The Janus face of nicotinic angiogenesis.

Double face of VEGF.

The Roman god Janus (Figure) was the guardian of gates and doors and was believed to represent beginnings and endings; he is hence represented by a double-faced head. He particularly presided over all that is double-edged in life and represented the transition between the primitive and civilization, between the countryside and the city, peace and war, and the growing-up of young people. The con...

Nicotinic Receptors Partially Mediate Anti-Inflammatory Effects through Janus Kinase 2-Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 but Not Calcium or cAMP Signaling

Despite evidence that smoking confers protection against neurological disorders, how and whether specific nicotinic receptor subtypes are involved is unknown. We reported previously that nicotine suppresses constitutive nuclear factor B (NFB) activity and thereby proinflammatory cytokine (PIC) production in SHEP1 cells stably transfected with 4 2 nicotinic receptors. Here, we report the anti-in...

Effect of Asymmetric Functionalized Graphene Oxide (Janus GO) on Young′s Modulus and Glass Transition Temperature of PSf Ultrafiltration Membrane

   In this study, effect of asymmetric functionalized graphene oxide (Janus GO) on Young′s modulus and glass transition temperature of Polysulfone (PSf) ultrafiltration membranes was investigated. The membranes were prepared via phase inversion method and GO nanosheets were dispersed in casting solution by sonication. Results showed that the Normalized Young’s modulus (on the basis of neat ...

Nicotinic and non-nicotinic receptor-mediated mechanisms responsible for anti-atrophy effects in muscle

Recently, cholinergic modulation of immune cells has drawn particular interests from researchers in clinical fields, which may lead to a breakthrough that produces a novel therapeutic modality. Other than the immunological aspects, cholinergic modulation may also provide clues for accelerating angiogenesis and preventing any associated muscle atrophy. In this Research highlight, we discuss our ...

The Janus Face of Diversity in Australian Sport