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L Jing

Publications and source records attributed to L Jing.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Role of nitric oxide in non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic relaxation and modulation of excitatory neuroeffector transmission in the cat airway.

1. The effects of nitrosocysteine (cys-NO), L-N omega-nitroarginine (L-NNA) and L-N omega-nitro-L-arginine methylester (L-NAME), oxyhaemoglobin and Methylene Blue were observed on the resting membrane potential, muscle tone and excitatory junction potentials (EJPs) of cat tracheal smooth muscle tissue. 2. Cys-NO (10(-9) to 10(-6) M) showed no effect on the resting membrane potential of smooth muscle cells of the cat trachea but it dose-dependently relaxed the tracheal tissue in the presence of 5-HT, atropine and guanethidine. 3. Electrical field stimulation (EFS) applied during contraction evoked by 5-HT in the presence of atropine and guanethidine evoked non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic (NANC) muscle relaxation. L-NNA (10(-4) M) and L-NAME (10(-4) M) completely suppressed the relaxation when single or short repetitive stimuli were applied, but suppression was incomplete with repetitive stimuli of 4 ms pulse duration applied at 20 Hz. A substantial part of the L-NNA- or L-NAME-insensitive relaxation was abolished by tetrodotoxin. 4. Cys-NO dose-dependently suppressed the EJPs without changing the resting membrane potential, and L-NNA, L-NAME, Methylene Blue and oxyhaemoglobin enhanced the amplitude of the EJP to 1.2-1.5 times the control value. 5. EJPs showed some summation when repetitive field stimulation was applied at 20 Hz. L-NNA or L-NAME enhanced the summation, and the mean slopes were increased from 0.61 +/- 0.22 to 2.0 +/- 0.3, or 1.9 +/- 0.2 mV per stimulus. Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) antiserum and VIP antagonists further enhanced the summation in the presence of L-NNA. 6. These results indicate that NANC relaxation can be classified into two different components according to the threshold for activation, and nitric oxide is involved in one. The present results also suggest that endogenous or exogenous nitric oxide has a prejunctional action in inhibiting excitatory neuroeffector transmission in addition to a direct action on the smooth muscle cells, presumably by suppressing transmitter release from the vagus nerve.

Animals↗

Immunogenicity and antigenicity of chimeric picornaviruses which express hepatitis A virus (HAV) peptide sequences: evidence for a neutralization domain near the amino terminus of VP1 of HAV.

We evaluated the antigenic characteristics of chimeric picornaviruses created by inserting peptide sequences from hepatitis A virus (HAV) capsid proteins into the B-C loop of VP1 of Sabin strain type 1 poliovirus (PV-1). Fifteen viable chimeras were generated. Each retained the ability to be neutralized by polyclonal PV-1 antisera. Two chimeras (H15 and H2) stimulated production of low levels of HAV neutralizing antibodies in immunized rabbits or mice, although in both cases only a small fraction of immunized animals produced this response. The H15 chimera, which contains residues 13-24 of HAV VP1, elicited HAV neutralizing antibodies in three of nine rabbits and at least one of seven immunized mice. These results indicate that a neutralization domain exists in this region of VP1. However, human sera with high titers of antibodies to HAV failed to neutralize or immunoprecipitate this chimera, suggesting the absence of a significant antibody response to this neutralization domain following natural infection. Sera from rabbits immunized with H15 that did not develop HAV neutralizing antibodies contained antibodies reactive with the HAV peptide segment expressed by the H15 virus, indicating substantial differences in the specificities of antibodies elicited by this peptide segment among individual immunized rabbits. The H15 peptide insert was an effective antigen, as indicated by a high level of sensitivity of the H15 chimera to neutralization by a related anti-peptide antibody which was itself devoid of HAV neutralizing activity. One of 16 rabbits immunized with the H2 chimera (residues 101-108 of HAV VP1) developed HAV neutralizing antibodies, confirming both the presence and the highly conformational nature of a neutralization antigenic site involving these residues of HAV.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Respiratory syncytial virus infection reinforces reflex apnea in young lambs.

