Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:2.6.1.1 (aspartate aminotransferase)
 21,665 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

1. We compared the effects of calpain inhibitor I (inhibitor of the proteolysis of I kappa B and, hence, of the activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF kappa B) and dexamethasone on (i) the circulatory failure, (ii) multiple organ dysfunction and (iii) induction of the inducible isoforms of nitric oxide (NO) synthase (iNOS) and cyclo-oxygenase (COX-2) in anaesthetized rats with endotoxic shock. 2. Injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, E. coli, 10 mg kg-1, i.v.) resulted in hypotension and a reduction of the pressor responses elicited by noradrenaline. This circulatory dysfunction was attenuated by pretreatment of LPS-rats with calpain inhibitor I (10 mg kg-1, i.v., 2 h before LPS) or dexamethasone (1 mg kg-1, i.v.). 3. Endotoxaemia also caused rises in the serum levels of (i) urea and creatinine (renal dysfunction), (ii) alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (hepatocellular injury), bilirubin and gamma-glutamyl transferase (gamma GT) (liver dysfunction), (iii) lipase (pancreatic injury) and (iv) lactate. Calpain inhibitor I and dexamethasone attenuated the liver injury, the pancreatic injury, the lactic acidosis as well as the hypoglycaemia caused by LPS. Dexamethasone, but not calpain inhibitor I, reduced the renal dysfunction caused by LPS. 4. Endotoxaemia for 6 h resulted in a substantial increase in iNOS and COX-2 protein and activity in lung and liver, which was attenuated in LPS-rats pretreated with calpain inhibitor I or dexamethasone. 5. Thus, calpain inhibitor I and dexamethasone attenuate (i) the circulatory failure, (ii) the multiple organ dysfunction (liver and pancreatic dysfunction/injury, lactic acidosis, hypoglycaemia), as well as (iii) the induction of iNOS and COX-2 protein and activity in rats with endotoxic shock. We propose that prevention of the activation of NF-kappa B in vivo may be useful in the therapy of circulatory shock or of disorders associated with local or systemic inflammation.
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PMID:Effect of calpain inhibitor I, an inhibitor of the proteolysis of I kappa B, on the circulatory failure and multiple organ dysfunction caused by endotoxin in the rat. 920 36

1 Here we compared the effects of various inhibitors of the activity of protein tyrosine kinase on (i) the expression of the activity of the inducible isoform of nitric oxide (NO) synthase (iNOS) caused by endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, LPS) in cultured macrophages, (ii) the induction of iNOS and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) protein and activity in rats with endotoxaemia, and (iii) the circulatory failure and organ dysfunction caused by LPS in the anesthetized rat. 2 Activation of murine cultured macrophages with LPS (1 microgram ml-1) resulted, within 24 h, in a significant increase in nitrite (an indicator of the formation of NO) in the cell supernatant. This increase in nitrate was attenuated by the tyrphostins AG126, AG556, AG490 or AG1641 or by genistein in a dose-dependent fashion (IC50: approximately 15 microM). In contrast, tyrphostin A1 (an analogue of tyrphostin AG126) or daidzein (an analogue of genistein) had no effect on the rise in nitrite caused by LPS. 3 Administration of LPS (E. coli, 10 mg kg-1, i.v.) caused hypotension and a reduction of the pressor responses elicited by noradrenaline (NA, 1 microgram kg-1, i.v.). Pretreatment of rats with the tyrphostins AG126, AG490, AG556, AG1641 or A1 attenuated the circulatory failure caused by LPS. Although genistein attenuated the vascular hyporeactivity to NA, it did not affect the hypotension caused by LPS. Daidzein did not affect the circulatory failure caused by LPS. 4 Endotoxaemia for 360 min resulted in rises in the serum levels of (i) urea and creatinine (indicators of renal failure), (ii) alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), bilirubin and gamma-glutamyl transferase (gamma GT) (indicators of liver injury/dysfunction), lipase (an indicator of pancreatic injury) as well as lactate (an indicator of tissue hypoxia). None of the tyrosine kinase inhibitors tested had a significant effect on the rise i the serum levels of urea, but the tyrphostins AG126, AG556 or A1 significantly attenuated the rises in the serum level of creatinine caused by LPS. In addition, all tyrphostins and genistein attenuated the liver injury/failure, the pancreatic injury, the hypoglycaemia and the lactic acidosis caused by LPS. In contrast, daidzein did not reduce the organ injury/dysfunction or the lactic acidosis caused by LPS. 5 Injection of LPS resulted (within 90 min) in a substantial increase in the serum level of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha), which was attenuated by pretreatment of LPS-rats with any of the tyrphostins used. Genistein, but not daidzein, also reduced the rise in the serum levels of TNF alpha caused by LPS. Endotoxaemia for 6 h also resulted in a substantial increase in the expression of iNOS and COX-2 protein and activity in the lung, which was attenuated by pretreatment of LPS-rats with the tyrphostins AG126, AG556 or genistein, but not by daidzein. 6 Thus, tyrphostins (AG126, AG556, AG1641 or A1) and genistein, but not daidzein (inactive analogue of genistein), prevent the (i) circulatory failure, (ii) the multiple organ dysfunction (liver and pancreatic dysfunction/injury lactacidosis, hypoglycaemia), as well as (iii) the induction of iNOS and COX-2 protein and activity in rats with endotoxic shock.
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PMID:Effects of tyrphostins and genistein on the circulatory failure and organ dysfunction caused by endotoxin in the rat: a possible role for protein tyrosine kinase. 929 29

