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Front Physiol 2021 1;12:637790. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Far Eastern Scientific Center of Physiology and Pathology of Respiration, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Blagoveshchensk, Russia.

Full functioning of the airway physical barrier depends on cellular integrity, which is coordinated by a series of tight junction (TJ) proteins. Due to airway spasm, edema, and mucus obstruction, positive end-expiratory alveolar pressure (also termed auto-PEEP) is a common pathophysiological phenomenon, especially in acute asthma attack. However, the influence of auto-PEEP on small airway epithelial TJs is currently unclear. Read More

J Biol Chem 2021 Apr 14:100669. Epub 2021 Apr 14.

Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN; Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN. Electronic address:

The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) and cyclophilin D (CyD) are key players in induction of the permeability transition pore (PTP), which leads to mitochondrial depolarization and swelling, the major sings of Ca-induced mitochondrial damage. Mitochondrial depolarization inhibits ATP production, whereas swelling results in the release of mitochondrial pro-apoptotic proteins. The extent to which simultaneous deletion of MCU and CyD inhibits PTP induction and prevents damage of brain mitochondria is not clear. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2021 Apr 17. Epub 2021 Apr 17.

Chakri Naruebodindra Medical Institute, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Samut Prakan, Thailand.

Intestinal barrier function relies primarily on the assembly and integrity of tight junctions, which forms a size-selective barrier. This barrier restricts paracellular movement of solutes in various types of epithelia. Of note, extracellular Ca concentration affects tight junction assembly. Read More

J Biosci 2021 ;46

Department of Burn and Plastic Surgery, Seventh People's Hospital, Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200137, China.

Microvascular hyperpermeability is a leading mechanism responsible for occurrence of edema in remote organs and tissues in patients with burn injury. Accumulated evidence has shown that exosomes can be transported into target cells, where they are capable of regulating biological functions and physiology. Of exosomal proteins contributing to enhanced inflammation and vascular permeability, S100 calcium binding protein A9 (S100A9) has received increasing attention. Read More

Cell Rep 2021 Apr;35(2):108983

Maria Cecilia Hospital, GVM Care & Research, 48033 Cotignola, Ravenna, Italy; Department of Medical Sciences, Section of Experimental Medicine, Laboratory for Technologies of Advanced Therapies (LTTA), University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy. Electronic address:

Preclinical models of ischemia/reperfusion injury (RI) demonstrate the deleterious effects of permeability transition pore complex (PTPC) opening in the first minutes upon revascularization of the occluded vessel. The ATP synthase c subunit (Csub) influences PTPC activity in cells, thus impacting tissue injury. A conserved glycine-rich domain in Csub is classified as critical because, when mutated, it modifies ATP synthase properties, protein interaction with the mitochondrial calcium (Ca) uniporter complex, and the conductance of the PTPC. Read More

Environ Sci Technol 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Department of Civil Engineering, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.

The potential coexistence and interaction of bromine and polyamide membranes during membrane-based water treatment prompts us to investigate the effect of bromine on membrane performance. For fully aromatic polyamide membrane NF90 exposed under a mild bromination condition (10 mg/L), bromine incorporation resulted in more negatively charged (-13 vs -25 mV) and hydrophobic (55.2 vs 58. Read More

J Ginseng Res 2021 Mar 5;45(2):228-235. Epub 2020 Feb 5.

Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Regional Modern Agriculture & Environmental protection, Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Eco-Agricultural Biotechnology around Hongze Lake, Huaiyin Normal University, Huaian 223300, China.

Backgroud: Ginsenoside compound K (GK) is a major metabolite of protopanaxadiol-type ginsenosides and has remarkable anticancer activities and . This work used an ionic cross-linking method to entrap GK within O-carboxymethyl chitosan (OCMC) nanoparticles (Nps) to form GK-loaded OCMC Nps (GK-OCMC Nps), which enhance the aqueous solubility and stability of GK.

