Background The arginase isozymes (arginase 1 and 2), convert Larginine into L-ornithine and urea, and thus compete with the nitric oxide synthase isozymes for substrate. We have previously shown that arginase 1 expression is upregulated in human asthma and plays a functional role in airways hyperresponsiveness (AHR) in an animal model of allergic airways inflammation. Ambient particles and ozon...

Arterial thrombosis is a common disease leading to severe ischemia beyond the obstructing thrombus. Additionally, endothelial dysfunction at the site of thrombosis can be rescued by l-arginine supplementation or arginase blockade in several animal models. Exposure of rat aortic endothelial cells (RAECs) to thrombin upregulates arginase I mRNA and protein levels. In this study, we further invest...

The balance between the products of L-arginine metabolism in macrophages regulates the outcome of Leishmania major infection. L-arginine can be oxidized by host inducible NO synthase to produce NO, which contributes to parasite killing. In contrast, L-arginine hydrolysis by host arginase blocks NO generation and provides polyamines, which can support parasite proliferation. Additionally, Leishm...

Recently, we showed that pharmacological blockade or genetic deficiency of arginase-2 confers kidney protection in diabetic mouse models. Here, we tested whether the protective effect of arginase inhibition is nitric oxide synthase 3 (eNOS) dependent in diabetic nephropathy. Experiments were conducted in eNOS-knockout and their wild-type littermate mice using multiple low doses of vehicle or st...

Arginases are enzymes that are involved in many human diseases and have been targeted for new treatments. Here a series of cinnamides was designed, synthesized and evaluated in vitro and in silico for their inhibitory activity against mammalian arginase. Using a microassay on purified liver bovine arginase (b-ARG I), (E)-N-(2-phenylethyl)-3,4-dihydroxycinnamide, also named caffeic acid phenylam...

Objective: We sought to determine whether dysregulation of arginine metabolism is related to insulin resistance and underlies impaired nitric oxide generation in type 2 diabetic (T2DM) patients. Research Design and Methods: We measured plasma arginase activity, arginine metabolites and skeletal muscle NOS activity in 12 T2DM and 10 age/BMI matched non-diabetic subjects before and following 4 ho...

Classical activation of macrophages infected with Leishmania species results in expression and activation of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) leading to intracellular parasite killing. Macrophages can contrastingly undergo alternative activation with increased arginase activity, metabolism of arginine along the polyamine pathway, and consequent parasite survival. An active role for parasite-encoded...

Background: Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed among females. A source of sampling for clinical diagnosis saliva which has been utilized and it a promising approach as collecting relatively easy non-invasive. Over past two decades, utilizing biomarker, specifically early attracted much research interest. Aim: To alter sample collection from blood to some components such nitric oxide (...

Arginase appears to be one of the first enzymes which was studied in cell nuclei isolated on a relatively large scale by physicochemical methods. This enzyme was measured in isolated nuclei of liver cells by Behrens (1) who reported that the arginase activity per dry weight of isolated nuclei was about equal to the arginase activity of cytoplasm per dry weight in the case of mammalian liver. It...

One characteristic of hypertension is a decreased endothelium-dependent nitric oxide (NO)-mediated vasodilation; however, the underlying mechanism is complex. In endothelial cells (ECs), L-arginine is the substrate for both NO synthase (NOS) and arginase. Because arginase has recently been shown to modulate NO-mediated dilation of coronary arterioles by reducing l-arginine availability, we hypo...