β2-adrenoceptor agonists are the mainstay therapy for patients with asthma but their effectiveness in cigarette smoke (CS)-induced lung disease such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is limited. In addition, bronchodilator efficacy of β2-adrenoceptor agonists is decreased during acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD), caused by respiratory viruses including influenza A. Therefore, t...

Objective: We recently reported the hyper-responsiveness of human skeletal muscle resistance arteries (SkMRAs) to noradrenaline in critical limb ischaemia (CLI). In this study we investigated the characteristics of a -adrenoceptor subtypes and evaluated the agonist 1 affinity and adrenoceptor reserve in the ischaemic arteries. Methods: Human SkMRAs were isolated from non-ischaemic and ischaemic...

Nitric oxide (NO) is one of the most important immune molecules in innate immunity of invertebrates, and it can be regulated by norepinephrine in ascidian haemocytes. In the present study, the mutual modulation and underlying mechanism between norepinephrine and NO were explored in haemocytes of the scallop Chlamys farreri. After lipopolysaccharide stimulation, NO production increased to a sign...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Oestrogen confers cardioprotection by down-regulating the beta(1)-adrenoceptor and suppressing the expression and activity of protein kinase A. We hypothesized that oestrogen may also protect the heart by suppressing Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), another signalling messenger activated by the beta(1)-adrenoceptor, that enhances apoptosis. EXPERI...

PURPOSE Beta-2 adrenoceptor antagonists such as timolol have been used in the treatment of glaucoma for more than 30 years. Several functionally important polymorphisms for the beta-2 receptor have been described. In the present study we hypothesized that a relation between the intraocular pressure (IOP) lowering effect of timolol and beta-2 adrenoceptor polymorphisms may exist. METHODS A tot...

beta-Adrenergic agonists are potent relaxing agents of airway smooth muscle; however, they are often incapable of fully reversing agonist-mediated contractions. The present study was designed to quantitate the relationship between beta-adrenoceptor binding, signal transduction, and relaxation in rabbit tracheal smooth muscle (TSM). TSM segments contracted with acetylcholine to 25 to 75% maximal...

BACKGROUND It is well known that during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) with cardioplegic cardiac arrest, catecholamines are vigorously increased. We therefore investigated whether this might cause desensitization of human cardiac beta-adrenoceptors. METHODS AND RESULTS We assessed in 12 children with acyanotic congenital heart disease who underwent open-heart surgery right atrial beta-adrenocep...

BACKGROUND There are three turkey β-adrenoceptors: the original turkey β-adrenoceptor from erythrocytes (tβtrunc, for which the X-ray crystal structure has recently been determined), tβ3C and tβ4C-receptors. This study examined the similarities and differences between these avian receptors and mammalian receptors with regards to binding characteristics and functional high and low affinity agoni...

Moderate reduction in the protein content of the mother's diet calorically compensated by carbohydrates (the so-called "hidden" prenatal malnutrition) leads to increased neocortical expression of the α(2C)-adrenoceptor subtype, together with decreased cortical release of noradrenaline and impaired long-term potentiation (LTP) and visuospatial memory performance during the rat postnatal life. In...

BACKGROUND Failure of the donor (graft) heart is the main cause of mortality in the first month after orthotopic cardiac transplantation. In a preliminary study marked downregulation of cardiac beta adrenoceptor density was found in apparently normal donor hearts of recipients who developed severe cardiac failure soon after implantation. Cardiac beta adrenoceptors are an important factor in the...