Common molecular mechanism of the hepatic lesion and the cardiac parasympathetic regulation in chronic hepatitis C infection: a critical role for the muscarinic receptor type 3.

Background: The pathophysiological overlapping between Sjorgen's Syndrome (SS) and HCV, presence of anti- muscarinic receptor type 3 (M3R) antibodies in SS, the role that M3R plays in the regulation of the heart rate, has led to the assumption that cardiovagal dysfunction in HCV patients is caused by anti-M3R antibodies elicited by HCV proteins or by their direct interaction with M3R.

Results: To identify HCV protein which possibly is crossreactive with M3R or which binds to this receptor, we performed the Informational Spectrum Method (ISM) analysis of the HCV proteome. This analysis revealed that NS5A protein represents the most probable interactor of M3R or that this viral protein could elicit antibodies which modulate function of this receptor.

Microarray analysis of shear stressed endothelial cells.

The cDNA microarray is an extremely beneficial tool for study of differential gene expression in the cardiovascular system. This technique is used in many different applications including drug discovery, environmental science, and the effects of mechanical forces on vascular cell phenotype. The paper reviews work by others, and describes our study on effects of shear stress on vascular endothelial cells.