt sensitivity; (2) the dysfunction varies in extent directly with the NaCl-induced increase in blood pressure (BP); and (3) is complexly affected by supplemented KHCO3, GFR and FF decreasing but RBF not changing. In blacks, NaCl-induced renal vasoconstriction may be a pathogenetic event in salt sensitivity.  (+info)

Common components of patch-clamp internal recording solutions can significantly affect protein kinase A activity. (2/468)

Common components of whole-cell internal recording solutions were tested both in vitro and in patch-clamp experiments for their effects on the activity of cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Potassium fluoride (KF), 440 mM trimethylamine chloride and exclusion of bovine serum albumin (BSA) decreased the activity of the enzyme, while ethylene glycol-bis (beta-aminoethyl ether) N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA) and the potassium salts of aspartate, gluconate, methylsulfate and monobasic phosphate increased its activity. Addition of KF to the internal solution produced a hyperpolarizing shift in the V1/2 of Ih channel activation, consistent with the KF-induced reduction of protein kinase A activity. Therefore, consideration of the composition of internal solutions is warranted when studying channel physiology by patch-clamp techniques.  (+info)

Ku antigen-DNA conformation determines the activation of DNA-dependent protein kinase and DNA sequence-directed repression of mouse mammary tumor virus transcription. (3/468)

Mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) transcription is repressed by DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) through a DNA sequence element, NRE1, in the viral long terminal repeat that is a sequence-specific DNA binding site for the Ku antigen subunit of the kinase. While Ku is an essential component of the active kinase, how the catalytic subunit of DNA-PK (DNA-PKcs) is regulated through its association with Ku is only beginning to be understood. We report that activation of DNA-PKcs and the repression of MMTV transcription from NRE1 are dependent upon Ku conformation, the manipulation of DNA structure by Ku, and the contact of Ku80 with DNA. Truncation of one copy of the overlapping direct repeat that comprises NRE1 abrogated the repression of MMTV transcription by Ku-DNA-PKcs. Remarkably, the truncated element was recognized by Ku-DNA-PKcs with affinity similar to that of the full-length element but was unable to promote the activation of DNA-PKcs. Analysis of Ku-DNA-PKcs interactions with DNA ends, double- and single-stranded forms of NRE1, and the truncated NRE1 element revealed striking differences in Ku conformation that differentially affected the recruitment of DNA-PKcs and the activation of kinase activity.  (+info)

Dual pathways for regulation of root branching by nitrate. (4/468)

Root development is extremely sensitive to variations in nutrient supply, but the mechanisms are poorly understood. We have investigated the processes by which nitrate (NO3-), depending on its availability and distribution, can have both positive and negative effects on the development and growth of lateral roots. When Arabidopsis roots were exposed to a locally concentrated supply of NO3- there was no increase in lateral root numbers within the NO3--rich zone, but there was a localized 2-fold increase in the mean rate of lateral root elongation, which was attributable to a corresponding increase in the rate of cell production in the lateral root meristem. Localized applications of other N sources did not stimulate lateral root elongation, consistent with previous evidence that the NO3- ion is acting as a signal rather than a nutrient. The axr4 auxin-resistant mutant was insensitive to the stimulatory effect of NO3-, suggesting an overlap between the NO3- and auxin response pathways. High rates of NO3- supply to the roots had a systemic inhibitory effect on lateral root development that acted specifically at the stage when the laterals had just emerged from the primary root, apparently delaying final activation of the lateral root meristem. A nitrate reductase-deficient mutant showed increased sensitivity to this systemic inhibitory effect, suggesting that tissue NO3- levels may play a role in generating the inhibitory signal. We present a model in which root branching is modulated by opposing signals from the plant's internal N status and the external supply of NO3-.  (+info)

Stimulation of peroxidase activity by decamerization related to ionic strength: AhpC protein from Amphibacillus xylanus. (5/468)

AhpC protein, purified from Amphibacillus xylanus with a molecular mass of 20.8 kDa, protects cells against oxidation damage. The enzyme catalyses the reduction of hydroperoxides in cooperation with the 55 kDa flavoprotein, A. xylanus NADH oxidase (NADH oxidase-AhpC system). A. xylanus AhpC has two disulfide linkages between monomers and can act in the homodimer form. Gel-filtration column chromatography and dynamic light scattering (DLS) suggest that A. xylanus AhpC also forms a large oligomeric assembly (10-12 mers). A. xylanus AhpC was crystallized and X-ray diffraction data were collected to 3.0 A. The self-rotation function revealed fivefold and twofold axes located perpendicularly to each other, suggesting that the molecular assembly of A. xylanus AhpC is composed of ten monomers. The oligomerization of A. xylanus AhpC is affected by ionic strength in the DLS measurements. The H(2)O(2) reductase activity of the A. xylanus NADH oxidase-AhpC system is also affected by ionic strength, and it was found that the decamerization of AhpC might be required for the activation of the NADH oxidase-AhpC system.  (+info)

