Ergot alkaloids (the sum of individual ergot alkaloids are termed as total alkaloids, TA) are produced by the fungus Claviceps purpurea, which infests cereal grains commonly used as feedstuffs. Ergot alkaloids potentially modulate microsomal and mitochondrial hepatic enzymes. Thus, the aim of the present experiment was to assess their effects on microsomal and mitochondrial liver function using...

To assess factors responsible for phasic behavior of renal blood flow in essential hypertension, we applied an analytic method based on the estimation of power spectral density to xenon transit through the kidney and examined the renal vasodilator response to a range of agents in 53 normal subjects and 53 patients with essential hypertension. The renal vasodilator response to the calcium channe...

Alcoholic beverages have been consumed by numerous societies for thousands of years, their use often intertwined with religion and culture. Alcohol has both beneficial and detrimental effects on health. A beneficial effect of alcohol was first reported in 1786 by Heberden, who noted relief of angina pectoris by “spirituous cordials” (1). Using observational data, an inverse relationship between...

A new series of 2-alkyloxy-pyridine-3-carbonitrile-benzofuran hybrids (4a-x) was synthesized. All the new derivatives were examined via the standard technique for their vasodilation activity. Some of the investigated compounds exhibited a remarkable activity, with compounds 4w, 4e, 4r, 4s, 4f and 4g believed to be the most active hits in this study with IC50 values 0.223, 0.253, 0.254, 0.268, 0...

The transmural distribution of myocardial blood flow across the left ventricles of anesthetized dogs was measured with radioactive microspheres during intracoronary infusion of the endothelium-dependent vasodilators acetylcholine (10 micrograms/min), adenosine triphosphate (ATP; 20 micrograms/min), and arachidonic acid (600 micrograms/min) and the endothelium-independent vasodilator nifedipine ...