Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound   Target Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound

---

Query: EC:2.7.7.6 (RNA polymerase)
34,946 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Chronic hypoxia has recently been shown to upregulate inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene expression in rat lung. In the present study, we questioned whether induction of NO synthesis could alter the reactivity of pulmonary arteries (PA) from chronically hypoxic (CH) rats. Dose-response curves to phenylephrine (PE) 10(-9) to 5 x 10(-6) M) were examined in PA rings as well as response to L-arginine analogues in isolated lungs from CH or normoxic (N) rats after various incubation times. Although maximal contraction to PE did not differ in PA from CH rats compared to N rats at time 0 (361 +/- 53 vs 506 +/- 52 mg, respectively), it was markedly decreased after prolonged incubation (149 +/- 28 vs 386 +/- 47 mg, respectively, at 4 h; p < 0.001). This phenomenon persisted after endothelial-denudation, but was reversed by NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA) (5 x 10(-4) M) and prevented by actinomycin D (2 x 10(-6) M). In contrast, maximal contraction to PE in aorta from CH rats was similar at time 0 and 4 h. After a short incubation, PA contraction to L-NMMA was greater in CH than in N rats (96 +/- 17 vs 33 +/- 9 mg at 90 min; p < 0.05), was abolished after endothelial denudation, but persisted in CH rats in the presence of calmidazolium (5 x 10(-4) M). At 4 h, contraction to L-NMMA was abolished in endothelium-denuded PA from N rats but only attenuated in those from CH rats. In salt solution perfused lungs, L-NMMA added 30 or 90 min after isolation did not alter baseline pressure in N rats but caused its increase in CH rats. Whereas iNOS messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) was detectable by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction in the PA wall of N or CH rats after 4 h of incubation, it was absent in both at the time of isolation. In contrast, there was evidence of iNOS mRNA in lungs from CH rats at the time of isolation but no signal in those from N rats. In conclusion, there is induction of nitric oxide synthase activity in pulmonary arteries from normoxic and chronically hypoxic rats after prolonged incubation, but this effect is more pronounced in pulmonary arteries from chronically hypoxic rats.
...
PMID:Induction of nitric oxide synthase activity in pulmonary arteries from normoxic and chronically hypoxic rats. 904 46

Angiogenesis is a complex process involving endothelial cell (EC) proliferation, migration, differentiation, and organization into patent capillary networks. Nitric oxide (NO), an EC mediator, has been reported to be antigenic as well as proangiogenic in different models of in vivo angiogenesis. Our aim was to investigate the role of NO in capillary organization using rat microvascular ECs (RFCs) grown in three-dimensional (3D) collagen gels. RFCs placed in 3D cultures exhibited extensive tube formation in the presence of transforming growth factor-beta 1. Addition of the NO synthase (NOS) inhibitors L-nitro-arginine methylester (L-NAME, 1 mmol/L) or L-monomethyl-nitro-l-arginine (1 mmol/L) inhibited tube formation and the accumulation of nitrite in the media by approximately 50%. Incubation of the 3D cultures with excess L-arginine reversed the inhibitory effect of L-NAME on tube formation. In contrast to the results obtained in 3D cultures, inhibition of NO synthesis by L-NAME did not influence RFC proliferation in two-dimensional (2D) cultures or antagonize the ability of transforming growth factor-beta 1 to suppress EC proliferation in 2D cultures. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction revealed the constitutive expression of all three NOS isoforms, neuronal, inducible, and endothelial NOSs, in 2D and 3D cultures. Moreover, Western blot analysis demonstrated the presence of immunoreactive protein for all NOS isoforms in 3D cultures of RFCs. In addition, in the face of NOS blockade, co-treatment with the NO donor sodium nitroprusside or the stable analog of cGMP, 8-bromo-cGMP, restored capillary tube formation. Thus, the autocrine production of NO and the activation of soluble guanylate cyclase are necessary events in the process of differentiation and in vitro capillary tube organization of RFCs.
...
PMID:Nitric oxide synthase inhibitors attenuate transforming-growth-factor-beta 1-stimulated capillary organization in vitro. 913 6

