Protein toxins from venomous animals exhibit remarkably specific and selective interactions with a wide variety of ion channels. Hanatoxin and grammotoxin are two related protein toxins found in the venom of the Chilean Rose Tarantula, Phrixotrichus spatulata. Hanatoxin inhibits voltage-gated K+ channels and grammotoxin inhibits voltage-gated Ca2+ channels. Both toxins inhibit their respective ...

Background: Real cardiac phantoms are often used to assess the performance of software for gated single-photon emission computed tomography(SPECT). However, these phantoms have disadvantages in that they are not very similar to actual hearts and setting a perfusion defect is not easy. To overcome these problems, we developed a digital myocardial phantom, named%Myo-Simu'. The aims of this study ...

In this preliminary chapter, we analyse the two dimen¬ sions we believe hold greatest relevance to the gated housing estate phenomenon in general and which contribute most to studying its social production. Firstly, we interpret the phenomenon as a specific socio-spatial form with a defined physical morphology and with specific social characteristics, causes and possible effects. Secondly, we s...

Sudden exposure of dissociated hippocampal neurons to strongly hypo- or hyperosmotic solutions suppresses voltage gated Na+, K+ and Ca2+ currents. We investigated whether ligand gated ion currents were similarly shut down by exposure to anisosmotic solutions. The effect of hypo-osmotic, NaCl deficient (mannitol-substituted), or hyper-osmotic test solutions delivered from a flow pipette was test...

PURPOSE To perform a systematic review of the radiation dose and diagnostic accuracy of prospective versus retrospective ECG-gated multislice CT coronary angiography. MATERIALS AND METHODS A search of Pubmed/Medline and Sciencedirect databases for English literature was performed to identify studies comparing prospective and retrospective ECG-gated multislice CT angiography in the diagnosis o...

Introduction: We aimed to investigate the effect of right bundle branch block (RBBB) on perfusion and functional parameters in dipyridamole stress/rest Tc99m-MIBI gated myocardial perfusion SPECT (GSPECT) which may be helpful in interpretation of myocardial perfusion imaging. Methods: We studied 73 patients with low pre-test likelihood of coronary artery disease in two groups:  38 patients wit...

Understanding the role of voltage-gated sodium channels in nociception may provide important insights into pain mechanisms. Voltage-gated sodium channels are critically important for electrogenesis and nerve impulse conduction, and a target for important clinically relevant analgesics such as lidocaine. Furthermore, within the last decade studies have shown that certain sodium channel isoforms ...

Proteins in the superfamily of voltage-gated ion channels mediate behavior across the tree of life. These proteins regulate the movement of ions across cell membranes by opening and closing a central pore that controls ion flow. The best-known members of this superfamily are the voltage-gated potassium, calcium (Ca(v)), and sodium (Na(v)) channels, which underlie impulse conduction in nerve and...

There are many diseases related to ion channels. Mutations in muscle voltage-gated sodium, potassium, calcium and chloride channels, and acetylcholine-gated channel may lead to such physiological disorders as hyper- and hypokalemic periodic paralysis, myotonias, long QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome, malignant hyperthermia and myasthenia. Neuronal disorders, e.g., epilepsy, episodic ataxia, famili...