c-Jun NH2-terminal kinases (JNKs) are protein kinases that are activated by a wide variety of extracellular signals. This study investigated the expression and regulation of JNKs in isolated gastric canine parietal cells. Western blot analysis of cell lysates from highly purified (>95%) parietal cells with an antibody recognizing JNK1 and to a lesser degree JNK2 revealed the presence of two ban...

The purpose of the present study was to explore the interaction of phosphatidylinositol breakdown and the turnover of arachidonic acid in isolated rat pancreatic acini by using receptor agonists and the calcium ionophore ionomycin. Acini prelabelled with myo-[(3)H]inositol in vivo responded to carbachol with a rapid breakdown of phosphatidylinositol. In the presence of [(32)P]P(i), carbachol in...

OBJECTIVE Signs of a parasympathetic dysfunction have been revealed in primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Its role in the pathogenesis and the clinical picture of the disease is not clear. To investigate the responsiveness of SS patients to a cholinergic agonist, a model was used involving examination of the cutaneous microcirculation. The microvascular response to the administration of carbachol...

An in situ saline-perfused systemic heart/posterior cardinal vein preparation of the Atlantic hagfish (Myxine glutinosa) was used to assess (1) the ability of the chromaffin tissue to release catecholamines in response to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH; 7.5 i.u. kg-1), serotonin (250 nmol kg-1), carbachol (100 µmol kg-1), [Asn1-Val5]angiotensin II (Ang II; 100 nmol kg-1), histamine (0....

In 1321N1 astrocytoma cells, carbachol stimulation of M3 muscarinic cholinergic receptors, coupled to phospholipase C, evoked a persistent 10-20-fold activation of p70 S6 kinase (S6K1). This response was abolished by chelation of cytosolic Ca2+ and reproduced by the Ca2+ ionophore ionomycin, but was not prevented by down-regulation or inhibition of protein kinase C. Carbachol-stimulated activat...

PURPOSE The rabbit iris sphincter muscle is innervated by cholinergic and tachykinergic nerves that regulate its tone. To clarify the involvement of nitric oxide (NO) in the postsynaptic regulation of the rabbit iris sphincter muscle tone, the authors examined the effects of NO-related agents on the cholinergic contraction induced by carbamylcholine (carbachol) and the tachykinergic contraction...

Acetylcholine released from parasympathetic excitatory nerves activates contraction in detrusor smooth muscle. Immunohistochemical labeling of guinea pig detrusor with anti-c-Kit and anti-VAChT demonstrated a close structural relationship between interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) and cholinergic nerves. The ability of guinea pig bladder detrusor ICC to respond to the acetylcholine analog, carba...

Transmembrane domain 3 (TM3) plays a crucial role mediating muscarinic acetylcholine receptor activation by acetylcholine, carbachol, and other muscarinic agonists. We compared the effects of point mutations throughout TM3 on the interactions of carbachol, 4-n-butyl-1-[4-(2-methylphenyl)-4-oxo-1-butyl] piperidine hydrogen chloride (AC-42), a potent structural analog of AC-42 called 4-[3-(4-buty...

There are 9 cysteine residues in the rat m1 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) that are conserved among all five mammalian mAChR subtypes sequenced to date. To study the role of these cysteines in rat m1 mAChR function, site-directed mutagenesis was used to convert each Cys residue to Ser, and the mutant receptor genes were transfected into mAChR-deficient Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cel...