Chronic inflammatory states frequently lead to the increased production of nitric oxide (NO) via inducible NO synthase (NOS-2). In addition, NO may produce mutagenesis through several mechanisms such as DNA oxidation, DNA deamination, and the formation of N-nitroso compounds. As there is a strong association between human hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we were interested in whether human HCV hepatitis leads to induction of NOS-2 and if the mutation repair system of p53/p21 was upregulated. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for human NOS-2 message was performed on RNA samples from both liver biopsies and whole liver from HCV-positive and control patients (normal liver from hepatic resections for metastases). Immunohistochemistry (IHC) for p53 and Western blot analysis for p21 were also performed on the whole liver samples. From the liver biopsies, 60% of HCV-positive patients expressed NOS-2 by RT-PCR. Looking at the whole liver samples, 100% of the HCV-positive patients expressed NOS-2 vs 12.5% in the normal samples. p53 was not detected in either group but there was upregulation of p21 over baseline expression in a number of the HCV-positive patients. Human HCV hepatitis leads to consistent upregulation of hepatic NOS-2 message, but message is not predictably present in "normal" human liver. There is also induction of p21 in some patients with HCV hepatitis. Chronic expression of NO in HCV hepatitis may play a role in DNA mutagenesis and the development of HCC.
...
PMID:Chronic hepatitis C virus infection in humans: induction of hepatic nitric oxide synthase and proposed mechanisms for carcinogenesis. 922

The principal goal of the present study was to test the hypothesis that cytokines modulate glucose transport in skeletal muscle by increasing nitric oxide production. Cultured L6 skeletal muscle cells were incubated in the presence of tumour necrosis factor-alpha, interferon-gamma or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) alone or in combination for 24 h. Neither cytokines nor LPS alone induced NO production, as measured by nitrite concentrations in the medium. However, when used in combination, the two cytokines significantly stimulated NO production, and this effect was synergistically enhanced by the presence of LPS. Reverse transcriptase-PCR (RT-PCR) analysis revealed that NO release was associated with the induction of inducible (macrophage-type) NO synthase (iNOS). The increase in iNOS expression was confirmed at the protein level by Western-blot analysis and NADPH/diaphorase histochemical staining. Cytokines and LPS markedly increased basal glucose transport in L6 myocytes. Insulin also stimulated basal glucose transport, but significantly less in cells chronically exposed to cytokines/LPS. The sensitivity of L6 muscle cells to insulin-stimulated glucose transport was also significantly decreased by cytokines/LPS treatment. The NOS inhibitor NG-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (l-NAME) inhibited nitrite production in cytokine/LPS-treated cells, and this prevented the increase in basal glucose transport and restored muscle cell responsiveness to insulin. Cytokines/LPS exposure significantly increased GLUT1 transporter protein levels but decreased GLUT4 expression in L6 cells. l-NAME treatment prevented the increase in GLUT1 protein content but failed to restore GLUT4 transporter levels. These results demonstrate that cytokines and LPS affect glucose transport and insulin action by inducing iNOS expression and NO production in skeletal muscle cells. The data further indicate that cytokines and LPS increase the expression of the GLUT1 transporter protein by an NO-dependent mechanism.
...
PMID:Cytokines modulate glucose transport in skeletal muscle by inducing the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase. 923 Jan 32

In this study, we present a new method to obtain pure, viable, freshly isolated hepatic stellate cells. Stellate cells were purified by cell sorting using their high side scatter (SSC) of incident light. Purity of the cells was established by light and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Starting from stellate cells that were 50% to 70% enriched by centrifugation in 11% Nycodenz, the cell purity after sorting was found to be 96.6% +/- 2.9%. Viability of the sorted cells was 90.8% +/- 2.2% as measured by the Trypan blue exclusion test and was confirmed by cell culturing. Per hour of sorting, 1.4 +/- 0.4 million stellate cells were obtained. Sorting runs of up to 4 hours were practically feasible, resulting in yields of 5 to 6 million cells per rat liver. Cells attached to plastic substratum within 24 hours. Subsequently, they spread and underwent spontaneous transition into myofibroblast-like cells. The purity of sorted cells was documented by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) experiments using specific primer pairs for messenger RNA (mRNA) species that were only present in parenchymal (preproalbumin), endothelial (endothelial cell nitric oxide synthase [eNOS]), stellate (desmin), or Kupffer cells (77- to 88-kd fucose receptor). Contaminating mRNA species were absent in sorted stellate cells. Next, we examined freshly sorted stellate cells by Western blotting to confirm the presence of relevant cytoskeletal proteins. Cells were positive for vimentin, desmin, and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), but negative for alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA). Sorted and cultured cells were immunophenotyped for the presence of collagen types I, III, and IV, laminin, and the cytoskeletal proteins, alpha-SMA, desmin, vimentin, and GFAP. At 90 hours in culture, cells expressed all the investigated extracellular matrix proteins. Desmin was present in 82% +/- 1%, vimentin in 96% +/- 2.5%, and GFAP in 91% +/- 4.5% of cells. Alpha-SMA was present in 91% +/- 2% of cultured cells. We conclude that cell sorting based on SSC of incident light is a convenient method to obtain virtually pure stellate cells that can be used for direct analysis or for culturing. Although the yields obtained with this method are lower than with standard methods, and additional equipment is required, SSC-activated sorting offers the possibility of very pure cells when essential for analyses based on sensitive detection methods such as RT-PCR.
...
PMID:Purification of rat hepatic stellate cells by side scatter-activated cell sorting. 946 62