Methods: The GK-OCMC Nps were characterized using several physicochemical techniques, including x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, zeta potential analysis, and particle size analysis via dynamic light scattering. Read More

J Appl Oral Sci 2021 31;29:e20200736. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEM), São Paulo, SP, Brasil.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of Nd:YAG laser associated with calcium-phosphate desensitizing pastes on dentin permeability and tubule occlusion after erosive/abrasive challenges.

Methodology: Dentin specimens were exposed to 17% ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) solution for 5 min and randomly allocated into five groups: G1, control (no treatment); G2, Nd:YAG laser (1 W, 10 Hz, 100 mJ, 85 J/cm2); G3, Laser + TeethmateTM Desensitizer; G4, Laser + Desensibilize Nano P; and G5, Laser+Nupro®. Specimens underwent a 5-day erosion-abrasion cycling. Read More

Front Cell Dev Biol 2021 16;9:611922. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

Functional Genetics and Development Division, The Roslin Institute and The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies (R(D)SVS), University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, United Kingdom.

Mitochondria are crucial bioenergetics powerhouses and biosynthetic hubs within cells, which can generate and sequester toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) in response to oxidative stress. Oxidative stress-stimulated ROS production results in ATP depletion and the opening of mitochondrial permeability transition pores, leading to mitochondria dysfunction and cellular apoptosis. Mitochondrial loss of function is also a key driver in the acquisition of a senescence-associated secretory phenotype that drives senescent cells into a pro-inflammatory state. Read More

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2021 Mar 31;216:112183. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

School of Public Health/ MOE Key Laboratory for Public Health Safety/ Collaborative Innovation Center of Social Risks Governance in Health, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China. Electronic address:

Flurochloridone (FLC), a selective herbicide used on a global scale, has been reported to have male reproductive toxicity which underlying mechanism is still largely unknown. The present study was conducted to determine the effects of FLC on Sertoli cell and explore its mechanism by using normal mouse Sertoli (TM4) cell line. Our data indicate that FLC suppressed proliferation of TM4 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Read More

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2021 Jun 31;215:112161. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

College of Life Science and Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China. Electronic address:

Recent studies have revealed that neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) may contribute directly to the initiation of ulcerative colitis (UC), a typical inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) characterized by mucosal damage. Staphylococcal nuclease (SNase), a nonspecific phosphodiesterase, has a strong ability to degrade DNA. Here we investigate whether intestinal NET degradation with an oral preparation of SNase can ameliorate dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced UC in mice. Read More

Cells 2021 Mar 26;10(4). Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Department of Cytophysiology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, ul. Pomorska 141/143, 90-236 Łódź, Poland.

Plasmodesmata form intercellular channels which ensure the transport of various molecules during embryogenesis and postembryonic growth. However, high permeability of plasmodesmata may interfere with the establishment of auxin maxima, which are required for cellular patterning and the development of distinct tissues. Therefore, diffusion through plasmodesmata is not always desirable and the symplastic continuum must be broken up to induce or accomplish some developmental processes. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2021 Mar 22;22(6). Epub 2021 Mar 22.

Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Karlsruhe Municipal Hospital, 76133 Karlsruhe, Germany.

Pharmacologic cardiac conditioning increases the intrinsic resistance against ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury. The cardiac conditioning response is mediated via complex signaling networks. These networks have been an intriguing research field for decades, largely advancing our knowledge on cardiac signaling beyond the conditioning response. Read More

Neurogastroenterol Motil 2021 Apr 2:e14130. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden.

Background: Enteric glial cells (EGC) and mast cells (MC) are intimately associated with gastrointestinal physiological functions. We aimed to investigate EGC-MC interaction in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a gut-brain disorder linked to increased intestinal permeability, and MC.

Methods: Parallel approaches were used to quantify EGC markers in colonic biopsies from healthy controls (HC) and patients with IBS. Read More

Rev Cardiovasc Med 2021 Mar;22(1):127-135

Heart Center and Beijing Key Laboratory of Hypertension, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University, 100020 Beijing, P. R. China.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), especially acute myocardial infarction, are the leading cause of death, morbidity and disability across the world, affecting millions of people each year. Atherosclerosis (AS) is the major cause of CVD, and is a chronic inflammation involving different cell types and various molecular mechanisms. Ca dynamics of endothelial cells (ECs) and smooth muscle cells (SMCs) exert a significant influence on many aspects of CVD. Read More

Int J Biol Macromol 2021 Mar 26;182:373-384. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Biopolymers and Colloids Laboratory, Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA; Department of Food Science & Bioengineering, Zhejiang Gongshang University, 18 Xuezheng Street, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310018, China.

