Dual promoters were identified in the mouse k-opioid receptor (KOR) gene. The distal promoter was located in the 59-upstream region of exon 1 and the proximal promoter was located in the first intron of this gene. The transcription initiation site of the proximal promoter was mapped to the 293rd nucleotide position from the ATG codon in a primer extension experiment. The expression of KOR mRNAs...

Abstract Chronic exposure to methamphetamine (METH) causes severe and persistent cognitive impairment. The present study aimed investigate the role of dynorphin/κ opioid receptor (KOR) system in development METH‐induced We found that mice showed significant impairment novel object recognition test (NOR) following daily injections METH (10 mg/kg) for seven consecutive days. Systemic blockade KOR...

In the mouse 55°C warm-water tail-withdrawal assay, a single administration of nor-binaltorphimine (nor-BNI; 10 mg/kg i.p.) antagonized k-opioid receptor (KOR) agonist-induced antinociception up to 14 days, whereas naloxone (10 mg/kg i.p.)mediated antagonism lasted less than 1 day. In saturation binding experiments, mouse brain membranes isolated and washed 1 or 7 (but not 14) days after nor-BN...

A relatively selective agonist of kappa opioid receptors (KOR), bremazocine (BRE), lowers intraocular pressure in rabbits, in part, by increasing natriuretic peptide levels in aqueous humor and by enhancing total outflow facility (TOF). Natriuretic peptide (NP) levels [atrial NP (ANP), brain NP (BNP), and C-type NP (CNP)] were measured in aqueous humor of rabbits either by radioimmunoassay or e...

Neural stem cells (NSCs) play an important role in the developing as well as adult brain. NSCs have been shown to migrate toward sites of injury in the brain and to participate in the process of brain repair. Like NSCs, cultured human neural precursor cells (NPCs) are self-renewing, multipotent cells capable of differentiating into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes and of migrating towa...

Neurokinin B (NKB) and its receptor (NK3R) are coexpressed with kisspeptin, Dynorphin A (Dyn), and their receptors [G-protein-coupled receptor-54 (GPR54)] and κ-opioid receptor (KOR), respectively] within kisspeptin/NKB/Dyn (KNDy) neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC), the proposed site of the GnRH pulse generator. Much previous research has employed intracerebroventricular (icv) ad...

We report the first example of a coordinated dual action of epidermal growth factor (EGF) in stimulating the nuclear-cytoplasmic export and translation of a select messenger RNA (mRNA). The effect of EGF is mediated by the RNA-binding protein Grb7 (growth factor receptor-bound protein 7), which serves as an adaptor for a specific mRNA-protein export complex and a translational regulator. Using ...

Salvinorin A, the active component of the hallucinogenic sage Salvia divinorum, is an apparently selective and highly potent kappa-opioid receptor (KOR) agonist. Salvinorin A is unique among ligands for peptidergic G protein-coupled receptors in being nonnitrogenous and lipid-like in character. To examine the molecular basis for the subtype-selective binding of salvinorin A, we utilized an inte...

been detected in central nervous system of rodents, nonhuman primates and human based on radioligand binding studies. KOR agonists may have pharmacotherapeutic potential in the treatment of pain or hyperalgesia and in the management of psychostimulant addiction. However, the clinical application of selective KOR agonists, such as ethylketocyclazocine and U-50488, has been limited by the occurre...

The opioid system is involved in infant-mother bonds and adult-adult bonds in many species. We have previously shown that μ opioid receptors (MORs) and κ opioid receptors (KORs) are involved in regulating the adult attachment of the monogamous titi monkey. The present study sought to determine the distribution of MOR and KOR in the titi monkey brain using receptor autoradiography. We used [(3)H...