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha) and nitric oxide (NO), the product of inducible NO synthase (iNOS), mediate inflammatory and immune responses in the CNS under a variety of neuropathological situations. They are produced mainly by "activated" astrocytes and microglia, the two immune regulatory cells of the CNS. In this study we have examined the regulation of TNFalpha and iNOS gene expression in endotoxin-stimulated primary glial cultures, focusing on the role of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascades. The bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was able to activate extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and p38 kinase subgroups of MAP kinases in microglia and astrocytes. ERK activation was sensitive to PD98059, the kinase inhibitor that is specific for ERK kinase. The activity of p38 kinase was inhibited by SB203580, a member of the novel class of cytokine suppressive anti-inflammatory drugs (CSAIDs), as revealed by blocked activation of the downstream kinase, MAP kinase-activated protein kinase-2. The treatment of glial cells with either LPS alone (microglia) or a combination of LPS and interferon-gamma (astrocytes) resulted in an induced production of NO and TNFalpha. The two kinase inhibitors, at micromolar concentrations, individually suppressed and, in combination, almost completely blocked glial production of NO and the expression of iNOS and TNFalpha, as determined by Western blot analysis. Reverse transcriptase-PCR analysis showed changes in iNOS mRNA levels that paralleled iNOS protein and NO while indicating a lack of effect of either of the kinase inhibitors on TNFalpha mRNA expression. The results demonstrate key roles for ERK and p38 MAP kinase cascades in the transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of iNOS and TNFalpha gene expression in endotoxin-activated glial cells.
...
PMID:Extracellular signal-regulated kinase and p38 subgroups of mitogen-activated protein kinases regulate inducible nitric oxide synthase and tumor necrosis factor-alpha gene expression in endotoxin-stimulated primary glial cultures. 946 88

The endometrial secretory phase is characterized by stromal oedema, a premenstrual increase in stromal macrophages and an increased cytokine production as menstruation approaches. Nitric oxide (NO) is a mediator of vasodilatation and cytotoxicity which is synthesized from L-arginine by NO synthases (NOS). These enzymes are either constitutively expressed or induced by lipopolysaccharides and/or cytokines. The presence and function of the inducible isoform of NOS (iNOS) in normal human endometrium has not been fully elucidated until recently. Frozen tissue sections taken from 22 women who underwent hysterectomy and adnexectomy for benign disease were immunostained with antibodies raised against the different NOS isoforms to investigate the presence of NOS in human endometrium. iNOS stained positive in the glandular epithelial cells of the secretory endometrium. Staining was either weak or absent in the proliferative and inactive endometrium, as well as in the oviduct and the glandular epithelium of the endocervix. The stroma remained uniformly negative. Immunoreactivity for endothelial constitutive NOS (eNOS) was confined exclusively to endothelial cells. Furthermore, epithelial cells from endometrium, oviduct and endocervix and all endothelial cells showed positive staining for reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH)-diaphorase, which is a histochemical marker for NOS activity. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed in order to assess the presence of NOS mRNA. Abundant expression of iNOS mRNA was detected in the secretory phase endometrium only. The strong expression of inducible NO synthase in human secretory phase endometrium suggests that the increased production of NO, probably induced by cytokines, may be relevant to the process of menstruation.
...
PMID:Induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase expression in human secretory endometrium. 955 53

We have investigated factors modulating expression of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in isolated adult rat cardiac fibroblasts. Treatment of cardiac fibroblasts with interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) promotes induction of iNOS mRNA and protein and production of NO. Simultaneous incubation of cells with isoproterenol enhances the response to IL-1beta, even though isoproterenol alone is without effect. N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester inhibits the effect of isoproterenol + IL-1beta on NO production. beta(2)-Adrenergic receptors appear to mediate this effect of isoproterenol. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analyses show that beta(2)-receptor mRNA is the predominant beta-receptor message; in pharmacologic studies, ICI-118,551 significantly antagonizes isoproterenol-stimulated cyclic AMP production whereas CGP20712A does not. Dibutyryl-cyclic AMP and forskolin mimic the synergistic effect of isoproterenol on IL-1beta-induced NO production; H-89, a cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) inhibitor, antagonizes the enhancing effect of isoproterenol. Nuclear run-off experiments indicate that enhancement of iNOS by isoproterenol does not occur at the level of transcription. Message stability studies demonstrate that isoproterenol increases the half-life of iNOS mRNA from 1.0 to 1.9 h; this change is sufficient to account for the observed augmentation of iNOS mRNA and protein. Thus, cardiac fibroblasts produce significant amounts of NO in response to IL-1beta via induction of iNOS; beta-adrenergic stimulation enhances the IL-1beta effect by stabilizing the iNOS message. These data suggest that cardiac fibroblasts could participate in a paracrine mechanism whereby the direct positive inotropic effect of beta(1)-adrenergic stimulation of myocytes is opposed by beta(2)-adrenergic enhancement of NO production, a negative inotropic event, in neighboring fibroblasts.
...
PMID:beta-adrenergic stimulation of rat cardiac fibroblasts enhances induction of nitric-oxide synthase by interleukin-1beta via message stabilization. 1109 87

