Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:3.1.1.8 (cholinesterase)
 12,691 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

This study sought to determine whether release of acetylcholine (ACh) within the C1 area of nucleus reticularis rostroventrolateralis (RVL) contributes to the tonic maintenance of arterial pressure (AP) in the rat. The activity of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), the biosynthetic enzyme for ACh, varied 5.5-fold in micropunches of the 6 medullary regions examined. ChAT activity in the C1 area (179 +/- 35 nmol [14C]ACh formed/mg protein/60 min; n = 4) was intermediate between that of the hypoglossal nucleus (249 +/- 38; highest) and the pyramids (45 +/- 11; lowest) and equivalent to that found in the parietal cortex (147 +/- 15). Release of [3H]ACh from C1 area micropunches was increased by raising extracellular K+ concentrations (5-55 mM) and was entirely Ca2(+)-dependent. Muscarinic receptor binding density was assessed using [3H]quinuclidinyl benzylate ([3H]QNB) as ligand and a recently developed 'electronic micropunch' technique which allows measurement of quench-corrected [3H]QNB binding within corresponding cylinders of tissue obtained by the mechanical micropunch cannula. [3H]QNB binding density varied 2.6-fold: lateral reticular nucleus pars lateralis greater than C1 area greater than nucleus ambiguus = hypoglossal nucleus = pyramid = oral spinal trigeminal nucleus. In urethane-anesthetized rats, inhibition of ACh synthesis by hemicholinium-3 (HC-3, 3 nmol/50 nl), or blockade of muscarinic receptors by scopolamine (SCOP, 3 nmol/50 nl), reduced resting mean AP by 18-24 mm Hg following bilateral microinjection into the C1 area. These concentrations of HC-3 and SCOP were sufficient to attenuate by 70-80% the increase in local cholinergic neurotransmission elicited by the cholinesterase inhibitor physostigmine given systemically. High concentrations of SCOP (30-150 nmol/50 nl) lowered AP by 46-60 mm Hg. Similarly, bilateral microinjections of GABA (10 nmol/50 nl) into the C1 area markedly reduced mean AP by 51 +/- 6 mm Hg to levels normally found after transection of the spinal cord. Thus, a substantial portion of tonic sympathetic activity may be driven by activation of muscarinic receptors in the C1 area. In the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR), a genetic model of hypertension, neither spontaneous nor K(+)-evoked release of [3H]ACh from the C1 area differed from that of normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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PMID:Synthesis, release and receptor binding of acetylcholine in the C1 area of the rostral ventrolateral medulla: contributions in regulating arterial pressure. 233 21

Phenserine ((-)-N-phenylcarbamoyl eseroline), a carbamate analog of physostigmine (Phy), is a long-acting inhibitor of cholinesterase. We have assessed the potential clinical value of phenserine for cholinomimetic therapy of cognitive impairments associated with aging and Alzheimer's disease by evaluating its duration of in vivo activity against rat plasma acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and its effect on attenuating a scopolamine-induced impairment in learning performance of young rats in a shock-motivated 14-unit T-maze. Phenserine achieved maximum AChE inhibition of 73.5% at 5 min and maintained a high and relatively constant inhibition for more than 8 h. For analysis of effects on learning performance, 69, 3-month-old male Fischer-344 rats were pretrained in a straight runway to avoid electric footshock. On the following day, each animal received 15 trials in the 14-unit T-maze. Sixty minutes prior to the maze training, each rat received the first IP injection of either vehicle (Tween 80, ethanol and 0.9% NaCl) or phenserine at 1.5, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 7.5, or 10.0 mg/kg. Then 30 min prior to the training, each animal received a second IP injection of either 0.9% NaCl or scopolamine hydrochloride (0.75 mg/kg; SCOP). Compared to the vehicle-SCOP group, all but the 7.5 mg/kg dose of phenserine significantly ameliorated error performance, runtime, shock frequency and shock duration in SCOP-treated rats at the final block of three trials. Appearing to have a long effect and a wide therapeutic window, phenserine deserves further study as a cognitive enhancer.
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PMID:Phenserine: a physostigmine derivative that is a long-acting inhibitor of cholinesterase and demonstrates a wide dose range for attenuating a scopolamine-induced learning impairment of rats in a 14-unit T-maze. 787 Oct 51