This study focuses on the fabrication and characterization of alginate-based films functionalized by incorporating nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs). The effect of different NLC/alginate mass ratios (R = 0.05, 0. Read More

J Dairy Sci 2021 Mar 24. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

Veterinary Physiology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, 3001 Bern, Switzerland.

The intact blood-milk barrier (BMB) prevents an uncontrolled exchange of soluble and cellular components between blood and milk in the mammary gland. It enables the sustainability of the optimal milk composition for the nourishment of the offspring. Endothelial cells, connective tissue, the basal membrane, and mainly the epithelial cells provide the semipermeability of this barrier, allowing only a selective transfer of components necessary for milk production. Read More

Physiol Rep 2021 Mar;9(6):e14807

Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry, and Physiology, Center for Cardiovascular Research, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai'i, USA.

The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a key mediator of energy metabolism, cell growth, and survival. While previous studies using transgenic mice with cardiac-specific overexpression of mTOR (mTOR-Tg) demonstrated the protective effects of cardiac mTOR against ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in both ex vivo and in vivo models, the mechanisms underlying the role of cardiac mTOR in cardiac function following I/R injury are not well-understood. Torin1, a pharmacological inhibitor of mTOR complex (mTORC) 1 and mTORC2, significantly decreased functional recovery of LV developed pressure in ex vivo I/R models (p < 0. Read More

Arch Pharm Res 2021 Mar 24. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

Department of Pharmacology and Key Laboratory of Gastrointestinal Pharmacology of Chinese Materia Medica of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, School of Pharmacy, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China.

Canonical transient receptor potential channels (TRPCs) are nonselective, high calcium permeability cationic channels. The TRPCs family includes TRPC1, TRPC2, TRPC3, TRPC4, TRPC5, TRPC6, and TRPC7. These channels are widely expressed in the cardiovascular and nervous systems and exist in many other human tissues and cell types, playing several crucial roles in the human physiological and pathological processes. Read More

Biomed Res Int 2021 4;2021:6613510. Epub 2021 Mar 4.

Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Jiangsu Province, China.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) provides neuroprotective effects towards therapeutic cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. This view has been proposed by more and more evidence. However, due to the lack of permeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) as well as the brief half-life in serum, clinical application is not widespread. Read More

Heliyon 2021 Mar 12;7(3):e06444. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, FL, USA.

Sepsis-induces myocardial contractile dysfunction. We previously showed that whole body periodic acceleration (pGz), the sinusoidal motion of the supine body head-foot ward direction significantly improves survival and decreases microvascular permeability in a lethal model of sepsis. We tested the hypothesis that pGz improves LPS induced cardiomyocyte contractile dysfunction and decreases LPS pro-inflammatory cytokine response when applied pre- or post-treatment. Read More

Cell 2021 Apr 17;184(8):2121-2134.e13. Epub 2021 Mar 17.

Department of Neuroscience, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA. Electronic address:

The α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor plays critical roles in the central nervous system and in the cholinergic inflammatory pathway. This ligand-gated ion channel assembles as a homopentamer, is exceptionally permeable to Ca, and desensitizes faster than any other Cys-loop receptor. The α7 receptor has served as a prototype for the Cys-loop superfamily yet has proven refractory to structural analysis. Read More

Curr Med Chem 2021 Mar 16. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

Department of Spine, Honghui-hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, School of Medicine, Xi'an, China; 2Yan'an University, Yan'an. China.

