In the course of digestion of nucleic acids by micrococcal nuclease in the presence of low Ca++ concentration, three distinct phases of the reaction are observed. The first and the third are slow, and the second is fast. The reaction rate during the first phase is proportional to Ca++ concentration. An autoaccelerated second phase, showing little dependence on Ca+f concentration, has been obser...

RATIONALE The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a major intracellular Ca(2+) store in endothelial cells (ECs). The Ca(2+) concentration in the ER greatly contributes to the generation of Ca(2+) signals that regulate endothelial functions. Many proteins, including stromal interaction molecule 1/2 (STIM1/2), Orai1/2/3, and sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase 3 (SERCA3), are involved in t...

the effects of adenosine,5-n-ethylcarbox-amidoadenosine (neca), 2-chloroadenosine (2-ca), n6-phenyiisopropyladenos'tne (l-pia and d-pia) and n6 -cyclohexyladenos'tne (cha) were examined on the mouse isolated vas deferens. all the compounds in a concentration-dependent manner inhibited electrically induced contrac¬tions. ic of adenosine and its analogues were 13.68 ± 5.97 for ado, 0.736 ± 0.087 ...

The effect of chloroform on Ca(2+) mobilization in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells was examined by using Fura-2 as a Ca(2+) probe. Chloroform (24-248 mM) concentration dependently increased intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)). Ca(2+) removal inhibited the Ca(2+) signals evoked by 93 to 248 mM chloroform by reducing both the initial rise and the sustained phase. In Ca(2+)-free mediu...

The Ca(2+) signaling and contractility of airway smooth muscle cells (SMCs) were investigated with confocal microscopy in murine lung slices (approximately 75-microm thick) that maintained the in situ organization of the airways and the contractility of the SMCs for at least 5 d. 10--500 nM acetylcholine (ACH) induced a contraction of the airway lumen and a transient increase in [Ca(2+)](i) in ...

Cancer antigen 125 (CA 125) is a useful tumor marker with a threshold value of 35 U mL(-1) expressed by more than 80% of patients with non-mucinous epithelial ovarian cancer. In this work, a novel strategy for the analysis of CA 125 using the plasmon resonance scattering (PRS) properties of gold nanorods was proposed. The gold nanorod (GNR)-anti-CA 125 conjugates were prepared first. The immuno...

It was demonstrated in our recent study that Zn(2+) had dual effects on Ca(2+)-permeable AMPA receptors on carp retinal horizontal cells. However, the possible mechanism(s) underlying the Zn(2+) effects is still unclear. In the present study, we examined the Zn(2+) effects in the presence of cyclothiazide (CTZ), an allosteric potentiator of AMPA receptors, which could attenuate the receptor des...

Pancreatic beta-cells have ryanodine receptors but little is known about their physiological regulation. Previous studies have shown that arachidonic acid releases Ca(2+) from intracellular stores in beta-cells but the identity of the channels involved in the Ca(2+) release has not been elucidated. We studied the mechanism by which arachidonic acid induces Ca(2+) concentration changes in pancre...