Trauma and sepsis can cause acute lung injury (ALI) and Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) in part by triggering neutrophil (PMN)-mediated increases in endothelial cell (EC) permeability. We had shown that mitochondrial (mt) damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) appear in the blood after injury or shock and activate human PMN. So we now hypothesized that mitochondrial DAMPs (MTD)...

Prior to large earthquakes (e.g. 1995 Kobe earthquake, Japan), an increase in the atmospheric radon concentration is observed, and this increase in the rate follows a power-law of the time-to-earthquake (time-to-failure). This phenomenon corresponds to the increase in the radon migration in crust and the exhalation into atmosphere. An irreversible thermodynamic model including time-scale invari...

The mechanism responsible for the increase in cytosolic free Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) during mitogenic stimulation of lymphocytes has been widely investigated. By contrast, little is known about the processes underlying Ca2+i homeostasis in resting (unstimulated) cells. It has been suggested that [Ca2+]i is an important determinant of the rate of Ca2+ influx following mitogenic activation. ...

It has been reported recently that the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) besides transcellular chloride transport, also controls the paracellular permeability of bronchial epithelium. The aim of this study was to test whether overexpressing wtCFTR solely regulates paracellular permeability of cell monolayers. To answer this question we used a CFBE41o- cell line transfec...

It recently was proposed [Loo, D. D. F., Zeuthen, T., Chandy, G. & Wright, E. M. (1996) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93, 13367--13370] that SGLT1, the high affinity intestinal and renal sodium/glucose cotransporter carries water molecules along with the cosubstrates with a strict stoichiometry of two Na(+), one glucose, and approximately 220 water molecules per transport cycle. Using electrophysi...

We derive a numerical method for Darcy flow, hence also for Poisson’s equation in first order form, based on discrete exterior calculus (DEC). Exterior calculus is a generalization of vector calculus to smooth manifolds and DEC is its discretization on simplicial complexes such as triangle and tetrahedral meshes. We start by rewriting the governing equations of Darcy flow using the language of ...

Tight junctions are directly involved in regulating the passage of ions and macromolecules (gate functions) in epithelial and endothelial cells. The modulation of these gate functions to transiently regulate the paracellular permeability of large solutes and ions could increase the delivery of pharmacological agents or gene transfer vectors. To reduce the inflammatory responses caused by tight ...

systematic CO2 soil flux surveys carried out at cava dei Selci on the Colli Albani volcano (28 seasonal surveys since the year 2000), have shown a significant variation of CO2 diffuse release, with a marked decrease, from 25 to 4 tons/day, from May 2000 to August 2004, followed by a new increase. In the same time CO2 flux halved at S. Maria delle Mole (16.8 tons/day in 2000 and 8.3 tons/day in ...

We use a hydrodynamics theory to discuss the response of a viscous flux-line liquid to an ac perturbation applied at the surface of the sample. The theory incorporates viscoelastic effects and describes the crossover between liquid-like and solid-like response of the vortex array as the frequency of the perturbation increases. A large viscosity from flux-line interactions and entanglement leads...

The permeability of frog skin under the influence of urea hyperosmolarity has been studied. Flux ratio asymmetry has been demonstrated again for tracer mannitol. The inhibitors DNP, CN(-), and ouabain have been used to eliminate active sodium transport and it was found that urea hyperosmolarity produces asymmetrical mannitol fluxes on frog skins having no short-circuit current. These findings s...