Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0004134 (ataxia)
 15,886 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) was originally identified as a secreted trophic factor for dopamine neurons in vitro. It protects and restores damaged cells in rodent models of Parkinson's disease, brain and heart ischemia, spinocerebellar ataxia and retina in vivo. However, its exact mechanism of action is not known. MANF is widely expressed in most human and mouse organs with high levels in secretory tissues. Intracellularly, MANF localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and ER stress increases it's expression in cells and tissues. Furthermore, increased MANF levels has been detected in the sera of young children with newly diagnosed Type 1 (T1D) diabetes and Type 2 (T2D) diabetic patients. ER stress is caused by the accumulation of misfolded and aggregated proteins in the ER. It activates a cellular defense mechanism, the unfolded protein response (UPR), a signaling cascade trying to restore ER homeostasis. However, if prolonged, unresolved ER stress leads to apoptosis. Unresolved ER stress contributes to the progressive death of pancreatic insulin-producing beta cells in both T1D and T2D. Diabetes mellitus is characterized by hyperglycemia, caused by the inability of the beta cells to maintain sufficient levels of circulating insulin. The current medications, insulin and antidiabetic drugs, alleviate diabetic symptoms but cannot reconstitute physiological insulin secretion which increases the risk of devastating vascular complications of the disease. Thus, one of the main strategies in improving current diabetes therapy is to define and validate novel approaches to protect beta cells from stress as well as activate their regeneration. Embryonic deletion of the Manf gene in mice led to gradual postnatal development of insulin-deficient diabetes caused by reduced beta cell proliferation and increased beta cell death due to increased and sustained ER stress. In vitro, recombinant MANF partly protected mouse and human beta cells from ER stress-induced beta cell death and potentiated mouse and human beta cell proliferation. Importantly, in vivo overexpression of MANF in the pancreas of T1D mice led to increased beta cell proliferation and decreased beta cell death, suggesting that MANF could be a new therapeutic candidate for beta cell protection and regeneration in diabetes.
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PMID:Emerging Roles for Mesencephalic Astrocyte-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (MANF) in Pancreatic Beta Cells and Diabetes. 3038 56

Basolateral inwardly-rectifying K+ channels (Kir) play an important role in the control of resting membrane potential and transepithelial voltage, thereby modulating water and electrolyte transport in the distal part of nephron. Kir4.1 and Kir4.1/Kir5.1 heterotetramer are abundantly expressed in the basolateral membrane of late thick ascending limb (TAL), distal convoluted tubule (DCT), connecting tubule (CNT) and cortical collecting duct (CCD). Loss-of-function mutations in KCNJ10 cause EAST/SeSAME syndrome in humans associated with epilepsy, ataxia, sensorineural deafness and water-electrolyte metabolism imbalance, which is characterized by salt wasting, hypomagnesaemia, hypokalaemia and metabolic alkalosis. In contrast, mice lacking Kir5.1 have severe renal phenotype apart from hypokalaemia such as high chlorine metabolic acidosis and hypercalcinuria. The genetic knockout or functional inhibition of Kir4.1 suppresses Na-Cl cotransporter (NCC) expression and activity in the DCT. However, the downregulation of Kir4.1 increases epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC) expression in the collecting duct. Recently, factors regulating expression and activity of Kir4.1 and Kir4.1/Kir5.1 were identified, such as cell acidification, dopamine, insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1. The involved mechanisms include PKC, PI3K, Src family protein tyrosine kinases and WNK-SPAK signal transduction pathways. Here we review the progress of renal tubule basolateral Kir, and mainly discuss the function and regulation of Kir4.1 and Kir4.1/Kir5.1.
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PMID:[The function and regulation of basolateral Kir4.1 and Kir4.1/Kir5.1 in renal tubules]. 3056 Feb 68

Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) is an autosomal recessive disease with a prevalence of about 1/125,000. The syndrome involves mixed rod-cone dystrophy (which becomes obvious by 6 years of age). About two thirds of patients have postaxial polydactyly, and sometimes syndactyly, brachydactyly, and/or clinodactyly may be present. Hypogonadism and renal involvement occur in about 40%, mental retardation in about 50%, and truncal obesity in about 70%; it is present early, along with insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. Vision becomes markedly impaired by about age 30 years. The BBS is genetically heterogeneous entity with considerable phenotypic variability. Other associated problems include CNS-related ataxia, abnormal gait, and facial hypotonia, as well as anomalies such as high palate, hearing loss, and cardiac malformations. In males, there is oligospermia, leading to infertility. Around 50–80% of BBS patients have renal malformations (like cyst, agenesis or scarring) and renal dysfunction leading to end-stage renal disease. There are no pigmentary changes before the age of 1–2 years. Later, subtle pigmentary changes appear in the macula or peripapillary area. Several years later, pigments appear in the equatorial region, along with attenuation of retinal blood vessels and waxy pallor of the optic disc. Eventually, the macula may show atrophic changes (Figs. 33.1, 33.2 and 33.3). Electroretinography (ERG) shows involvement of rods and cones and is abnormal even before the fundus shows changes. A perimacular hyperfluorescent ring can be seen.
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PMID:Ciliopathy: Bardet-Biedl Syndrome. 3057 6


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