CONTRACTION OF THE RABBIT MAMMARY STRIP IN VITRO IN RESPONSE TO OXYTOCIN

1965 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard D. Moore ◽  
M. X. Zarrow

ABSTRACT The isometric contractile response to oxytocin has been studied in vitro utilizing strips of tissue from rabbit mammary glands. Responses were maximal at resting tensions of 200–400 mg/mm2. The force of contraction increased from the beginning of lactation to about 9 days post partum and then leveled off. Little or no response is noted below 15° C and the maximum response is obtained in the range of 32 to36°C. Irreversible changes begin above 41° C. As little as 0.1 mU oxytocin/ml could be detected and the dose-response curve was demonstrated statistically to be linear between the dosages of 0.5 to 10 mU oxytocin/ml. The doseresponse curve reached a plateau at about 8–11 mU/ml. Replacing sodium with potassium resulted in a logarithmic decrease of contractile force with time. This decrease was partially reversible. The strip became inexcitable in calcium free Tyrode's solution. Excitability was again established by adding calcium. Other than to oxytocin, the mammary strip responded only to acetylcholine. The effect of acetylcholine could be blocked by atropine and this treatment did not affect the response to oxytocin. The site and mechanism of action of oxytocin are discussed.

1981 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 1689-1692 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiřina Slaninová ◽  
Michal Lebl ◽  
Tomislav Barth ◽  
Karel Jošt

Five analogues of deamino-1-carba-oxytocin, in which the γ-carboxyl group of glutamine in position 4 had been modified (free acid, monomethylamide, dimethylamide, hydrazide, p-tolylamide), were investigated regarding their uterotonic activity in vitro. The slope of the dose-response curve and the magnitude of the maximum response were compared with those of oxytocin in magnesium-free and 0.5 mM Mg-containing media. In the case of [4-glutamic acid] deamino-1-carba-oxytocin, the RMg2+ value equalled 22. The other compounds had RMg2+ values of 2-3. All the analogues evoked the same maximum response as oxytocin in both the media tested.


Author(s):  
Danlei Wang ◽  
Maartje H. Rietdijk ◽  
Lenny Kamelia ◽  
Peter J. Boogaard ◽  
Ivonne M. C. M. Rietjens

AbstractDevelopmental toxicity testing is an animal-intensive endpoints in toxicity testing and calls for animal-free alternatives. Previous studies showed the applicability of an in vitro–in silico approach for predicting developmental toxicity of a range of compounds, based on data from the mouse embryonic stem cell test (EST) combined with physiologically based kinetic (PBK) modelling facilitated reverse dosimetry. In the current study, the use of this approach for predicting developmental toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was evaluated, using benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) as a model compound. A rat PBK model of BaP was developed to simulate the kinetics of its main metabolite 3-hydroxybenzo[a]pyrene (3-OHBaP), shown previously to be responsible for the developmental toxicity of BaP. Comparison to in vivo kinetic data showed that the model adequately predicted BaP and 3-OHBaP blood concentrations in the rat. Using this PBK model and reverse dosimetry, a concentration–response curve for 3-OHBaP obtained in the EST was translated into an in vivo dose–response curve for developmental toxicity of BaP in rats upon single or repeated dose exposure. The predicted half maximal effect doses (ED50) amounted to 67 and 45 mg/kg bw being comparable to the ED50 derived from the in vivo dose–response data reported for BaP in the literature, of 29 mg/kg bw. The present study provides a proof of principle of applying this in vitro–in silico approach for evaluating developmental toxicity of BaP and may provide a promising strategy for predicting the developmental toxicity of related PAHs, without the need for extensive animal testing.


1961 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 901-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. J. Lucis ◽  
I. Dyrenfurth ◽  
E. H. Venning

Purified corticotropin and ACTH peptides increased the secretion of aldosterone, corticosterone, and an unidentified compound RT4in incubated rat adrenal tissue. When the response was expressed as a percentage increase above that of the control tissue, the increases in corticosterone and compound RT4followed a sigmoid log dose – response curve. The maximum effect on aldosterone was obtained at a time when the response curve for corticosterone assumed a linear relationship between the response and the logarithm of the dose of ACTH. This dose level was considerably less than that required for maximal stimulation of corticosterone.The capacity of the ACTH peptides α1+α2and δ′ for stimulating aldosterone secretion could be greatly diminished by allowing solutions of these fractions to stand at 5 °C for 1 week. These solutions still retained their ability to stimulate corticosterone secretion.Saline suspensions and extracts of fresh hog diencephalon contained a factor which selectively stimulated aldosterone secretion.


