Background The A2A adenosine receptor is a prototypical G proteincoupled receptor. It is expressed in a wide variety of cells including as different types as neurons, platelets, cells of the immune system and muscle. The cell-specific expression of the A2A adenosine receptor is controlled by at least three different upstream non-coding exons and their corresponding promotors. Compared to other ...

objective: ecstasy, also known as 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (mdma), is a psychoactive recreational hallucinogenic substance and a major worldwide recreational drug. there are neurotoxic effects observed in laboratory animals and humans following mdma use. mdma causes apoptosis in neurons of the central nervous system (cns). withdrawal signs are attenuated by treatment with the adenosin...

In previous in vivo studies with mice, rats and monkeys, we have demonstrated that [11C]TMSX ([7-methyl-11C]-(E)-8-(3,4,5-trimethoxystyryl)-1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) is a potential radioligand for mapping adenosine A2A receptors of the brain by positron emission tomography (PET). In the present study, we performed a preclinical study. A suitable preparation method for [11C]TMSX injection was est...

Physical exercise protocols have varied widely across studies raising the question of whether there is an optimal intensity, duration and frequency that would produce maximal benefits in attenuating symptoms related to anxiety disorders. Although physical exercise causes modifications in neurotransmission systems, the involvement of neuromodulators such as adenosine has not been investigated af...

G protein-coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) are thought to be important in mediating the agonist-induced phosphorylation and consequent desensitization of G protein-coupled receptor responses. NG108-15 mouse neuroblastoma X rat glioma cells express a wide range of G protein-coupled receptors and significant levels of GRK2. Therefore, to determine the role of GRK2 in agonist-induced desensitizatio...

We conducted the present study to investigate protein expression and functioning of A2A and A2B adenosine receptors (ARs) in neutrophils of patients affected by systemic sclerosis (SSc). The presence of A2A and A2B ARs was assessed by immunoblotting using specific antibodies. Equilibrium A2A and A2B ARs binding parameters were evaluated by radioligand binding assay. Functional studies were cond...

Adenosine receptors (A1, A2a, A2b and A3) have several physiological and pathological roles in cancer cell lines. The present study was carried out to evaluate the mRNA and protein expression profile and functional role of adenosine receptors in OVCAR-3, Caov-4 and SKOV-3 ovarian cancer cell lines. The levels of mRNA and protein expression of A1, A2a, A2b and A3 adenosine receptors in the ovari...

1. A degree of ambiguity and uncertainty exists concerning the distribution of mRNAs encoding the four cloned adenosine receptors. In order to consolidate and extent current understanding in this area, the expression of the adenosine receptors has been examined in the rat by use of in situ hybridisation and the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). 2. In accordance with earl...

On the basis of data obtained in rabbits, the imidazoline receptor ligand rilmenidine has been suggested to decrease blood pressure in humans by activating central a2A-adrenoceptors. A prerequisite for this hypothesis was the unproved assumption that rabbit and human a2A-adrenoceptors are equally activated by rilmenidine. Because a2A-adrenoceptors in the brain and on cardiovascular sympathetic ...

We previously reported that adenosine A2B receptor activation stimulates angiogenesis. Because hypoxia is a potent stimulus for the release of both adenosine and angiogenic factors, we tested the hypothesis that hypoxia alters the expression of adenosine receptors toward an “angiogenic” phenotype. We used human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and bronchial smooth muscle cells (BSMCs) ...