We studied whether the infection with a blood-stage murine malaria lethal Plasmodium berghei NK65 induces IL-12 production, and if so, how the IL-12 production is involved in the protection or pathogenesis. The infection of C57BL/6 mice enhanced mRNA expression of IL-12 p40 and also IFN-gamma, IL-4, and IL-10 in both spleen and liver during the early course of the infection. It also enhanced the mRNA expression of TNF-alpha, Fas ligand, and cytokine-inducible nitric oxide synthase. Increased IL-12 p40 production was also observed in the culture supernatant of spleen cells and in sera of infected mice. In addition, the infection caused massive liver injury with elevated serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase activities and body weight loss. Treatment of these infected mice with neutralizing mAb against IL-12 prolonged the survival and diminished the liver injury with reduced elevation of serum serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase activities and decreased body weight loss. However, the anti-IL-12 treatment did not affect parasitemia, and all these mice eventually died. Similar results were obtained when infected mice were treated with neutralizing mAb against IFN-gamma. Moreover, anti-IL-12 treatment greatly reduced the secretion and mRNA expression of IFN-gamma in both spleen and liver. These results suggest that the lethal P. berghei NK65 infection induces IL-12 production and that the IL-12 is involved in the pathogenesis of liver injury via IFN-gamma production rather than the protection.
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PMID:A pathogenic role of IL-12 in blood-stage murine malaria lethal strain Plasmodium berghei NK65 infection. 960 53

Overproduction of tumor necrosis factor (TNF-), interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), and nitric oxide (NO) is believed to be detrimental during the progression of acute pancreatitis, yet little is known about the hepatic production of these mediators and their role in mediating pancreatitis-induced hepatic dysfunction. Rats were randomized to receive a single intraperitoneal injection of the macrophage-pacifying compound, CNI-1493 (1.0 mg/kg), or vehicle 1 hour before the induction of retrograde bile salt pancreatitis. Sham-operated animals served as controls. Animals were killed 18 hours later, with serum and livers harvested to determine the degree of hepatocellular injury and the induction of TNF-, IL-1beta, and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). In addition, serum TNF- and nitrites (end-product of NO breakdown) were determined in each group to assess the mechanism of action of CNI-1493. TNF-, IL-1beta, and iNOS gene expression (by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction) as well as aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), and lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) (but not alkaline phosphatase [ALP]) increased following the development of pancreatitis (all P < .05). Macrophage pacification significantly prevented the induction of TNF- and IL-1beta mRNA (but not iNOS), resulting in lessened serum AST, ALT, and LDH (all P < .05). Serum TNF- protein and nitrites correlated with gene induction in that both were increased following the onset of pancreatitis, and TNF- protein production was significantly attenuated in animals receiving CNI-1493. Hepatocellular, but not bile duct, injury occurs during experimental pancreatitis that is associated with hepatic TNF-, IL-1beta, and iNOS mRNA gene induction, as well as TNF- protein and nitrite production. Preventing the production of TNF- and IL-1beta by macrophage pacification attenuates the hepatocellular damage, suggesting that these mediators play a role in pancreatitis-induced hepatic injury.
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PMID:Macrophage pacification reduces rodent pancreatitis-induced hepatocellular injury through down-regulation of hepatic tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1beta. 979 13

