Cough is a phenomenon frequently associated with upper airway diseases and as a reflex is modulated by many afferent inputs either from respiratory tussigenic areas, but also by afferent drive from other organs. Modulation of cough by nasal afferent inputs could either facilitate cough response or inhibit it in animal models, depending on the type of trigeminal afferents which are stimulated. I...

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling is instrumental for terminal differentiation of keratinocytes, hair morphogenesis, and maintenance of the skin barrier. Cheng et al. (2010) now demonstrate that the calcium-permeable channel TRPV3 is required for these EGFR-dependent functions.

Woolly mammoths and living elephants are characterized by major phenotypic differences that have allowed them to live in very different environments. To identify the genetic changes that underlie the suite of woolly mammoth adaptations to extreme cold, we sequenced the nuclear genome from three Asian elephants and two woolly mammoths, and we identified and functionally annotated genetic changes...

The transient receptor potential vanilloid family includes four ion channels-TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3 and TRPV4-that are represented within the vertebrate subphylum and involved in several sensory and physiological processes. These channels are related to adaptation to the environment, and probably under strong evolutionary pressure. Using multiple sequence alignments as source for evolutionary, bio...

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) plays an important role in providing brain tissue with a stable internal environment as well as in absorbing mechanical and thermal stresses. From its initial composition, derived from the amniotic fluid trapped by the closure of neuropores, CSF is modified by developing and differentiating ependymal cells lining the ventricular surface or forming the choroid plexus. I...

Olmsted syndrome (OS) is a rare congenital skin disorder characterized by severe palmoplantar and periorificial keratoderma, alopecia, onychodystrophy, and severe pruritus. Recently, pathogenic 'gain-of-function' mutations of the transient receptor potential vanilloid 3 gene (TRPV3), which encodes a cation channel involved in keratinocyte differentiation and proliferation, hair growth, inflamma...

Thermal transient receptor potential (TRP) channels, a group of ion channels from the transient receptor potential family, play important functions in pain and thermal sensation. These channels are directly activated by temperature and possess strong temperature dependence. Furthermore, their temperature sensitivity can be highly dynamic and use-dependent. For example, the vanilloid receptor tr...

The alignment was colored with identical residues in black and similar residues in grey. Amino acids that contact ATP in the crystal structure of the TRPV1-ARD (PDB ID 2PNN) are indicated by purple arrows above the sequences. Colored bars above the sequence indicate the individual ankyrin repeats. An insertion and two deletions in the TRPV3-ARD compared to TRPV1 and TRPV4 are indicated by light...

Mature and developing chondrocytes exist in a microenvironment where mechanical load, changes of temperature, osmolarity and acidic pH may influence cellular metabolism. Polymodal Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid (TRPV) receptors are environmental sensors mediating responses through activation of linked intracellular signalling pathways. In chondrogenic high density cultures established f...