Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:2.7.7.48 (transcriptase)
 9,479 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Chagas' disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, is an important cause of heart disease. Previous studies from this laboratory revealed that microvascular spasm and myocardial ischemia were observed in infected mice. Infection of endothelial cells with this parasite increased the synthesis of biologically active endothelin-1 (ET-1). Therefore. in the myocardium of T. cruzi-infected mice, we examined ET-1 expression and the p42/44-mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK)-AP-1 pathway that regulates the expression of ET-1. There was parasitism and myonecrosis in the myocardium of infected C57BL/6 mice. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis revealed elevated mRNA expression of transcription factor AP-1 (c-jun and c-fos) and increased AP-1 DNA binding activity as determined by electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA). Western blot analysis demonstrated an increase in the phosphorylated forms of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2). ET-1 mRNA was upregulated in the myocardium of infected mice. Immunohistochemical and immunoelectron microscopy using anti-ET-1 antibody detected increased expression in cardiac myocytes and endothelium of these mice. These data suggest that ET-1 contributes to chagasic cardiomyopathy and that the mechanism of the increased expression of ET-1 is a result of the activation of the MAPK pathway by T. cruzi infection.
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PMID:Trypanosoma cruzi infection (Chagas' disease) of mice causes activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade and expression of endothelin-1 in the myocardium. 1107 62

Trypanosoma cruzi infection results in an increase in myocardial NO and intense inflammation. NO modulates the T. cruzi-induced myocardial inflammatory reaction. NO synthase (NOS)1-, NOS2-, and NOS3-null mice were infected with T. cruzi (Brazil strain). Infected NOS1-null mice had increased parasitemia, mortality, and left ventricular inner diameter (LVID). Chronically infected NOS1- and NOS2-null and wild-type mice (WT) exhibited increased right ventricular internal diameter (RVID), although the fold increase in the NOS2-null mice was smaller. Infected NOS3-null mice exhibited a significant reduction both in LVID and RVID. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction showed expression of NOS2 and NOS3 in hearts of infected NOS1-null and WT mice, whereas infected NOS2-null hearts showed little change in expression of other NOS isoforms. Infected NOS3-null hearts showed an increase only in NOS1 expression. These results may indicate different roles for NOS isoforms in T. cruzi-induced cardiomyopathy.
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PMID:Role of NO synthase in the development of Trypanosoma cruzi-induced cardiomyopathy in mice. 1940 24