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Bladder hyperreflexia is a common non-motor feature of Parkinson's disease. We now report on the contractility of the isolated primate detrusor strips devoid of nerve input and show that following MPTP, the amplitude and frequency of spontaneous contraction was increased. These responses were unaffected by dopamine D1 and D2 receptor agonists A77636 and ropinirole respectively. Contractions by exogenous carbachol, histamine or ATP were similar and no differences in the magnitude of noradrenaline-induced relaxation were seen in detrusor strip obtained from normal and MPTP-treated common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). However, the neurogenic contractions following electrical field stimulation of the intrinsic nerves (EFS) were markedly greater in strips obtained from MPTP treated animals. EFS evoked non-cholinergic contractions following atropine were also greater but the contribution of the cholinergic innervation as a proportion of the overall contraction was smaller in the detrusor strips of MPTP treated animals, suggesting a preferential enhancement of the non-cholinergic transmission. Although dopaminergic mechanism has been proposed to underlie bladder hyperreflexia in MPTP-treated animals with intact bladder, the present data indicates that the increased neurogenically mediated contractions where no extrinsic innervation exists might be due to long-term adaptive changes locally as a result of the loss of the nigrostriatal output.

TRPM2 (melastatin‐like transient receptor potential 2 channel) is a nonselective cation channel that is activated under conditions of oxidative stress leading to an increase in intracellular free Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) and cell death. We investigated the role of the DNA repair enzyme poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase (PARP) on hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)‐mediated TRPM2 activation using a tetracycline‐inducible TRPM2‐expressing cell line. In whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings, intracellular adenine 5′‐diphosphoribose (ADP‐ribose) triggered an inward current in tetracycline‐induced TRPM2‐human embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells, but not in uninduced cells. Similarly, H2O2 stimulated an increase in [Ca2+]i (pEC50 4.54±0.02) in Fluo‐4‐loaded TRPM2‐expressing HEK293 cells, but not in uninduced cells. Induction of TRPM2 expression caused an increase in susceptibility to plasma membrane damage and mitochondrial dysfunction in response to H2O2. These data demonstrate functional expression of TRPM2 following tetracycline induction in TRPM2‐HEK293 cells. PARP inhibitors SB750139‐B (patent number DE10039610‐A1 (Lubisch et al., 2001)), PJ34 (N‐(6‐oxo‐5,6‐dihydro‐phenanthridin‐2‐yl)‐N,N‐dimethylacetamide) and DPQ (3, 4‐dihydro‐5‐[4‐(1‐piperidinyl)butoxy]‐1(2H)‐isoquinolinone) inhibited H2O2‐mediated increases in [Ca2+]i (pIC50 vs 100 μM H2O2: 7.64±0.38; 6.68±0.28; 4.78±0.05, respectively), increases in mitochondrial dysfunction (pIC50 vs 300 μM H2O2: 7.32±0.23; 6.69±0.22; 5.44±0.09, respectively) and decreases in plasma membrane integrity (pIC50 vs 300 μM H2O2: 7.45±0.27; 6.35±0.18; 5.29±0.12, respectively). The order of potency of the PARP inhibitors in these assays (SB750139>PJ34>DPQ) was the same as for inhibition of isolated PARP enzyme. SB750139‐B, PJ34 and DPQ had no effect on inward currents elicited by intracellular ADP‐ribose in tetracycline‐induced TRPM2‐HEK293 cells, suggesting that PARP inhibitors are not interacting directly with the channel. SB750139‐B, PJ34 and DPQ inhibited increases in [Ca2+]i in a rat insulinoma cell line (CRI‐G1 cells) endogenously expressing TRPM2 (pIC50 vs 100 μM H2O2: 7.64±0.38; 6.68±0.28; 4.78±0.05, respectively). These data suggest that oxidative stress causes TRPM2 channel opening in both recombinant and endogenously expressing cell systems via activation of PARP enzymes. British Journal of Pharmacology (2004) 143, 186–192. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0705914

