in plants, γ-aminobutyric acid (gaba) is synthesized by polyamine degradation pathway besides gaba shunt. aminoguanidine (ag) is a specific inhibitor of the key enzyme (diamine oxidase, dao) for gaba formation in polyamine degradation pathway. in this study, ag was applied to study the functions of polyamine degradation pathway on growth and gaba accumulation in germinating fava bean under hypo...

Two firing modes of thalamocortical (TC) neurons, tonic and burst firings, are thought to reflect the divergent states of sensory signal transmission from the thalamus to the cortex. However, the behavioral consequences of changes in the thalamic firing between the two modes have not been well demonstrated. Moreover, although the firing modes of TC neurons are known to be affected by corticotha...

The with no lysine (WNK) protein kinase family is conserved among many species. Some mutations in human WNK gene are associated with pseudohypoaldosteronism type II, a form of hypertension, and hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy type 2A. In kidney, WNK regulates the activity of STE20/SPS1-related, proline alanine-rich kinase and/or oxidative-stress responsive 1, which in turn regulate ...

Headache is the most common symptom associated with air pollution, but little is understood about the underlying mechanism. Nasal administration of environmental irritants activates the trigeminovascular system by a TRPA1-dependent process. This report addresses questions about the anatomical pathway involved and the function of TRP channels in this pathway. TRPV1 and TRPA1 are frequently co-lo...

Glucose-mediated oxidative stress and alterations in cyclooxygenase (COX) pathway activity with secondary deficits of endoneurial perfusion have been implicated in the pathogenesis of experimental diabetic neuropathy (EDN). We have previously reported that activation of the COX-2 pathway is an important mediator of neurochemical and neurovascular defects in EDN in a rat model. Considering that ...

Although the nitric oxide/cGMP pathway has many important roles in biology, studies of this system in the mammalian cochlea have focused on the first enzyme in the pathway, nitric oxide synthase (NOS). However, characterization of the NO receptor, soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC), is crucial to determine the cells targeted by NO and to develop rational hypotheses of the function of this pathway ...

Histamine provokes itching and is a major skin disease complaint. Histamine is known to excite a subset of sensory neurons, predominantly C-fibers. Although histamine is pruritogenic, its signaling pathways that excite sensory neurons have not been identified. Because the metabolic products of lipoxygenases (LOs) activate transient receptor potential vanilloid receptor-1 (TRPV1) in sensory neur...