Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P56851 (epididymal)
 11,273 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Acidic lipids with smooth muscle-stimulating properties were extracted from rat epididymal fat pads and were shown to co-chromatograph with (PGE1) prostaglandin E1, PGE2, and PGF2alpha. Further chemical identification was not possible with the small amounts of material available. A basal efflux of PGE and PGF compounds was observed following incubation of adipose tissue in vitro. Increased efflux of PG was detected under conditions reported to enhance free fatty acid release, i.e., addition of lipolytic hormones or drugs to the incubating medium, prior fasting of the animal, or stimulation of the epididymal nerve. These results, together with a decreased release of PG-like material in the presence of insulin, suggested that the efflux may be associated with lipolysis resulting from activation of a hormone-sensitive lipase. Since the PGs are known to affect the concentration of cyclic adenosine 3', 5'-monophosphate in adipose tissue, and this nucleotide is an intermediary in hormone-stimulated lipolysis, it is possible that the PGs released may serve to maintain the homeostasis of adipose tissue by way of a physiological feedback control mechanism.
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PMID:Release of prostaglandin from rat epididymal fat pad on nervous and hormonal stimulation. 429 86

There is a correlation between circulating insulin levels and blood pressure over a wide range of insulin levels and in a variety of clinical conditions. Production of prostaglandin (PG)E(2) (PGE(2)) and prostacyclin (PGI(2)), two potent vasodilators, by adipose tissue is increased in severe insulin deficiency, eg, diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), explaining the decreased peripheral vascular resistance in DKA. Conversely, decreased production of PGE(2) and PGI(2) may mediate the relationship between hyperinsulinemia and hypertension. Although insulin inhibits PG production in normal rat adipose tissue, PG production in adipose tissue from patients or experimental animals with nonketotic diabetes mellitus (DM) and DKA has not been studied. We examined the effect of plasma insulin levels on blood pressure and on adipose tissue PG production in rats with DM and DKA and normal rats. There was a significant relationship between plasma insulin level and blood pressure in rats with DM and normal controls (P < .021) and in rats with DKA and normal controls (P < .0001). There was an inverse linear correlation between plasma insulin levels and basal 6-keto-PGF(1 alpha) production by a mixture of adipocytes and endothelial cells from epididymal adipose tissue in rats with DKA and normal rats (P < .0252, R2 = .67). Rates of basal glycerol, PGE(2), and 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) production by a mixture of adipocytes and endothelial cells from epididymal adipose tissue were significantly higher in rats with DKA than in normal rats. These rates were also higher in rats with DM than in normal rats, but only glycerol values were statistically significant. In rats with DM, PGE(2) production induced by epinephrine 2 x 10(-5) mol/L (but not lower concentrations) was significantly greater than basal production (P < .05); production of 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) was not stimulated. In rats with DKA, 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) production induced by epinephrine 2 x 10(-5) mol/L (but not lower concentrations) was significantly greater than basal production (P < .05); production of PGE(2) was not stimulated. We conclude the following: (1) there is a close correlation between circulating insulin level and systemic blood pressure when rats with DM and DKA are compared with controls; (2) in insulin deficiency, PGI(2) and PGE(2) production are increased in adipose tissue versus normal tissue; and (3) the correlation between insulin level and blood pressure may be mediated by the inhibitory effect of insulin on vasodilative PG production by adipose tissue.
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PMID:The relationship between plasma insulin level, prostaglandin production by adipose tissue, and blood pressure in normal rats and rats with diabetes mellitus and diabetic ketoacidosis. 863 42

The epididymal portion of the rat vas deferens produced prostaglandins (PG) E(2), F(2alpha)and 6-keto F(1alpha). Electrical stimulation (ES, 0.1 Hz, 1 ms) increased such production by 100%, and similar results were obtained in the presence of 1.0 microM bradykinin (Bk). When both stimuli were applied simultaneously, the increases in PG production were 1100% for PGE(2), 800% for PGF(2alpha)and 400% for PG6-keto F(1alpha). Prazosin abolished the effect of ES on PG production. A selective Bk B(2)-receptor antagonist abolished the increase in PG production induced by Bk, both in non-stimulated and in ES tissues. Bk (1.0 microM) elicited contractile responses in non-stimulated as well as in ES tissues, responses that were not modified in the presence of 10 microM indomethacin. In conclusion, the effects of Bk on prostaglandin production appears to depend on the activation of B(2) receptors, while the increase in prostaglandin release induced by ES, and the effects observed with both stimuli simultaneously, should be mediated by the release of noradrenaline and the subsequent activation of alpha(1) adrenoceptors.
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PMID:Bradykinin and electrical stimulation increase prostaglandin production in the rat vas deferens. 1148 2

Muscular autorhythmicity provides propulsion of spermatozoa through the epididymal duct, thereby ensuring sperm maturation. In the present study, the mechanisms underlying the bovine epididymal spontaneous phasic contractions (SCs) were analyzed by using muscle-tension recording and patch-clamp techniques. SCs were recorded from the caput, the corpus, and the proximal cauda region and found to be predominantly myogenic in origin. Removal of the luminal fluid induced a burstlike contraction pattern, and removal of the epithelium, a complete loss of SCs. Application of nifedipine, but not heparin and cyclopiazonic acid, suppressed SCs, indicating that influx of Ca2+ through L-type Ca2+ channels, but not Ca2+ release from intracellular stores, was crucial for maintaining SCs. The prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) inhibitor NS-398 caused a region-dependent decrease in SCs and tone. These effects were mimicked by the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase inhibitor PD-98059. Similarly, the prostaglandin F(2alpha) (PGF(2alpha))-receptor antagonist AL-8810 reduced SC generation, whereas PGF(2alpha) induced SC-like activity in epithelium-denuded segments. Cell-isolation experiments revealed the existence of three morphologically different types of contractile cells, which also showed distinct biophysical properties: typical smooth muscle cells in the cauda, myofibroblast-like cells all along the duct, and atypical muscle cells (ATMs) with filament-like spurs in all regions with SCs. These data suggest that the bovine epididymal autorhythmicity is based on an epithelial PTGS2-dependent release of (an) excitatory prostaglandin(s) and a MAPK-dependent activation of L-type Ca2+ channels in the contractile cells. ATM cells may provide electrical coupling between myofibroblasts, which is essential for the generation of regular myogenic activity.
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PMID:Mechanisms regulating spontaneous contractions in the bovine epididymal duct. 1685 13