Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0729233 (Thoracic)
 6,478 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Diabetes is known to cause impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation of blood vessels. The purpose of this study was to determine whether this endothelial dysfunction is a permanent defect or is reversible after acute arginine supplementation in vitro or by surgical intervention in vivo using syngeneic pancreatic islet transplantation. Lewis rats were injected with streptozotocin to induce diabetes and were studied either 8 or 12 weeks later. Another group received syngeneic islets via intraportal injection at 8 weeks of diabetes and were allowed to become euglycemic for 4 weeks before study. Thoracic aortic rings were tethered in isolated muscle baths, contracted with a submaximal concentration of norepinephrine, and challenged with either the endothelium-dependent vasodilator acetylcholine or the endothelium-independent vasodilator nitroglycerin. Relaxation to acetylcholine (but not nitroglycerin) was reduced in both 8- and 12-week diabetic rings compared with age-matched control rings. Preincubation of diabetic rings in vitro with L-arginine (but not D-arginine) restored relaxation to acetylcholine to normal to rings from 8-week but not 12-week diabetic animals. Plasma basic amino acids (arginine, lysine, and histidine) were reduced by diabetes, whereas other neutral or acidic amino acids were unchanged (phenylalanine, proline, and glutamate), reduced (serine, cysteine, threonine, tyrosine, tryptophan, and aspartate), or elevated (isoleucine, leucine, and valine). Islet transplantation restored to normal the changes in plasma amino acids. Elevation in blood glucose and total glycosylated hemoglobin in diabetic animals was normalized after islet transplantation. Furthermore, islet transplantation completely restored the defective endothelium-dependent relaxation to acetylcholine in diabetic rings.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
 ...
PMID:Syngeneic pancreatic islet transplantation reverses endothelial dysfunction in experimental diabetes. 765 36

The developmental profile of a family of three FLRFamide (Phe-Leu-Arg-Phe-NH2) peptides in the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, revealed regional-specific expression patterns within the segmental ganglia. Levels of the three peptides-F7G (GNSFLRF-amide), F7D (DPSFLRFamide), and F10 (pEDVVHS-FLRFamide)-were always higher in the thoracic than abdominal ganglia. The predominant peptide also differed regionally, with F7G being highest in the thoracic ganglia and F7G and F100 being equivalent in the abdominal ganglia. Furthermore, we found regional-specific transient declines in ganglion peptide levels temporally correlated to ecdysis. Thoracic ganglion peptide levels declined at each molt, while abdominal ganglion levels declined over a period of 2 days after ecdysis. The decline in central levels was accompanied by an increase in levels in peripheral neurohemal sites, the transverse nerves (TNs). These observations suggest peptides were released from neurosecretory cells (NSCs) at ecdysis. Distinct sets of thoracic and abdominal NSCs and their processes in peripheral neurohemal sites were immunoreactive, supporting the biochemical data. These results also suggest the regional differences may arise from cellular-specific expression patterns for this family of peptides. In addition, fine immunoreactive processes were observed traveling between TNs and skeletal muscles, suggestive of myotropic actions. We propose that the release of different M. sexta FLRFamides from regionally distinct NSCs leads to a coordinated modulation of skeletal and visceral muscles that facilitate ecdysis.
 ...
PMID:Developmental and regional-specific expression of FLRFamide peptides in the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, suggests functions at ecdysis. 982 51