The enzyme soluble adenylyl cyclase (sAC) is directly stimulated by bicarbonate (HCO3-) to produce the signaling molecule cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). Because sAC and sAC-related enzymes are found throughout phyla from cyanobacteria to mammals and they regulate cell physiology in response to internal and external changes in pH, CO2, and HCO3-, sAC is deemed an evolutionarily conserved...

The signaling molecule cAMP regulates functions ranging from bacterial transcription to mammalian memory. In mammals, cAMP is synthesized by nine transmembrane adenylyl cyclases (ACs) and one soluble AC (sAC). Despite similarities in their catalytic domains, these ACs differ in regulation. Transmembrane ACs respond to G proteins, whereas sAC is uniquely activated by bicarbonate. Via bicarbonate...

Nutrition transition is characterised by shift to highly refined diets high in fat, salt and caloric sweeteners and low in fibre in rapidly growing economies. Dietary shifts occur almost concurrently with demographic and epidemiologic shifts, urbanisation and industrialisation and together contribute to increased prevalence of nutrition related (NR)-non-communicable disease (NCR). The emergence...

Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) devices are blood pumps that support or replace the function of the native heart. It is important to minimize the material stresses in the flexing blood sac or diaphragm in order to increase the duration of support these devices can provide. An axisymmetric finite element model of a pusherplate blood pump was constructed to evaluate the effect of various des...

Oral cancer is prevalent worldwide. Studies have indicated that an increase in the osteopontin (OPN) plasma level is correlated with the progression of oral cancer. Our previous report showed that the aqueous garlic extract S-allylcysteine (SAC) inhibited the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of human oral cancer CAL-27 cells in vitro. Therefore, the present study investigated whether SAC...

purpose: to determine bacterial flora of the conjunctiva and lacrimal sac in adult patients with naso-lacrimal duct obstruction (nldo) in comparison with normal flora. methods: this study included 40 consecutive adult patients with nldo and 40 age- and sex matched healthy controls. specimens for bacterial culture were obtained from the involved and normal conjunc-tiva preoperatively and from th...

Germ cell tumors predominantly involve the gonads but may rarely be found outside of the gonads, primarily in midline structures. We describe the case of a 27-year-old male with an asymptomatic 8 cm teratoma located within the lesser sac of his omentum. This is the fourth case of a teratoma located within the lesser sac of the omentum, which provides the opportunity to make some comparisons. Fi...

p31 plays an important role in spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) silencing. However, how p31’s activity is regulated remains unclear. Here we show that the timing of M-phase exit in Xenopus egg extracts (XEEs) depends upon SAC activity, even under conditions that are permissive for spindle assembly. p31 antagonizes the SAC, promoting XEE progression into anaphase after spindles are fully formed...