PURPOSE Prostaglandin (PG) E2 is an immunomodulatory lipid mediator generated mainly via the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) pathway from arachidonic acid at sites of infection and inflammation. A positive feedback loop of PGE2 on COX-2 expression is critical for homeostasis during toll-like receptor (TLR)-mediated inflammatory processes. The mechanism of PGE2-regulated COX-2 expression remains poorly...

BACKGROUND Evidence suggests a relationship between prostaglandin levels in colonic mucosa and risk of colon cancer. Physical inactivity and a higher body mass index (BMI; weight in kilograms divided by [height in meters]2) have been consistently shown to increase risk of this cancer. We investigated whether higher levels of leisure-time physical activity or a lower BMI was associated with lowe...

Under pathophysiological conditions, infiltration of leukocyte plays a key role in the progression of the neuroinflammatory reaction in the CNS. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is known to accumulate at lesion sites of the post-ischemic brain. Although post-ischemic treatments with cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors reduce blood-brain barrier (BBB) leukocyte infiltration, the direct effect of PGE2 on BBB has ...

Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) has been demonstrated to attenuate cardiac ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. However, the underlying mechanism of PGE2 in cardiac I/R injury remains unknown. Upregulated expression levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) were reported in acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and were demonstrated to diminish I/R inju...

BACKGROUND Airway mucociliary clearance (MCC) is an important defense mechanism against pulmonary infections and is compromised in cystic fibrosis (CF). Cl- and HCO3- epithelial transport are integral to MCC. During pulmonary infections prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production is abundant. AIM To determine the effect of PGE2 on airway Cl- and HCO3- secretion and MCC in normal and CF airways. METH...

15-keto-13,14-dihydroprostaglandin F2 alpha plasma levels were measured in pregnant women following labor induction with either oral PGE2 treatment or intravenous oxytocin, both combined with amniotomy. The median time to start of contractions was 62 minutes in the PGE2 treated group and 45 minutes in the oxytocin treated group (p less than 0.01; median test). The increase in 15-ketodihydro-PGF...

Fetal membranes from term human pregnancies produce prostaglandins, and may respond to bacterial endotoxin or interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) with increased prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production. The effects of endotoxin persisted for up to 24 h, whereas those of IL-1 beta were maximal 4-8 h after addition. The maximum levels of PGE2 (200-350 pg/ml) were similar in all experiments, and were indepen...

Prostaglandin (PG)E2 promotes the wakeful state when administered into the posterior hypothalamus, in which the histaminergic tuberomammillary nucleus (TMN) is located. To explore the neurotransmitter mechanisms responsible for PGE2-induced wakefulness in rats, we examined the effect of PGE2 on the activity of the histaminergic system and the involvement of PGE2 receptor subtypes in the respons...

The EP2 prostanoid receptor is one of the four subtypes of receptors for prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). We previously reported that deletion of EP2 led to resistance to chemically induced mouse skin carcinogenesis, whereas overexpression of EP2 resulted in enhanced tumor development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the underlying molecular mechanisms. We found that EP2 knockout mice had ...

Purified cardiac sarcolemmal membrane vesicles were used to determine if specific prostaglandin (PG) receptors are present on the myocyte. Two binding sites for PGE2 were identified in isolated bovine sarcolemmal membranes: a high-affinity site with a dissociation constant (Kd) of 0.32 nM and a maximum binding (Bmax) of 376 fmol/mg of protein and a lower-affinity site with a Kd of 3.41 nM and a...