INTRODUCTION Reduced vascular compliance in patients with hypertension results from an increase in extra-cellular matrix (ECM) protein deposition in blood vessels. At least two key factors, namely mechanical strain and neurohumoral mediators, for example Angiotensin II (Ang II), promote fibrogenesis within vessel walls; however potential interactions between these have not been clearly defined....

Sharma, Ram V., Enqing Tan, Shengyun Fang, Milind V. Gurjar, and Ramesh C. Bhalla. NOS gene transfer inhibits expression of cell cycle regulatory molecules in vascular smooth muscle cells. Am. J. Physiol. 276 (Heart Circ. Physiol. 45): H1450–H1459, 1999.—The mechanisms of nitric oxide (NO)-mediated inhibition of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) cell proliferation are still obscure. Cyclins A and E ...

Cell adhesion-dependent activation of ERK1/2 has been linked functionally to focal adhesion dynamics. We previously reported that in adherent vascular smooth muscle (VSM) cells, CaMKII mediates ERK1/2 activation in response to Ca(2+)-mobilizing stimuli. In the present study, we tested whether CaMKII regulates ERK1/2 signaling in response to VSM cell adhesion. Using an antibody that specifically...

Voltage-gated sodium channels (NaVs) are activated by transiting the voltage sensor from the deactivated to the activated state. The crystal structures of several bacterial NaVs have captured the voltage sensor module (VSM) in an activated state, but structure of the deactivated voltage sensor remains elusive. In this study, we sought to identify peptide toxins stabilizing the deactivated VSM o...

One of the most challenging analysis problems in the data mining and information retrieval domains is organizing large amounts of information. In this paper, we present a fast agglomerative clustering technique used in the Virtual Information Processing Agent Research (VIPAR) project at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This approach extends the Vector Space Model (VSM) to provide near real-ti...

Nitric oxide (NO) is a potent dilator of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) by modulating intracellular cGMP ([cGMP](i)) through the binding and activation of receptor guanylyl cylases (sGC). The kinetic relationship of NO and sGC, as well as the subsequent regulation of [cGMP](i) and its effects on blood vessel vasodilation, is largely unknown. In isolated VSM cells exposed to both pulsed and clampe...

We recently reported that sphingosylphosphorylcholine (SPC) is a novel messenger for Rho-kinase–mediated Ca sensitization of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) contraction. Subcellular localization and kinase activity of Src family protein kinases (SrcPTKs), except for c-Src, is controlled by a reversible S-palmitoylation, an event inhibited by eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). We examined the possible in...

ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels link membrane excitability to metabolic state to regulate a series of biological activities including the vascular tone. However, their ability to influence hypertension is controversial. Here we aim to investigate possible alteration of KATP channel in vascular smooth muscles (VSMs) during hypertension development process. In this study, we used 16-week-...

Thiazolidinediones, insulin-sensitizing agents that lower insulin and lipid levels in insulin-resistant states, block agonist-induced Ca2+ entry into vascular smooth muscle (VSM) cells in vitro and lower blood pressure in animals and humans in vivo. In this study, we investigated the effects of ciglitazone and troglitazone on cell growth and DNA synthesis (as thymidine incorporation), and diffe...

Probabilistic assessment of voltage stability margin (VSM) with existence of correlated wind speeds is investigated. Nataf transformation is adopted to establish wind speed correlation (WSC) model. Based on the saddle-node bifurcation transversality condition equations and Monte Carlo simulation technique, probability distribution of VSM is determined. With correlation coefficients range low to...