Porphyria cutanea tarda, hepatitis C, uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase and mutations of HFE gene. A case-control study.

Background: Hemochromatosis gene (HFE) mutations and the hepatitis C virus (HCV) are known risk factors for porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT), but interactions with erythrocytic uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase (UROD) have seldom been addressed.

Objective: In order to examine the links between these factors, we conducted a multicentre prospective case-control study.

Methods: PCT patients with (n = 32) or without HCV (n = 28) were matched to HCV+ (n = 32) and HCV- controls (n = 28).

Intravenous delivery of PTH/PTHrP type 1 receptor cDNA to rats decreases heart rate, blood pressure, renal tone, renin angiotensin system, and stress-induced cardiovascular responses.

While parathyroid hormone type 1 receptor (PTH1R)-mediated vasodilatory, cardiac stimulatory, and renin-activating effects of exogenous PTH/PTH-related protein (PTHrP) are acknowledged, interactions of endogenous PTHrP with these systems remain unclear, mainly because the unavailability of viable PTHrP/PTH1R knockout mice. Transgenic mice overexpressing PTH1R in smooth muscle strongly have supported the PTHrP/PTH1R system as a cardiovascular system (CVS) regulator, but the consequences on renovascular (RVS) and renin-angiotensin systems (RAS) have not been explored in these studies. The aim was to develop a model in which one could study the consequences on CVS, RVS, and RAS of generalized PTH1R overexpression.

Differential regulation of collecting duct Na+, K+-ATPase and K+ excretion by furosemide and piretanide: role of bradykinin.

In response to chronic treatment with furosemide, collecting ducts adapt their function to the initial loss of Na+ to prevent further Na+ loss and extracellular volume decrease. This adaptation, which includes the overexpression of Na+, K+-ATPase, is thought to account for most of the kaliuretic effect of furosemide. Because piretanide is reported to be less kaliuretic than equidiuretic doses of furosemide, the authors compared the effects of 1-wk treatment with the two loop diuretics on urinary potassium excretion and on Na+, K+-ATPase activity in the collecting duct.

Oxytocin-induced renin secretion by denervated kidney in anaesthetized rat.

The effects of oxytocin on renin secretion by denervated kidney were investigated in vivo, by infusing the peptide directly into the renal artery of anaesthetized rats. Renin secretion was calculated by the renal veno-arterial difference in plasma renin activity multiplied by renal plasma flow. The intra-renal arterial (i.

Contribution of angiotensin II internalization to intrarenal angiotensin II levels in rats.

This study was designed to determine the involvement of AT(1) receptors in the uptake of ANG II in the kidney of rats exposed to differing salt intake. Male Wistar-Kyoto rats were treated with a normal-salt (NS; 1% NaCl, n = 7) or a low-salt (LS; 0.025% NaCl, n = 7) diet combined with (LS+Los, n = 7; NS+Los, n = 7) or without losartan (30 mg.

Effects of dietary salt changes on renal renin-angiotensin system in rats.

Renin (RA) and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) activities and angiotensinogen, ANG I, and ANG II levels were measured in the kidney (cortex and medulla) and plasma of Wistar-Kyoto rats on a low-sodium (LS; 0.025% NaCl; n = 8), normal-sodium (NS; 1% NaCl; n = 7), or high-sodium (HS; 8% NaCl; n = 7) diet for 21 days. RA, ANG I, and ANG II levels increased in a manner inversely related to sodium content of the diet in both plasma and renal tissues.

Influence of sodium intake on the cardiovascular and renal effects of brain mineralocorticoid receptor blockade in normotensive rats.

Objective: We have previously shown that brain mineralocorticoid receptors (MR) participate in the control of arterial pressure and renal excretory function in normotensive rats. In the present study, we evaluate the influence of sodium intake on the control of cardiovascular and renal function by brain MR in normotensive conscious rats. We hypothesize that modulation of sodium intake affects the cardiovascular and renal effects of brain MR blockade.

Effects of brain mineralocorticoid receptor blockade on blood pressure and renal functions in DOCA-salt hypertension.

In normotensive rats, we have previously demonstrated a role of brain mineralocorticoid receptors in blood pressure and renal function control. In the present study, the coordinate cardiovascular and renal effects of brain mineralocorticoid receptor blockade were examined by intracerebroventricular (i.c.