Understanding the mechanisms of lung mechanical stress

Physical forces affect both the function and phenotype of cells in the lung. Bronchial, alveolar, and other parenchymal cells, as well as fibroblasts and macrophages, are normally subjected to a variety of passive and active mechanical forces associated with lung inflation and vascular perfusion as a result of the dynamic nature of lung function. These forces include changes in stress (force per unit area) or strain (any forced change in length in relation to the initial length) and shear stress (the stress component parallel to a given surface). The responses of cells to mechanical forces are the result of the cell's ability to sense and transduce these stimuli into intracellular signaling pathways able to communicate the information to its interior. This review will focus on the modulation of intracellular pathways by lung mechanical forces and the intercellular signaling. A better understanding of the mechanisms by which lung cells transduce physical forces into biochemical and biological signals is of key importance for identifying targets for the treatment and prevention of physical force-related disorders.

Greening of intermittent-light-grown bean plants in continuous light: thylakoid components in relation to photosynthetic performance and capacity for photoprotection.

Phaseolus vulgaris (cvv. Windsor longpod and snap bean) plants, etiolated during germination, were exposed to intermittent light (2 min light every 2 hr) for up to 68 hr and then transferred to continuous white light. On transfer of the plants to continuous light (100 photons mumol m-2 s-1, 24 degrees C), the quantum yield of oxygen evolution increased two-fold in about 30 hr. The chlorophyll content per unit leaf area or unit fresh weight increased dramatically, but the fresh weight per unit leaf area was relatively constant. The changes were expressed on the basis of fresh weight or leaf area. On this basis, the contents of photosystem (PS) I and II increased in continuous light, by a factor of 3 and 8, respectively. While the chlorophyll b content and the contents of apoproteins of light-harvesting chlorophyll-protein complexes (LHCIIb, CP29, CP26 and CP24) increased markedly, neither the total carotenoid content nor the de-epoxidation state of the xanthophylls [ratio of zeaxanthin(Z) + antheraxanthin(A) to (Z + A + violaxanthin) was about 0.4)] responded significantly on transfer to continuous light. The fast rise of the flash-induced electrochromic signal (delta A518) was well correlated with the increases in PS I and PS II reaction centres, and with chlorophyll b and total carotenoid contents. The increase in the quantum yield of oxygen evolution during greening in continuous light is attributed to a more balanced distribution of excitation energy between the two photosystems, facilitated by the increased number of PS II units, the increased antenna size of each unit and the enhancement of grana formation. The chloroplast in intermittent light was found to contain abundant xanthophyll cycle pigments and the psbS gene product, presumably adequate for photoprotection in continuous light as soon as chlorophyll a/b- protein complexes are synthesized. The results suggest that greening in continuous light is accompanied by adjustments that include enhanced quantum efficiency of photosynthesis and development of a capacity for harmless dissipation of excess excitation energy.

Los antiarrítmicos: correlación fisiofarmacológica / The antiarrhythmical drugs: its physiopharmacological correlation

Esta revisión señala los conceptos básicos de la electrofisiología de las células cardiacas que inician el impulso y las encargadas de su conducción, así como las diferencias que existen en relación con los potenciales de acción y sus periodos refractarios. Se revisan en forma general las bases fisiológicas de las arritmias, los objetivos generales de utilizar un medicamento antiarrítmico, sus efectos electrofisiológicos y las opciones terapéuticas en las diferentes arritmias. Las arritmias cardiacas y los trastornos de la conducción se han convertido en un problema importante en la práctica médica. La decisión de tratar alguna arritmia debe tomarse después de evaluar algunos factores, como los riesgos mismos de la arritmia y la eficacia del tratamiento. La elección de un medicamento antiarrítmico debe basarse en el conocimiento de la probabilidad de su eficacia y de su toxicidad

Cerebellar granule cell membranes and glutamate mediates transactivation of glutamine synthetase promoter.

Potential region of glutamine synthetase promoter driving astrocyte-specific transactivation, mediated by cerebellar granule cell membrane and glutamate has been identified by deletion analysis of promoter and transient transfection. The promoter region from -420 to -765 was found to be potentially important for this transactivation. These results provided further evidence for importance of neuronal-glial and glutamate-glial interactions in regulation of glial gene expression.

Depolarization of synaptosomal membranes: a study of mechanism by which rhodamine 6G measures membrane potential.

The fluorescence intensity of Rhodamine 6G in synaptosomal suspensions has been measured to monitor the membrane potential changes in pre-synaptic nerve terminals. The fluorescence response of the dye was seen to be a function of potential-dependent partitioning of dye molecules between the synaptosomes and the extracellular medium. Binding of dye molecules to the hydrophobic regions of membranes results in the quenching of fluorescence. Upon depolarization of the synaptosomal membrane, the dye molecules are released from the cells. The effect of changing extracellular ionic composition was also studied. The membrane potential increased linearly with log of [K]0. The resting membrane potential in buffer containing 5 mM K+ was calculated to be -60 mV. Raising the extracellular Ca2+ and Mg2+ from 1.2 mM to 10 mM did not change the membrane potential. Ca2+ ionophore A23187, in the presence of Ca2+ was found to depolarize the membranes.

Regulacion de la secrecion de prolactina a nivel celular / Regulation of prolactin secretion at cellular level

En la presente revisión se recopilan y discuten dos décadas de investigación científica relacionada con los mecanismos involucrados en la regulación de la actividad secretora de las células prolactínicas en mamíferos. Los temas desarrollados abarcan algunos aspectos metodológicos (dispersión, cultivo y aislamiento de células anterohipofisarias) y los mecanismos de acción de las catecolaminas, los segundos mensajeros (calcio, AMP0-cíclico y los metabolitos del fosfatidil-inosito) y una serie de neuromoduladores y péptidos nuroendocrinos. Además se incluyó un capítulo sobre la morfología y bioquímica del gránulo secretorio de prolactina. En la mayoría de los casos los datos - a menudo dispersos o aislados - no permiten conclusiones definitivas y queda claro que, a pesar de algunos adelantos significativos, estamos aún lejos de comprender la complejidad de los mecanismos entrelazados y a veces superpuestos que intervienen en la regulación de la secreción de prolactina

Hormônios, marca-passos da atividade celular / Hormones, cellular activity pacemaker

Hormônios, como marca-passos de reaçöes intracelulares, agem sobre a membrana celular (a) modificando a sua permeabilidade (b) sobre o metabolismo citoplasmático via adenilciclase, ou (c) penetrando no núcleo modulando a síntese protéica. Enquanto que a atividade regulatória do sistema nervoso se manifesta somente sobre um tipo único de tecido ou órgäo, os hormônios exercem açöes múltiplas que afetam várias vias metabólicas em localizaçöes diversas