Cation channels activated by Ca store depletion have been proposed to mediate Ca influx in vascular smooth muscle cells. The aim of this study was to determine if store-operated channels have a functional role in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). In intact rat pulmonary artery rings, cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) produced a sustained contraction that was resistant to inhibition by nifed...

We used cultured hippocampal neurons to determine the signaling pathways mediating brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) regulation of spontaneous glutamate and GABA release. BDNF treatment elevated calcium concentration in presynaptic terminals; this calcium signal reached a peak within 1 min and declined in the sustained presence of BDNF. This BDNF-induced transient rise in presynaptic cal...

Cation channels activated by Ca(2+) store depletion have been proposed to mediate Ca(2+) influx in vascular smooth muscle cells. The aim of this study was to determine if store-operated channels have a functional role in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). In intact rat pulmonary artery rings, cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) produced a sustained contraction that was resistant to inhibition ...

Hypertension in the elderly substantially increases the risk of stroke and vascular cognitive impairment in part due to an impaired functional adaptation of aged cerebral arteries to high blood pressure. To elucidate the mechanisms underlying impaired autoregulatory protection in aging, hypertension was induced in young (3 mo) and aged (24 mo) C57BL/6 mice by chronic infusion of angiotensin II ...

We investigated the origin of spontaneous transient inward current (STIC) oscillations in descending vasa recta (DVR) pericytes. In cells clamped at -80 mV, angiotensin II (ANG II; 10 nmol/l) induced oscillations with mean amplitude and frequency of -65.5 pA and 1.2 Hz. Simultaneous recording of cytoplasmic calcium ([Ca(2+)](CYT)) and membrane current oscillations verified their synchrony and t...

OBJECTIVE Platelet Orai1 channels mediate store-operated Ca(2+) entry (SOCE), which is required for procoagulant activity and arterial thrombus formation. Pharmacological blockage of these channels may provide a novel way of antithrombotic therapy. Therefore, the thromboprotective effect of SOCE blockers directed against platelet Orai1 is determined. METHODS AND RESULTS Candidate inhibitors w...

It has been reported that activation of metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 (mGluR1) can mediate endocannabinoid-induced short-term depression of synaptic transmission in cerebellar parallel fiber (PF)-Purkinje cell (PC) synapse. mGluR1 has signaling pathways involved in intracellular calcium increase which may contribute to endocannabinoid release. Two major mGluR1-evoked calcium signaling pathw...

Channels formed by the canonical transient receptor potential (TRPC) subfamily of proteins are Ca(2+)-permeable, nonselective cation channels with various functions. Through a phospholipase C (PLC)-dependent mechanism TRPC6, a member of TRPC subfamily, can be activated by receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK) or G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), which are implicated in cell proliferation and human ...

alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionic acid receptors (AMPARs) are key regulators of synaptic function and cognition. In Alzheimer's disease (AD), cell-surface AMPARs are downregulated, however the reason for this downregulation is not clear. In the present study, we found that Abeta significantly decreased levels of the cell-surface AMPA-type glutamate receptor subunit 2 (GluR2),...

glutamatergic system stimulationthe nucleus accumbens shell, may affect anxiety-related behaviors, aversive learning and memory. glutamate receptors are differentially distributed in pre- and postsynaptic sites contributing to neuronal communications.the present study aimed to examine the possible involvement of the nac shell presynaptic nmda receptors on nmda induced responses, using the eleva...