Multi-organ embolism caused by oscillating aortic valve vegetation: A case report.

Introduction: Valvular vegetation is often due to rheumatic heart disease and infective endocarditis. However, multi-arterial embolism can happen in older patients with no history of infection, fever, and cardiac symptoms. We describe a case of multi-organ embolism caused by oscillating aortal valve vegetation.

Lower limb vein thrombosis-induced pulmonary embolism and paradoxical multiple arterial embolisms: A case report with a 10-year follow-up.

Introduction: Paradoxical embolism (PDE) refers to direct passage of venous thrombi into the arterial circulation through an arteriovenous shunt. It is well-known that the pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) can cause opening of the foramen ovale leading to paradoxical arterial embolism. Long term follow up of PDE patient over 10 years was not reported in the literature.

Ca2+-dependent activator protein for secretion 1 is critical for constitutive and regulated exocytosis but not for loading of transmitters into dense core vesicles.

Although CAPS1 was originally identified as a soluble factor that reconstitutes Ca(2+)-dependent secretion from permeabilized neuroendocrine cells, its exact function in intact mammalian cells remains controversial. Here we investigate the role for CAPS1 by generating stable cell lines in which CAPS1 is strongly down-regulated. In these cells, Ca(2+)-dependent secretion was strongly reduced not only of catecholamine but also of a transfected neuropeptide.

RalA and RalB function as the critical GTP sensors for GTP-dependent exocytosis.

Although it has been established that the activation of GTPases by non-hydrolyzable GTP stimulates neurotransmitter release from many different secretory cell types, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In the present study we aimed to elucidate the functional role(s) for endogenous Ras-like protein A (RalA) and RalB GTPases in GTP-dependent exocytosis. For this purpose stable neuroendocrine pheochromocytoma 12 (PC12) cell lines were generated in which the expressions of both RalA and RalB were strongly downregulated.