BACKGROUND Although phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitors and the volatile anesthetic sevoflurane are known to have independent bronchodilator properties, the combined administration of these two agents may have the potential to exert an additive or synergistic bronchodilator effect. The authors tested this hypothesis and investigated the common site of this combined relaxation effect in a model of ai...

The enzyme which catalyzes the phosphorylation of glucose and fructose was described in 1927 by Meyerhof (1). He found that muscle extracts which split polysaccharides and hexose phosphates to lactic acid but were unable to ferment hexoses could be enabled to ferment glucose and fructose by addition of a protein fraction from bakers’ yeast. The same protein fraction activated the aerobic oxidat...

Abnormal growth of airway epithelium and the resultant thickening of airway walls may produce narrowing of airway calibre, thereby contributing to deterioration of bronchoconstriction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Beta2-adrenergic agonists have been widely used for the treatment of COPD, but their effects on the growth of airway epithelial cells is unknown. Growth of three hu...

The present study documents the existence in mammalian brain of a phosphoprotein which may play a biological role in dopaminoceptive neurons. This protein has been designated DARPP-32 (dopamine- and adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate-regulated phosphoprotein-32,000). The regional distribution of DARPP-32 in the rat brain follows the general pattern of dopaminergic innervation. DARPP-32 is present in...

Dyspnoea differs between subjects with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, partly because the underlying mechanisms for bronchoconstriction differ. This study investigated the possible role of inflammation and the contribution of clinical variables on dyspnoea in subjects with COPD and asthma. Forty-eight smoking subjects with COPD and 21 nonsmoking subjects with asthma, we...

In the present study we used thapsigargin (TG), an inhibitor of microsomal calcium ATPase, to evaluate the roles of free cytoplasmic calcium and intracellular stored calcium in secretagogue-stimulated enzyme secretion from rat pancreatic acini. Using microspectrofluorimetry of fura-2-loaded pancreatic acini, we found that TG caused a sustained increase in free cytoplasmic calcium by mobilizing ...

The present study was designed to observe the protective effect and mechanisms of meloxicam on liver injury caused by chronic aluminium exposure in rats. The histopathology was detected by hematoxylin-eosin staining. The levels of prostaglandin E2, cyclic adenosine monophosphate and inflammatory cytokines were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The expressions of cyclooxygenases-2, ...