Mechanosensitivity in living biological tissue is a study area of increasing importance, but investigative tools are often inadequate. We have developed a noncontact nanoscale method to apply quantified positive and negative force at defined positions to the soft responsive surface of living cells. The method uses applied hydrostatic pressure (0.1–150 kPa) through a pipette, while the pipette-sample separation is kept constant above the cell surface using ion conductance based distance feedback. This prevents any surface contact, or contamination of the pipette, allowing repeated measurements. We show that we can probe the local mechanical properties of living cells using increasing pressure, and hence measure the nanomechanical properties of the cell membrane and the underlying cytoskeleton in a variety of cells (erythrocytes, epithelium, cardiomyocytes and neurons). Because the cell surface can first be imaged without pressure, it is possible to relate the mechanical properties to the local cell topography. This method is well suited to probe the nanomechanical properties and mechanosensitivity of living cells.

Bowel dysfunction is a common non-motor symptom in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The main contractile neurotransmitter in the GI tract is acetylcholine (ACh), while nitric oxide (NO) causes the relaxation of smooth muscle in addition to modulating ACh release. The aim of this study was to characterise functional and neurochemical changes in the isolated ileum of the 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated marmoset, an established model of PD motor dysfunction. While NO-synthase inhibitor L-NAME concentration dependently augmented the neurogenically-evoked contractions and inhibited the relaxations in normal tissues, it had no effects on the MPTP ileum. Immunohistochemical analyses of the myenteric plexus showed that ChAT-immunoreactivity (-ir) was significantly reduced and the density of the enteric glial cells as shown by SOX-10-ir was increased. However, no change in TH-, 5-HT-, VIP- or nNOS-ir was observed in the MPTP tissues. The enhancement of the neurogenically-evoked contractions and the inhibition of the relaxation phase by L-NAME in the control tissues is in line with NO’s direct relaxing effect on smooth muscle and its indirect inhibitory effect on ACh release. The absence of the relaxation and the inefficacy of L-NAME in the MPTP tissues suggests that central dopaminergic loss dopamine may eventually lead to the impairment of NO signal coupling that affects bowel function, and this may be the result of a complex dysregulation at the level of the neuroeffector junction.

A simple synthetic route affording 27%–85% yields of benzo[6,7][1,5]diazocino[2,1-a]isoindol-12(14H)-one ring systems from readily available 3-(2-oxo-2-phenylethyl) isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ones and 2-(aminomethyl)aniline starting materials in toluene and catalysed by p-toluene-sulfonic acid is developed. The 1H- and 13C-NMR spectra of the final products were assigned using a variety of one and two-dimensional NMR experiments. The distinction between the two potential isomers of the final products was made on the basis of heteronuclear multiple bond connectivity (HMBC) NMR spectra.

The localization of orexin neuropeptides in the lateral hypothalamus has focused interest on their role in ingestion. The orexigenic neurones in the lateral hypothalamus, however, project widely in the brain, and thus the physiological role of orexins is likely to be complex. Here we describe an investigation of the action of orexin A in modulating the arousal state of rats by using a combination of tissue localization and electrophysiological and behavioral techniques. We show that the brain region receiving the densest innervation from orexinergic nerves is the locus coeruleus, a key modulator of attentional state, where application of orexin A increases cell firing of intrinsic noradrenergic neurones. Orexin A increases arousal and locomotor activity and modulates neuroendocrine function. The data suggest that orexin A plays an important role in orchestrating the sleep-wake cycle.

Ion channels can be inshibited by polyclonal antibodies targeted to a specific extracellular loop.

