Hantaviruses (family Bunyaviridae) are enveloped negative-sense tripartite RNA viruses. The natural hosts of hantaviruses include rodents, shrews, moles, and bats. Imjin virus (MJNV) is a shrew-borne hantavirus identified from the Ussuri white-toothed shrews (Crocidura lasiura) in the Republic of Korea (ROK) and China. We have isolated MJNV and determined its prevalence and molecular diversity ...

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of inhibitors of Rho kinase (ROK) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) on angiogenesis and tumor growth and to evaluate ROK activity in human prostate cancer PC3 cells and endothelial cells (HUVECs). Vacuolation by endothelial cells and lumen formation, the earliest detectable stages of angiogenesis, were inhibited by the ROK inhibitor Wf-5...

Detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) undergoes hypertrophy after partial bladder outlet obstruction (PBOO) in male rabbits, as it does in men with PBOO induced by benign prostatic hyperplasia. Despite detrusor hypertrophy, some bladders are severely dysfunctional (decompensated). In this study, the rabbit model for PBOO was used to determine the biochemical regulation of the contractile apparatus and f...

Previous studies have demonstrated that partial bladder outlet obstruction (PBOO) in the rabbit induces an increase in corpus cavernosum smooth muscle (CCSM) tone, which may make it difficult for the CCSM to relax. Thus, to determine whether the corpus cavernosum restores relaxation after reversal of PBOO, we investigated the physiologic, histologic, and cell biology in penises obtained from ra...

Reversible phosphorylation of neuronal proteins plays an important role in the regulation of neurotransmitter release. Myosin phosphatase holoenzyme (MP) consists of a protein phosphatase-1 (PP1) catalytic subunit (PP1c) and a regulatory subunit, termed myosin phosphatase targeting subunit (MYPT1). The primary function of MP is to regulate the phosphorylation level of contractile proteins; howe...

Our objectives were to identify the relative contributions of [Ca2+]i and myofilament Ca2+ sensitivity in the pulmonary venous smooth muscle (PVSM) contractile response to the thromboxane A2 mimetic U-46619 and to assess the roles of PKC, tyrosine kinases (TK), and Rho-kinase (ROK) in that response. We tested the hypothesis that U-46619-induced contraction in PVSM is mediated by both increases ...

Large and functionally heterogeneous families of transcription factors have complex evolutionary histories. What shapes specificities toward effectors and DNA sites in paralogous regulators is a fundamental question in biology. Bacteria from the deep-branching lineage Thermotogae possess multiple paralogs of the repressor, open reading frame, kinase (ROK) family regulators that are characterize...

Rho-kinase (ROK), downstream of the mevalonate pathway, is detrimental to vessels, and suppressing its activity is a target for the treatment of human disease such as coronary artery disease and pulmonary hypertension. Recent studies have shown that ROK has a crucial role in bone metabolism. However, the role of ROK in stromal cells is still unclear. The present study was undertaken to investig...

which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. More than one month has passed by since the first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was confirmed in Republic of Korea (ROK) on May 20, 2015 (1). Just a single patient, who visited Dammam, Saudi Arabia, devastatingly produced 18...

BACKGROUND Sepsis is characterised by diminished vasopressor responsiveness. Vasoconstriction depends upon a balance: Ca(2+)-dependent myosin light-chain kinase promotes and Ca(2+)-independent myosin light-chain phosphatase (MLCP) opposes vascular smooth muscle contraction. The enzyme Rho kinase (ROK) inhibits MLCP, favouring vasoconstriction. We tested the hypothesis that ROK-dependent MLCP in...