The unloading reflex was tested on both sides of a patient with asymmetrical Parkinsonism. The motor activity after the silent period was significantly greater on the more affected side. The findings support the hypothesis that the response to unloading and the shortening reaction share a common mechanism which is exaggerated in Parkinsonism.

In Euplotes crassus millions of telomeres are synthesized during the sexual phase of the life cycle. Since these newly synthesized telomeres are longer than normal macronuclear telomeres, they must be trimmed to the mature size. We have examined the timing and mechanism of this trimming step. We have shown that a sudden decrease in telomere length takes place at a specific time during macronucl...

Myocardial regional function during acute coronary artery occlusion was studied using ultrasonic dimension gauges in open-chest dogs. Three pairs of 2mm ultrasonic crystals were implanted 1 cm apart near the endocardium in an ischemic segment, a control segment, and a segment at the margin of the ischemic zone. In the ischemic segment, coronary artery occlusion resulted in prompt dyskinesis whi...

There is increasing evidence that cardiac glycosides act through mechanisms distinct from inhibition of the sodium pump but which may contribute to their cardiac actions. To more fully define differences between agents indicative of multiple sites of action, we studied changes in contractility and action potential (AP) configuration in cat ventricular myocytes produced by six cardiac glycosides...

Background The mechanism by which small amounts of myofiber shortening lead to extensive wall thickening is unknown. When isolated fibers shorten, they thicken in the two orthogonal directions. In situ fibers, however, vary in their orientation through the wall, and each is tethered to near or distant neighbors, which allows shortening to occur both in the direction of the fibers and also perpe...

The cellular targets for estramustine, an antitumor drug used in the treatment of hormone-refractory prostate cancer, are believed to be the spindle microtubules responsible for chromosome separation at mitosis. Estramustine only weakly inhibits polymerization of purified tubulin into microtubules by binding to tubulin (Kd, approximately 30 microM) at a site distinct from the colchicine or the ...

Alcoholic cardiomyopathy is characterized by impaired ventricular function although its toxic mechanism is unclear. This study examined the impact of cardiac overexpression of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), which oxidizes ethanol into acetaldehyde (ACA), on ethanol-induced cardiac contractile defect. Mechanical and intracellular Ca(2+) properties were evaluated in ventricular myocytes from ADH tr...

The reverse push-the-bit rotary steerable method based on the principle of a “labor-saving lever” provides feasible technical solution for further improving trajectory control ability drilling system, prolonging system’s service life and increasing speed. In order to reveal working characteristics such deeply, influence key structural parameters system its is studied finite element method. resu...

E7389, which is in phase I and II clinical trials, is a synthetic macrocyclic ketone analogue of the marine sponge natural product halichondrin B. Whereas its mechanism of action has not been fully elucidated, its main target seems to be tubulin and/or the microtubules responsible for the construction and proper function of the mitotic spindle. Like most microtubule-targeted antitumor drugs, it...