Osteoporosis is very common in middle-aged and elderly people, and its main feature is a disease characterized by bone mass reduction and bone microstructure changes, accompanied by a corresponding increase in the risk of fracture. This is a disease affected by many factors and is more common in postmenopausal women. Currently, the treatment of osteoporosis is mainly to prevent bone resorption and reduce the risk of fracture, there are a variety of drugs have been used in the treatment of osteoporosis, and achieved good results. Read More

Ann Transl Med 2021 Feb;9(4):304

College of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.

Background: The activation and assembly of the NLRP3 inflammasome is dependent on the interaction between NLRP3 and the intermediate filament protein vimentin in an acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) model. We investigated the role of vimentin in this process using human fetal lung (HFL-1) fibroblasts with vimentin transfer genes or gene knockdown and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) intervention.

Methods: HFL-1 cells [con-vector + LPS, vimentin-pCMV3 (VIM-pCMV3), con-siRNA, and vimentin siRNA (VIM-siRNA)] were treated with LPS. Read More

PLoS Comput Biol 2021 Mar 10;17(3):e1008496. Epub 2021 Mar 10.

Physiological Laboratory, Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Human red blood cells (RBCs) have a circulatory lifespan of about four months. Under constant oxidative and mechanical stress, but devoid of organelles and deprived of biosynthetic capacity for protein renewal, RBCs undergo substantial homeostatic changes, progressive densification followed by late density reversal among others, changes assumed to have been harnessed by evolution to sustain the rheological competence of the RBCs for as long as possible. The unknown mechanisms by which this is achieved are the subject of this investigation. Read More

Int J Nanomedicine 2021 1;16:1663-1680. Epub 2021 Mar 1.

School of Medicine & Holistic Integrative Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China.

Background: Intracellular tension plays a crucial role in the destruction of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in response to lesion stimuli. Tight junction structure could be primarily affected by tension activity. In this study, we aimed to determine the effects of extracellular BBB damage on intracellular tension activity, and elucidate the mechanism underlying the effects of intracellular protein nanoparticle-related osmotic pressure on BBB permeability. Read More

Front Neurosci 2020 10;14:586710. Epub 2021 Feb 10.

Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, Santiago, Chile.

Aging is an irreversible process and the primary risk factor for the development of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Mitochondrial impairment is a process that generates oxidative damage and ATP deficit; both factors are important in the memory decline showed during normal aging and AD. Tau is a microtubule-associated protein, with a strong influence on both the morphology and physiology of neurons. Read More

Materials (Basel) 2021 Feb 14;14(4). Epub 2021 Feb 14.

Department of Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79416, USA.

Despite lower environmental impacts, the use of Portland Limestone Cement (PLC) concrete has been limited due to its reduced later age strength and compromised durability properties. This research evaluates the effects of nano calcium carbonate (CaCO) on the performance of PLC concrete. The study follows a series of experiments on the fresh, hardened, and durability properties of PLC concrete with different replacement rates of nano CaCO. Read More

Antioxidants (Basel) 2021 Feb 24;10(3). Epub 2021 Feb 24.

Department of Biology, University of Naples "Federico II", Complesso Universitario di Monte S. Angelo, Via Cinthia, 80126 Naples, Italy.

Mitochondria, fundamental organelles in cell metabolism, and ATP synthesis are responsible for generating reactive oxygen species (ROS), calcium homeostasis, and cell death. Mitochondria produce most ROS, and when levels exceed the antioxidant defenses, oxidative stress (OS) is generated. These changes may eventually impair the electron transport chain, resulting in decreased ATP synthesis, increased ROS production, altered mitochondrial membrane permeability, and disruption of calcium homeostasis. Read More

J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 2021 Mar;77(3):378-385

Clinic for Cardiology, Angiology, Pneumology, Nephrology and Internal Intensive Care, Hanau, Germany.

Abstract: The calcium sensitizer levosimendan is indicated for the hemodynamic stabilization of patients with acutely decompensated heart failure and has been shown to be protective against reperfusion injury after myocardial infarction. However, affected forms of cell death and underlying signaling pathways remain controversial. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the influence of levosimendan preconditioning and postconditioning on anoxia/reoxygenation-induced apoptosis, necrosis, and autophagy in H9c2 myoblasts. Read More