The human hyperpolarization‐activated cyclic nucleotide‐gated 1 (hHCN1) subunit was heterologously expressed in mammalian cell lines (CV‐1 and CHO) and its properties investigated using whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings. Activation of this recombinant channel, by membrane hyperpolarization, generated a slowly activating, noninactivating inward current. The pharmacological properties of hHCN1‐mediated currents resembled those of native hyperpolarization‐activated currents (Ih), that is, blockade by Cs+ (99% at 5 mM), ZD 7288 (98% at 100 μM) and zatebradine (92% at 10 μM). Inhibition of the hHCN1‐mediated current by ZD 7288 was apparently independent of prior channel activation (i.e. non‐use‐dependent), whereas that induced by zatebradine was use‐dependent. The VR1 receptor antagonist capsazepine inhibited hHCN1‐mediated currents in a concentration‐dependent (IC50=8 μM), reversible and apparently non‐use‐dependent manner. This inhibitory effect of capsazepine was voltage‐independent and associated with a leftward shift in the hHCN1 activation curve as well as a dramatic slowing of the kinetics of current activation. Elevation of intracellular cAMP or extracellular K+ significantly enhanced aspects of hHCN1 currents. However, these manipulations did not significantly affect the capsazepine‐induced inhibition of hHCN1. The development of structural analogues of capsazepine may yield compounds that could selectively inhibit HCN channels and prove useful for the treatment of neurological disorders where a role for HCN channels has been described. British Journal of Pharmacology (2004) 143, 411–421. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0705945

A simple synthetic route affording 27%-85% yields of benzo[6,7][1,5]diazocino[2,1-a]isoindol-12(14H)-one ring systems from readily available 3-(2-oxo-2-phenylethyl) isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ones and 2-(aminomethyl)aniline starting materials in toluene and catalysed by p-toluene-sulfonic acid is developed. The ¹H- and (13)C-NMR spectra of the final products were assigned using a variety of one and two-dimensional NMR experiments. The distinction between the two potential isomers of the final products was made on the basis of heteronuclear multiple bond connectivity (HMBC) NMR spectra.A simple synthetic route affording 27%-85% yields of benzo[6,7][1,5]diazocino[2,1-a]isoindol-12(14H)-one ring systems from readily available 3-(2-oxo-2-phenylethyl) isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ones and 2-(aminomethyl)aniline starting materials in toluene and catalysed by p-toluene-sulfonic acid is developed. The ¹H- and (13)C-NMR spectra of the final products were assigned using a variety of one and two-dimensional NMR experiments. The distinction between the two potential isomers of the final products was made on the basis of heteronuclear multiple bond connectivity (HMBC) NMR spectra.

Differential coordination of growth and patterning across metazoans gives rise to a diversity of sizes and shapes at tissue, organ and organismal levels. Although tissue size and tissue function can be interdependent 1 – 5 , mechanisms that coordinate size and function remain poorly understood. Planarians are regenerative flatworms that bidirectionally scale their adult body size 6 , 7 and reproduce asexually, via transverse fission, in a size-dependent manner 8 – 10 . This model offers a robust context to address the gap in knowledge that underlies the link between size and function. Here, by generating an optimized planarian fission protocol in Schmidtea mediterranea , we show that progeny number and the frequency of fission initiation are correlated with parent size. Fission progeny size is fixed by previously unidentified mechanically vulnerable planes spaced at an absolute distance along the anterior–posterior axis. An RNA interference screen of genes for anterior–posterior patterning uncovered components of the TGFβ and Wnt signalling pathways as regulators of the frequency of fission initiation rather than the position of fission planes. Finally, inhibition of Wnt and TGFβ signalling during growth altered the patterning of mechanosensory neurons—a neural subpopulation that is distributed in accordance with worm size and modulates fission behaviour. Our study identifies a role for TGFβ and Wnt in regulating size-dependent behaviour, and uncovers an interdependence between patterning, growth and neurological function. A planarian fission protocol shows that the number of progeny and the frequency of fission initiation correlate with parent size, and TGFβ and Wnt signalling components are identified as regulators of fission behaviour.