1990 ◽  
Vol 259 (2) ◽  
pp. F217-F221 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. M. Edwards ◽  
W. Trizna ◽  
E. H. Ohlstein

The effects of endothelin 1, 2, and 3 (ET-1, -2, -3) on lumen diameter of individual afferent and efferent arterioles dissected from rabbit kidney were examined. ET-1 produced concentration-dependent and long-lasting decreases in lumen diameter in both arterioles. The 50% maximum response (EC50) values were 1.4 +/- 0.41 and 0.9 +/- 0.65 nM for afferent and efferent arterioles, respectively. In afferent arterioles, ET-2 produced decreases in lumen diameter (EC50 = 3.3 +/- 1.75 nM) that were indistinguishable from ET-1. However, ET-3 was considerably less potent (EC50 = 21.9 +/- 6.0 nM, P less than 0.05) than ET-1 or ET-2. Similar results were obtained in the efferent arteriole in which the EC50 for ET-2 (0.25 +/- 0.1 nM) was similar to ET-1, but ET-3 was significantly less potent (EC50 = 2.6 +/- 0.4 nM, P less than 0.05). Nicardipine (0.01-1 microM) produced concentration-dependent shifts in the ET-1 concentration-response curve in afferent arterioles. Verapamil (1 microM) also caused a significant shift in the ET-1 response curve. The contractile response to ET-1 was significantly more sensitive to nicardipine than was the response to norepinephrine. In contrast, the response of efferent arterioles to ET-1 and norepinephrine was unaffected by nicardipine or verapamil. The results demonstrate that ETs are potent vasoconstrictors of both the pre- and postglomerular microvasculature and may play a role in the regulation of renal hemodynamics.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


1983 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Shore ◽  
C. G. Irvin ◽  
T. Shenkier ◽  
J. G. Martin

We studied the effects of atropine (10(-10) to 10(-6) M), tetrodotoxin (TTX) (10(-6) g/ml), and neostigmine (10(-7) M) on the histamine dose-response curve of canine tracheal smooth muscle (TSM) in vitro. Pretreatment with atropine or TTX reduced base-line tension in some TSM samples, whereas neostigmine invariably caused contraction of TSM. All concentrations of atropine reduced the maximum isometric tension produced by histamine (Tmax). With 10(-6), 10(-8), and 10(-10) M atropine, Tmax was 57, 74, and 88%, respectively, of its value in paired control samples. Atropine, 10(-9) to 10(-6) M, increased the concentration of histamine which produced 20% of Tmax, whereas 10(-6) M also increased the concentration required to produce 50% of Tmax. TTX reduced tension produced by low concentrations of histamine but had no effect at higher concentrations. Neostigmine shifted the histamine dose-response curve and caused greater tension for any given histamine concentration; Tmax increased by 30% (P less than 0.05). Our data are consistent with spontaneous release of acetylcholine from cholinergic nerves in the airway tissue and suggest that histamine either accelerates this release or interacts supra-additively with the acetylcholine at the smooth muscle.


1984 ◽  
Vol 217 (3) ◽  
pp. 743-749 ◽  
Author(s):  
N A Robson ◽  
R A Clegg ◽  
V A Zammit

The rate of lipogenesis in acini isolated from mammary glands of mid-lactating rats was studied by measuring the rate of incorporation of 3H from 3H2O into total lipid and fatty acids, with glucose as substrate. Glucagon did not affect the rate of lipogenesis in acini. Glucagon did not antagonize the maximal stimulatory effect of insulin, nor did it alter the insulin dose-response curve. Theophylline, at concentrations up to 20 mM, was a potent inhibitor of lipogenesis in acini. Glucagon did not augment the degree of inhibition of lipogenesis induced by 5 mM-theophylline. The results suggest that mammary-gland acini do not respond to glucagon in vitro under conditions in which the hormone induces inhibition of lipogenesis (the present paper) and of individual key steps in the lipogenic pathway in adipocytes [Zammit & Corstorphine (1982) Biochem. J. 208, 783-788; Green (1983) Biochem. J. 212, 189-195]. In agreement with these observations, we could detect only a minimal degree of specific binding of 125I-labelled glucagon to acini which bound insulin normally. This difference in responsiveness of mammary and adipose cell preparations in vitro to glucagon suggests that the two tissues may be differentially responsive to changes in the circulating insulin/glucagon concentration ratio in vivo. The significance of these findings for the regulation of substrate utilization for lipogenesis in the two tissues during lactation is discussed.