The effect of aminoguanidine (a selective inhibitor of inducible nitric oxide synthase) on allyl alcohol-induced liver injury was assessed by the measurement of serum ALT and AST activities and histopathological examination. When aminoguanidine (50-300 mg/kg, i.p.) was administered to mice 30 min before a toxic dose of allyl alcohol (75 microL/kg, i.p.), significant changes related to liver injury were observed. In the presence of aminoguanidine the level of ALT and AST enzymes were significantly decreased. All symptoms of liver necrosis produced by allyl alcohol toxicity almost completely disappeared when animals were pretreated with aminoguanidine at 300 mg/kg. Depletion of hepatic glutathione as a consequence of allyl alcohol metabolism was minimal in mice pretreated with aminoguanidine at 300 mg/kg. It was found that the inhibition of toxicity was not due to alteration in allyl alcohol metabolism since aminoguanidine did not effect alcohol dehydrogenase activity both in vivo and in vitro.
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PMID:Beneficial effect of nitric oxide synthase inhibitor on hepatotoxicity induced by allyl alcohol. 1183 31

Hibiscus protocatechuic acid (PCA), a phenolic compound found in the dried flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (Malvaceae), was demonstrated to have an antioxidant effect in vitro and in vivo, and an antitumor property in our previous study. In the present study, we used lipopolysaccharide (LPS, an endotoxin) to induce rat liver inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and found that pretreatment with PCA decreased the liver iNOS and the serum total nitrite induced by LPS. Our investigation showed that pretreatment of rats with PCA (0.2 and 0.5 mmol/kg dosed by gavage) for 5 days significantly decreased the serum levels of the hepatic enzyme markers alanine- and aspartate aminotransferase (ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase) induced by the 6-h treatment with LPS (i.p.; 5 mg/kg). Histopathological evaluation of the rat livers revealed that PCA reduced the incidence of liver lesions induced by LPS, including neutrophil infiltration, congestion, and liver cell swelling induced by LPS in rats. We conclude that PCA, an antioxidant, presents an inhibitory potential on iNOS and hepatic damage induced by LPS.
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PMID:Hibiscus protocatechuic acid inhibits lipopolysaccharide-induced rat hepatic damage. 1249 Oct 40

Despite the fact that septic shock is characterized by a decrease in systemic vascular resistance, the main cause of death is due to multiple organ failure. The organ dysfunction is usually attributed to cell death caused by overproduction of free radicals derived from inflammation. In the host infected by endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, LPS), the expression and release of proinflammatory tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) rapidly increases, and the formation of free radicals (e.g., superoxide anion [O2*-] and nitric oxide [NO*] in the present study) are inevitably overproduced. In this study, we present evidence that overall treatment of LPS rats with terbutaline, a beta2-adrenoceptor agonist, attenuates the delayed hypotension and ameliorates the tachycardia. Overproduction of TNF-alpha and NO* (produced by inducible NO synthase [iNOS] examined by Western blot analysis in the lung and the liver) is inhibited by treatment of LPS rats with terbutaline. In addition, treatment of endotoxemic rats with terbutaline also reduces the O2*- levels in the lung and the liver. Terbutaline also improves the liver (assessed by aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, total bilirubin, and albumin/globulin) and kidney (assessed by creatinine and uric acid) dysfunction induced by endotoxin. These findings suggest that the amelioration of circulatory failure and organs injury by terbutaline is associated with its suppression in TNF-alpha, O2*- and NO (via iNOS) production in animals with endotoxic shock.
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PMID:Inhibition by terbutaline of nitric oxide and superoxide anion levels of endotoxin-induced organs injury in the anesthetized rat. 1263 May 30

