It has been found previously that amilorides act via an allosteric site on the alpha(2A)-adrenergic receptor to strongly inhibit antagonist binding. In this study, allosteric modulation of agonist binding and function at the alpha(2A)-adrenergic receptor was explored. The dissociation rate of the agonist [(3)H]UK14304 from alpha(2A)-receptors was decreased by the amilorides in a concentration-d...

Catecholamines have been implicated in the modulation of normal cell growth, exerting inhibitory or excitatory control depending on the cell type. However, there is a dearth of information on the role of adrenergic mediators in gastric cell proliferation. In the present study, the effects of adrenaline (ADR) and noradrenaline (NOR) on mucosal cell growth and the cell cycle were evaluated in vit...

Treatment of beta-adrenergic receptor with dithiothreitol (DTT) or other thiol compounds caused its functional activation in the presence or absence of agonist ligands. Such activation was observed in reconstituted unilamellar phospholipid vesicles that contained beta-adrenergic receptors, purified to greater than or equal to 95% homogeneity from turkey erythrocyte plasma membranes, and the sti...

The thiazide-sensitive sodium-chloride-cotransporter (NCC) in the kidney distal convoluted tubule (DCT) plays an essential role sodium and potassium homeostasis. Here, we demonstrate that NCC activity is increased by β2-adrenoceptor agonist salbutamol, a drug prevalently used to treat asthma. Relative β1-adrenergic receptors, β2-adrenergic receptors were greatly enriched mouse DCT cells. In mic...

Different patterns of expression of the transcription factors of Nur77 and Nor-1 are induced following acute administration of typical and atypical antipsychotic drugs. The pharmacological profile of atypical antipsychotics suggests that serotonergic and/or adrenergic receptors might contribute to these reported differences. In order to test this possibility, we examined the abilities of seroto...

Cardiac myocytes endogenously express α and β adrenergic receptors, prototypes of the G-protein coupled receptor superfamily. Depending upon the dose of norepinephrine (agonist) exposure, hypertrophy and apoptosis are initiated by differential induction of two discrete constituents of the transcription factor AP-1, i.e., FosB and Fra-1. We explored differential adrenergic signaling as a paradig...

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis is a critical form of cellular plasticity that is greatly influenced by neural activity. Among the neurotransmitters that are widely implicated in regulating this process are serotonin and norepinephrine, levels of which are modulated by stress, depression and clinical antidepressants. However, studies to date have failed to address a direct role for either neurot...

Gender differences in the incidence of many cardiovascular diseases may be due to the effects of sex hormones. Both alpha(1)- and alpha(2)-adrenergic receptors produce vasoconstriction in peripheral blood vessels and have demonstrated gender effects in previous studies. In addition, race has been shown to influence the effects of some alpha-adrenergic stimuli. We therefore sought to determine t...