The coupling of tissue blood flow to cellular metabolic demand involves oxygen-dependent adjustments in arteriolar tone, and arteriolar responses to oxygen can be mediated, in part, by changes in local production of 20-HETE. In this study, we examined the long-term effect of dietary salt on arteriolar oxygen responsiveness in the exteriorized, superfused rat spinotrapezius muscle and the role o...

Human cardiac fibroblasts (HCFs) have various voltage-dependent K(+) channels (VDKCs) that can induce apoptosis. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) modulates VDKCs and induces oxidative stress, which is the main contributor to cardiac injury and cardiac remodeling. We investigated whether H2O2 could modulate VDKCs in HCFs and induce cell injury through this process. In whole-cell mode patch-clamp recordi...

Large-conductance calcium-activated potassium (BK) channels are known to play a prominent role in the hair cell function of lower vertebrates where these channels determine electrical tuning and regulation of neurotransmitter release. Very little is known, by contrast, about the role of BK channels in the mammalian cochlea. In the current study, we perfused specific toxins in the guinea pig coc...

The present study examined whether regulation of coronary tone in conduit arteries (>1.0 mm ID) is altered by exercise training. Yucatan miniature swine were treadmill trained for 16-20 wk (Ex) and compared with sedentary counterparts (Sed). Endothelium-denuded arterial rings were stretched to optimal length and allowed to equilibrate for 60 min. Inhibition of either Ca2+-activated channels [1 ...

Background and Purpose. Caveolae act as signalling hubs in endothelial and smooth muscle cells. Caveolar disruption by the membrane cholesterol depleting agent methyl-β-cyclodextrin (M-β-CD) has various functional effects on arteries including (i) impairment of endothelium-dependent relaxation, and (ii) alteration of smooth muscle cell (SMC) contraction independently of the endothelium. The aim...

Obesity is a risk factor for hypertension and other vascular disease. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of diet-induced obesity on endothelium-dependent dilation of rat cremaster muscle arterioles. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (213 ± 1 g) were fed a cafeteria-style high-fat or control diet for 16-20 wk. Control rats weighed 558 ± 7 g compared with obese rats 762 ± 12 g (n = 52-56; P <...

A novel vasodilatory influence of endothelial cell (EC) large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (BK(Ca)) channels is present following in vivo exposure to chronic hypoxia (CH) and may exist in other pathological states. However, the mechanism of channel activation that results in altered vasoreactivity is unknown. We tested the hypothesis that CH removes an inhibitory effect of the scaffolding ...

Airway submucosal gland cell (SMGC) secretions are under the control of various neurotransmitters and hormones. Interactions between different pathways, such as those mediated by cAMP and Ca(2+), in controlling mucus or electrolyte secretions are not well understood. Prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) or forskolin has been shown to enhance acetylcholine (ACh)-induced short circuit current (I(SC)) in S...

pH-regulated Slo3 channels, perhaps exclusively expressed in mammalian sperm, may play a role in alkalization-mediated K(+) fluxes associated with sperm capacitation. The Slo3 channel shares extensive homology with Ca(2+)- and voltage-regulated BK-type Slo1 K(+) channels. Here, using heterologous expression in oocytes, we define distinctive differences in pharmacological properties of Slo3 and ...

Fluorescent ryanodine revealed the distribution of ryanodine receptors in the submembrane cytoplasm (less than a few micrometers) of cultured bullfrog sympathetic ganglion cells. Rises in cytosolic Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](i)) elicited by single or repetitive action potentials (APs) propagated at a high speed (150 microm/s) in constant amplitude and rate of rise in the cytoplasm bearing ryanodine recep...