objective(s): in regard to the high incidence of asthma and the side-effects of the drugs used, finding novel treatments for this disease is necessary. our previous studies demonstrated the preventive effect of nigella sativa extract on ovalbumin-induced asthma. in addition, water-soluble substances of n. sativa extract and methanol fraction of this plant were responsible for the relaxant effec...

in the previous studies the relaxant, anti-cholinergic (functional antagonism) and anti-histaminic effects of nigella sativa have been demonstrated on guinea pig tracheal chains. to elucidate the main substance responsible for the relaxant effect of this plant, the effect of thymoquinone, one of the main constituent of nigella sativa was examined in this study. the bronchodilatory effects of th...

The phosphorylation of the calmodulin-dependent enzyme myosin light chain kinase, purified from bovine tracheal smooth muscle and human blood platelets, by the catalytic subunit of CAMP-dependent protein kinase and by cGMP-dependent protein kinase was investigated. When myosin light chain kinase which has calmodulin bound is phosphorylated by the catalytic subunit of CAMP-dependent protein kina...

Myosin light chain kinase from smooth muscle has been shown to be phosphorylated by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase, which leads to a decrease in the affinity of the kinase for Ca2+ . calmodulin and, hence, a decrease in enzymatic activity. This event has been proposed as a mechanism for the relaxation of smooth muscle in response to increased intracellular concentrations of cyclic AMP. The...

Purified smooth muscle myosin light chain can be phosphorylated at multiple sites by myosin light chain kinase and protein kinase C. We have determined the sites phosphorylated on myosin light chain in intact bovine tracheal smooth muscle. Stimulation with 10 microM carbachol resulted in 66 +/- 5% monophosphorylated and 11 +/- 2% diphosphorylated myosin light chain after 1 min, and 47 +/- 4% mo...

In the previous studies the relaxant, anti-cholinergic (functional antagonism) and anti-histaminic effects of Nigella sativa have been demonstrated on guinea pig tracheal chains. To elucidate the main substance responsible for the relaxant effect of this plant, the effect of thymoquinone, one of the main constituent of Nigella sativa was examined in this study. The bronchodilatory effects of th...

The transition from a liquid to a gas filled tubular network is the prerequisite for normal function of vertebrate lungs and invertebrate tracheal systems. However, the mechanisms underlying the process of gas filling remain obscure. Here we show that waterproof, encoding a fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR), is essential for the gas filling of the tracheal tubes during Drosophila embryogenesis, an...

abstract   background: iatrogenic airway injury after endotracheal intubation and tracheotomy remains a serious clinical problem. in this study we reviewed post-intubation and traumatic tracheal stenosis in 47 patients with a special attention to the cause, hense surgical treatment of the stenosis was performed and the results compared with the literatures.   methods: since february 1995 throug...

A number of different protein kinases phosphorylate purified heavy chains or the 20-kDa light chain of smooth muscle myosin. The physiological significance of these phosphorylation reactions has been examined in intact smooth muscle. Myosin heavy chain was slightly phosphorylated (0.08 mol of phosphate/mol) under control conditions in bovine tracheal tissue. Treatment with carbachol, isoprotere...

The respiratory system is directly exposed to low levels of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), present as a contaminant on airborne particles. In cystic fibrosis, the prevailing data identify structural changes of the airway epithelium, as well as tight junction dilatation. This study was aimed at determining the contribution of myosin light chain kinase to maintaining airway epithelium barrier integrit...