Hyperammonemia results in reduced muscle function independent of muscle mass.

The mechanism of the nearly universal decreased muscle strength in cirrhosis is not known. We evaluated whether hyperammonemia in cirrhosis causes contractile dysfunction independent of reduced skeletal muscle mass. Maximum grip strength and muscle fatigue response were determined in cirrhotic patients and controls.

In vitro evaluation and in vivo demonstration of a biomimetic, hemocompatible, microfluidic artificial lung.

Despite the promising potential of microfluidic artificial lungs, current designs suffer from short functional lifetimes due to surface chemistry and blood flow patterns that act to reduce hemocompatibility. Here, we present the first microfluidic artificial lung featuring a hemocompatible surface coating and a biomimetic blood path. The polyethylene-glycol (PEG) coated microfluidic lung exhibited a significantly improved in vitro lifetime compared to uncoated controls as well as consistent and significantly improved gas exchange over the entire testing period.

Alterations in lung gene expression in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Background: Diabetes profoundly affects gene expression in organs such as heart, skeletal muscle, kidney and liver, with areas of perturbation including carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, oxidative stress, and protein ubiquitination. Type 1 diabetes impairs lung function, but whether gene expression alterations in the lung parallel those of other tissue types is largely unexplored.

Methods: Lung from a rat model of diabetes mellitus induced by streptozotocin was subjected to gene expression microarray analysis.

Gene expression of sternohyoid and diaphragm muscles in type 2 diabetic rats.

Background: Type 2 diabetes differs from type 1 diabetes in its pathogenesis. Type 1 diabetic diaphragm has altered gene expression which includes lipid and carbohydrate metabolism, ubiquitination and oxidoreductase activity. The objectives of the present study were to assess respiratory muscle gene expression changes in type 2 diabetes and to determine whether they are greater for the diaphragm than an upper airway muscle.

The Effects of K(+) Channel Blockade on Eccentric and Isotonic Twitch and Fatiguing Contractions in situ.

K(+) channel blockers like 3,4-diaminopyridine (DAP) can double isometric muscle force. Functional movements require more complex concentric and eccentric contractions, however the effects of K(+) channel blockade on these types of contractions in situ are unknown. Extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles were stimulated in situ with and without DAP in anesthetized rats and fatigability was addressed using a series of either concentric or eccentric contractions.