Kidney cortex cells derived from SV40 transgenic mice retain intrinsic properties of polarized proximal tubule cells. (6/468)

BACKGROUND: We have developed a nontransformed immortalized mice kidney cortex epithelial cell (MKCC) culture from a mouse transgenic for a recombinant plasmid adeno-SV40 (PK4). Methods and Results. After 12 months in culture, the immortalized cells had a stable homogeneous epithelial-like phenotype, expressed simian virus 40 (SV40) T-antigen, but failed to induce tumors after injection in nude mice. Epithelium exhibited polarity with an apical domain bearing many microvilli separated from lateral domains by junctional complexes with ZO1 protein. The transepithelial resistance was low. A Na-dependent glucose uptake sensitive to phlorizin and a Na-dependent phosphate uptake sensitive to arsenate were present. Western blot analysis of membrane fractions showed that anti-Na-Pi antiserum reacted with a 87 kD protein. The Na/H antiporters NHE-1, NHE-2, and NHE-3 mRNAs were detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The corresponding proteins with molecular weights of 111, 81, and 75 kD, respectively, could be detected by Western blot and were shown to be functional. Parathyroid hormone (PTH) induced a tenfold increase in cAMP and reduced the Na-dependent phosphate uptake and NHE-3 activity, as observed in proximal tubule cells. Isoforms alpha, delta, epsilon, and zeta of protein kinase C (PKC) were present in the cells. Angiotensin II (Ang II) elicited a translocation of the PKC-alpha toward the basolateral and apical domains. CONCLUSION: Thus, the MKCC culture retains the structural and functional properties of proximal tubular cells. To our knowledge, it is the first cell culture obtained from transgenic mice that exhibits the NHE-3 antiporter and type II Na-Pi cotransporter. MKCCs also display functional receptors for PTH and Ang II. Thus, MKCCs offer a powerful in vitro system to study the cellular mechanisms of ion transport regulation in proximal epithelium.  (+info)

Reduction of the nociceptive response to gastric distension by nitrate ingestion in rats. (7/468)

BACKGROUND: Dietary nitrates are known to produce nitric oxide in the stomach, which may influence gastric function. AIM: To investigate whether nitrate ingestion modifies gastric sensitivity to distension through a mechanism involving nitric oxide production. METHODS: Nociception, associated with gastric distension ranging from 10 to 40 mmHg, was assessed in anaesthetized rats by the amplitude of cardiovascular depressor responses. Gastric volume corresponding to each distension was recorded. The following intragastric administrations (1 mL) were performed before distension: water (control), KNO3, NaNO3, KCl, NaCl (all at 0.1 mmol/kg), standard food (0.5 g), sodium nitroprusside, a nitric oxide donor (5 mg/kg), and haemoglobin, a nitric oxide scavenger (150 mg/kg) given either with water or KNO3. RESULTS: In controls, the fall in blood pressure increased from 7.8 +/- 2.0 to 31.6 +/- 2. 7 mmHg at distending pressures from 10 to 40 mmHg, respectively. KNO3 significantly reduced the amplitude of blood pressure response for the highest distending pressures (35 and 40 mmHg), while KCl induced a reduction in blood pressure response at all gastric pressures. NaNO3 and NaCl did not induce significant changes in distension-induced depressor responses. Administration of 0.5 g of standard food or sodium nitroprusside reproduced the effect of KNO3, which was reversed by haemoglobin. None of the compounds modified the gastric pressure-volume relationship, except KNO3, which increased gastric volume for the lowest distending pressures, and haemoglobin, which reduced the volume for the highest pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Ingestion of potassium nitrate reduces the sensitivity to gastric distension, through a mechanism involving nitric oxide.  (+info)

Escherichia coli TEM1 beta-lactamase in CTAB reverse micelles: exchange/diffusion-limited catalysis. (8/468)

We report kinetic data of penicillin hydrolysis catalyzed by beta-lactamase entrapped in reverse micelles formed with cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), n-octane, hexanol and aqueous buffer. The K(cat) of this diffusion-limited reaction can be improved in aqueous buffer by a factor of 1.1-1.2 just by increasing the phosphate buffer concentration from 50 to 100 mM. In reverse micelles, increasing the buffer concentration has little effect on K(cat) when the size of the empty micelle is below the size of the protein. However, in larger micelles, the effect is enhanced and the K(cat) improves several fold, changing the form of the curve of K(cat) versus Wo from bell-shaped to almost hyperbolic. The results indicate that micellar exchange and internal diffusion may limit the reaction in reverse micelles and provide further evidence that the form of the curve depends on other factors besides the relationship between the size of the enzyme and that of the empty reverse micelle.  (+info)