Two patients were treated with treatment-resistant polymyositis with intravenous immunoglobulin over four days at a dose of 0.4 g/kg/day. Clinical recovery followed within two months. Serum creatine kinase (CK) activity decreased to normal, and a clear improvement in muscle strength was observed. One patient showed neither clinical relapses nor increase in serum CK activity after 20 months. The...

Muscle contraction requires high energy fluxes, which are supplied by MM-CK (muscle-type creatine kinase) which couples to the myofibril. However, little is known about the detailed molecular mechanisms of how MM-CK participates in and is regulated during muscle contraction. In the present study, MM-CK is found to physically interact with the slow skeletal muscle-type MyBPC1 (myosin-binding pro...

We have tested the hypothesis that decreased functioning of creatine kinase (CK) at sites of energy production and utilization may contribute to alterations in energy fluxes and calcium homeostasis in congestive heart failure (CHF). Heart failure was induced by aortic banding in 3-week-old rats. Myofilaments, sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR), mitochondrial functions, and CK compartmentation were stu...

We have tested the hypothesis that decreased functioning of creatine kinase (CK) at sites of energy production and utilization may contribute to alterations in energy fluxes and calcium homeostasis in congestive heart failure (CHF). Heart failure was induced by aortic banding in 3-week-old rats. Myofilaments, sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR), mitochondrial functions, and CK compartmentation were stu...

Four serum enzymes and isoenzymes used in the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), lactate dehydrogenase LD and LD-1, creatine kinase (CK), and CK-MB have been adapted to the Technicon RA-1000 automated clinical chemistry analyzer. Analytical parameters have been adjusted to provide clinically acceptable precision for all four assays. Correlations with centrifugal analyzer procedures...

Transduction of metabolic signals is essential in preserving cellular homeostasis. Yet, principles governing integration and synchronization of membrane metabolic sensors with cell metabolism remain elusive. Here, analysis of cellular nucleotide fluxes and nucleotide-dependent gating of the ATP-sensitive K+ (K(ATP)) channel, a prototypic metabolic sensor, revealed a diffusional barrier within t...

Serum creatine kinase (CK) activities were investigated in elite male strength athletes (n = 20) during normal weight training and bodybuilding training (one training session per day), during high volume strength training (two sessions per day) and during strength training (one session per day) with the use of high dose synthetic androgens (five athletes in each subgroup). The findings demonstr...

background: nicotine, cotinine and cadmium are harmful components of cigarettes that have an effect on human reproductive function. although the effects of cigarette smoke on male reproductive function is characterized in several articles its mechanism of action is still unknown. in the present study, we investigate the effect of nicotine, cotinine and cadmium on human sperm creatine kinase act...

Background – The aim of present study was to investigate a possible link between the creatine kinase (CK) content in the V. xanthia raddei venom and its acute toxicity values. Methods – Creatine kinase, the ATP-generating enzyme belonging to a phosphotransferases family, has been completely purified from the venom of Vipera xanthia raddei using a novel method of affinity chromatography on ADP-S...

The routine determination of creatine kinase (CK; EC 2.7.3.2) isoenzymes has recently gained acceptance as a diagnostic tool in laboratory medicine (13). Electrophoreticaily three distinct CK isoenzymes can be separated (4, 5). These dimeric bands have been identified throughout the literature as MM, MB, and BB, and originate mainly from skeletal muscle, heart, and brain tissues, respectively. ...