To evaluate the effect of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection on reflex apnea elicited by application of water on the laryngeal mucosa, 11 healthy, term lambs were chronically instrumented at 2 wk of age. Six lambs were inoculated with bovine RSV, and five lambs were mock-infected. The lambs were studied awake and unsedated before and 4, 8, 14, and 21 d after infection. RSV infection was associated with slight rhinorrhea and with moderately increased tracheal mucous discharge. There was an average increase of 0.5 degrees C in body temperature. Arterial pH, PO2, and PCO2 remained within the normal range. The ventilatory response to laryngeal chemostimulation measured as the percentage of decrease in ventilation from control was significantly (p less than 0.05) larger among the infected animals when compared with controls on d 4 and 8. There were no differences in indices of respiratory drive (airway occlusion pressure and mean inspiratory flow), ventilatory response to hypoxia (0.10 fraction of inspired O2), or hypercarbia (0.03 fraction of inspired O2). We speculate that RSV infection alters the sensitivity of the laryngeal chemoreceptors so that a prolonged or even fatal apnea may result from stimulation of these receptors. These results may be relevant to the pathogenesis of sudden infant death syndrome associated with RSV infection.

Animals↗

Studies on biochemical mechanism of neurotoxicity induced by acrylamide in rats.

The effects of acrylamide on calmodulin (CaM), cAMP, cGMP, Ca2+, Mg(2+)-ATPase and 45Ca2+ uptake in nervous system were determined in Wistar rats (ip, 10 or 50 mg.kg-1 for 12 d). The results indicate that acrylamide caused an alteration in calcium homeostasis in rat brain by decreasing the Ca(2+)-sequestering capacity of microsomes, and this may occur due to an efflux of calcium secondary to a microsomal structure damage. The changes of CaM in nervous system coupled with potential alteration in the intracellular Ca2+ concentration could affect many CaM-dependent enzymes (i.e. Ca2+, Mg(2+)-ATPase) and cyclic AMP system, and CaM or cAMP is known to be "toxicological second messenger" that could initiate neurotoxicity, though more work is needed to elucidate the details of the mechanism.

Acrylamide↗

Air pollution and daily mortality in Shenyang, China.

The authors analyzed daily mortality data in Shenyang, China, for calendar year 1992 to identify possible associations with ambient sulfur dioxide and total suspended particulates. Both total suspended particulate concentrations (mean = 430 microg/m3, maximum = 1,141 microg/m3) and sulfur dioxide concentrations (mean 197 = microg/m3, maximum = 659 microg/m3) far exceeded the World Health Organization's recommended criteria. An average of 45.5 persons died each day. The lagged moving averages of air-pollution levels, calculated as the mean of the nonmissing air-pollution levels of the concurrent and 3 preceding days, were used for all analyses. Locally weighted regression analysis, including temperature, humidity, day of week, and a time variable, showed a positive association between daily mortality and both total suspended particulates and sulfur dioxide. When the authors included total suspended particulates and sulfur dioxide separately in the model, both were highly significant predictors of daily mortality. The risk of all-cause mortality increased by an estimated 1.7% and 2.4% with a 100-microg/m3 concomitant increase in total suspended particulate and sulfur dioxide, respectively. When the authors analyzed mortality separately by cause of death, the association with total suspended particulates was significant for cardiovascular disease (2.1%), but not statistically significant for chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (2.6%). In contrast, the association with sulfur dioxide was significant for chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (7.4%), but not for cardiovascular disease (1.8%). The mortality from cancer was not associated significantly with total suspended particles or with sulfur dioxide. The correlation between sulfur dioxide and total suspended particulates was high (correlation coefficient = .66). When the authors included sulfur dioxide and total suspended particulates simultaneously in the model, the association between total suspended particulates and mortality from all causes and cardiovascular diseases remained significant. Sulfur dioxide was associated significantly with increased mortality from chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and other causes. The results of the current study reveal increased mortality associated with both total suspended particulates and sulfur dioxide.

Air Pollution↗