1990 ◽  
Vol 259 (3) ◽  
pp. C503-C506 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. M. Trachez ◽  
R. T. Sudo ◽  
G. Suarez-Kurtz

Isometric tension was recorded in vitro from chemically skinned fibers obtained from normal and 14-day-denervated extensor digitorum longus muscles of the rabbit. Denervation potentiated the tensions elicited by pCa 6.0 but did not modify the pCa value (5.6) required for maximum tension. Ca2+ transport across the membranes of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) was markedly affected by denervation. Thus the rate of ATP-dependent net Ca2+ uptake increased significantly, and the spontaneous release ("leakage") of the Ca2+ stored in the SR was significantly reduced in denervated fibers. These effects lead to increased accumulation of Ca2+ in the lumen of the SR. The dose-response curve for the halothane-induced contractures of Ca2(+)-loaded skinned fibers was displaced to the left after denervation. Thus 0.7 mM halothane, a concentration that elicited no tension in 10 control fibers, induced contractures in the 10 denervated fibers tested. The potentiation of the halothane-induced tensions is attributed mainly to the larger stores of Ca2+ in the SR of denervated fibers. The possibility that denervation may also affect the interaction of halothane with the SR membranes is discussed.


1999 ◽  
Vol 190 (10) ◽  
pp. 1383-1392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin F. Bachmann ◽  
Marijke Barner ◽  
Manfred Kopf

It has been proposed that CD2, which is highly expressed on T cells, serves to enhance T cell–antigen presenting cell (APC) adhesion and costimulate T cell activation. Here we analyzed the role of CD2 using CD2-deficient mice crossed with transgenic mice expressing a T cell receptor specific for lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV)-derived peptide p33. We found that absence of CD2 on T cells shifted the p33-specific dose–response curve in vitro by a factor of 3–10. In comparison, stimulation of T cells in the absence of lymphocyte function–associated antigen (LFA)-1–intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 interaction shifted the dose–response curve by a factor of 10, whereas absence of both CD2–CD48 and LFA-1–ICAM-1 interactions shifted the response by a factor of ∼100. This indicates that CD2 and LFA-1 facilitate T cell activation additively. T cell activation at low antigen density was blocked at its very first steps, as T cell APC conjugate formation, TCR triggering, and Ca2+ fluxes were affected by the absence of CD2. In vivo, LCMV-specific, CD2-deficient T cells proliferated normally upon infection with live virus but responded in a reduced fashion upon cross-priming. Thus, CD2 sets quantitative thresholds and fine-tunes T cell activation both in vitro and in vivo.


Blood ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 106 (11) ◽  
pp. 4149-4149
Author(s):  
Harry L. Messmore ◽  
Nancy J. Fabbrini ◽  
Ketty Badrinath ◽  
Richard Harriman ◽  
Omar Iqbal ◽  
...  

Abstract The direct thrombin inhibitors lepirudin and argatroban are widely used to treat heparin induced thrombocytopenia (HIT). It has been suggested that the Ecarin™ (Echis carinatus venom) clotting time may be superior to the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) for monioring purposes. We have prepared standard curves for lepirudin (Refludan™) and Argatroban covering therapeutic drug levels and corresponding APTT ratios (clotting time/control clotting time). Ecarin™ clotting time ratios were performed to demonstrate the practical application of these curves in the clinical care of patients. We report the case of an 80 year old man with HIT/HITT syndrome that occurred during therapy for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) with a low molecular weight heparin (LMWH). His initial coagulation studies were abnormal due to warfarin and LMWH therapy. The patient had a moderate impairment of renal function. Lepirudin therapy in a bolus dose of 14 mg (patient weight: 103.0 kg) resulted in supratherapeutic blood levels of drug and hematuria (Platelet count: 〉200 x 103). Dosage adjustment to maintain an APTT ratio of 1.5 for five days caused no hematuria, but thromboembolic complications occurred at that ratio. The in-vitro dose response curve for Lepirudin was compared with the Ecarin™ clotting time (ECT) ratio at those same concentration ranges in the same plasma. For comparison, Argatroban dose response curves in-vitro were made as well. ECT ratios were very similar to the APTT ratios in the patient’s samples. Representative ratios after the initial bolus, during the infusion period of five days and at the termination of that period are shown in the following table: Comparison of APTT and ECT Ratios APTT Ratio ECT Ratio 1.43 1.07 3.98 3.08 2.91 1.95 2.74 1.95 2.79 1.90 2.58 1.78 2.44 2.42 3.83 4.78 Conclusion: The ECT ratios reflect a steeper dose response curve than that observed with the APTT ratios. This may permit more accurate measurement of blood levels using ECT ratios.


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