The aim of the research is to analyse the influence of polymorphisms of endothelin-1 gene and endothelin-1 receptor type A gene on the clinical condition of patients with primary open angle glaucoma. Methods. 285 Polish patients took part in the research (160 normal-tension glaucoma and 125 high-tension glaucoma). DNA was isolated by standard methods and genotype distributions of four polymorph...

1. The vasoconstrictor activities of endothelin-2, endothelin-3, sarafotoxin S6b, human proendothelin1-38 and mouse vasoactive intestinal contractor (VIC) were studied in the isolated Krebs-Henseleit perfused mesenteric arterial bed of the rat in the presence and absence of the endothelium. The vasoconstrictor properties of endothelin-1 were studied in control preparations and in preparations t...

The mechanisms of blood pressure regulation by endothelin-1 produced by endothelial cells are complex and still unclear. Transgenic mice with endothelium-restricted human endothelin-1 (EDN1) overexpression presented vascular damage but no significant change in blood pressure, which could be because of adaptation to life-long exposure to elevated endothelin-1 levels. We now generated a tamoxifen...

Endothelin is a potent vasoconstrictor, whereas endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) is a potent vasodilator. Both are produced by the endothelium. Although they have been studied extensively in large vessels, little is known about their actions in renal microvessels. Using microdissected rabbit afferent arterioles, we studied the vascular response to synthetic endothelin and its interact...

The effects of intraluminal and extraluminal endothelin-1 and its interactions with endothelium-derived relaxing factor were studied in perfused mesenteric resistance arteries of Wistar-Kyoto rats and spontaneously hypertensive rats. Changes in intraluminal diameter were recorded. In adult Wistar-Kyoto rats, but not spontaneously hypertensive rats, low concentrations of intraluminal endothelin-...

BACKGROUND Based on recent evidence showing that endothelin-1 stimulates several activation mechanisms on neutrophils, the aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of endothelin-1 on neutrophil adhesion to endothelial cells and neutrophil accumulation in the heart. METHODS AND RESULTS The experiments included (1) adhesion of 51Cr-labeled human neutrophils to bovine endothelial cell...

Endothelin-1 is a potent vasoconstrictor and comitogen for vascular smooth muscle. As such, it has been implicated in pulmonary vascular remodeling and in the development of pulmonary hypertension. Prostacyclin has been shown to be an effective therapy for human pulmonary hypertension, reducing morbidity and mortality, although the mechanism of its action is unknown. Here, we show that the comb...

BACKGROUND Capillary leakage with fluid loss into the third space contributes to many of the early systemic complications in severe acute pancreatitis. There has been increasing interest in endothelin as one of the factors affecting capillary permeability. AIM To elucidate further the role of endothelin in the development of capillary leakage in acute pancreatitis by investigating the effect ...

were investigated by both pharmacological and immunohistochemical methods. The vasoconstrictor action of endothelin-1 was examined on ring segments of human mesenteric arteries. Endothelin-1 induced a slowly developing and sustained contraction, with an EC50 value (half-maximal effective concentration) of 2.9x 10-9 M, two orders of magnitude smaller than that of norepinephrine (EC50 of 3.9xlO0`...

BACKGROUND/AIMS Endothelin-1 is implicated in the pathogenesis of hypertension, but the underlying mechanisms remained elusive. Our previous study found that inhibition of mitochondrial fission of smooth muscle cells suppressed phenylephrine- and high K+-induced artery constriction. Here, we studied the effects of mitochondrial fission inhibitors on endothelin-1-induced vasoconstriction. METH...