To gain insight into the glomerular capillary repair mechanisms in immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy, we focused on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A) and nitric oxide (NO). Because abnormal glycosylation of serum IgA has been shown in IgA nephropathy, we examined whether VEGF-A and NO production by mesangial cells (MCs) could be modulated by aberrantly glycosylated (desialylated or degalactosylated) IgA. VEGF-A and NO synthase (NOS) gene expression were examined by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) or Northern blot analysis, and VEGF-A peptide, by capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and NOS activity as production of tritium ([(3)H]) citrulline from [(3)H] arginine. Semiquantitative densitometric analysis of RT-PCR experiments showed a significant downregulation of VEGF-A messenger RNA (mRNA) in MCs incubated with aberrantly glycosylated IgA. This resulted in decreased release of VEGF-A in culture medium (P: < 0. 01). NOS activity and inducible NOS (iNOS) mRNA were enhanced by aberrantly glycosylated IgA (both P: < 0.01). No modulation of constitutive NOS mRNA was found. The depression of the VEGF-A production induced by aberrantly glycosylated IgA was mediated by NO because it was completely reversed by the NOS inhibitor, N:omega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester. The NO donor, sodium nitroprusside, induced a bimodal modulation of VEGF; although low concentrations (0.0001 nmol/L) increased VEGF-A synthesis, greater concentrations (1,000 nmol/L) depressed it. In conclusion, we report negative control of VEGF-A synthesis in MCs by aberrantly glycosylated IgA, mediated by enhanced iNOS activity. We speculate that both increased iNOS activity and depressed VEGF-A synthesis might have a role in impairing vascular repair and favor sclerosis in IgA nephropathy.
...
PMID:Aberrantly glycosylated IgA molecules downregulate the synthesis and secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor in human mesangial cells. 1109 49

Leptin was shown to exhibit similar to cholecystokinin (CCK) cytoprotective activity against acute gastric lesions, but its role in ulcer healing has not been examined. The aims of this study were: (1) to compare the effects of exogenous leptin to those of CCK on the course of healing of chronic gastric ulcers; (2) to study the gene and protein expression of leptin at the ulcer margin during ulcer healing; and (3) to assess the effects of leptin administration on the mucosal gene expression of main growth factor such as transforming growth factor alpha (TGFalpha). Gastric ulcers were produced in rats by the acetic acid method. Rats with ulcers were divided in following treatment groups: (1) vehicle; (2) leptin (10 microg/kg i.p.); (3) CCK (10 microg/kg s.c.); and (4) leptin or CCK with or without tyrphostin A46 (200 microg/kg i.p.), an inhibitor of epidermal growth factor (EGF)-receptor tyrosine kinase or NG-nitro-L-arginine (20 mg/kg i.g.), a blocker of nitric oxide synthase. Animals were euthanized 9 days after ulcer induction. The area of gastric ulcers and the gastric blood flow at the ulcer area were determined. In addition, mucosal biopsy samples were taken from the ulcer area for histological evaluation as well as for the determination of mRNA and protein expression for leptin and constitutive nitric oxide synthase (cNOS) and inducibile nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot, respectively. In addition, the gene expression for TGFalpha was analyzed by RT-PCR. Both leptin and CCK reduced significantly the ulcer area as compared to vehicle-treated group by approximately 50%. The treatment with tyrphostin or N(G)-nitro-L-arginine reversed in part the acceleration of ulcer healing by leptin and CCK. The expression of leptin mRNA and protein was significantly increased at the ulcer edge. The leptin-induced acceleration of ulcer healing was associated with increased expression of transcripts for TGFalpha as well as increased mRNA and protein expression for cNOS and iNOS at the ulcer margin. We conclude that leptin accelerates ulcer healing by mechanisms involving the up-regulation of TGFalpha and increased production of nitric oxide due to up-regulation of cNOS and iNOS in the ulcer area.
...
PMID:Role of leptin in ulcer healing. 1123 Sep 99


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next >>

---