Thiazide diuretics are widely used to treat hypertension, but their use is associated with impaired glucose tolerance. We propose that the diabetogenic action of thiazides may be due to their ability to open calcium-activated potassium (KCa) channels in pancreatic beta-cells.

Modulation of endothelial calcium-activated potassium (KCa) channels has been proposed as an approach to restore endothelial function. The present study investigated whether novel openers of KCa channels with small (KCa2.x) and intermediate (KCa3.1) conductance, NS309 and NS4591, improve endothelium-dependent relaxation and erectile function. Rat corpus cavernosum (CC) strips were mounted for i...

BACKGROUND Sevoflurane has been demonstrated to vasodilate the foeto-placental vasculature. We aimed to determine the contribution of modulation of potassium and calcium channel function to the vasodilatory effect of sevoflurane in isolated human chorionic plate arterial rings. METHODS Quadruplicate ex vivo human chorionic plate arterial rings were used in all studies. Series 1 and 2 examined...

Replacement of the aspartate residue at position 59 of rat oncomodulin by glutamate by oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis has afforded a protein which more closely resembles rat parvalbumin, at least judged by its interaction with the luminescent lanthanide ion Eu3+. The single-peak 7F0----5D0 spectrum observed at pH 5.0 with the fully bound wild-type protein is replaced by one which clearly ...

Delgado, Ricardo, M. Verónica Saavedra, Oliver Schmachtenberg, Jimena Sierralta, and Juan Bacigalupo. Presence of Ca dependent K channels in chemosensory cilia support a role in odor transduction. J Neurophysiol 90: 2022–2028, 2003. First published June 11, 2003; 10.1152/jn.01167.2002. Olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) respond to odorants with changes in the action potential firing rate. Excita...

Temporal patterns of spiking often convey behaviorally relevant information. Various synaptic mechanisms and intrinsic membrane properties can influence neuronal selectivity to temporal patterns of input. However, little is known about how synaptic mechanisms and intrinsic properties together determine the temporal selectivity of neuronal output. We tackled this question by recording from midbr...