Azathioprine (AZA) is an important drug used in the therapy of autoimmune system disorders. It induces hepatotoxicity that restricts its use. The rationale behind this study was the proven efficacy of N-acetylcysteine (NAC; a replenisher of sulfhydryls) and reports on the antioxidant potential of aminoguanidine (AG; an iNOS inhibitor), that might be useful to protect against the toxic implications of AZA. AG (100 mg/kg; i.p.) or NAC (100 mg/kg; i.p.) were administered to the Wistar male rats for 7 days and after that AZA (15 mg/kg, i.p.) was given as a single dose. This caused an increase in the activity of hepatic aminotransferases (AST and ALT) in the serum 24 h after AZA treatment. AZA (7.5 or 15 mg/kg, i.p.) also caused an increase in rat liver lipid peroxides and a lowering of reduced glutathione (GSH) contents. In the other part of experiment, protective effects of AG and NAC were observed on AZA induced hepatotoxicity. NAC significantly protected against the toxic effects produced by AZA. Pretreatment with NAC prevented any change in the activities of both the aminotransferases after AZA. This pretreatment also resulted in a significant decline in the contents of lipid peroxides and a significant elevation in GSH level was evident after AZA treatment. In the group with AG pretreatment the activities of AST and ALT did not increase significantly after AZA when compared to control. However, the lipid peroxides and GSH levels did not have any significant difference when compared to AZA group. These observations also indicate that the improvement in the GSH levels by NAC is the most significant protective mechanism rather than any other mechanistic profile. The protective effect of AG against the enzyme leakage seems to be through the liver cell membrane permeability restoration and is independent of any effects on liver GSH contents.
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PMID:A comparison of hepatoprotective activities of aminoguanidine and N-acetylcysteine in rat against the toxic damage induced by azathioprine. 1272 94

The liver is one of the major target organs affected in sepsis, and its failure always results in critical consequences. It has been reported that recombinant human interleukin 11 (rhIL-11), a pleiotropic cytokine, may be useful in the treatment of sepsis. However, the effect of IL-11 specifically on the hepatic failure in sepsis has not been evaluated. In the present study, we examined the effect of rhIL-11 on the hepatic injury in a rat endotoxemia model. Acute endotoxemia was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats by intraperitoneal injection (i.p.) of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 20 mg/kg). Immediately after injection of LPS, rats were treated with rhIL-11 (150 microg/kg, i.p.) or the vehicle. LPS treatment induced severe hepatic injury as revealed by marked increases in serum alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) activities, extensive hepatocyte necrosis, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNA, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) mRNA, and DNA-binding activity of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB). In contrast, rhIL-11 treatment significantly ameliorated the LPS-induced hepatic injury, as judged by marked improvement in all these indices. In addition, rhIL-11 treatment markedly decreased LPS-induced mortality. These results indicate that rhIL-11 plays a significant protective role in LPS-induced hepatic injury in acute endotoxemia.
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PMID:A protective role of interleukin 11 on hepatic injury in acute endotoxemia. 1475 86

The inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) is stimulated to produce large quantities of nitric oxide (NO) by proinflammatory stimuli, hemorrhagic shock, and a variety of cytokines. We have previously shown that cAMP profoundly inhibits hepatocyte iNOS expression in vitro. In this study, we tested whether glucagon, a hormone that increases cAMP in hepatocytes, could regulate hepatic iNOS expression and activity in vivo. Rats were injected intraperitoneally with lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 10 mg/kg) and treated with either saline or glucagon (500 microg/kg i.p.). Plasma and liver tissue were obtained 6 and 24 h after LPS. LPS induced increased iNOS mRNA, iNOS protein, and plasma levels of nitrite/nitrate that were all significantly decreased by glucagon treatment. The reduction in iNOS expression produced by glucagon was associated with a reduction in plasma AST and LDH levels, suggesting decreased LPS-induced hepatic injury. These data suggest that glucagon may participate in the in vivo regulation of hepatic iNOS expression after proinflammatory stimuli.
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PMID:Glucagon regulates hepatic inducible nitric oxide synthesis in vivo. 1525 89


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