Evidence indicates that both the Rho/Rho kinase signaling pathway and reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as superoxide and H(2)O(2) are involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension. This study aimed to determine whether ROS-induced vascular contraction is mediated through activation of Rho/Rho kinase. Rat aortic rings (endothelium denuded) were isolated and placed in organ chambers for measurem...

A positive correlation between human population density and species richness has been recorded across the tropics. Here I investigate whether this correlation holds true for Europe. Analyses reveal a positive correlation between human population density and plant (rho = 0.505), mammal (rho = 0.471) and reptile and amphibian (rho = 0.556) species richness. The results are largely concordant with...

Deregulation of Rho GTPase expression and activity levels is found in a number of cancers, including breast cancers. Aberrant Rho GTPase signaling promotes tumorigenic behaviors in a cell-autonomous manner. The development of conditional knockout and overexpression mouse models of Rho GTPases and their regulators has allowed for investigation of the impact of aberrant Rho signaling in the conte...

BACKGROUND Hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Hypoxia induces pulmonary vasoconstriction, in part, by decreasing endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression. The mechanism by which hypoxia decreases eNOS expression is not known but may involve Rho-kinase-induced actin cytoskeletal changes in vascular endothelial cells. METHODS AND RESUL...

The small guanosine triphosphatase Rho and its target, Rho kinase, play important roles in both blood pressure regulation and vascular smooth muscle contraction. Rho is activated by agonists of receptors coupled to cell membrane G protein, such as angiotensin II and phenylephrine. Once Rho is activated, it translocates to the cell membrane where it, in turn, activates Rho kinase. Activated Rho ...

global warming has brought about changes in meteorological variable time series. these changes, accompanied with serious human intervention in nature, has resulted in hydrological changes. so the effects can be tracked down by the trend of the time series. the purpose of this study is to analyze and compare the monthly and annual trends of temperature, precipitation as well as stream flow time ...